 Celebrate Geelong's premium cool climate wines and regional produce. From The Bellarine and the Surf Coast, across to the Moorabool Valley and surrounds, our wineries invite you to charge your glasses and Toast to the Coast.
The Toast to the Coast festival will be held on Saturday 30 and Sunday 31 October 2010 at various wineries across the Geelong region. Enjoy two days of fun, food, wine and entertainment amongst the vines.
Entry to all venues is free. For $25 guests receive a souvenir Toast to the Coast wine glass that can be used for tastings across the weekend at all participating wineries.
As part of Toast to the Coast, many Geelong region restaurants will participate in the Geelong Wine Pour. In the lead up to the festival, from Friday 17 September until Sunday 31 October, Geelong wines will feature on local menus.
Toast to the Coast festival weekend: Saturday 30 and Sunday 31 October 2010, 11 am - 5 pm (program will be published on website).
Geelong Wine Pour: Friday 17 September until Sunday 31 October 2010.
Join the Toast to the Coast mailing list to receive updates about the festival: email 105,110,102,111,64,119,105,110,101,103,101,101,108,111,110,103,46,99,111,109,46,97,117 with the subject 'Toast mailing list'.
 Meet the people behind the wine. Enjoy fine food at its best.
Celebrating the finest the Bellarine has to offer, the Vue Grand is proud to present a series of Winter Wine Dinners showcasing innovative food matched effortlessly to hand-picked regional wines. The series features wines of the Bellarine, incorporating new and back vintage comparisons, new release wines and interactive discussion.
Friday 18 June - Banks Road
Friday 23 July - Curlewis Winery
Friday 27 August - Oakdene
Friday 17 September - Leura Park Estate
Venue: Vue Grand Hotel, 46 Hesse Street, Queenscliff. Visit www.vuegrand.com.au.
Cost: $95 per person
Bookings: Tel. 5258 1544 or email info@vuegrand.com.au
Wines available for purchase on the evening. Accommodaion packages also available.
Bellarine Winter Wine Series at the Vue Grand  Due to popular demand!
New series of master classes with award winning Executive Chef of Oakdene Restaurant, Welshman Marty Chichester
5 July until 15 November 2010
Monday nights, 6.30 pm until 9.30 pm.
Includes sit down dinner with matching wines, Master Chef apron and the secrets to cooking fine food.
$120 per session.
You can book single or multiple classes today. Limited places only, phone 03 5255 1255
For session dates and information, visit www.oakdene.com.au.
Oakdene Vineyards, 255 Grubb Road Wallington, Ocean Grove.
 Saturday Acoustic Sessions
Visit Shadowfax Winery, try the latest releases at cellar door, and relax with a glass of wine and something delicious off their menu while listening to the talented musicians.
Date: Every Saturday, 1 pm until 4 pm
Location: Shadowfax Winery, K Road, Werribee
Phone: 03 9731 4420. Bookings recommended.
Sunday Jazz Sessions
Enjoy the sweet sounds of Stoneflower Trio and the Paul Rettke Trio each Sunday at the cellar door. Kick back and enjoy a bottle of wine, delicious wood fired pizza and antipasto plates in the superb surrounds.
Date: Every Sunday, from 12.30 pm
Location: Shadowfax Winery, K Road, Werribee
Contact: 03 9731 4420. Bookings recommended.
More at www.shadowfax.com.au.
 Experience a ‘hands on’ cooking class with Pettavel’s Executive Chef Lyndon Betts, then enjoy your culinary masterpieces for dinner with a glass of Pettavel estate grown wine.
Geelong's highly acclaimed Pettavel Winery & Restaurant has launched their 2010 Cooking Class Series and classes are already booking fast.
Executive Chef Lyndon Betts will be conducting the renowned classes, with tempting topics such as ‘Divine Desserts, ‘Slow Food’, ‘Creative Canapés Made Easy’, ‘Fabulous Fast Food’ and ‘Classic Spanish Cuisine’ to name a few.
Pettavel has conducted cooking classes throughout the winter months since 2004, and each year had an overwhelming response. Last year, over 300 food enthusiasts participated. Classes are suited to both beginners and practised cooks, and offer eager food lovers a ‘hands-on’ experience behind the scenes in the Pettavel kitchen. They then delight in their culinary masterpieces as they dine in the restaurant with fellow class acquaintances.
