Wildwood Guesthouse, Mudgee review: On fertile ground

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This was published 14 years ago

Wildwood Guesthouse, Mudgee review: On fertile ground

Warmth ... guests can relax on Wildwood's veranda or in the lounge room.

Warmth ... guests can relax on Wildwood's veranda or in the lounge room.Credit: Diane Nazaroff

Grapes are a given in this wine region but the bounty extends to fine food and wildlife, writes Andrew Clennell.

Wine country is always alluring. It's not just the wine; where there is a wine-rich region, fine food seems to follow. And the countryside is also typically beautiful. But while I'm familiar with the Hunter Valley, Margaret River and Barossa wine regions, we have never been to Mudgee before.

We haven't owned a car in seven years, so when we finally buy one, a trip to this part of the world 3½ hours from Sydney seems the perfect opportunity to give it a spin.

I don't know much about the region other than that it has lots of wineries and it's difficult to get a Mudgee wine in Sydney. So I'm surprised when we raise our coming trip with some mates from Perth, who reply: "Oh, Mudgee mud, yeah mate, it's great stuff, particularly the reds." Apparently I am the one out of the loop.

We choose an out-of-town bed and breakfast on 60 hectares. Wildwood Guesthouse does not disappoint. The guesthouse is in a valley known as Eurunderee, which Henry Lawson once wrote about. It has the perfect veranda on which to relax on a Saturday afternoon while watching kangaroos eat grass close by.

The guesthouse is a large mudbrick building about 500 metres from the owners' house. It has four bedrooms with ensuites, a huge communal lounge with wood fireplaces and a large kitchen, and is furnished with antiques and soft furnishings in an upmarket country style. The owners, Rob and Anne, come in to make breakfast each morning for guests. On the first morning, we request bacon and eggs (fresh from the chook pen) and we graze at a smorgasbord of cut fruit, yoghurt, pistachios soaked in honey and cereals. But it seems other options abound. On the second morning we notice Ann has cooked a New York omelet for an elderly couple. Leaf teas, plunger coffee, lollies and biscuits are always on offer in the kitchen.

We have the place to ourselves on our first night. We put some tunes on the CD player in the lounge room, pour a glass of wine, sit on the veranda and enjoy the sunset.

Two other rooms are booked on our second night, which diminishes our privacy somewhat, but we've been spoilt.

Surely a good sign is a return guest. The Dutch couple at breakfast (who live in Singapore but have houses in Sydney and Belgium) have not hesitated to come again.

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Another good sign is a host eager to please by booking restaurants for guests and organising their transport. We dine at the Blue Wren in Mudgee on Friday night but a particular highlight is the Lebanese Deeb's Kitchen on Saturday night. Here there is no menu you eat what the chef wants to cook ($50 a head for a three-course meal). The food is delicious and the restaurant's hospitality warming.

The local wines are great and so is the beer the two-year-old Mudgee Brewing Company has developed a decent range of brews. Our lunch venue, the High Valley Wine & Cheese Company, also doesn't disappoint. We visit the farmers' market on Saturday morning and stock up on local olives, olive oil and honey.

Another highlight is Wildwood's wildlife. Possums scurry up trees as we drive down the long driveway to dinner and when we return one night we spy a large, fluffy white owl perched in a tree next to our accommodation.

Our one and only disappointment is the place isn't entirely soundproof; we can hear another couple shower and chatter early one evening. Otherwise, nothing but birdsong and peace.

Weekends Away are reviewed anonymously and paid for by Traveller.

VISITORS' BOOK

Wildwood Guesthouse

Address Henry Lawson Drive, Mudgee.

The verdict A great place to unwind among plenty of wildlife. It's in the bush but close to wineries and restaurants.

Price $500 a couple for two nights on weekends; $200 a night for a couple midweek.

Bookings Phone 6373 3701 or see wildwoodmudgee.com.au.

Getting there About three-and-a-half hours' drive from Sydney.

Perfect for A romantic getaway; or book out the house with another three couples.

Wheelchair access No.

While you're there Visit wineries, dine at good restaurants, take a country drive.

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