ATTRACTIONS HEATHCOTE VIC

The Bank Heathcote is a building that has been painstakingly restored. It offers immensely appetising meals and beverages in a unique environment. The Bank building is the gourmet centre of Heathcote being the hub of Day Conferences, tourist sorties and adventure activities. It is an ideal venue for touring Club meetings with facilities available for large or small groups. In the recent past, Motor Clubs, Motorbike clubs, environmental and professional groups have used the lanscaped rear gardens to discuss the business of the day. The Bank*Heathcote also offers specific meetingrooms within the building with sophisticated multimedia presentation facilities including VHS Video and DVD with Dolby Digital audio playback.

Uniquely positioned in the main street with a fully functioning winery at the rear, Heathcote Winery Cellar Door and adjacent art gallery are situated in a heritage listed building, a restored miners' produce store built by Thomas Craven in 1854 to cater for the huge influx of gold miners seeking their fortune. Established in 1981, Heathcote Winery specialises in the production of gold medal winning Shiraz. Wines are stamped with their own unique style but are still reflective of the Heathcote region. Premium Shiraz brands are splashed with Viognier to add another layer of elegance to the wines. Heathcote Winery's signature brand, Mail Coach shiraz, is a consistent medal winner. The flagship Curagee Shiraz grown on the famous red Cambrian soil has now developed a strong reputation as one of Heathcote's great single vineyard, handcrafted reds. Heathcote Winery also produces the iconic Slaughter House Paddock shiraz, a genuinely unique full bodied style from some of Heathcote's oldest vines and is a must for those seriously interested in great Heathcote Shiraz. White wine drinkers are also well catered for, with the Winery producing a straight Viognier and for something different, the increasingly popular Cravens Place MCV White, which is blend of Marsanne, Chardonnay and Viognier. Their cellar door is open seven days a week for visitors to enjoy complimentary wine tastings, a range of gourmet produce and gift ware. The Galleria Bistro serves seasonal meals, using local produce. Also on offer are tasting plates, indulgent cakes and desserts prepared by the Galleria Chef. Alfresco dining is available in the relaxed courtyard or you may wish to dine in the art gallery for a more intimate experience featuring exhibitions by regional artists. The Bistro is open from Thursday to Sunday from 11am. Voted 'Best Large Cellar Door' Gourmet Traveller Wine 2013.

Downing Estate Vineyard a family-owned and run business was established in 1995. The vineyard is located in Heathcote, two hours north of Melbourne in Central Victoria. The estate can be found on the corner of Drummonds Lane and Northern Highway, six kilometres from the township of Heathcote. Downing Estate Vineyard produces one hundred per cent estate grown Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Sparkling Shiraz. The vineyard is planted with Shiraz, Cabernet and Merlot, operating on a philosophy of low-yield, high quality fruit driven wines. The vines run north-south on vertical shoot positioning trellis, allowing the new canes to be lifted to gain maximum exposure to the sun. The wine is then matured in barrels for 24 months, allowing the quality of the fruit, tannins, acid and oak sufficient time to fully integrate forming a complex, soft and well-balanced wine. The first wines were produced in 1999 and each vintage has continued to surpass the previous vintage. In 2007 the Downing Estate's 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon, won the "Best Cabernet in Victoria Annual Award" at the Federation Square Wine Awards Downing Estate features very highly in the Australian Wine Companion with wine expert James Halliday giving us a five star rating. We have a wine club known as the "Decanter Club" where members will receive all the latest release dates, wine news and various specials throughout the year. To become a member simply log on to their website and follow the prompts. All wines are available at Downing Estate's cellar door or via mail order. You will also find Downing Estate wines at selected restaurants and retail outlets in Melbourne. Wine tastings are welcome by appointment and they are open on all long weekends.

