Cedar Creek Estate + Queensland Wine Centre - Mount Tamborine, Queensland, Australia
April 2013
Jam-packed full of surprises.
Now if you came to Cedar Creek Estate expecting a regular winery and restaurant well you wouldn't be wrong, but this special place on the top of scenic Mount Tamborine has so much more in store for the lucky visitor.
Cedar Creek is a beautiful little spot.
The grounds and Restaurant are simply breath-taking (the food is pretty good too) but there are two very special features that Cedar Creek has to offer over any other Queensland winery.
First let's talk about the attraction that isn't wine related.
Cedar Creek Estate is home to very special purpose-built Glow-worm caves.
That's right, you can go from tastings wines to walking through an inky darkness gazing at hundreds of glowing worms in the cave ceiling.
It was a great little experience with an informational video beforehand in a low-light chamber that slowly gets darker so your eyes will adjust easier to the dark.
The glow-worms were beautiful and they are bred there as part of a conservation effort to help the unique glow-worms of this part of the world survive while humans are continuing to encroach on their space.
The entrance to the Glow Worm caves, where flash photography is forbidden.
Next, to the wine.
Cedar Creek makes it's own wine of course, but while their estate wines are fine, the real attraction is the 'Queensland Wine Centre'.
As most of Queensland's burgeoning wine industry is based several hours inland from the population centres in a place called Stanthorpe, all those wineries needed a way to get themselves out their and have their wines tried by the public.
This is where the Queensland Wine Centre comes in.
The large tasting centre offers wine from almost all Queensland's wineries, and you can pick and choose what ever ones you wish to try as well as some fine liqueurs made in the state.
I tried some superb wines from the well acclaimed Ballandean Estate, as well as Clovely Estate, Golden Grove Estate and Granite Ridge.
The hosts there are lively and entertaining and really made it a great tasting experience.
Of note: Cedar Creek Estate is also home to the Arthur Hamblin Art Gallery which was unfortunately closed at the time of my visit.
Arthur Hamblin is often known as the 'Father of Australian Outback Art' and his pieces are just spectacular.
We Three- And a Mob by Arthur Hamblin