This Christmas the small Granite Belt Wine Country community have opened their doors, farms, and workshops with a friendly welcome to come and experience fresh mountain air and buy from the bush this summer.
Here’s our guide on how to buy from the bush, give gifts with meaning and support local this Christmas.
Local Wine and Beer
Skip the bottle shop and head to one of over 50 cellar doors in the Granite Belt. The region’s small wineries with boutique-sized production means many of our wines are rarely found in your regular store. Surprise even the most adventurous of wine lovers with a bottle of the region’s very own alternative variety Strange Bird Wines. We only call a wine a Strange Bird if it represents less than 1% of Australia’s vines.
Find seasonal local craft brewed beers and ciders from Granite Belt Brewery or Brass Monkey Brew House or pick up farm-fresh cider from Sutton’s to stock up for the summer celebrations ahead.
For non-alcoholic alternatives with a Granite Belt flavour Sutton’s apple juices make the perfect thirst quencher for apple lovers.
Local produce
Build the perfect local gift hamper or fill your Christmas menu with Granite Belt flavour.
Jamwork’s Gourmet Foods handmade range of over 80 products from gourmet jams, chutneys and pastes use only the best local ingredients. If it’s too hard to choose, take your pick of one of their hand-picked bundles or gift packs. Visit in-store or order online.
Prepare to fill your shopping bag at Vincenzo’s with local treasures from cheeses, savoury salamis, organic meats, jams, and confectionery to imported specialties like pasta and sauces— the possibilities are endless. Instore only.
To impress your Christmas guests or add to a hamper, give the gift of Granite Belt truffles this season. Folly Truffles in Ballandean is Queensland’s first commercial truffière producing black French Perigord truffles. Check out their truffle and black garlic salt or mustard online.
You Sip. We Drive.
Shout friends, family and loved ones (or even yourself) a tour experience to sip around wine country. Let the experts take the wheel for a relaxed day out experiencing the great wine and food of Stanthorpe and surrounds while learning a thing or two along the way. From small groups to personalised tours, find what suits your taste with Crisp Coaches, Filippo’s, Granite Highlands Maxi Tours, Wine Discovery Tours and Wild Cat Tracks.
Summer Mountain Escapes
Organise some quality time away for someone in Granite Belt Wine Country with an accommodation voucher. An easy scenic 3-hour drive from Brisbane, an escape to wine country in the summer with sun-drenched vineyards and rolling hills, creates a perfect backdrop for relaxation and rejuvenation away from the beach crowds. Check out the accommodation guide online here.
CookED From Scratch Cooking School Experience
Give a Granite Belt experience to a foodie to cook, eat, laugh and learn using fresh local and regional ingredients across a variety of cooking classes at Cooked from Scratch at Sabo’s on Severn in Glen Alpin. Choose from handmade pasta making and cannoli to Asian tapas, paella, and more.
Washpool Supply Co
Give guilt-free and fill Christmas stockings with natural handcrafted products for skin, home and health from Washpool Supply Co. These soap artisans have an exquisite soap range, including festive Christmas products and are committed to sustainable and ethical production and business practices. Their dedicated team will even do the gift wrapping for you. Visit the soaperie in Stanthorpe or buy online.
Kent Saddlery
Kent Saddlery is an iconic Stanthorpe store reminiscent of an old-time saddlery store where you will find beautiful handcrafted leather products from handbags to belts, all locally designed and made. Make a gift extra personal with their laser printing options. Shop in-store or online.
Granite Belt Christmas Farm
Step inside the magic of Granite Belt Christmas Farm’s Mistletoe Store and find over 20,000 decorations, ornaments and vintage collectibles to choose from. Buy in-store (and treat yourself to a Belgian hot chocolate or festive treat) or buy online from Australia’s most prestigious Christmas store.
We cook. You dine.
Have a break and let someone else do the cooking for you this year.
Book a table for a pre-Christmas celebration at Varias Restaurant for lunch, dinner or their Christmas Tapas evening (15 December).
For a merry country affair, gather on Christmas Day for lunch at Granite Belt Smokehouse Restaurant to eat and drink the day away. After, walk it off around the picturesque 42-acre property. Pets are welcome, so no one is missing out.
Alternatively, shout a gift voucher for one of the many dining options across Stanthorpe and surrounds. Check the complete dining guide here.
Are you ready to make it a December to remember? Find more Christmas Season inspiration here.