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Visit Melbourne Feature: Mornington Peninsula wine region

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Visit Victoria Feature: Mornington Peninsula Wine Region

Beloved for its pristine beaches and gloriously green hinterland just an hour's drive from Melbourne, the Mornington Peninsula is also home to more than 50 boutique cellar doors and renowned pinot noir.

Meet the peninsula vintners, who'll tell you about their famed pinot noir and celebrated chardonnay, and let you in on the secrets of the newer regional varietals including pinot grigio, pinot gris and shiraz.

Taste different styles on a tour around this compact and diverse region. The peninsula’s climate, topography, land and soil structure combine to create distinct microclimates around the hinterland villages of Red Hill, Main Ridge and Moorooduc, and at coastal spots Merricks, Balnarring and Dromana.

Follow up an afternoon of wine tasting with a memorable meal at celebrated restaurants such as Laura, Ten Minutes By Tractor, Port Phillip Estate, Montalto and Paringa Estate.

Try something a little different: tour the heart of the region's wine country on horseback, visiting wineries and farms along the way for tastings.

Cruise down the peninsula over the Queen's Birthday break in June to join the fun at the Winter Wine Weekend. Pop into local cellar doors in and around Red Hill and taste more than 200 premium wines from some 50 wineries.

To read more, visit the Visit Victoria Website.

 

Lamington X Snickers Bar Recipe by Chef Hayden Ellis

Serves 8, Prep time 4hrs total

You’ll need:
Thermometer
Silicon moulds

Lamington
1L cream                                                          450g dark chocolate 70%
215g sugar                                                        5 whole eggs
150g sugar                                                        8 sheets gelatine, bloomed

1. Melt chocolate on double boiler
2. Bring smaller quantity and a small amount of water to 121°c
3. While sugar is on stove beat the eggs until light and fluffy in a mixer
4. Melt gelatine in a sauce pan gently until a liquid
5. Add the 121° sugar into eggs and add melted bloomed gelatine
6. Mix until just above room temperature
7. Add egg mix to melted chocolate
8. Beat cream and sugar until soft peak then fold into chocolate.
9. Pipe into rectangle moulds and freeze
10. Demould, leave to defrost then coat in shredded coconut

Vanilla Sponge
330g egg whites                                                100g plain flour
7g powdered egg white                                     4g baking powder
170g sugar                                                        ½ tsp vanilla paste
115g water

1. Bring sugar and water to 115°
2. Whisk egg white and powder to soft peak
3.Add sugar and vanilla to the soft whipped egg whites and whisk until room temp
5. Sift baking powder and flour together then fold in, in 3 batches
6. Spread onto 2 separate greased baking paper trays, approx. 5mm thick.
7. Cling film and steam for 13 minutes
8. Freeze, once frozen cut into rectangles, same shape as lamington moulds

Raspberry Gel
200g raspberry puree                                        1tspn raspberry vinegar
50g sugar                                                          2.5g agar agar

1. Place all ingredients in a pan except the agar and bring to a boil
2. Whisk in the agar and continue to whisk for 30 seconds while boiling
3. Pour into a tray and leave to set
4. Once set blitz until smooth in a food processor or with a hand blender.

Beef Caramel

90g rendered beef fat                                        40g stout beer
160g glucose                                                     375g stout beer reduced to 37g
160g sugar                                                        5g dried yeast
5g salt                                                              170g cream
800g beef stock reduced to 80g

1. Heat cream and yeast in pan
2. In another pan bring all other ingredients to 117°, then deglaze with cream
3. Cool in fridge and re heat with a little bit of cream to serve.

Peanut Nougat
500g roasted peanuts, chopped                         220g sugar
65g unsalted butter, melted                              85g honey
110g white chocolate                                       120g glucose
35g water                                                         1 egg white     

1. Separate into 2 pots, honey, sugar, water and glucose
2. Bring 1 pot to 122° and the other to 157°
3. Melt chocolate over double boiler
4. Whisk egg whites with a pinch of salt to stiff peaks in a mixer and add the 122° sugar mix
5. Add the 157° sugar mix to the whites while still mixing
6. Slowly add the butter and keep whisking for 5 minutes, then add melted chocolate
7. Stop the mixer then fold in peanuts and place in a tray and leave to set
8. Once set, roll into balls or cut into desired shapes

To Serve:
1. Spread 1 Tbsp of Beef caramel on the centre of a plate
2. Place vanilla sponge on the plate at one end of the caramel then place the lamington on top
3. Pipe some raspberry gel on top of lamington and a few dots around the plate
4. On the opposite end of the lamington place 2 nougat balls
5. Place a scoop of vanilla ice cream in the centre.
 

