Close to home #8 Stanthorpe
It’s always lovely to go on a long holiday to a far flung destination. There are times, however, when it’s not convenient or cost effective and a staycation, closer to home, is the way to go. The destinations in this series of posts are all within a couple of hours’ drive of our home. They’re easy to get to, there’s plenty to see and do and at the end of the holiday we’re home again in no time.
The small town of Stanthorpe, at the centre of south-east Queensland’s Granite Belt, is a popular tourist destination all year round. More than 12 000 people visit the area during “Brass Monkey Season” over the winter months; cosy chalets and blazing log fires keep the below zero chill of frosty nights at bay. When it comes to summer escapes, Stanthorpe is equally attractive because of the mild temperatures – usually 5 to 7 degrees cooler than the coast with clear blue skies and no humidity. At any time of the year, Stanthorpe’s main attraction is wine; there are more than 50 wineries on the Granite Belt and cellar doors offer tastings all year round. But what do visitors to Stanthorpe do if they’re not into wineries, or they’ve already tasted the wines the region has to offer?
The alternative is to go nude! The Granite Belt Nude Food Trail is a self-drive route that will satisfy the most demanding foodie; nude food is regional and seasonal, with low food miles. There are seven themed routes on the trail, covering 23 local outlets ranging from breweries to butcheries. Whether you have a sweet tooth or a hankering for cheese and chutney, there’s something for everyone.
Sutton’s Juice Factory, Cidery and Distillery, 13 km north of Stanthorpe, is a good starting point for a day of nude food exploration. The factory is surrounded by apple orchards; from February to June the trees are loaded with fruit.
The apples are processed onsite and made into cider, brandy, juice and cider vinegar which can be sampled and purchased in the farm shop. At the Shed Café, the menu focuses on home-style cooking with a range of seasonal dishes including their signature dish, homemade apple pie with spiced apple cider ice cream. The waitress takes orders and gives advice at the same time. Her suggestion is to share a slice of pie and she’s right. It’s a generous serve, warm and cinnamon-scented.
At Granite Belt Dairy Farmhouse Cheese, just a few minutes away from Sutton’s, there are seven artisan cheeses to taste. The cheeses are made from the milk of the farm’s herd of Jersey cows and sold in the dairy shop billed as Queensland’s highest and coldest, with an elevation of 925 metres and winter minimums of -15°C. Even in mid-summer, day time temperatures can be mild. What’s not mild is the flavour of the cheeses, which varies according to the weather and the seasons. Cold weather gives the cows’ milk a more intense flavour while lush pasture after rain enhances the colour of the cheese.
Next door to the cheese shop is Jersey Girls Café, serving homemade meals with cheese as the main ingredient. The food miles here are negligible. Cheese maker Karen tells visitors: “If the food in the café isn’t grown on our farm, it comes from the next door neighbours.”
One of those neighbours is Castle Glen Distillery, home of Cedric Millar, Queensland’s only whiskey distiller. His whiskey, aged for a minimum of two years and made without additives, is just one of Castle Glen’s beverages. He also produces beer, wine and award winning liqueurs.
The showroom glows with a kaleidoscope of jewelled colours when the sun shines through stained glass windows onto the specially handcrafted bottles of liqueur. Cedric’s wife Carol-Anne encourages visitors to taste his products. When asked which drink is her favourite, she ponders before answering. “I do like a splash of soda water with some musk stick liqueur on a warm summer evening. It’s light and refreshing. In winter, I can’t go past the coffee and whiskey crème liqueur.”
If beer is the beverage of choice, Granite Belt Brewery, five minutes south of Stanthorpe, is a must on the itinerary. Guests can see one of six handcrafted beers being created in the microbrewery. The craft beers complement the fresh country menu of the Homestead Restaurant where the waitress recommends the Brewers Platter, a four course degustation meal. “Each course is matched with a different beer; even the dessert, chocolate truffle cake with a strawberry and basil salsa, comes with a glass of Pozieres Porter!”
The strawberries in the salsa are grown at Strawberry Fields, five km further south on the New England Highway. From October to May, when it’s pick-your-own season, plump red berries glisten between the leaves of hundreds of strawberry plants. Visitors can fill a basket as they wander, or for those who don’t want to go to the effort of harvesting, the café sells tubs of freshly picked berries and strawberry flavoured treats. Guests can relax on the terrace next to the strawberry field watching others do the work, while enjoying traditionally made strawberry ice cream, parfaits or pancakes.
If there’s time, stay in Stanthorpe for a few days. There are many more places on the Nude Food Trail but it’s neither possible nor practical to try to see them all in one day. Take the opportunity to sample the offerings of a few outlets each day and buy some supplies for later. Then leave with a carload of gourmet treats and your clothes still on – the food is the only thing nude in Stanthorpe.
