Are you scratching your head and wondering what kind of fun, school holiday activities Melbourne has to offer your kids? Or what to do during this wintry mid-year break? Why not make a trip out to the Yarra Valley!Â
Only 15 minutes from Lilydale, located in the serenity of the Yarra Valley, Rochford Wines is here to treat the entire family! These winter school holidays, *children under 12 dine with us for free! This special school holiday promotion will run from Monday June 28 until Friday 9 July at Isabella’s Restaurant and il Vigneto Pizzeria; both located on-site at Rochford Wines.Â
There’s never been a better time to book a day trip (or two!) to Rochford Wines these holidays. With rolling hills, fresh air and plenty of space to roam, there is something for everyone to enjoy at Rochford.
Isabella’s Restaurant’s French-Mediterranean cuisine may be more appealing to the grown ups, but there is something to please every child in the kids’ menu prepared by head chef (and dad) Raki Andriana. With kids eating for free, how could you possibly pass up this fantastic offer?
Il Vigneto Pizzeria Pizza, Pasta and all things Italian is the busy parent’s dream! Still, we also know that our littlest customers won’t go past a slice or two. Luckily enough, you can give them just that this mid-year break, with a *FREE meal for children under 12 – better yet, they won’t be stealing yours!Â
Rochford Wines is well-known as the ultimate Yarra Valley family destination for creating unforgettable moments through sharing food and wine.
This offer will run throughout the Victorian school holidays, from Monday June 28 – Friday July 9, at Isabella’s Restaurant and Il Vigneto Pizzeria in Coldstream, Victoria. *Children under 12 years of age can claim one free main course at either venue.
Join us for an exclusive behind-the-scenes experience with Chief Winemaker Kaspar Hermann and Cellar Door Manager John Bright.
These four individual and distinctive Single Vineyard Release Experiences are the perfect opportunity for a lover of wines to understand more about the terroir of specific single vineyard sites and the wines that come from these totally unique Yarra Valley vineyards.
This half day wine journey also includes a 2-course lunch in our Isabella’s Restaurant featuring the best in local seasonal produce all perfectly matched with 3 of the latest release wines from the Vineyard of the Day to enjoy with lunch.
For more information or to make a booking, please email linsey@rochfordwines.com.au or call (03) 5957 3333.
Saturday July 10th – Upper Yarra Valley. Think Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from our ‘Dans les Bois’, ‘Terre’ and ‘Premier’ ranges and you are there. Fragrant, distinctive and elegant.
Saturday August 7th – Rochford Hill Road Vineyard, Coldstream. This special day is for the red wine lovers – we will have our highly anticipated new release ‘L’Enfant Unique Pinot Noir 2019, Premier Pinot Noir 2019 and the first showing of a new wine in our Single Vineyard family – the Hill Road Syrah 2019.
Saturday August 23rd – Isabella’s Vineyard, Gruyere. This vineyard boasts our oldest vines and this will be a showcase of elite, cool climate Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon.
Saturday September 4th – Toolangi Vineyard, Dixons Creek. It is all about site with these wines. These are our best of the best of Toolangi with different vintages on offer from the Toolangi E Block Chardonnay, Toolangi F Block Pinot Noir and Toolangi D Block Shiraz.
Gather your friends to come along for this all-inclusive price for an intimate, one off experience. Price is $120 per person.Â
Maximum guests per day is 16 people.
The Vineyard of the Day overview:
11.00am – Meet John in cellar door for tea or coffee and pastries on arrival
11.30am – Head out to the Barrel Hall to meet Kaspar and explore the 2021 vintages and taste the matching current new releases.
12.30pm – Parallel back vintage tasting with John
1.00pm – Two course lunch featuring the best seasonal produce at Isabella’s Restaurant at Rochford Wines accompanied by matching wines from our new releases
T&Cs: Nonslip footwear essential. Dress warmly and be prepared for inclement weather. Please advise of any dietary requirements upon booking.
To celebrate the release of our latest vintage of Estate Blanc de Blanc, we’re talking all things sparkling.
There’s nothing quite like a bottle of bubbles and fortunately Australia does them darn well. The Yarra Valley, which we call home, is one of the country’s premier sparkling regions, with its weather patterns showing many similarities to northeastern France. It averages an annual rainfall of 750–950mm and while it does get warm during the summer season, the temperature drops off very quickly before harvest. This allows the traditional sparkling grape varieties of pinot noir and chardonnay to really thrive and become wines with those hallmark tart and acidic notes we know and love.
