Queensland Just Launched Their First Official Wine Trail, So Pack Your Cooler
Everything’s coming up Queensland. Border restrictions are finally easing for NSW and Victoria from December 1, so your happy holiday plans and reunions can play out. And just in time, Queensland has launched a spectacular wine trail called the Vine and Shine Trail — as if the state needed to be any more enticing.
Many years in the making, Queensland’s first official wine trail is a self-drive journey connecting 70 wineries, winding its way through six regions: the Granite Belt; the Scenic Rim and Gold Coast Hinterland; South Burnett; Wide Bay-Burnett; Brisbane, Greater Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast; and Darling Downs and Western Queensland.
You can explore just one region or decide to embark on an epic road trip. Either way, you’re in for long lunches at cellar doors and picnics between the vines, with glorious views thanks to some of Australia’s highest altitude vineyards.
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The Vine and Shine Trail is a huge win for Queensland winemakers. Why? Well, when you think of Queensland, you think sun, surf, sand and maybe rainforest, no? Wine isn’t typically top of mind for a trip to the Sunshine State.
But Queensland winemakers have spent 160 years redefining vineyards and varietals to cater to the state’s unique sub-tropical climate and are finally earning a reputation for their emerging varieties and sun-kissed ‘vines of the future’.
The trail hopes to coax domestic and international visitors to venture in from the coast and discover a wine tourism experience only Queensland can offer.
You’ll find vino to suit every palate, from Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Chardonnay, to less-sipped varietals like Vermentino, Fiano and Saperavi.
The trail was spearheaded by the Queensland Wine Industry Association (QWIA) with support from Wine Australia and funded by the Australian Government’s Export and Regional Wine Support Package and the Queensland Government as part of a ‘Venture In’ tourism campaign, to put Queensland winemakers on the map.
(Lead Image: Instagram /@mountviewalpaca)
