The Yarra Valley is one of the bes wine regions in Australia, and is one of the best day trips or weekend getaways from Melbourne. If you haven’t experienced Australia’s wine country before, the Yarra Valley is a great place to start!

There are more than 70 wineries in the Yarra Valley, dozens of which have cellar doors (tasting romos) where you can do wine tastings. The best wineries in the Yarra Valley include Domaine Chandon, De Bortoli, St Hubert’s, Coombe Estate and Levantine Hill, just to name a few!

The Yarra Valley is also home to several excellent restaurants, many at wineries, as well as the lovely Yarra Valley Dairy which does platters and cheese tastings.

PS. Planning a trip to Victoria? Check out my itinerary for 3 days in Melbourne and the best places to visit in Victoria.

Best of the Best Yarra Valley Wineries for First Timers

This guide includes the 15 best Yarra Valley wineries I’ve visited, but here is my shortlist of the 5 best of the best Yarra Valley wineries, to help you plan your first trip.

• Most famous winery in the Yarra Valley: Chandon, which is owned by Moet-Chandon. The cellar door is stunning.
• Best Yarra Valley winery restaurant: Levantine Hill for fine dining, Soumah or Sir Paz for more casual dining
• Most beautiful Yarra Valley Winery: Dominique Portet, the patio in summer is like being transported to Provence.
• Best cellar door experience: Tarra Warra has an incredible, purpose-built cellar door and excellent guided tastings.
• Oldest winery in the Yarra Valley: Yering Station is the oldest vineyard in Victoria!

About Yarra Valley wine

The Yarra Valley is a cool climate wine region, and is well known for classic and elegant old world styles. Most wineries in the Yarra Valley are clustered around the towns of Coldstream, Healesville and Yarra Glen.

A majority of Yarra Valley wine is chardonnay, sparkling wine or pinot noir, but cabernet sauvignon is also important. Unlike traditional oaky, buttery styles of chardonnay, in the Yarra Valley chardonnay tends to be leaner, and more like white Burgundy.

Yarra Valley Winery Tours vs Self Drive

Yarra Valley Winery Tours

To take the stress out of driving & skip having a designated driver, join a group tour or private tour of the Yarra Valley wineries. On group tours, you won’t get to choose which winery you’ll visit but you can usually find out in advance which wineries on the tour. Several tours leave from Melbourne.

Booking a private tour of the Yarra Valley gives you more flexibility and you can probably choose your itinerary.

Self-Driving in the Yarra Valley

If you’re self-driving, you’ll need to ensure that your designated driver does not go over the legal blood alcohol limit, which is lower in Australia than in many other countries. Even if you space out your winery tastings, your designated driver will need to keep a close eye on their tastings, and possibly skip a few wines in a tasting, or use the spittoon to taste the wine, without drinking too much.

I wouldn’t plan to visit more than two wineries per day if self-driving.

If self-driving, plan a lunch stop after your first tasting. Many wineries have on-site restaurants, which makes it easy. You can also break up the day with a non-drinking activity, like a cheese tasting at the lovely Yarra Valley Dairy.

If you’re self-driving, consider staying overnight at a hotel in the Yarra Valley, so you can visit more wineries across two days.

15 Best Wineries in the Yarra Valley

Dominique Portet

Ninth-generation winemaker Dominique Portet hails from Bordeaux, but has been operating his eponymous winery in Coldstream in the Yarra Valley since 2000. Dominique Portet is best known for their award-winning rose, which is best enjoyed on a deck chair on their terrace, basking in the sunshine.

Address: 870-872 Maroondah Highway, Coldstream VIC

De Bortoli

De Bortoli‘s ethos centres on wine, food and family & friends. Leanne DeBortoli is the third-generation of the DeBortoli family wine business, which was founded by Italian immigrants Vittorio and Giuseppina DeBortoli. DeBortoli is known for it’s award-winning and internationally recognised dessert wine Noble One (even if you’re not a dessert wine fan, you have to try it!) and for it’s accessible yet premium range of Italian-style wines. With the family’s longstanding history in the region, DeBortoli is one of the most loved Yarra Valley wineries.

I love their cellar door tasting experience – you can match your tastings with  local cheese, and they are generous with the range of wines to taste on offer. Their onsite restaurant offers an Italian menu and spectacular views over their beautiful vineyard, make sure you book a table in advance to secure a spot.

Address: 58 Pinnacle Lane, Dixons Creek VIC

Chandon

Part of the Moet & Chandon empire, Chandon is one of the most popular wineries in the Yarra Valley. The wines produced here are Australian sparkling, under the label Chandon, rather than Moet & Chandon Champagne, which is only made in France. The Yarra Valley is renowned for the quality of its sparkling grapes so it is fitting that one of the world’s most popular Champagne producers opened a vineyard here in 1986. The setting at Chandon is particularly beautiful, because of the hazy blue Dandenongs in the background, which pop against the vineyards – especially in autumn when the vines are golden.

Chandon has a beautifully renovated tasting room, but due to the vineyard’s popularity it can get very crowded on weekends. I strongly recommend arriving right after opening, as I did on my second visit to the winery. It was much more pleasant, as we had the tasting bench to ourself, the full attention of the Chandon ambassador who was a treasure trove of wine knowledge, and it was very peaceful on the patio, where we sat afterwards with a glass of wine and some cheese.

