‘Top 10 Food and Wine Events in Central NSW – Winter and Spring 2014’

Central NSW’s food and wine calendar is brimming with authentic and tasty ways to spend a long weekend in the country. Don your gumboots for a truffle hunt, learn to cook venison in a farm-house kitchen, try bush-tucker over smoky camp fires or join a wine-show dinner.

 

It all begins just 2.5 hours’ drive from Sydney in a region that offers a rich cultural heritage, magnificent landscapes and beautiful places to stay.

 

Central NSW is one of Australia’s biggest food and wine bowls with award-winning producers, wine-makers, restaurants, cafes and farmers markets. It includes Bathurst, Orange, Mudgee, Parkes, Cowra and Forbes.

 

To plan your stay, Central NSW Tourism has released a list of its top 10 food and wine events coming up this Winter and Spring.

 

‘Top 10 food and wine events’ in Central NSW

 

1. Small Acres Cyder Tasting Lunch (Orange) 22 June, 20 July, 17 August, 21 September, 19 October. The first producers of cider in the region are famed for their ‘appscato sparkling’ and once a month you can enjoy special event lunches at the cider house with homemade Normandy chicken pie and a guided tasting of their range. www.smallacrescyder.com.au

 

2. Mandagery Creek Venison Farm Kitchen (Orange) 14 June, 12 July, 9 August, 26 October. Take a tour of the venison farm, learn how the produce is used in a cooking demonstration and enjoy a relaxed three-course lunch. The farm kitchen is set in a garden surrounded by pine forest and paddocks, there is no nicer place to enjoy Orange’s fine produce. www.mandagerycreek.com.au

 

3. Neila’s Hands-on-workshops (Cowra) 28 June, 27 July, 30 August, 27 September.

Nestled amongst Cowra’s history is a one-chef hatted restaurant (SMH Guide 2014) renowned for its local produce. Book a hands-on workshop with recipes and lunch including their signature pasta making studded with black sesame seeds. www.neila.com.au

 

4. Cooking Classes at Bishops Court Estate (Bathurst) most Mondays.

Stay at this historic boutique hotel and join culinary host Christine for regular cooking classes in the kitchen followed by a candle-lit dinner in the chapel. There’s something for everyone from the Asian themed ‘Spice it up’ to fast dinners with flair in ‘Secret women’s business’. www.bishopscourtestate.com.au

 

5. The Cowra Wine Show Weekend (Cowra) 25-27 July

A smorgasbord of events from Lachlan Valley producers includes gourmet markets, master-classes, organic winery tours, dining events and a public tasting.www.cowratourism.com.au

 

6. Borrodell Vineyard Black Tie and Gumboots Truffle Hunt and Dinner (Orange) 19 July. A stunning vineyard setting with valley views is home to Sisters Rock restaurant, 150 types of heritage apples, premium accommodation and the annual Black Tie and Gumboots Truffle Hunt and Dinner. Don your boots and hunt for truffles with the dogs then enjoy a five-course dinner with entertainment.www.borrodell.com.au

 

7. Trundle’s Bush Tucker Day (Parkes) 6-7 September

Bond with the vibrant Trundle community over smoky camp fires, cook outdoors and taste bush-tucker straight from the land. Fun games include the Billy Boil Sprint and the Damper Throw. Trundle is 55km NW of Parkes.www.parkes.nsw.gov.au

 

8. NSW Small Winemakers Show (Forbes) 25-29 August. A celebration for small winemakers that crush no more than 500 tonnes annually, this event has been held in Forbes for 25 years. The public tasting is on 29 August and cost $25 for canapés and tastings from around 100 NSW vineyards.www.nswwineshow.com.au

 

9. Mudgee Food and Wine Festival (Mudgee) 12 September to 5 October

At the top of the menu in this month-long festival is ‘Top of the Plate’, a new event that features around 30 cafes, wineries and restaurants plating up some extraordinary dishes using local produce. This is a delicious way to try the cheese, olives, nuts, saffron, chocolate and huge variety from Mudgee’s Fine Foods producers. www.mudgeefinefoods.com.au

 

10. Orange Wine Festival (Orange) 17 October to 2 November

Orange’s biggest food and wine celebration includes degustation dinners, a night market, tastings with wine-makers and special events in this historic town’s restaurants, wine-bars, cafes and venues. www.tasteorange.com.au

 

Accommodation in Central NSW is available in eco-suites, historic properties, self-contained cottages or boutique hotels.

 

Central NSW is just a click away, for more information and travel deals go to www.centralnswtourism.com.au

Bastille Day Feast at Albert St Food & Wine

Chef Jason Rodwell will bring his love of regional French cuisine to Albert St Food & Wine with an extravagant hunter-themed Bastille Day feast.

 

The French-inspired dinner will take place on Sunday 13^th July at 12.30pm.  from 6.30pm to 10pm at a cost of $75 per person.

 

Inspired by his travels through regional France, Rodwell will present guests with a magnificent red wine-marinated boar, the perfect reward for a hunter after a tough day trawling French forests.

 

The beast – complete with apple in its mouth – will be immersed in Côtes du Rhône wine, juniper berries and bay leaves for three days prior to the event. The boar will be served with handmade buckwheat crozets, a type of pasta that is a specialty of the Savoie region, and a sauce made from Cacao Barry single origin chocolate.

 

During his stint in France, Rodwell worked as a chef at Michelin-starred restaurant Auberge du Bon Laboureur in the Loire Valley and Chalet Le Torrent in the Savoie. While living in France, Rodwell developed his passion for rural earthy flavours and spent many enjoyable hours sampling village produce and exploring the wine regions.

 

Before the mouth-watering boar is served on Bastille Day, Rodwell will showcase his culinary prowess with a selection of hors d’oeuvres and starters, including hare and foie gras royale, terrine de chasseur and raclette cheese from Australia.

 

To conclude the soirée L’Artisan’s The Authentic cheese washed in-house with Chablis will be served along with a dessert of poached pears and hazelnuts, with a warm waffle and salted caramel ice cream.

Accompanied by matching Champagne and other French wines at an additional cost, Albert St Food & Wine’s Bastille Day rendezvous will be sure to ignite the Francophile in us all.

 

About Albert St Food & Wine:

 

Albert St Food & Wine is a restaurant, wine bar and wine store housed in a former bank building in the heart of Brunswick’s Sydney Rd precinct.

 

Jason Rodwell’s innovative contemporary European cuisine focuses on organic and local produce emphasising the “paddock to plate” philosophy. Jason has been driving the team at Albert St Food & Wine since its inauguration in 2011. The team has received multiple accolades including two consecutive Chef Hats in The Age Good Food Guide, a rating in the Australian Gourmet Traveller Top 100, and was awarded Best Dish at the past two Taste of Melbourne events.

 

For bookings please contact:

Albert St Food & Wine
382 Sydney Rd, Brunswick VIC 3056

03 8354 6600

www.albertst.com.au