Forbes: These 10 Wineries With Outstanding Restaurants

It’s 2023, and most wineries have fairly decent food—some local cheeses, cured meats and often a proper three-course lunch. But some of them are going far and above, installing Michelin-star (or Michelin-caliber) chefs on the premises and letting them run free with their technique and creativity. And of course, the wine pairings are always spot-on. Here, in alphabetical order, are ten of the most interesting right now.

 

Ten Minutes by Tractor, Mornington Peninsula, Australia

Ten Minutes by Tractor is the convergence of wine journeys that began almost 40 years ago with a group of people and vineyards that came together. While southwest Australia has its share of sophisticated wineries, Ten Minutes by Tractor stands out for having an equally sophisticated restaurant. Head chef Hayden Ellis is a Kiwi-born lover of local farming, foraging and worldly flavors. His innovative menu is driven by creating a powerful connection between food, wine and nature.

To read more visit Forbes.

2023 Good Food Guide - Two Hat Award Winner

We are thrilled to have retained our 2 Hats, awarded the Best Wine List in Victoria and named a Finalist for the Best Regional Restaurant in the 2023 Good Food Guide Awards.

We are so incredibly proud of the whole team who helped us during our rebuild and their perseverance throughout the six lockdowns. We'd also like to thank our guests for their continued support over this time.

Good Food described the restaurant as 'An exemplary winery dining room with outstanding views and locally focused tasting menus from chef Hayden Ellis.'

Read more here: https://www.goodfood.com.au/eat-out/good-food-guides/the-age-good-food-guide-awards-2023-full-list-of-hats-20221111-h27sv2

 

 

Australian Wine List Of The Year

Our restaurant was recently awarded as having the best wine list in Australia. Twice! This also included being voted best in Victoria, best Regional, and best wine list ‘by the glass’! A huge honour and truly humbling. Judge Jeni Port described the list as a “love letter to wine if ever there was one”. Our sommelier team are very passionate about curating a wine list that not only has great depth and breadth, but takes the reader on a journey through stories from different regions and wineries – giving some context to their wines.  

 

READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE

Victoria best places to go: The seven highlights of the state, named by the experts

“To mark the resumption of travel following the pandemic shutdown, even as other state and territory borders remain controversially closed, a panel of seven experienced tourism and travel identities was formed asked to name their seven most inspiring wonders of tourism in Victoria…

Respondents, ranging from tourism industry leaders and executives to a leading author and television personality with a love of travel favoured some rugged attractions in our diverse state backyard….

GEOFF MANCHESTER, Intrepid Group co-founder and director

MALLACOOTA A great feeling of isolation, especially following the drive through the Gippsland forests. So many Victorians never venture out east; the Mallacoota Caravan Park is green, spacious and rarely busy and there’s beaches, walking and fishing. See visiteastgippsland.com.au

TEN MINUTES BY TRACTOR RESTAURANT Set in the hills of the Mornington Peninsula near Red Hill this is an intimate space with creative food and an amazing selection of local wine. See tenminutesbytractor.com.au

WALHALLA An 1860’s goldmining town that is now the proverbial ghost town. It feels like it is in the middle of an ancient forest, but the whole area was once denuded of timber, which was used for the gold mining. The cricket ground is spectacular, being the only flat area around. See visitwalhalla.com

MELBOURNE’S FARMERS MARKETS. With so many of us renewing our interest in cooking, sourcing food from individual grower at farmers’ markets adds to the experience. Collingwood Children’s Farm market is in a spectacular location, while the Alphington Market is a practical option held every Sunday. See mfm.com.au

BRIGHT While it is the place in Victoria for autumn colours, it is still a place to visit all year, with snow, on-road and off-road cycling, wineries, restaurants and the Ovens River to laze around in during summer. Great cider at the pub! See visitbright.com.au

GREAT WESTERN. May not sound like a town and there is not much to it, but it has two of Victoria’s best and most historic wineries in Best’s & Seppelt. Best’s often have some very old wine for sale, while Seppelt has its famous drives, the underground cellars with millions of bottles stored. See visitvictoria.com

PENINSULA HOT SPRINGS. This is the type of sustainable tourism development we should replicate around the state. It has grown over the years, but maintains the feel of a small establishment and they have a great focus on the customer experience. See peninsulahotsprings.com

To read more, visit: https://www.traveller.com.au/victoria-best-places-to-go-the-seven-highlights-of-the-state-named-by-the-experts-h1oe94