Lancemore Milawa

Style

Wine art

Setting

King Valley throne

If you know your merlot from your malbec, or want to learn the difference, Lancemore Milawa is the New World grape escape for you. A few hours north of Melbourne, at the edge of the King Valley in Victoria’s High Country, the 40-room retreat is directly across the road from the Brown Brothers vineyard, with the vines providing a suitably spectacular backdrop. Happily, for gourmands here to guzzle, you won’t have to drive to or from your wine tasting – and your wine-making neighbours will also gladly host you for lunch. As the sun sets, it’s time to select your spot within the grounds: fire pit, hammock or bean bag for this particular type of bottoms up?

Facilities

Rooms

40, including two suites.

Checkout

10am. Earliest check-in, 3pm.

More Details

Rates usually include breakfast.

Also

Lancemore Milawa has an accessible room on the ground floor for guests with limited mobility.

Free Internet Access

Pool

On-Site Restaurant

Room Service

At the Hotel

Free WiFi, expansive grounds with ponds, fire pits, hammocks and bean bags, courtyard, and guest lounges. In rooms: kettle and French press for coffee, TV, speaker and Mr Smith bath products.

Our Favourite Rooms

Every room has some outdoor space, whether it’s a terrace leading out to the gardens on the ground floor or a shared balcony above. If a bath tub’s a dealbreaker (and especially if you tend to stipulate Jacuzzi jets), book either of the two suites, which also have a fireplace, in case that’s on your rider too.

Poolside

The semicircular swimming pool is open from dawn until sunset, with sunloungers to lie on and tune in to the cricket-supplied soundtrack.

Packing Tips

A vocabulary ready to impress with talk of notes, legs, bouquets, mouth-feel, minerality and so on.

Children

All ages are welcome at Lancemore Milawa, but there are no special facilities for kids. Baby cots can be added to rooms and highchairs are available at the restaurant.

Gallery

Food & Drink

Top Table

There are lots of scenic spots throughout the grounds to graze at a sharing platter while road-testing the local wines, but we especially love the pairs of yellow armchairs perfectly set up for vineyard gazing at sunset.

Dress Code

Feel at home – and maybe avoid white.

Hotel Restaurant

Merlot is open for breakfast and dinner. In the evenings, paddock-to-plate dining is the order of the day, with vineyard views served up through floor-to-ceiling windows alongside plates of smoked trout with feta and broad-bean pesto risotto, and duck glazed with Milawa honey and served with baba ganoush. Breakfasts are a Continental-style spread, with hot items ordered à la carte.

Hotel Bar

Unsurprisingly, the bar attached to Merlot focuses on the grape, but the grain is also covered, with a selection of local craft beers. The sommelier (previously of Alain Ducasse in Paris) has permitted the appearance of some cocktails in the drinks list, too – made by the Everleigh bar in Melbourne, with spirits from local distilleries available as well.

Last Orders

Merlot serves breakfast from 7.30am to 9.30am (8am to 10am at weekends); and dinner every night except Sunday, from 6pm to 8pm.

Room Service

Available during the restaurant’s hours of service.

Planes

There’s an airport in Albury, an hour’s drive from the hotel; transfers can be arranged on request. Or you can touch down in Melbourne, hire a car and drive the three hours or so north.

Trains

The station in Wangaratta is closest, around a 20-minute drive from the hotel.

Automobiles

The Brown Brothers vineyard is just over the road, but if you want to see the sights further afield, a car will be useful – there are two car parks available for guests to use.

Worth Getting Out of Bed For

Wine may reign supreme in Victoria’s King Valley, but it’s also a fine destination for oversize-basket aficionados, since dawn ascents of hot-air balloons are a regular spectacle around here. The gourmet region has long been leading the way in the High Country, with independent vintners, cheesemakers and other wholesome producers. The King Valley was once used by Italian immigrants for tobacco farming, but now you’re more likely to find a wondrous winery or cookery school, alongside historic villages and vineyard-framing hiking trail. The region also hosts regular food festivals in the spring (around November time) to keep you busy in between stops at cellar doors.

Earn or Redeem Points with World of Hyatt

This Mr & Mrs Smith hotel participates in the World of Hyatt loyalty program. As a member, you can earn and redeem points and enjoy exclusive benefits for qualifying nights. .