Lyndon says “I am looking forward to meeting this years contenders and teaching them some of my tricks of the trade. Many of the participants have dined at Pettavel before, so feel quite special when they come behind the scenes into the kitchen to see what it is that we do”.
Classes will be conducted on Tuesday evenings throughout July and to August. Classes are $100 per person, which includes a workbook of Pettavel recipes, dinner and a glass of Pettavel's own estate grown wine.
View the attached Pettavel 2010 Cooking Class Series program and visit www.pettavel.com. Interested cooking devotees can telephone 5266 1120 or email enquires to events@pettavel.com.
Pettavel 2010 Cooking Class Series  International Wine Challenge 2010
Great news for Geelong wine - Leura Park Estate went head-to-head with the world’s finest at the recent International Wine Challenge (IWC) 2010 in London and is now officially classified as producing two of the best wines in the world. The local vineyard’s hand picked Block 1 Reserve Chardonnay 2008 took out Silver and its Pinot Noir 2008 took out Bronze in the 27th annual IWC, which is heralded as the world’s most prestigious and influential independent wine competition. IWC 2010 saw a record number of 46 countries - and more than 4,000 wines from around the world – enter the challenge.
Director of Leura Park Estate, David Sharp said to be benchmarked and achieve medal status against the best wines in the world was extremely exciting.
“We entered two wines – our reserve BLOCK 1 Chardonnay (nicknamed ‘Blockbuster’) and our Pinot Noir out of curiosity more than anything to be honest – to see how they ranked against the rest of the world. It’s all very well to believe in your own wine but to have that belief verified on the international stage is particularly gratifying,” Mr Sharp said.
“We are delighted with the results - essentially it’s undisputable confirmation that Leura Park Estate wines are up there with the best in the world.”
Mr Sharp said the medals would also contribute to the Geelong region’s reputation as an outstanding force in Australian wine.
“Increasingly, Geelong wines are regarded as flagship representations of premium Australian wine. To contribute to this reputation is an honour as my wife and I are so passionate about this region and all it has to offer.”
Mr Sharp said both the Block 1 chardonnay and the Pinot Noir plantations were derived from top clones, planted in 1995 which had evolved to consistently demonstrate excellence in all respects – from vine to bottle.
“A key contributing factor to the quality of the wines is the viticultural approach adopted here at Leura Park Estate - for us, it’s not about achieving maximum possible yield from any of our vines. Each year, we cull our grapes with great gusto, a practice which ultimately ensures maximum intensity of flavour,” he said.
“Both the Block 1 and the Pinot Noir are truly magnificent cool climate wines which display all the wonderful characteristics the avid wine connoisseur could ask for in the two different varietals.”
The IWC 2010 judges comments reinforce this:
Block 1 Chardonnay 2008
‘Open with white stone fruits, peach and apricot on the nose. Juicy and fruity with a nicely formed acid backbone. Fresh fruit on a soft, creamy finish’
Pinot Noir 2008
‘Serious and complex on the nose – perfumed and smoky with dark chocolate and raspberry character. Velvety softness and a silky finish.’
Mr Sharp said the wines were a credit to winemaker, Ray Nadeson, Australian Winemaker of the Year Finalist 2009.
“Ray is renowned for his innovative approach to winemaking, key features of which include whole bunch pressing, wild yeast fermentation, hand sourced premium oak and minimal interference.”
Block 1 Chardonnay retails for $32 and the Pinot Noir for $28.95 at the Leura Park Estate Cellar Door – 1400 Portarlington Road, Curlewis.
For further information, please contact:
Lyndsay Sharp
Leura Park Estate
0438 54 1169
17 June 2010.
 Geelong has become a multi-award winning wine region offering some of the best quality wine you can find.
Eleven Geelong region wineries were recently showcased at the Good Food & Wine Show, which ran from Friday 4 until Sunday 6 June 2010 at the Melbourne Convention Exhibition Centre.
Pettavel Winery, Otway Estate Winery and Shadowfax Wines each had stands at the show.
Geelong wineries at Geelong Otway Tourism's regional stand included:
Austins Wines
Banks Road Vineyard
Bellarine Estate
Dinny Goonan
Gosling Creek Wines
Kilgour Estate
Leura Park Estate
Oakdene Vineyards.
