The perfect Hunter Valley weekend in the Eclipse Cross

There are two ways to get to the Hunter Valley from Sydney. 

Like with almost any destination you care to think of, there are two ways to get to the Hunter Valley from Sydney. 

There’s the fast way, of course, that will see you soaring down the Pacific Motorway (also known as the F3 or M1) at a near-constant 110km/h, shrinking the time it takes to get from Wahroonga to Cessnock to a super-easy 90 minutes.

The scenic route unlocks some of the state's finest driving roads. Image credit: Thomas Wielecki.

But if time is on you side - and if you’re escaping Sydney for a blissful weekend among the vineyards, it really should be - then you’ll want to be taking the scenic route, because it unlocks some of the state's finest driving roads and most breath-taking vistas, and all said, will add a mere 30 to 45 minutes to your travel time. 

To make the very most of it, you'll want to exit the freeway at Berowra and join what’s affectionately referred to as the “Old Road” - so named as it was once the only thing connecting Sydney to Newcastle.

From there, the road winds its way to a stunning river crossing linking Brooklyn to Mooney Mooney, before continuing towards Gosford. It's a flowing, corner-filled road, often lined on one side by sandstone cliffs and the sparkling waters of the vast Hawkesbury River on the other, and it’s on this twisting tarmac that our Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross truly comes into its own. 

A small-yet-spacious SUV designed mostly for urban life. Image credit: Thomas Wielecki.

This might well be a small-yet-spacious SUV designed mostly for urban life and growing families, but its sporting, sweeping body style rightly hints at its engaging, confidence-inspiring dynamics that feel right at home on twisting tarmac.

The road then winds on, the scenery changing as you climb through fern gullies and old-growth forest, and you can stay on it all the way to Gosford if you’d like. 

Or you can shortcut your journey whenever you wish, which we did, by entering our destination into our maps via Apple CarPlay - made all the easier by our Mitsubishi’s big 8.0-inch colour touchscreen that makes navigating the vehicle’s intuitive infotainment system a breeze - and you’ll be directed back to the motorway to quickly complete the rest of your journey. 

Shortcut your journey by entering the destination into maps via Apple CarPlay. Image credit: Thomas Wielecki.

It’s here, too, that the Eclipse Cross has a trick up its sleeve, with a host of clever safety systems removing any and all stress from freeway driving. Adaptive Cruise Control, for example, slows down and speeds up your car with the traffic in front, while Lane Departure Warning helps keep you centred in your lane should you ever start to drift.

Add to that wipers that sense rain and headlights that sense dusk, as well as Blind Spot Warning and Lane Change Assist, and Cessnock was appearing in our windscreen before we knew it. 

Cycling is booming in the Hunter Valley. Image credit: Thomas Wielecki

Cycling is booming in the Hunter Valley, led not just by passionate local enthusiasts, but by a new bicycle-hire trend designed to slow down your visit to the region, and allow you to be fully immersed in your stunning surroundings. 

Steve Whitby is a relatively new arrival to the region, but he’s taken to the area like a grape to wine, with his bicycle store and rental facility on Vincent Street in Cessnock now a mecca for cyclists of all ages and abilities. 

While Steve offers everything from guided tours to electric e-bikes, his most popular service by far is his bicycle rental program, which allows visitors to stop and collect a cycle, a helmet, and some invaluable local knowledge, before setting off in search of beautiful vistas, meandering vineyards and the very best wining and dining the Hunter Valley has to offer. 

Find a vineyard that entices you to settle in for a while. Image credit: Thomas Wielecki.

And just as the icing on this already wondrous-sounding cake, should you find a vineyard that entices you to settle in for a while, Steve and his team will then come and collect the bikes from you, and even drop you back at your accommodation.

“It’s our most popular service by far,” Steve says. “We’ve designed all the maps to take in some of the Hunter Valley’s most beautiful photo locations, and our visitors love it.”

The region is filled with beautiful roads and epic scenery. Image credit: Thomas Wielecki.

Following Steve’s advice, we arrive at Mistletoe Lane in Pokolbin, where it becomes immediately obvious why a service like this is so popular.

While the region is filled with beautiful roads and epic scenery, there is something particularly mystical and romantic about cycling slowly through them, where the sounds of the Australian bush fill your ears, and the scent of grapes ready for harvest fill the air, leaving you feeling like a part of the landscape, rather than simply an observer.

It’s here on Mistletoe Lane - a near traffic-free country road that meanders through acres of rolling vineyards, all of which is framed by the Brokenback Mountain Range - that the scent of grapes takes on particular importance. See, at this time last year, the only smell in the air was the acrid smoke of the bushfires, and their impact on the wine region was staggering.

In fact, some estimates suggest as much as 50 per cent of the region’s entire harvest had to be scrapped, owing to a bushfire flow-on impact called “smoke taint”, which dramatically alters the taste and smell of wine produced from those grapes. 

Some vineyards were forced to scrap their entire 2020 vintage. Image credit: Thomas Wielecki

As a result, some vineyards were forced to scrap their entire 2020 vintage, an economically and emotionally devastating blow that they are only now recovering from. 

