In celebration of my Birthday this coming Monday, a group of friends and I got together and went to Shedfest.

Shedfest is a great weekend which I highly recommend to anyone in the Melbourne area. Past years we’ve driven and played it by ear; this year we caught the free bus and went to five wineries through the course of the day.

Here’s my thoughts on each:

Whispering Hills – the first winery of the day and one I had not visited before. It’s a smaller winery with six wines on offer with very picturesque views onto the vineyards. My favourites were the Methode Champenoise and Reisling.

Seville Hill – another one I had not previously experienced and gee have I been missing out! This place has the best Rose I’ve ever tried and a  Sauvignon Blanc which is easily up there with some of the NZ Marlborough region. Highly recommended.

Seville Estate – A winery that I just love and not because their gorgeous dog is in the Wine Dogs Australia book! Last year I thought their Reisling was wonderful and left with a bottle of it, this year I wasn’t so sure. I wonder if it was the taste of the Seville Hill Sav still lingering on my palate…

Elmswood Estate – we very nearly got married at this winery as it has stunning views and a beautiful pavillion. The reason we didn’t is because I’m not really a Chardonay fan and Chardonay is what Elmswood do really well. This visit I was delighted to discover their liqueur wines. So impressed that I insisted everyone there try them! We left with a bottle of the liqueur Cabernet Sauvignon.

Five Oaks – the last winery of the day. I love Five Oaks, we discovered it on a previous Shedfest and have kept going back. For myself, they do a great Reisling, but Reds are what they truly excel in. I recommend Five Oaks to anyone looking for a nice drop of red (and this comes from a non-red drinker!). The other great thing about Five Oaks is the owner is great to chat to and they have croquet on the lawn.

As you can see from the photos we had such perfect weather for the day.