The Luxury Travel Magazine
The Luxury Travel Magazine
Beau Monde Magazine Explores Australia’s Yarra Valley and De Bortoli Wine with a world-class cellar door, restaurant, and beautiful vineyards to explore
The Yarra Valley is Australia’s wine country ground zero and produces some of the finest Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in the world. At the close of World War I, many Italian families emigrated to Australia and brought their love of wine and knowledge of winemaking with them. One such family is the De Bortoli family who are among the first family of Australian winemakers.
In 1928, Vittorio De Bortoli emigrated to Australia with nary a dollar in his pocket and began successfully producing wines in New South Wales. Winemaking in Australia is typically a family affair and multi-generational, so it was the next generation that expanded into the Yarra Valley where the De Bortoli wines now have 600 acres under vine. The family also produces additional wine varieties in other parts of Australia including King and Hunter Valleys and Heathcote. Today the family tradition continues with the third generation that has expanded the wine experience with their exquisite cellar door experience. The De Bortoli Cellar Door at Yarra Valley is one of the top in Australia offering an exceptional cellar door tasting experience as well as a fine culinary experience. The environment rivals your favorite wine tours in Tuscany or Bordeaux with spectacular scenery of the rolling hills of the vineyards, countryside and mountain ranges beyond.
The love of wine is what draws guests to De Bortoli and the experience is on center stage in their cellar door. The enthusiasm for wine is contagious as their cellar door staff are eager to share the De Bortoli wine history as well as their knowledge and love of their extensive selection of wines with guests. Visitors sniff, swirl, and sip while carefully watching the wine steward serenade them with the tasting notes, details, and nuances of each of the wines savored.
De Bortoli is one of the larger wine producers in Italy so there is an extensive offering of wines to sample from Yarra Valley Estate Grown and Single Vineyard labels including Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Riesling and Syrah. There are several wine experiences including educational and private tasting for the aficionado.
The De Bortoli Yarra Valley Cellar Door is quite large and well laid out. On one side, there is an area dedicated to the extensive offering of artisan food from across the valley. In particular, they have a full-on cheese experience which is an exception to what you’ll find in most cellar door experiences. They have a wide variety of cheeses, all produced locally or on-site where guests enjoy not only a wine tasting but a wine and cheese pairing as well. It’s really quite the trill for the nose as well as the palate as the staff educates, shares, and allows visitors to experience the nuances of which types of wines go best with a particular cheese.
The De Bortoli experience is about families and friends sharing good times, food and of course wine. That is particularly true at their cellar door restaurant. There, groups of friends dine on long tables as glasses clink and steaming plates are served. The dining experience is exquisite with well-prepared gourmet Italian cuisine with pasta handmade each day.
Of course, the wines are the star of the meal. In fact, the grapes from the pinot noirs are harvested from the vines that one can see from their table in the stunning landscapes surrounding the venue. It’s the perfect way to spend the day, exploring the beauty of the wine region, tasting wines at the cellar door, and then indulging in a wonderful Italian meal with friends.