The Thomas Wines cellar door is at one end of Mistletoe Lane. Image credit: Thomas Wielecki.

You’ll find the Thomas Wines cellar door at one end of Mistletoe Lane - a modern and sharp-angled building that cuts a striking contrast against the rolling green of its backdrop. 

It’s owned and operated by Andrew Thomas, a man with a 20-year winemaking career in the Hunter Valley, but the real star of the tasting experience is French sommelier Nico, whose encyclopaedic knowledge of wine and the wine-making process makes the stop worthwhile on its own. 

Thomas Wines focuses exclusively on what it calls the “signature varieties” of the Hunter Valley. Image credit: Thomas Wielecki.

But if that’s not enough to convince you, there’s the wine itself, with Thomas Wines focusing exclusively on what it calls the “signature varieties” of the Hunter Valley, Semillon and Shiraz, and few visitors leave the cellar door empty handed.

Andrew was lucky. When the smoke devastated his usual harvest, he was still able to produce a smaller vintage from unaffected vineyards. Others, of course, weren’t so lucky.

The truly breath-taking Voco Kirkton Park Hotel. Image credit: Thomas Wielecki.

With our minds filled with new information about grapes, and the spacious boot of our Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross now home to a box of Thomas wine, we turn once again to the voice-activated navigation offered by Apple CarPlay to plot a picturesque course to our final location, the truly breath-taking Voco Kirkton Park Hotel.

Again, there are two paths to take; the fast, or the picturesque. Quickly settling on the latter, we select the “gravel” setting on the Eclipse Cross’ Super All Wheel Control system and set off in search of vineyard-crossing paths that will bring us even close to the grapes the Hunter Valley is so famed for. 

There are two paths to take; the fast, or the picturesque. Image credit: Thomas Wielecki.

A sprawling, manor-style hotel located in the heart of Pokolbin’s wine country, the Voco Kirkton Park greets you with a looming historic gate, and a wandering driveway that wraps itself around and through its manicured grounds. 

Before long, the manor itself appears, welcoming you into an immaculate lobby area, and a comfortable-yet-elegant bar area that is blissful in summer, but in winter, with the fire burning and a glass of red wine in hand, would be truly magical.

It’s an impressive space, and one made even more so by the fact that, despite its 70 rooms, conference facilities, tennis courts, gym and pool, it still manages to feel boutique and cosy, with the space designed with endless quiet corners in which to while away an afternoon with a good book and a better wine. 

As the sun sets on a perfect day in the Hunter Valley, you can’t help but feel content, not least of which because you know the sun will rise on another one tomorrow. 

Press play to watch an interview with Andrew Thomas, owner and chief winemaker at Thomas Wines

You could forgive them for feeling hopeless, but the people who call the Hunter Valley home are staunchly the opposite, entering 2021 with a stubborn optimism that good times lie ahead of them.

The bad times? They’re in the past. Years of drought that left the land so dry it would crack in the sun. Bushfires that not only devastated the landscape, but ruined thousands of tons of grapes - the true lifeblood of this region. And then a pandemic that saw visitor numbers tumble as we were all told to say home.

“We were heading into our fourth year of drought, which has implications on crop levels. And then in 2019 the massive fires happened to the south-west of here, and unfortunately that had an effect on our 2020 vintage. It didn’t totally write it off, but our vineyards that were impacted by the smoke character, we had to walk away from,” says Andrew Thomas, owner and chief winemaker at Thomas Wines.

“And then, of course, our mate Covid hit in early 2020, and like a lot of businesses around Australia we were shut down for nine or 10 weeks. 

“It’s been difficult, especially during lockdown. The cellar doors were closed, restaurants were closed, and accommodation was used for essential workers. People just weren’t coming here, and travel was discouraged.”

It’s times like these when community counts, and the Hunter Valley has that in spades. Rather than being pushed apart by the challenging conditions, residents here were drawn closer together. 

You get to taste and take home some world-class wines. Image credit: Thomas Wielecki

“One of the things I love about the Hunter is that it’s such a tight-knit community, there’s nothing like it,” Andrew says.

“Over the past 12 months, with droughts, bushfires, covid, it’s been a tough time for everybody. It’s so important that we all knew we had each other’s backs, and we were there to support each other and help each other where we could.

“We rally together when it’s tough, and we celebrate the good times together when it isn’t.”

And the very best thing about this tight-knit community? It’s accepting new members. In fact, Andrew says the people of the Hunter are waiting to welcome you with open arms. 

“We would love to see people flocking back to the Hunter Valley. I must say, since we’ve re-opened it’s been pretty good. It’s wonderful that people are travelling to regional NSW,” he says. 

“You come to the Hunter, you immerse yourself in the region, you get to taste and take home some world-class wines, you dine in world-class restaurants, and stay in some world-class accommodation, what’s not to love?

 “We’re here waiting for you, and we will receive you with open arms.”

The Hunter is waiting for you. Image credit: Thomas Wielecki.