The Hunter Valley is the most important winegrowing area in the state of New South Wales. The low, rolling fields in the shadow of the Brokenback Range account for less than two per cent of Australia’s wine output, yet in spite of a notoriously difficult climate, the Hunter consistently produces wines of remarkable finesse and longevity. The Hunter’s traditional strengths are Semillon and Shiraz wines, which is sometimes labelled Hermitage. The region also produces excellent wines from Chardonnay grapes.

There are about 70 wineries in the major wine-producing region known as the Lower Hunter, and most of these wineries are open for tastings. While the prestige labels of the leading winemakers are essential to any tour of the region, no trip is complete without visiting some of the smaller boutique winemakers.

While a wine tasting tour is an essential part of any visitor’s Hunter Valley itinerary, over the years the region has developed into a full-fledged destination with broad appeal. As well as wines, the Hunter has also emerged as a first-class producer of fine foods. Olives and cold-pressed olive oils and washed rind and white mould cheeses are just some of the diverse foods that are made in the Hunter these days, many of them from small boutique producers. Making the most of the area is easy thanks to the tour operators that have established themselves in the area, offering everything from hot air balloon flights to winery tours in luxury limousines.

Golf is one of the things the Hunter does best. Cypress Lakes Golf and Country Club is a mature, serene beauty. This undulating, championship course is consistently rated in Australia’s top 20, with play that varies from sloping fairways to a links-style layout on the back nine. The Vintage course is another superb course, consistently ranked among the best golf courses in Australia. This is a stern test for any golfer, and the only Greg Norman-designed golf course in the state open to the public.

Close to the winegrowing area are historic country towns with many reminders of the times when they were stagecoach stops on the convict-built road running north from Sydney. Early in the 19th century, the city of Maitland was the commercial centre of the prosperous Hunter River agricultural area, and for a while, Australia’s largest inland town. The city has an attractive historic quarter in Church Street. Grossmann House, one of a matched pair of Victorian Regency mansions, is now maintained by the National Trust in all its Victorian splendour. Just a short distance upstream along the Hunter River, the town of Morpeth was once an important inland trading post for the Hunter River Steam Navigation Company. When the river trade ended in about 1890, the town’s comparative isolation meant that its historic shopfronts, wharves and even the hitching posts along the main street have survived intact.

Just to the north of the Hunter wine region, Barrington Tops National Park is one of the state’s most sensational wilderness regions. This vast, undulating, basalt-capped plateau rises sharply from the surrounding valleys to a height of almost 1,600 metres, a world of gushing streams, waterfalls, frosted forests and soaring cliffs. The region’s high rainfall collects in peat bogs on the top of the plateau which act as giant sponges, providing a habitat for several species of waterfowl and a constant flow of water to feed the Manning, Hunter, Barrington and Gloucester rivers. Racing away from the plateau, these streams fall sharply and its sides are deeply indented with gorges, rapids and waterfalls. This varied terrain also gives Barrington Tops a diverse plant and animal life, from alpine wildflowers that thrive on the wet, chilly heights to subtropical species found in the lowland gullies. Its unique topography, its diversity, its natural beauty and the presence of rare animal species endemic to this area have won the park a place on UNESCO’s World Heritage list.

Hunter Valley