*This story originally appeared in Queensland Smart Farmer Magazine, February/March 2016.
oh my love the melting ice cream photo.
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It didn’t last long before I ate it all, Joel.
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but at least the memory of enjoying it is lasting though. Thanks for that cute photo.
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Now that sounds like my kind of get-away any time of the year!!
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You could eat your way around the Granite Belt for days, CC.
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This sounds like lots of fun, but I would burst trying to sample as much food and drink as possible. So, you got this article published! Good for you. It’s excellent, and I do love the last line: “Then leave with a carload of gourmet treats and your clothes still on – the food is the only thing nude in Stanthorpe.” Wonderful. I’m so glad to see you getting articles published. Are there more we should know about? 🙂
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That’s why you need to stay a few days, Cathy. It’s the only way to try everything, and all the produce is so delicious.
Yes, I have had several stories published with Smart Farmer magazine and I put two others on the blog. https://theeternaltraveller.wordpress.com/2016/09/19/hidden-talent-revealed/
and
https://theeternaltraveller.wordpress.com/2016/09/12/no-photos/
Also, this story was published on a new website http://www.australianhipster.com/2016/08/13/1241/
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Great articles all, Carol. Congratulations. I’m glad your travel writing course is paying off. 🙂
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Thank you. I hope to have more published in the future.
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I’m sure you will. I’ve never even tried to publish anything since I took that course. Good for you! 🙂
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You should have a go!
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I still never think I have anything interesting to say… 🙂 Right now I’m taking a Memoir class. I’ve been thinking about this for years, and now I’m finally underway. I’ve written two whole chapters so far. 🙂
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That’s great news. I think you should go back over the places you went to in Iceland and I bet you would find some great travel stories in there. The hard part is finding a home for them.
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Finding a home for them is often the problem. We don’t have nearly as many travel publications as you do in Australia, and ours are the really big ones, like National Geographic, AFAR, Conde Nast, etc. I am pretty intimidated by those. Maybe I’ll try but for now, I’m committed to the class I’m in and have a built-in deadline every week which works well for me. 🙂
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Yes, getting an editor to accept your work is the tricky part. Good luck with your class.
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Thanks, Carol. It’s fun so far. 🙂
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Wow – what a great trip this would be. I’ve just put it on my bucket list for the next time we travel south 😀
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Dianne, Stanthorpe would be a great place for you to break a southern trip. You could easily spend a few days here because it’s very pretty and there are some nice national parks as well as the food and wine producers.
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Wonderful story. A huge congrats on having it published. It’s a nice feeling seeing our stories in print, isn’t it?
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It’s amazing to see my name on the page.
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Isn’t it! I still feel the same way, even now, years after my first story was published.
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Always love to hear about things near you in Australia. Loved the photos. Although may be looking for a snack soon. Congratulations on all the articles published. Wishing you much more success also.
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Thank you Ducks. You might need to spend some time in the kitchen.
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I was lucky to visit there a few years ago and it’s a really lovely area! Haha we didn’t go nude as in the regular definition of nude 😛
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Neither did we Lorraine, and that’s a good thing!
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Oh my, but I like your nude vacation plans. Wish I lived closer because I’d love to follow that trail. 🙂
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Perhaps you could start a trend and go nude with food in your local area.
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When I read the title I thought perhaps I was going to be reading about the joys of eating fruit whilst naked (not something I would consider a joy, actually, but it takes all sorts!). I smiled at ‘Brass Monkey Season’ – what a great description! I like the idea of the Nude Food – I think we have forgotten about the simple pleasures of eating food in season, and unadulterated.
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In season and local, so almost no food miles too. The best thing about Stanthorpe is that the scenery is beautiful. It’s a winner all round. Nude fruit eating doesn’t really sound very attractive, and it’s called Brass Monkey Season for a very good reason. It gets so cold there in winter. They get really big frosts and occasionally it even snows. Brrrr!
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Perhaps lithe, tanned bodies would look ok doing some Nude food eating, but not the rest of the population! 😀 Eating local produce and enjoying beautiful local scenery sounds perfect.
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I think eating is best done with clothes on!
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I got sidetracked reading the conversation between you and Cathy and now I’ve forgotten what I was going to say… 😦 Something about cheese and being hungry 🙂 🙂
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That’s pretty funny. I’m sure it will come back to you, perhaps when you next open the refrigerator!
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Queensland has a wine region?? I didn’t know that. Hm. I think maybe Queensland just went back on the travel list.
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It’s an award winning wine region, so I’m sure you would find something you like.
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It all looks so tempting, Carol. Great review. 🙂
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Thanks Sylvia. It would be easy to eat your way around Stanthorpe.
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I did most of those sights today! I just adored the pink lady apple juice and I spent a stupid amount of money at Castle Glen. It’s a beautiful part of the world.
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It’s easy to spend money at Castle Glen. My favourite is the musk liqueur. It’s delicious.
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