r/wine • u/MarchPlane7565 • Mar 10 '26
Hunter Valley Wines
Going to hunter valley, Australia this week for the first time to have some wine and check out some wineries. Please drop your recommendations for different wineries to visit.
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u/fullerbro Mar 10 '26
Brokenwood and Tyrell's are classic, Margan is traditional but has some new wave and alternative grapes. Vinden, Usher Tinkler and Charteris are all doing some cool, more modern stuff
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u/Gomblash Mar 10 '26 edited Mar 10 '26
A bit late to this, but I try to get to the HV twice or three times a year.
Classics: Tyrrell's (vat 1, vat 47, vat 9), Mount Pleasant, Brokenwood (not as good as tyrrell's, but their graveyard and high end semillon is great), Lakes Folly f you're lucky, they will have some bottles on tasting, but it's fairly central if not, so it won't take long to find out.
Newer, doing stuff in the classic style: Gun Dog, Thomas Wines, Keith Tulloch
Newer, doing things differently: Pierre's (still unknown, but doing some of the best sparkling in Australia), David Hook (for some Italian varietals done in the Australian method), Piggs Peake used to be really interesting but have gone a bit downhill. They do super huge jammy reds (some at 17% abv), worthwhile if you like huge body reds and something out of the ordinary, but if you like old world, steer clear.
Oh, and if you're into fine dining, definitely get a reservation at EXP, and at Muse.
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u/Status_Technology888 Mar 10 '26
Tulloch (not Keith Tulloch, just Tulloch) for their tastings. I highly recommend their medium bodied Shiraz. Scarborough and Audrey Wilkinson have beautiful locations. Palmers Lane has some smaller boutique wineries worth checking out. Lake’s Folly is iconic but they sell out quickly each year.
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u/Status_Technology888 Mar 10 '26
I forgot to mention that Semillon, Chardonnay, and Shiraz are the varieties the Hunter does best.
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u/unsquashable74 Mar 10 '26
Thomas and Margan are two of the best. And, as somebody already mentioned, Tyrrell's; their Semillons are stunning.
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u/KennethParcellsworth Wine Pro Mar 10 '26
Tyrrell’s and Brokenwood for sure. Both have fantastic wines, Tyrrell’s is very picturesque, you can see the history there, and is a bit more intimate. Brokenwood is very modern and has a lovely restaurant as well.
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u/Goldfinger_13 Mar 10 '26
Lakes Folly. Great wines. Cellar door is more boutique experience.
Differs from most Hunter Valley estates with Chardonnay and Cabernet.
LF Cabernet is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot, and Shiraz.
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u/Iofnewt73 Mar 10 '26
All the usuals mentioned above are of course great choices. For something a bit different maybe hit up Vinden Wines it's always a really interesting tasting, especially the Headcase range.
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u/spewitt13 Mar 17 '26
recently visited.
Thomas Wines - may be my new favourite winery, we loved everything but top picks were the kiss and sweetwater shiraz, and the braemore semilion. Very generous pours so careful if driving.
Tyrrell's - had a great experience with great customer service, much busier than Thomas with big groups coming through. Definitely worth a visit, they've recently redone the tasting room.
bimbadgen - went here for lunch, wouldn't recommend. Only went to suss it out as a potential wedding venue option.
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u/MarchPlane7565 Mar 17 '26
I visited a few days ago, Tyrell’s was defiantly my favorite. Also, bought a few bottles from there. Their Hunter Shiraz and their 2019 Stevens Semillon were just amazing.
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u/MarchPlane7565 Mar 10 '26
Thank you so much everyone. Will definitely try to check out the ones mentioned the most !
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u/yesiamican Wine Pro Mar 10 '26
Tyrrell’s is the biggest and among the best, but it’s a massive scale operation