Visitors sampled some of the best wines in Australia - Bellarine Estate, Dinny Goonan and Shadowfax Wines each achieved the highest possible five-star rating for outstanding wineries in the Halliday Wine Companion 2010. More than 75% of Geelong wineries reviewed gained a four-plus star rating, showing the calibre of the grapes, winemakers and wines of the Geelong region.
On Friday 4 June, visitors to Geelong's regional stand could meet with chefs from TV show 'Boys Weekend' during an exclusive appearance.
For full program and list of exhibitors at the 2010 Good Food & Wine Show, visit http://www.goodfoodshow.com.au.
 This wine appreciation course is offered through The Gordon and delivered on site at Lethbridge Wines by the owner and winemaker, Ray Nadeson. Ray not only owns his own winery, but consults and makes wine for a number of the wineries in the region and is a recognised wine judge.
This course is suitable for those who have a desire to improve their knowledge of wine or for people working in hospitality with a need to further their wine knowledge. The content includes basic wine tasting techniques, wine styles, grape varieties, production methods, wine regions and matching wine to food. Visiting the vineyard may also give you the opportunity to experience some aspects of the winemaking processes first hand.
Content
Session 1 Introduction to basic wine tasting techniques
Session 2 Tasting and discussing white wines
Session 3 Tasting and discussing red wines
Course 1
Date: Sundays 8 - 22 August 2010
Course 2
Date: Sundays 3 - 17 October 2010
Time: 1 pm - 4 pm
Duration: 3 classes
Venue: Lethbridge Wines, 74 Burrows Rd, Lethbridge. (approx. 33 km from Geelong CBD). Visit http://www.lethbridgewines.com.au
Cost: $195
For further details and to enrol, see linked course guide above (page 15 for course details and page 20 to enrol) or visit http://www.gordontafe.edu.au.
The Gordon Short Course Guide July-December 2010  By all reports coming from Geelong region wineries, the 2010 vintage is shaping up to cement the region’s status as one of Australia’s premier wine regions.
Across the region, all have benefited from critically needed rainfall at vital periods and a long slow ripening period (with no extreme heat waves). This years’ wines look to be sensationally aromatic examples, in particular the pinot noirs, shiraz and cabernets.
With more than 60 wineries and approx 150 vineyards spread across three very distinct sub regions (the Bellarine Peninsula, Moorabool Valley and the Surf Coast), there is a range of styles and flavours.
16 April 2010.
 Around 400 wine lovers enjoyed sampling premium wines from the Geelong region at the Federation Square Wine Showcase held on Wednesday 7 and Thursday 8 April 2010.
Moorabool Ridge and Bellarine Estate were the winners of the People’s Choice Awards. Moorabool Ridge was awarded Top White for their 2004 Semillon and Bellarine Estate won two awards – Top Red for their 2008 Two Wives Shiraz and Top Fortified for their Bellarine Estate 2009 Late Harvest Riesling.
Fourteen wineries provided an informative and fun Geelong Wine experience for attendees, who also enjoyed gourmet food and the sounds of cool jazz in Federation Square’s atmospheric Atrium. Wineries represented included Austins Wines, Barwon Ridge, Banks Road Vineyard, Bellarine Estate, Blakes Estate Winery, Clyde Park, del Rios of Mt Anakie, Kurabana Estate/ Mt Moriac Wines, Leura Park Estate, Moorabool Ridge, Oakdene Vineyards, Pettavel Winery, Provenance Wines and Scotchmans Hill.
Geelong Wine Showcase April 2010 - Judging Results  The Federal and Victorian Governments and industry are now investing significant resources for research into phylloxera to ensure the longevity of the Australian wine industry.
Under the Future Farming Strategy, the Victorian Department of Primary Industries (DPI) recently announced funding of $3 million over four years for a targeted program to improve biosecurity and market access for a number of Victorias grape-growing regions that currently had unknown phylloxera status.
Through the initiative of the Geelong Winegrowers Association (GWA) we successfully applied for this funding. Surveying the region has been recently completed and the area will be gazetted as a control area next month. The final round of surveys will commence in December 2011 and finish in March 2012, when assuming no phylloxera is detected, the whole region will gain PEZ status.
7 May 2010.
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