← Canberra Marathon·1 night

Murrumbateman: Cool-Climate Wine Over the Border

A village of small wineries just across the New South Wales border, where Canberra's cool-climate shiraz was made famous, with a smokehouse lunch on the way.

Duration1 night
TransitAbout 40 minutes by car north on the Barton Highway
DepartsCanberra

After the Canberra Marathon: Murrumbateman

The Route: Canberra → Hall → Murrumbateman → Canberra Airport Logistics: Hire car or wine tour, about 40 minutes north on the Barton Highway. Marathon Month: April Duration: 1 night

Canberra ──(approx. 20 mins)──> Hall ──(approx. 20 mins, Barton Hwy)──> Murrumbateman
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          Canberra Airport (CBR) ◄──(approx. 45 mins by car)──────────────────┘

The Canberra Marathon finishes in Parkes in mid-April. Forty minutes north, over the border into New South Wales, the hills around Murrumbateman hold the core of the Canberra District wine region, where small family vineyards have made cool-climate shiraz and riesling since the early 1970s. A night here trades the capital's monuments for cellar doors, and the legs need do almost nothing.

April in Murrumbateman is just after harvest. Most of the grapes are picked by early April, so the vines are turning yellow and the winemakers are busy in the sheds. Days are mild and clear, nights cold, sometimes frosty. It is a good time for tastings, with winemakers often pouring themselves.

Drive north from the city through the village of Hall and onto the Barton Highway. Several Canberra operators run small-group wine tours, which remove the question of who drives.

Night One: Murrumbateman

Murrumbateman is a small village on the highway, surrounded by vineyards on the rolling granite country of the Southern Tablelands. The region's reputation rests on a handful of producers. Clonakilla, founded in 1971 by the scientist John Kirk, made its name blending shiraz with a little viognier in the style of the northern Rhône, and its cellar door is a short drive from the village. Helm Wines, one of the other early vineyards, has made riesling here since the 1970s. Several younger wineries sit along the back roads nearby.

Tasting is the whole activity, which suits legs that ran 42 km the day before. Most cellar doors are level and have seats. Opening days vary, with many open only from Thursday to Sunday or at weekends, so check before driving out on a Monday. Tasting fees vary and are often refunded with a purchase.

There is no formal recovery walk here, but the lanes between the vineyards are quiet, and a slow kilometre along the verge at dusk, with kangaroos in the paddocks, does the job.

Where to stay: Accommodation around Murrumbateman is mostly farm-stay cottages and bed and breakfasts among the vines; choose one near the village to keep evening drives short. Yass, 20 minutes further north, has motels and a heritage main street.

Where to eat: Poachers Pantry, on the way from Canberra near Hall, smokes its own meats and serves long lunches on a verandah looking over the vines; it is the natural first stop. Check opening days, as it is not open every day of the week.

Getting to Canberra Airport

Canberra Airport (CBR) is about 45 minutes from Murrumbateman by car, back down the Barton Highway and around the city's northern suburbs. Allow extra time on weekday mornings.