Welcome to wine country: why prestige house hunters are vying for a taste of the Macedon Ranges

You’ll find more than a handful of award-winning, cool climate wines in the Macedon Ranges and one of the best opportunities for a tipple or two is at the annual Budburst Festival, a food and wine fair to be held on November 9 and 10.

Alongside excellent wines, festival-goers can enjoy entertainment, art and winemaker dinners.

Spoilt for choice

The sprawling region is an hour’s drive north of Melbourne and home to more than 30 wineries with specialities including sparkling wines, refined chardonnay and pinot noir.

Caroline Bailey counts herself lucky to be an ambassador for the region via the Woodend Wine Store, a wine retailer and wine bar celebrating its eighth birthday this month.

Bailey says she and husband Simon are among the many residents who made their way to the ranges and found they didn’t want to leave. She moved from the Yarra Valley in 2008 to take up a role as assistant winemaker at Hanging Rock and fell in love with both the area and her future in the wine industry.

As she continues her education towards a masters of wine, Bailey has found the perfect vehicle in the perfect neighbourhood to appreciate the area’s wine credentials.

“Our wine store is only a small shop so we rotate through the local producers,” she says.

“And Woodend is pretty amazing and unique, with a wonderful, supportive community. It’s an educated community, so people are genuinely interested in things. There are a lot of families and lots of people from diverse backgrounds, including a strong LGBTQ community.”

Bailey says between the towns of Woodend, Gisborne and Kyneton, locals can find just about everything they need.

Natural beauty

The region is home to the iconic Hanging Rock, the location for last year’s Picnic at Hanging Rock Foxtel series, and beautiful Mount Macedon with its walking trails and European gardens.

RT Edgar Macedon Ranges Gisborne agent Josie Borg says it was the ranges’ inherent beauty that won her over 44 years ago.

“I came from Melbourne and raised two children here,” she says. “We built a home on half an acre and we’ve been here ever since. The people here are always really lovely and when you go down the street you’re always greeted with a smile.”

Borg says the area is growing increasingly popular with professionals moving from Melbourne’s north-western suburbs looking for larger blocks and a country lifestyle.

The region’s most expensive homes can be found along Mount Macedon Road in Mount Macedon and along Jonathan Road in Gisborne.

Top home in the area

With a stylish fit-out from the interior designer owner, a perfect northern aspect and park-like gardens across a 6600-square-metre corner block, Acheron is an inviting family home with serene views of the ranges.

Expressions of interest close November 11 through RT Edgar Macedon Ranges Gisborn. The home has a $1.59 million-to-$1.65 million price guide.