Fine wine and Big Macs don’t have much in common. But just imagine if you could sit in quiet, civilised surroundings, sipping on a top-notch wine, accompanied by cheese and antipasto – while the kids enjoy their burgers, fries and shakes.
have a happy meal at the vineyard
Imagine if you could pick up at the drive-thru then set down at a winery cellar door almost under the golden arches.
This parental dream sounds way too good to be true.
What if it was at the busiest McDonalds outlet in Australia?
wine & cheese
Unbelievably, this dream does exist, right now, in the Southern Highlands of NSW.
Everyone who travels the Hume Highway south from Sydney knows that halfway to Canberra they pass the Sutton Forest service center, Roadhouse and McDonalds. And for those with children it is a traditional food stop on the way to or from Canberra, the snow, or any other southern destination. So popular in fact, that Sutton Forest is the busiest McDonalds in Australia.
What very few travelers realise is that as you pull out of the Sutton Forest McDonalds you can pull into the Sutton Forest Estate Winery. The secret is to ignore the “local residents only” sign on the access road and just drive into the vineyard. There you can park without getting monstered by coaches and trucks, sit under the trees or inside the cellar door, and try some truly excellent wines.
exit McDonalds and turn in here!
The Lo Russo family who run Sutton Forest Estate Wines have been there for nearly 30 years, and in 2002 they turned to their Italian heritage and planted a range of grape vines including Pinot Noir and SanGiovese varieties. These vines are now producing premium cool-climate wines, which you can taste on your Sutton Forest travel stop, and then take a bottle or two of your favorites home with you.
And, if you are touring the southern portion of the Southern Highlands Wine Trail, Sutton Forest Estate Wines is easy to find – just look for the golden arches!