Taste Stanthorpe and the Granite Belt
THE GRANITE BELT IS KNOW FOR ITS APPLES, PEARS, STONE FRUIT, BERRIES, GRAPES AND WINE.
A great place to start a Granite Belt holiday are the fruit shops in the Thulimbah and Cottonvale area. We visited Sams Farm Fresh Fruit and Veg. Sam Giacca is a local, one of many of Italian heritage and can advise visitors about the seasonal treats to be found on the Granite Belt.
Close by is Suttons Juice Factory, Cider and Shed Café just off Australia’s Country Way. David and Ros grow their apples then turn them into a range of delicious food, juices and cider. Their apple pie is legendary.
Just out of Stanthorpe on the western side of town is the Granite Belt Brewery and Restaurant. They pair their locally brewed beers with local produce.
Stanthorpe boasts many cafés serving up local produce. We called into Brinx right in the main street. This combination of café and deli rates highly with visitors wanting the Granite Belt food experience.
When you have tons of fresh seasonal produce it makes sense to save some for later in the year. Jamworks Café and Larder on Australia’s Country Way at Glen Aplin makes jams, pastes, sauces, pickles and relishes as well as serving them at their café.
The Granite Belt is Queensland’s largest wine producing region with over 50 cellar doors. It’s also Australia’s highest wine region with distinctive decomposed granite soils. We visited the Puglisi family who have produced wine in Ballandean for five generations at their Ballandean Estate winery to learn about the history of the area and what is planned for the future.
One of the newest agricultural ventures is truffles. At Folly Truffles in Bents Road, Ballandean the Egerton family have managed to produce French Périgord Black Truffles on their property. In winter their dogs sniff out the truffles which are carefully extracted from the soil.
Our journey ends on the New South Wales border at Wallangarra. The heritage railway station peculiarly has two different platforms joined by the station building. One side is Queensland Rail with a different rail gauge and architecture style to New South Wales on the other side. The station building houses the Railway Café and Museum where you can get your final taste of Australia’s Country Way.
MORE INFORMATION: