The Yarra Valley is one of the most celebrated wine regions in Australia, and makes an easy day trip from Melbourne. If you haven’t experienced Australia’s wine country before, the Yarra Valley is a great place to start! There are more than 70 wineries in the region, dozens of which have cellar doors (tasting rooms) which are open to the public. The Yarra Valley is also home to several excellent restaurants, many at wineries, as well as the lovely Yarra Valley Dairy which is an essential stop if you’re a cheesehead (like me!). When I lived in Melbourne, I used to love getting out of town for the day with my boyfriend or with friends, and finding new wineries to try – I never left empty handed!

About Yarra Valley wine

The Yarra Valley is a cool climate wine region, and is well known for classic and elegant old world styles. A majority of Yarra Valley wine is chardonnay, sparkling wine or pinot noir, but cabernet sauvignon is also important. Unlike traditional oaky, buttery styles of chardonnay, in the Yarra Valley chardonnay tends to be leaner, more acidic and more like a Burgundy. Most wineries in the Yarra Valley are clustered around the towns of Coldstream, Healesville and Yarra Glen.

Planning your day in the Yarra Valley

The best way to plan a day trip to the Yarra Valley is to pick a winery or two that you really want to visit, and then use this Yarra Valley touring map to pick one or two other wineries nearby. David and I have visited several times, driving from Melbourne. We’d start with one tasting, stop for lunch somewhere and then do one more tasting on the way home, taking our time to ensure that my boyfriend was well under the blood alcohol limit. If you’d prefer, you can take a bus tour of the Yarra Valley from Melbourne.

Dominique Portet

Ninth-generation winemaker Dominique Portet hails from Bordeaux, but has been operating his eponymous winery in Coldstream in the Yarra Valley since 2000. Dominique Portet is best known for their award-winning rose, which is best enjoyed on a deck chair on their terrace, basking in the sunshine.

De Bortoli

De Bortoli‘s ethos centres on wine, food and family & friends. Leanne DeBortoli is the third-generation of the DeBortoli family wine business, which was founded by Italian immigrants Vittorio and Giuseppina DeBortoli. DeBortoli is known for it’s award-winning and internationally recognised dessert wine Noble One (even if you’re not a dessert wine fan, you have to try it!) and for it’s accessible yet premium range of Italian-style wines. With the family’s longstanding history in the region, DeBortoli is one of the most loved Yarra Valley wineries.

I love their cellar door tasting experience – you can match your tastings with  local cheese, and they are generous with the range of wines to taste on offer. Their onsite restaurant offers an Italian menu and spectacular views over their beautiful vineyard, make sure you book a table in advance to secure a spot.

Domaine Chandon

Part of the Moet & Chandon empire, Domaine Chandon is one of the most popular wineries in the Yarra Valley. The wines produced here are Australian sparkling, under the label Chandon, rather than Moet & Chandon Champagne, which is only made in France. The Yarra Valley is renowned for the quality of its sparkling grapes so it is fitting that one of the world’s most popular Champagne producers opened a vineyard here in 1986. The setting at Chandon is particularly beautiful, because of the hazy blue Dandenongs in the background, which pop against the vineyards – especially in autumn when the vines are golden.

Chandon has a beautifully renovated tasting room, but due to the vineyard’s popularity it can get very crowded on weekends. I strongly recommend arriving right after opening, as I did on my second visit to the winery. It was much more pleasant, as we had the tasting bench to ourself, the full attention of the Chandon ambassador who was a treasure trove of wine knowledge, and it was very peaceful on the patio, where we sat afterwards with a glass of wine and some cheese.

TarraWarra Estate

TarraWarra is one of the most beautiful wineries in the Yarra Valley.  I love the cave-like subterranean cellar door, and the beautiful setting on lush Yarra Valley farmland with views over the rolling hills and a lake from the estate. I haven’t eaten at the onsite restaurant, but it would be perfect for a special occasion. TarraWarra is also home to the TarraWarra Museum of Art, which showcases Australian art from the second half of the twentieth century to the present day.

Pimpernal Vineyards

A little off the beaten track in the Yarra Valley, Pimpernal Vineyards is a small, family-run cellar door that packs a punch. The vignerons use traditional winemaking techniques and viticulture is carried out by hand rather than using machines. Wine is bottled, labelled and cellared for at least a year, onsite, to ensure that every wine is ready to drink by the time it reaches consumers.

Tokar Estate

The Italianate cellar door and restaurant at Tokar Estate looks like it’s been plucked straight out of Tuscany and dropped in the Yarra Valley.  Tokar Estate is a family-owned winery, and is renowned for both its warm hospitality and for it’s signature Tempranillo.

Coombe Yarra Valley

Coombe is one of the grandest Yarra Valley wineries, and is the former property of legendary Australian opera singer Dame Nellie Melba. Hidden behind towering, manicured hedges, Coombe Estate has an elegant cellar door and extensive tasting menu.

Coldstream Hills

Founded by Australia’s most distinguished wine writer and author of the Halliday Wine Companion, James Halliday, Coldstream Hills comes with a pedigree. The cellar door is small and unassuming, but it’s an essential Yarra Valley winery for any wine geek.

What is your favourite winery in the Yarra Valley? What’s your favourite wine region in the world? Let me know in the comments!