Hunter Valley

At less than 2 hours drive from Sydney the Hunter Valley has become one of Australia's most visited wine regions. It is also one of the oldest. The buttery Chardonnays and well aging Semillons are the regions most successful wines, and as for reds the region seems to produce big tannin heavy Shirazes. Most of the wineries are in the lower Hunter between Cessnock and Branxton centring around Polkolbin, where the premium vineyards own land, while the upper Hunter has vineyards nestled into the curves of the valley and shaded by thin lines of gum trees along the four rivers that keep the region so green.

The Hunter has always been an important region for Australian wines and many of the most well known spas providing luxury accommodation and hot air balloons full of sightseers are a common sight in the crisp still morning and evening skies.