The must-do highlights of Mudgee in three days

Ever the bucolic charmer, Mudgee has been quietly honing its artistic and culinary credentials over the last decade. Its wine scene continues to go from strength to strength – nowadays you’re as likely to discover a delicate European-style drop or something unfiltered and unfined along the cellar door trail as you are a big boozy Mudgee shiraz.

Its talent pool and innovative spirit goes beyond the vineyards, into the kitchens, farms, makers’ stalls, galleries, hotels and farm stays in the town in regional NSW. This three-day itinerary delivers some of the region’s quintessential stops.

DAY ONE

MORNING
Break up the drive from Sydney with a breakfast detour to Lawson’s Black Cockatoo Bakery. This Blue Mountains cult favourite serves organic sourdough and Single O coffee, but the real stars are the Oomite scrolls and sticky pistachio and cardamom morning buns. Our tip: grab a chai-infused canele for the road.

For another quirky detour, aim to roll into Sofala just before midday. Tracing the Turon River, Australia’s oldest surviving gold rush town is a living time capsule.

After completing its short heritage walk, abounding with street art and historic curiosities, head to the Royal Hotel – a no-nonsense regional pub whose walls, decorated in framed news clippings, tell the story of the town.

AFTERNOON

Check in at The Clairfield, a motel-turned-luxe boutique stay. On Friday afternoons, the hotel offers complimentary wine tastings in the lobby, with drops from local winemakers.

Its heated outdoor pool is a goodie – an oasis of Mediterranean whites and eucalyptus-striped umbrellas against a backdrop of gums, offering poolside cocktail service via QR code menus.

EVENING

Dinner is at Roth’s Wine Bar and Cellar, an atmospheric Market Street staple since 1923, with its own Mudgee-made wine range.

A lively festoon-lit courtyard and barn-style dining space belies its elegant heritage facade; snag a bar stool and order the margherita pizza with a glass of the house-label Grapes of Wrath sangiovese. On Fridays and Saturdays, live cover bands keep punters amped with a set list of pure folk-rock nostalgia.

DAY TWO

MORNING

Fuel up at Gigi’s, The Clairfield’s farm-to-table eatery, where ’nduja scrambled eggs and Seven Miles coffee set a high bar. To explore the vines responsibly, book luxury car service Mudgee Rides for a private half-day tour.

First stop: Old Wheels Grind for hot cinnamon doughnuts served fresh from a vintage 1960s Land Rover on the edge of a paddock. Then visit Robert Stein Winery where third-generation winemaker Jacob Stein balances legacy with innovation, producing benchmark rieslings alongside his terrific minimal-intervention Blü Hen range. Leave room for the house-cured charcuterie, made from pigs reared on-site.

AFTERNOON

Stamina permitting, drop into small-batch newcomer McIntosh Estate, a husband-and-wife operation doing great things with Mediterranean varietals, before entering prime picnic territory at Bunnamagoo Estate. It’s owned by the Paspaley Pearl dynasty, so you can browse fine jewellery between sublime sips of reserve range vintage blanc de blanc.

Continue to Mudgee’s most photogenic winery Lowe Family Wine Co, where winemaker David Lowe’s lo-fi organic and biodynamic drops find their perfect match at the reimagined onsite restaurant, Zin Food and Wine House (formerly The Zin House). Trading the marathon-degustation formality for a communal flow, the hatted kitchen team now offers a farm-to-table grazing menu, served in one hit – think locally made salami, seasonal veg fritters, dips and hibachi-licked Grassland chicken, with three wine pairings and optional add-on pasta and cheese courses.

Break up the food and wine love-fest with a visit to The Mudgee Arts Precinct. Set within the $8.1 million newly transformed former Cudgegong Chambers building, it may be one of the town’s best under-the-radar attractions. It features a visitor centre, multiple exhibition spaces, a cafe and – perhaps most excitingly – a climate-controlled storeroom and gallery, which has enabled the Mudgee to loan rare collections from the National Gallery of Australia, as part of a “Sharing the National Collection” pilot program. The current free Pop Art exhibition (until March 15) features original Warhols and Lichtensteins. The exhibition of Archibald Prize finalists (March 20 to May 3) is next in line – it’s an extraordinary showcase, and with none of the usual jostling and pricey entry fees of the big smoke.

EVENING

The pastoral mastery continues at The Barn at Blue Wren Farm, yet another shining proponent of Mudgee’s farm-to-fork movement, set on a sprawling working farm with a cherry orchard, vineyard, and several luxury farms stays. The menu pivots based on what’s good that week; think wholesome serves of roasted cauliflower with rich, smoky romesco or deftly chargrilled pieces of chicken brushed with fresh herb dressing on garlic tahini.

For drinks back in town, The Oriental Hotel – or “Ori” as it’s known – is a classic pub that nails the basics. The drinks list favours local producers, and there’s a surprisingly deep range of gin cocktails and tap spritzes made for balmy summer evenings. If you’re a sucker for craft beer, live music, and excellent beer gardens, visit Brooklyn-themed Three Tails Brewery, recognisable by its striking storefront canopy of lights and bikes. With 21 beers on tap, and flavours ranging from a vanilla-laced raspberry sour to a creamy “Mudgee Mochaccino” dessert stout, there’s something for everyone.

DAY THREE

MORNING

Start at Althea by Zin, Lowe Family Wine Co’s spin-off organic, biodynamic bakery, for Roman-style pizza, flaky pastries and Academy Coffee, best enjoyed in the homely rear courtyard. On the first Sunday of the month, the Markers’ Markets descend on Robertson Park (8.30am-12.30pm) where you can get some face time with the region’s creatives, or pick up some hand-crafted treasures and snacks.

Take the scenic Lue Road route to the village of Rylstone for lunch at an institution, 29 Nine 99 Yum Cha & Tea House. Its famed chef, artist and owner, Na Lan, originally from Xi’an in central China, has transformed part of the historic 19th-century Bridge View Inn into a resplendent art-filled restaurant, shop and exhibition space – the latter bolstered by the vivid abstract works by her artist husband, Reg Buckland. Out-of-towners are known to make the special detour for a taste of Lan’s handmade dumplings, offered as a multi-round chef’s selection with a choice of sweet or savoury bun, and traditional Chinese tea.

AFTERNOON

Then wander Rylstone’s main street, filled with boutiques, cafes, artisan retailers and historic pubs, before making a final stop at family-run cellar door De Beaurepaire Wines. The single-estate vineyard is regeneratively farmed on limestone-rich soils that mirror the terroir of Burgundy, producing elegant, cool-climate French-style varietals with bright, natural acidity.

You could arrange a private guided tasting in a charming 1850s converted heritage stable – likely hosted by a member of the Beaurepaire family – or commandeer a spot on the lawn for a grazing plate and glass of crisp 2023 La Comtesse chardonnay before hitting the road.

THE DETAILS

STAY
The Clairfield Hotel, from $250 a night including parking and Wi-Fi, with access to a heated pool, gym, steam room and on-site wellness spa. Accessible rooms available. 1 Sydney Road, Mudgee. Phone: (02) 6372 1122. See theclairfieldhotel.com.au

MORE
visitmudgeeregion.com.au

The writer travelled as a guest of Mudgee Region Tourism.