Address: 727 Maroondah Highway, Coldstream VIC

TarraWarra Estate

TarraWarra is one of the most beautiful wineries in the Yarra Valley.  I love the cave-like subterranean cellar door, and the beautiful setting on lush Yarra Valley farmland with views over the rolling hills and a lake from the estate. There’s also an onsite, fine dining restaurant.

TarraWarra is also home to the TarraWarra Museum of Art, which showcases Australian art from the second half of the twentieth century to the present day.

Address: 311 Healesville-Yarra Glen Rd, Yarra Glen VIC 

Levantine Hill

Levantine Hill is one of the most luxurious wineries in the Yarra Valley, complete with an elegant onsite restaurant and helicopter pad. I visited Levantine Hill for the first time on my most recent trip to the Yarra Valley, and did a wine tasting with lunch at the restaurant. The food & wine at Levantine is spectacular, and one of the best wineries in the Yarra Valley to add to your itinerary.

Address: 882 Maroondah Hwy, Coldstream VIC

St Hubert’s

St Hubert’s is renowned as one of the best wineries in the Yarra Valley to visit, especially since the re-opening of its cellar door after a major renovation. St Hubert’s includes a stunning cellar door, as well as an onsite restaurant, Quarters, and an art gallery. My hens party was a day in the Yarra Valley, and St Hubert’s was our first stop.

Address: 1/3 St Huberts Rd, Coldstream VIC 3770

Pimpernal Vineyards

A little off the beaten track in the Yarra Valley, Pimpernal Vineyards is a small, family-run cellar door that packs a punch. The vignerons use traditional winemaking techniques and viticulture is carried out by hand rather than using machines. Wine is bottled, labelled and cellared for at least a year, onsite, to ensure that every wine is ready to drink by the time it reaches consumers.

Address: 6 Hill Rd, Coldstream VIC 3770

Tokar Estate

The Italianate cellar door and restaurant at Tokar Estate looks like it’s been plucked straight out of Tuscany and dropped in the Yarra Valley.  Tokar Estate is a family-owned winery, and is renowned for both its warm hospitality and for it’s signature Tempranillo.

Address: 6 Maddens Ln, Coldstream VIC

Coombe Yarra Valley

Coombe is one of the grandest Yarra Valley wineries, and is the former property of legendary Australian opera singer Dame Nellie Melba. Hidden behind towering, manicured hedges, Coombe Estate has an elegant cellar door and extensive tasting menu.

Address: 673-675 Maroondah Hwy, Coldstream VIC

Seville Estate

Founded in 1972, Seville Estate is the oldest winery in the Upper Yarra Valley, which is know for its elegant, cool-climate wines. Seville Estate has a beautiful cellar door, and from the wine tasting bar, you’ll have beautiful views out the window over the Yarra Valley. There’s also a light-filled, onsite restaurant.

Address: 65 Linwood Rd, Seville VIC

Soumah

Soumah specialise in the wines of Northern Italy, making it a unique winery to visit in the Yarra Valley. Their most popular, Northern Italian wine varietals are the award-winning Savarro, as well as Pinot Grigio, Ai Fiori, Brachetto, Marzemino, Nebbiolo and Barbera. Soumah has beautiful grounds, with a charming cellar door and onsite restaurant – it was the perfect location for lunch for my hen’s party!

Address: 18 Hexham Rd, Gruyere VIC

Sir Paz Estate

Located in the Upper Yarra Valley, Sir Paz Estate has the highest altitude single vineyard in the Yarra Valley. The cellar door and restaurant enjoys sweeping views of the surrounding Yarra Valley, and has a lovely Mediterranean ambience. I visited with David and my Mum, after visiting the Tesselaar Tulip Festival. We stayed for lunch, and both the food and wine were beautiful.

Sir Paz Estate was founded in the 1990s, by the Zapris family who emigrated from Drimos in Greece, nearly 70 years ago. When they arrived, the youngest son, John, promised his father Evangelos that one day they would own another vineyard in Australia, just as they had in their native Greece. Sir Paz is still a family owned-and-operated winery.

Sir Paz Estate’s restaurant and cellar door are open Friday – Sunday. Reservations are essential.

Address: 54 Parker Rd, Wandin East VIC

Yering Station

Established in 1838, Yering Station is the oldest vineyard in Victoria and remains family-owned and operated to this day. The cellar door is housed in the original building which dates back to 1859, where guided tastings are held by their knowledgeable team. There’s an extensive range to choose from for your tasting, so there will be something to suit everyone.

Address: 38 Melba Hwy, Yering VIC 

Zonzo Estate

Zonzo Estate is a beautiful Yarra Valley winery, with a cellar door, restaurant and wedding venue. The on-site Italian restaurant is lovely, and is very popular with groups. I visited for my friend Bianca’s hens party lunch, and it was a perfect day out.

Address: 957 Healesville-Yarra Glen Rd, Yarra Glen VIC

Coldstream Hills

Founded by Australia’s most distinguished wine writer and author of the Halliday Wine Companion, James Halliday, Coldstream Hills comes with a pedigree. The cellar door is small and unassuming, but it’s an essential Yarra Valley winery for any wine geek.

Address: 29 Maddens Ln, Gruyere VIC

Further Reading

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