Greg and Natala Flynn established Flynns Wines with a focus to make individual and premium wines that reflect their vineyard, the vintage season and Heathcote region. Visit them at Flynns Wines and Heathcotean Bistro Cellar Door which is located in the winery and taste their wines, MC Shiraz , Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, Vermentino, Verdelho and Viognier. Customers are invited to join the James Flynn Wine Club, attracting great benefits and extending wine selection to their members only super premium James Flynn Shiraz. To compliment your experience have lunch or afternoon tea at the Heathcotean Bistro attached to Cellar Door. Enjoy a menu created by Natala Flynn from local and home grown ingredients matched to a wine list, including Flynns Wines. The Bistro and courtyard make use of the views overlooking the vineyard, Mount Ida and Mount Camel in the distance. For further information please contact Flynns Wines and Heathcotean Bistro or view their website.

Easily accessible by road, the Heathcote-Graytown National Park is a great place for bushwalks. Mt Ida and Viewing Rock provide views of Heathcote and surrounding areas. If an overnight stay is more your style, pitch a tent at the Dargile picnic ground and wake up to a choir of birds. The park also has a rich history with relics from the gold rush and war era to discover at Graytown. Before you go Conditions can change in parks for many reasons. For the latest information on changes to local conditions, please visit the relevant park page on the Parks Victoria website. Be bushfire ready in the great outdoors. Refer to the Bushfire Safety section on the Parks Victoria website for tips on how to stay safe.

The Sanguine Estate vineyard was established by Tony and Linda Hunter in 1995 and is located on the famous 510 million year old Cambrian earth belt in central Heathcote. Over a decade since the first vines at Sanguine Estate were carefully planted by family and friends, it was established that Tony's Great Great Grandfather, Pietro D'Orsa, had planted a vineyard in a neighbouring region in the late 1800s so it has been in the blood all along! Shiraz is the heart of their vineyard and son Mark Hunter, winemaker and viticulturist, ensures that nature is respected from vine to ferment by hand-picking and pruning the vines, fermenting fruit with its own wild yeasts in small open fermenters and moving wine around the cellars by gravity to avoid the use of pumps, Old Pietro would be at home. They also produce chardonnay, Tempranillo, Rosé and a cabernet blend. The Hunter family, with daughter Jodi at the helm, don't do things by halves. Situated right in the heart of the vineyard, Sanguine Estate's cellar door is impressive to say the least. Guests to the cellar door will always be met by one of the family members and will be 'up close and personal' with the inner sanctum of both the winery and barrel room whilst enjoying complimentary wine tasting. Sanguine Estate have also added some major events to their calendar such as "Heathcote on Show" held the Queens Birthday long weekend in June and the October Heathcote Wine and Food Festival. But most notably is the Sanguine Estate Music Festival held Labour Day long weekend in March and is designed to provide an absolute sensory extravaganza that will keep you enthralled from the moment you arrive to the moment to reluctantly leave.

Come and enjoy the opportunity to taste the greatest French and Australian wines of M Chapoutier Australia. Their cellar door features free tastings of M Chapoutier suite of wines including more than 15 French and 10 Australian wines. Back Vintages available on tasting with some very special wines opened every week end. Educational tasting on the influence of the different Terroirs on the wines. M Chapoutier is one of the most iconic winery in the Rhone Valley and produce some of the greatest French wines such as "Hermitage", "Cote Rotie" and "Chateauneuf du Pape". Twenty years ago, Michel Chapoutier decided to come over and discover the greatest Terroirs of Australia. They currently produce Shiraz, Chardonnay and Riesling across the Australian Pyrenees and in Heathcote where the winery is located. In 1998, true to his pioneering spirit, Michel Chapoutier set out to explore the terroirs of the oldest continent. Michel discovered Victoria's emerging Pyrenees region. In 2009, Michel purchased two neighbouring vineyards Landsborough and Shays Flat to set up the fully owned Tournon Estate. M Chapoutier Australia has now 40 hectares of vines in Pyrenees and Heathcote and a winery and a picturesque cellar door in the town centre of Heathcote, with free tastings of French and Australian wines. The decision to make wines in Australia was fuelled by three main reasons: timing, the chance to explore unique terroirs of the oldest continent and the opportunity to grow ungrafted vines of 19th century clonal selections. M.Chapoutier Tournon Estate provides a fascinating counterpoint to other Australian wines, often possessing more backbone, a little less alcohol and in the Shiraz, more peppery with mineral characters.