Weekender’s Guide to Orange
Nestled between Bathurst and Dubbo, Orange is a wine and food mecca that’s about three-and-a-half hours’ drive from Sydney.
Being in the Central Tablelands of NSW, it is COLD! The climate is cool and this has produced some great cool climate varietals of wine. Like the Hunter Valley, the unique wineries are the star of the show here.
Here's my guide on where to eat, drink, stay and play in Orange if you’re just in town for the weekend. Let’s go!
De Salis winery
EAT
From farmer’s markets to country cafes, there’s plenty of local nosh to feast on here. I haven’t quite eaten my way through Orange yet, but Racine bakery does a mean pastry, and the local pub goes off on a Friday night.
DRINK
We began our self-guided wine tour at Mortimer's Wines, a charming lil’ boutique winery located at the old schoolhouse. They've kept some of the original structures like the kids bathroom block, and cosied up the tasting room an indoor fireplace and cute oak stools.
Being a small and cosy cellar door, the tasting experience was quite intimate, huddled ‘round the fire. Their 2016 Pinot Noir was a stand-out for me — a light red that’s great for easy year-round drinking.
Next we visited De Salis winery, which sits on a hill overlooking the area. Mitchell is the head winemaker at this family-owned winery, and he was incredibly knowledgeable and down to earth. It was $20pp AUD to taste here, and our group of 6 ended up pitching in on one bottle of wine to redeem the tasting fees (bottles are around $100AUD).
Philip Shaw was our next stop, and is probably the most well-known winery in Orange. We opted for the charcuterie paired tasting. Had it been a sunny day, it would've been lovely to stroll around this winery, as it's beautiful. However, the 7 degree forecast forced us to seek refuge in the car ASAP after our tasting.
Our fourth and final stop was Heifer Station, named after the cows that live onsite. They have farm animals (piggies, chickens, ponies), and run some in pop-up teepees! A very cool and novel experience. We left with a few bottles of their red, as well as their rosé.
Teepee tastings at Heifer Station
PLAY
Aside from the wine tasting, there's the Orange Botanic Gardens, Orange Regional Museum, as well as some beaut nature spots in the area.
Federal Falls is a nearby hike with a waterfall. Fourth Crossing picnic area is also a nice trail for a walk.
The Blue Mountains are also on your way to and from Sydney, and is filled with amazing bush walks.
STAY
Compared to other wine regions like nearby Mudgee or the Hunter Valley, Orange has plenty of accommodation at affordable prices.
We stayed in a beautiful heritage 3-bedroom townhouse, about 15 minutes from all the wineries.
Nashdale Lane winery also does onsite glamping accommodation, which looks stunning.
Go forth and explore! But remember to pack warm — it was still snowing at the end of September (spring).