Getaway
Laidback Luxury
Cupitt’s Estate in Milton has already made a name for itself – for its beer, wine, dining, cheese, and live music events in the vineyard. Now its architecturally designed Pods are the talk of town and beyond. WORDs: Michelle Hespe
Wally Cupitt greets us at the Cupitt’s Estate cellar door, swirling the last mouthfuls of a sneaky glass of one of his favourite creations – Dusty Dog Shiraz. “Excuse me,” he says, finishing it off and then giving us a quick nod. “What can I say? It’s my job.” And what a job it is: winemaker at Cupitt’s Estate, where the wine club went through the roof during COVID, not only because the wines are so good, but because the locals and people from far and wide are getting behind local businesses and truly supporting them in times of need. Cupitt’s Estate was hit by the 2020 bushfires and the 2021 floods, and the ongoing pandemic meant that its popular restaurant was closed for long periods. But the silver lining is that the award-winning produce that this family-run business creates – beer, wine, cheese, bread, and everything grown in the vegetable gardens – are now in high demand. We join Wally on a tour of the property and he introduces us to the 2,000 thriving sauvignon blanc vines that sprawl like a shimmering lime green carpet under the setting sun, their neat rows meeting paddocks where hundreds of cattle graze. It’s a quintessential NSW South Coast countryside view for the restaurant and beer garden perched on the layers of lawn and gardens above us, with Burrill Lake and the Budawang Mountains completing the vista. Wally leads the way down a sloping gravelled pathway with rustic stone walls on either side, topped with
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tangles of earthy-smelling sage bushes and towering hedges of neatly trimmed rosemary. At the end is an imposing blackened wooden door with massive hinges that wouldn’t look out of place on an English castle or a Tuscan villa. It looks as though it’s always been there – rammed into the side of the hill to hide the goods in the underground cellar. “This was Mum’s idea. She comes up with things like this and goes for it,” says Wally with a wave of his arms, as if to take in the entire property. “You can’t stop her or tell her to slow down. She’s mad, in a good way of course. She also decided to make our cheese after travelling all over France and visiting all the top vineyards, cellar doors and fromageries. She came back and just did it. That’s Mum for you – she’s a powerhouse.” Wally runs a fun and informative
