Some people are under the misapprehension that the fantastic Hunter Valley is the only wine region in New South Wales. Admittedly the Hunter Valley is the oldest and most distinguished of all the NSW wine growing areas there are actually fourteen.
If you do wish to take a wine tour of the Hunter Valley then Travel Safe Bus Hire offer some first class winery tour packages that include great cellar doors as well as local food producers.
The New South Wales Wine Regions
There are fourteen wine regions in NSW, some are well established and other fairly new but all make up to a fabulous wine experience in this great part of Australia.
Canberra District, Gundagai, Cowra, Mudgee, Hunter Valley, Hastings River, Tumbarumba, New England, Orange, Riverina, Perricoota, Southern Highlands and Shoalhaven Coast.
New England is the most northerly of the regions and is most noted for producing Riesling, if you prefer sturdy robust reds then the Shiraz of the Canberra District and Gundagai are well worth a visit.
Interesting Facts About NSW Wine
- The first vines planted in Australia were at Sydney Cove.
- The two most popular wine varieties Shiraz and Chardonnay first started in NSW.
- NSW is Australia’s second largest wine producing state.
- NSW is home to 7 of Australia’s top 20 wine exporters – McGuigan, Nugan Estate, McWillams, Warburn, De Bortoli, Casella and Bereton.
- NSW is home to over 329 cellar doors.
Things to do in NSW Wine Regions
The most obvious thing to do in the NSW fourteen wine districts is to visit the cellar doors, and indeed wine tasting is one of NSW’s most popular visitor attractions.
Food and wine trails have also become massively popular, visitors can take their time visiting farm gates in between their winery stops, and many of the cellar doors now offer food and wine matchings with carefully selected wines to go with locally made produce such as cheese.
Farmers Markets are also very popular in NSW and they follow a philosophy from all the local producers to provide seasonal produce. Visiting the markets or the farm gates you can sample everything from exquisite cheeses, rich olive oils, truffles and plump olives to name just a select few.
NSW has a very temperate climate with plenty of sunshine, this lends itself to dining al fresco, and there are plenty of outdoor eateries open all year round. Sydney itself has a plethora of pavement cafes and rooftop restaurants and hidden in the suburbs are fantastic street food venues and magnificent gourmet food vans.
Some of the best eat streets are to be found in Newtown, Surry Hills, Chippendale and Potts Point. There you will find some great eclectic cafes and bijou eateries serving up some creative seasonal food.
New South Wales is a great place to visit especially if you enjoy wine, the fourteen different wine producing locations offer so much to the visitor including the magnificent wines.