The Lifestyler: You must book a wine tasting!

I guess the whole idea of uncle Trev’s reviews on the EFTM website is that you read them and then go and buy the product.

Well, the LifeStyler saw the two blokes recent road trip and thought why not, and a weekend in Orange was the go.

Lucky the sister in law also planned a trip to Mudgee the weekend before and she passed on an important tip. Turns out in this COVID world you can no longer just turn up to a winery and expect to do a tasting.  So if you plan to do a wine tasting at a winery anytime soon make sure you visit their website early and book a time.

In Orange we found the cost to be $10 which in some wineries were refundable against any wine purchased. Either way, the tastings were very structured and you certainly got 1 if not 2 full glasses of wine by the time you worked your way through all the tastings on offer.

The LifeStyler recommends the following wineries in Orange:

1. De Salis wines
2. Phillip Shaw wines
3. Rowlee wines (Note they make dry wines)

For beer drinkers, I also picked up a selection of beers from the Badlands Brewery which is based in Orange. My pick so far is the IPA but my wife likes their Kolsch.

To eat we highly recommend Elwoods Eatery which is a Texas BBQ style joint and Racine bakery which has all sorts of amazing savoury and sweet offerings. A great steak can also be had one of many pubs which just taste better when you are in the country.

Other things to do include driving to the top of Mount Canobolas, visiting Borenore Caves (take a torch) and if you can get your timing right the Farmers Market once a month on the 2nd Saturday is brilliant for local produce fresh and preserved (no tasting during COVID).