Essential Features - inside issue one:
It's only our first issue, yet we've already uncovered some of the North East's best food, wine and tourism offerings including Chrismont Wines, Politini Wines, Stringybark Tours, Rotherlea Lodge, Artist Tony Flint, Country Hotel LindenWarrah, Range Food & Wine plus more!

Michael Ryan's Range Food, Wine, produce: Want a recipe for Café du Paris butter and the secret ingredient that the chef deliberately left out of the recipe? How about a technical explanation of why the yolk of a hard-boiled egg turns grey unless the egg is cooled immediately after cooking? Interested in skinning a fresh eel? (Note: The eel will flinch from the knife cut and writhe around as if it were still alive.) Or how the word ‘junket’, meaning ‘a trip at public or company expense’ was derived from the dessert of the same name? What about Japanese breakfast condiments? Ask Michael.

Chrismont Wine's Perfect Drop: In an industry often steeped in pretension, it’s nice to discover a winery with heart. Chrismont, with its undulating estate, expanse of vines and understated cellar door, is a true breath of fresh air. No upturned noses. No expectation of wine knowledge – just a few dogs to greet you and some well-versed staff to fill in the blanks wherever your wine knowledge flounders. There’s even a small, but elegant, onsite guesthouse to rest your head if your wine-tasting develops some uncontrollable momentum.

Chefs of the Murray dinner: The food was a runaway success, kicking off with fresh local Brimin Lodge Murray Cod ceviche served with a bright and zingy chilled fennel soup, garnished with cod crisps. I simply adored this great chilled summer trio of bright white flesh, lime greens and golden shoestring fries. The cod was accompanied by several lovely summer wines, such as the 2002 Brown Brothers Limited Release Riesling and the oddly titled 2004 Gapsted Petit Manseng, both lovely wines. The Jones Vineyard 2004 Marsanne convinced me that extreme indulgence – perfectly designed with a lovely floral and complex nose – was a joy that I really did deserve.

Café Lago Benalla: You know it’s a true Italian coffee experience when former pro-cyclist and owner Silvano Bruzzese asks you if you’d like your coffee ‘corretto’, that is, ‘corrected’ with a shot of grappa. Café Lago at the Commercial Hotel in Benalla is filled with cycling memorabilia, including a bike that was ridden in the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games by Arnaldo Panebianco, member of the gold medal-winning Italian road-racing team (for whom Silvano worked as a translator and training guide). Silvano’s wife Joan is famous for her biscotti, and combined with a shot of Piazza d’Oro and lovely views across Lake Benalla, you’re always on a winner.

Commercial Hotel, 4-10 Bridge St, Benalla Mon-Sat 11am-10pm, Sun 11am-6pm

Lake Nillahcootie Estate Winery, Restaurant and Cellar Door: Lake Nillahcootie Estate truly is a winery in the sky, and their cellar door café one of the most surprising venues in the North East. Perched high above Lake Nillahcootie Estate, this stylish cafe has exceptional panoramic views of the lake and Broken River valley below. While the viewing deck is the perfect place to enjoy a wood-fired pizza and a glass of Nillahcootie Estate Shiraz Cabernet at sunset, the lounge area inside, complete with comfy leather sofas and fluffy cushions, is the spot to sit and re-group with a Beraldo short black or café latte. Although it’s early days for Lake Nillahcootie Estate, with an on-site guesthouse, private landing strip and facilities to stable your own horses, this ambitious venture is worth keeping an eye on.

Midland Hwy, Lima South (between Benalla and Mansfield) Thurs, Sun & Public Hols 12 midday-5pm, Fri-Sat 12 midday-11pm

Hot off the press: Tuesday 29 February, Essentials hits the press at Energi Print (Melb). Jamie Durrant (pictured right) happily inspects the colour balance of one of the magazine's printed sections. Printing with the latest technology, Essentials UV gloss cover is one of the first products to roll of Energi Print's brand spanking new off-set machines. Printing both sides of 8 pages at once the million dollar print press produced smiles all round!