Our Guide to the Best Cellar Doors, Vineyards and Dining in the Hunter Valley Wine Region Part 1

Day 1 (Hunter Valley Cellar Doors)

The Hunter Valley vineyards cellar doors are located primarily around the township of Pokolbin and is located 2 1/2 hours (170km) from Sydney or 60 minutes easy drive (80km) from Newcastle Airport. In our case, we decided to take our camper trailer with us on this trip and arrived at the Wine Country Tourist Park just after lunchtime on a Friday afternoon. After quickly setting up the van, we were off for an afternoon of Hunter Valley Cellar Door tasting.

Our first stop for the afternoon was at the charming,  Ivanhoe Wines. The first vines were planted back in 1855 on the steep slopes of Ivanhoe Hill and the vineyard has become one of the most photographed and talked about cellar doors in the Hunter Valley.

We really enjoyed all of their red wines, especially the Premium Boutique Shiraz.

After leaving Ivanhoe, we then took the short drive to Audrey Wilkinson. Their expansive Cellar Door is perched atop a foot hill of the Brokenback Mountain Ranges and is a “must-see” location, due to their stunning 360 degree views of the Hunter valley.

We had pre-booked their 60 minute, “Premium Tasting Experience” which in reality lasted close to 2 hours and included a very knowledgeable wine host guiding us through a showcase of their premium wines.

Our Favourite at wine at Audrey Wilkinson was their 2018 Tempranillo.

Our final Hunter Valley cellar door tasting for the afternoon was at Iron Gate Estate.  We have been coming to Iron Gate Estate for many years and we knew their previous head wine marker, Roger Lilliott very well. As we have always enjoyed their outstanding Semillon and Verdelho wines, we were keen to see what Geoff Broadfield would bring to the winery, as their new chief wine maker.

Apart from the wine, the main draw at Iron Gate Estate is their stunning cellar door. The tasting area is inspired by the grand villas of the Mediterranean and features handcrafted Spanish tiles, iron-bark beams and a cosy fireplace.

We really enjoyed our tastings on their relaxing rear veranda and watching the sun slowly set over their picturesque property and the greater Hunter Valley.

Our recommended wine at Iron Gate Estate is their Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz blend, the 2018 Iron Gate Estate Fénix.

Day 2 – Hunter Valley Cellar Doors Self-Guided Tour

As we have visited the Hunter Valley many times, we decided to break up our two main Hunter Valley cellar door days into a self-guided tour day (This article and video) and an guided tour of the Hunter Valley boutique cellar doors (Our next article and video).

The reason for our self-guided tour was twofold. Firstly, we wanted to revisit a number of wineries that we were already wine members of, to enjoy their “Members Tasting” experiences and we also wanted to visit some of the best Hunter Valley cellar doors that we have never been to before and are unlikely to be included as part of a guided cellar door tour experience.

The day started at 8:00am with breakfast at Fawk Foods Kitchen & Bakery in the Pokolbin Village.

Fawk Foods Kitchen & Bakery was founded by Frank Fawkner, the head chef at the acclaimed EXP. Restaurant and as a result this has become one of the “go to” places for breakfast in the Hunter Valley Vineyards. I ordered their famed “Bacon & Eggs” which was a delectable dish of thick cut bacon, chorizo, mushroom, free range eggs, tomato, potato hash & sourdough.

Karen opted for the Breakfast Bowl that contained quinoa, sweet potato, sautéed asparagus, kale, kale, miso, tahini, poached egg, sauerkraut, seeds & avocado.

We both really enjoyed our meals and highly recommend Fawk Foods Kitchen & Bakery to anyone wanting a substantial breakfast in the Hunter Valley Vineyards.

After finishing breakfast, we still had an hour before our first Hunter Valley Cellar Door would open at 10:00am and decided to take a walk around the charming Pokolbin Village.

In addition to housing Fawk Foods, the village is also home to the popular Pokolbin Chocolate Company and the Hunter Valley Smelly Cheese Shop.

Our first hunter Valley cellar door stop of the day, was our private members tasting at Peterson House.

We have been long time members of Peterson House and like many other travellers, this is usually our first stop when we are visiting the Hunter Valley cellar doors. Located at the main gateway of the Hunter, the picturesque property is home to the largest array of sparkling wines in the region and it is a very civilized way to commence your full day of wine tastings. ​

Their lively Cellar Door boasts over 40 varieties of red and white sparkling wine to taste, and Karen and I love their motto, “Life’s Flat Without Bubbles”.

Our favourite wine at Peterson’s is their Sparkling 2010 Merlot Reserve. It is a very nice way to start the day…

Following our very enjoyable tasting, we were off to our next cellar door stop at Pepper Tree Wines.

The Pepper Tree cellar door is a previous winner of the Hunter Valley Cellar Door of the year award and continues to offer one of the best tasting experiences in the Hunter Valley.

We had pre-booked a “Best of Four Worlds” private tasting in their exclusive tasting room “The Vault”, where we were able to choose 8 of Pepper Tree’s premium single vineyard wines to sample along with some fine local Hunter Valley cheese and olives.

We enjoyed the extensive range of wines on offer and we were really impressed with their excellent selection of premium red wines. We recommend however that you take time to explore this beautiful winery and gardens as it is one of the most stunning cellar doors you will find anywhere in the world.

Our recommendation at Pepper Tree is their gorgeous, “The Gravels” 2015 Shiraz.

Our next Hunter Valley cellar door visit was  Hunters Dream Estate.

However, as often happens on our travels, we noticed a new tasting experience as we were headed to our next winery. The Hunter Distillery uses premium quality organic raw ingredients to produce a range of premium top shelf spirits including Gin, Vodka, Liqueurs and Schnapps.

We really enjoyed their spirits, in particular their aromatic Copperwave gin and their mango liqueur.  

After pulling ourselves away from the distillery, we finally arrived at Hunters Dream Estate.

The story behind this Hunter Valley cellar door is an interesting one, as the founders of this winery are the creators of the renowned health care company, Nature’s Care. In line with the vision of Nature’s Care, this winery and cellar door are both serene and elegant and contains beautiful lavender fields, an oriental display garden, olive groves, fruit orchards, tea trees and commercial bee hives.

Karen and I love their philosophy of, “Everything we bring to this estate we do so with the intent of enhancing the natural order of things”, and we are pleased that their wines are of a very good quality too.

This vineyard is beautiful and you definitely appreciate what the “corporate support” has provided to the cellar door visitor.

We enjoyed the Hunter’s Dream 2017 Shiraz.

After leaving Hunters Dream, we had a 10 minute drive to our final Hunter Valley cellar door and private members tasting at Ballabourneen.

We have been members and advocates of Ballabourneen Wines since first meeting their award winning winemaker Daniel Binet over a decade ago, and we always look forward to our cellar door members tastings, when we are in the Hunter Valley.

Ballabourneen, (part of Binet Family Wines) is a small producer of an exceptional range of Hunter Valley wines specialising in Chardonnay, Verdelho, Semillion, Moscato and Shiraz varieties.

Their extensive wine tasting list and warm hospitality makes this cellar door a “must do” when visiting the Hunter.

We really enjoy all of the wines offered at this cellar door, but we especially like Domaine de Binet’s Accidental Tourist (Barbera, Grenache & Cabernet blend) and Ballabourneen’s Majors Lane Semillion.