Life
Hunter Valley Wine & Food Festival 2019
The Hunter Valley Wine & Food Festival is about to kick-off! Yes, over May and June the entire Hunter Valley wine and food industry’s passion and expertise comes together in a host of unique and exciting ways – ready for foodies and wine enthusiasts to get stuck into and to savour.
During the two months of non-stop events, festival guests can experience classic wine and food tastings and cooking masterclasses, through to unique restaurant events, including the highly-anticipated Food Fight. Wine Selectors couldn’t be prouder to be involved as a major sponsor of this year’s event and have picked a handful of highlights that feature a few of the many Hunter Valley wineries we work with. Of course, there are so many more great events to attend – discover them all here.
Our top five highlights:
Hosted at the Crowne Plaza Hunter Valley, this year’s event features four young-gun, high profile Australian chefs, who have all cooked alongside Brett Graham at The Ledbury in London. Chefs, Thomas Boyd (Margan); Troy Crisante (Quay Restaurant); George Mirosevich (Restaurant Mason) and Eilish Maloney, formerly of Saint Peter, will go head-to-head to win the favourite dish of the night, as voted by the guests. Fun and delicious, it is a sell-out every year!! So, get in now and book your spot. Tickets are $195 per head.
When two of life’s greatest pleasures are united, wine and cheese, guests can expect mouth-watering results. Occurring twice daily, guests of this event can experience two of the Hunter Valley's most iconic wines, Lovedale Semillon and Maurice O'Shea Shiraz, alongside the quality produce of The Artisan Cheese Room from Manly. Configured as a three-vintage vertical tasting, the winery’s Cellar Door staff will present a perfectly matched fine cheese selection to each wine. Cost is $75pp, at 10am and 2pm.
Featuring a selection of young and aged Semillon, including Briar Ridge Dairy Hill Semillon 2010, Briar Ridge Stockhausen Semillon 2015, and the Briar Ridge Early Harvest Semillon 2017, guests enjoy a line-up of exquisite Briar Ridge wines to taste alongside a Bento Box of six sushi pieces. This tasting event is perfectly suited as a snack or light-lunch and has proven to be very popular in the past. Bookings are essential and Briar Ridge recommends making your booking a couple of days before. Cost is $25pp from 10am-3pm.
Join winemaker Michael De Iuliis, who was honoured with the title of Hunter Valley Winemaker of the Year in 2015, at 2016’s Hunter Valley Cellar Door of the Year, De Iuliis Wines in Pokolbin. Michael’s Shiraz Masterclass promises to take guests on a journey, from Shiraz’s origins all the way through to its present-day appeal, and features a bracket-tasting of De Iuliis’s highly regarded Shiraz. This event will occur on two Saturdays over the festival, 11 May and 22 June. Cost is $30pp and bookings are essential.
Highly acclaimed and loved by the locals, Muse Restaurant at Hungerford Hill is a contemporary Australian restaurant dedicated to showcasing seasonal and regional produce. During the festival, Muse Restaurant will present 5 Tasting Bites, carefully designed to be paired with Hungerford Hill Wines. With Sparkling wine on arrival, each of the 5 Tasting Bites are enjoyed alongside a matching wine, with flavours, aromas and the history of the wine all up for discussion. Wednesdays to Sundays throughout May and June. Cost $60pp.
We hope to see you there!
So, as the soft winter light over the Brokenback Mountain Range sets in, and the Valley’s restaurants light their fires to serve-up decadent menus, while historic cellar doors pour their more flavoursome and bolder styles of wines, you’re invited to get amongst it and immerse yourself in one of the most passionate wine and food scenes in Australia. Find out more about the 2019 Hunter Valley Wine & Food Event: May-June here.
And don’t forget to book your festival accommodation too!
For news on other fantastic events, click here.