When it comes to sparkling, the cardinal rule is that a wine can only be called Champagne if it’s from the Champagne region, though you’ll see other classifications while shopping for bubbly including blanc de noir and blanc de blanc. Literally translated as ‘white from black’, blanc de noir sparkling is made with pinot noir and/or pinot meunier grapes, and blanc de blanc, as you may well guess, is the opposite: sparkling made with only light-skinned grapes, typically 100% chardonnay.Â
The use of these grape varietals means that while the sparkling wine may wind up looking similar in colour, there is a distinct difference in the taste of a blanc de noir and a blanc de blanc. Generally speaking, a blanc de blanc will be lighter and drier, and have obvious citrus and mineral characteristics, while a blanc de noir will showcase bolder flavours and have slightly more body. And while we love all sparkling (especially when we’re in the mood to celebrate), we’re particularly fond of blanc de blanc as an aperitif with oysters, caviar or smoked salmon. Now that’s something to cheers to.
Ever struggle to make up your mind between a glass of wine or a refreshing gin on the rocks? Well, grapple no more because you can have the best of both worlds in one glass. To celebrate World Gin Day (12th June), we’re diving into the world of wine-infused gin, an exciting new subcategory shaking up the spirit industry. But first, let’s take a quick history lesson, and discover where and when gin has its origins, and who we should be thanking for its existence!
Gin’s honourable beginningsÂ
As is the case with most of our favourite spirits, gin was first consumed as a medicinal liquor, made by monks and alchemists across Europe way back in the Middle Ages. Ancient texts say Benedictine monks in Salerno, Southern Italy, were the first to pick juniper from the trees surrounding their monastery and combine it with distilled alcohol to create powerful tonics for healing.
Juniper had been an essential part of doctors’ kits for centuries, and apothecaries utilised it for all manner of ills like coughs, colds, pains, ruptures, and even to protect from the Black Death. Fast forward to the 1600s and the Dutch were producing gin in earnest in Amsterdam, for more recreational purposes. When British soldiers landed on their soil during the Thirty Years War and got a hold of it, it didn’t take long for gin production to spread to England, where it took off with such vigour there was a span of 40 years known as ‘The Gin Craze’.
And the addition of gin’s frequent companion, tonic? In tropical British colonies, the only effective anti-malarial treatment available was quinine, which was dissolved in carbonated water to form a tonic. It had an awfully bitter taste, so herbaceous gin was added to mask the flavour, and the G&T was born.
What makes gin, gin?
Like vodka, gin is made by distilling grain, but the thing that turns it from a neutral spirit into gin is the addition of juniper berries, which are responsible for it’s classic piney smell and taste. The juniper must remain the predominant flavour for gin to be classified as such.
That’s where the rules end though, and the art of gin making really begins. Other natural botanicals are used during the secondary distillation process to produce hundreds of different result,. hence the variations in taste among gin brands and bottles. And now, wine has been added to that list of flavourings too!
Meet the Rochford gins
We love the way that the boundaries of gin production are currently being pushed, and wanted to get in on the action. So with a helping hand from the talented team at Healesville’s Alchemy Distillers, we created three styles of gin infused with Rochford wine: chardonnay, pinot noir and shiraz. Each bottle is 40% alcohol, and has distinct characteristics expressing the essence of each wine clearly.
Our Chardonnay Gin is bright, crisp and clean. It was infused with our chardonnay and has classic notes of white grapefruit, coriander seed, cinnamon and almonds supported by a subtle oak. Our Shiraz Gin, on the other hand, has a warming, winter aroma of spiced plums, cherries, clove and cinnamon. Earthy tones from our Shiraz are balanced with the addition of cloves and orange, amongst other botanicals.
Sitting pretty between the Chardonnay and Shiraz is the Pinot Noir Gin. This one is juniper heavy, with woody botanicals of aniseed, cinnamon and angelica root. On the nose, this gin brings flavours of raisins, cherries and pine needles with deep rich fruit aromas.
These flavourful spirits are rounded enough to enjoy neat or on the rocks, but you can also match with your favourite tonic, or mix into a cocktail for a special treat. And while wine will always be our first love, there’s plenty of room in our hearts for fun and exciting new drinks, so we’re embracing gin with open arms.
