At two to three hours from Melbourne (depending on which corner you’re aiming for), the Pyrenees remains one of Victoria’s most under-discovered wine regions – which is a bit of a surprise when you consider the stature of some of the wines coming from here.  The Pyrenees is best known for its striking Cabernet Sauvignon (you can almost think of it as Victoria’s answer to Coonawarra), but it also produces notably balanced Shiraz and Chardonnay, and can coax magic from less common varietals like Cabernet Franc and Malbec. And probably because it is less touristed, the cellar door experiences to be had here are the stuff of wine hunting dreams.  Want to spend an hour trying wines with the winemaker?  The Pyrenees is the sort of region where that can still happen (particularly at the smaller cellar doors) – we had two such experiences on a recent weekend visit.

We highly recommend you take the time to explore the Pyrenees.  The investment will pay generous wine dividends.  It’s good fun to spend a weekend in Ballarat and make day trips into the Pyrenees.  (And if you haven’t been to Ballarat recently, its burgeoning high end culinary scene is amazing – almost like Hobart North; you won’t believe it!)  There are many incredible wineries in the Pyrenees, below are a few we strongly endorse: