Your Peninsula spring weekender is served.

Spring tastes like sparkling in a bottle. It feels like popping the cork off a fruity champagne. It smells like your girlfriends’ floral perfume, and freshly cut blooms. To truly embrace and imbibe the new season’s fruits, we’ve carefully curated a weekend itinerary for your next getaway with your girls. To where? Our all time favourite spot and home town, the beautiful Mornington Peninsula! Leave your faux fur coats at home, whip out your spring florals (#groundbreaking) and follow this Saturday-through-to-Sunday guide to the ultimate unwind weekend down the coast. 

Oh, and be sure to stay tuned till the end: we’ve got a cheeky giveaway in store to make this to-do list a reality! 

SATURDAY 

AM

Saturdays are synonymous with brunching. To get the weekend in full swing, kick start your morning with a glorious brunch date at our fave ‘local’s choice’, Merricks General Store. This provincial palace is the ideal backdrop for some Belgian waffles pimped with rhubarb compote and mascarpone cream, or a mighty feed of beetroot hummus, spiced avo and grilled halloumi (*mouthwatering) on a slate of roti bread. And while you’re there, be sure to have a perusal through the in-house Gallery. Showcasing local Australian Artists, Merricks House exhibits a varied array of stunning artwork, photography and sculptures in an open and intimate space. Amongst all the wining and dining you’ll be embarking on this weekend, a little culture never goes astray. 

ARVO

It’s time to shake out of that food coma and embrace your sun-soaked surrounds with a breathtaking sashay through Bushrangers Bay in Cape Schanck. The girls, the waves, the salt-misted air – this is truly what dreams are made of. Who needs a Euro getaway anyway? It’s definitely not warm enough for an ocean dip this time of year, so we’re prescribing an afternoon bathe and massage at the tranquil Peninsula Hot Springs. You’re guaranteed to leave feeling indulged, cleansed, and completely refreshed! Divine. 

PM

Golden hour is upon us. When the sun starts setting, it’s your cue to get your stash of fresh seasonal produce, a bottle of wine and ALL of the antipasto supplies at Red Hill’s sublime produce stalwart Cellar and Pantry. You’ll be spoilt for choice with an array of local Peninsula wines, creamy dreamy cheeses, cured meats and other seasonal treasures to stockpile and create a completely #instaworthy cheeseboard for the evening. And because it would be completely rude to skip on dessert, we’re instructing a visit to a sweet vault, Johnny Ripe. With humble hand-baked apple pies (like Grandma’s) and cronuts for miles, we bid you good luck resisting these treats! 

After all of the wining, dining, and laughs, you’ll be more than ready to retreat for the evening with your gang. If you’re hunting for something exuding cosiness and cute-appeal, we’d recommend retreating to The Log Box – a unique short stay getaway in a cosy converted cabin – or go wild with 14-guest-holding Dairy Air pad, set amongst the trees and lush terrains of the picturesque Red Hill South. Be sure to book in advance – these rustic stays get a lot of attention! 

SUNDAY

AM / ARVO

Sometimes, a remedial Sunday decamp somewhere bucolic and food-filled is in order. That’s why we’re issuing a long lunching odyssey at Montalto Vineyard and Olive Grove. One of our ultimate favourite spots on the Mornington Peninsula. The pinot? Potent. The charcuterie? Unrelenting. And the grapevines? Oh-so luscious.  

For a sit-down, casual feast with prime vistas, you can’t bypass The Piazza Cafe and Cellar Door. As you step outside, lofty white umbrellas scatter a buzzing veggie patch – the fruits of which will soon be arriving at your table. For the pizza enthusiasts (Hello, it us!) you simply cannot go past the Tuscan kale and truffle oil or portobello mushroom and rosemary. Be sure order a vat of their farmed roasted potatoes with aioli and pumpkin with burnt butter and currants for good measure. 

If we’ve just convinced you that a trip down to the Mornington Peninsula wine country is pressing, then we’ve got good news. For the month of September, we’re giving you & your favourite wining and dining gal the chance to win a Montalto feast! Want in? (Duh). To enter, head over to @sundaywineco on the ‘gram, tag your wine-loving friend in our comp post, double tap the post and make sure you’re both following us! You’re now one step closer to the gates of Vino Heaven and a spring to surpass all others. 

Sunday Wine Co x