A special occasion calls for a special restaurant, and we chose well when it came to Polperro Winery to celebrate a dear friend’s birthday. Each of the dishes was a beautifully crafted masterpiece that stunned, but more importantly good looks were backed up with excellent taste. What also made this meal a stand out was the exciting flavour and ingredient pairings that really came to life when they made contact with the taste buds. Even something as simple as the Tuerong Farm sourdough (what beautiful crust, what an incredibly airy light sourdough) paired with a whipped cultured butter and fragrant fennel dusting left quite the impression. We love our bread, we love our butter indeed.

Other standouts included:

• duck liver pate - served on a stick, this was a grown up version of a lollipop if you like, but SO much better than candy. The first bite was heaven but it does perhaps get a little bit rich after that. Luckily we had our sour dough on hand, and the creamy pate worked a treat with this!

• kangaroo tartare - the kangaroo itself was beautifully silky and tender, and paired beautifully with the vibrant flavour profile imparted by the toppings of pickles, natives, creamy dollops of mayo and preserved lemon zest.

• Hawk’s potato millefeuille - tender, melt in the mouth potato with a crispy and crunchy bite. Sold! Get. In. Belly.

As for the other dishes? They may not have made the highlights list, but they were STILL incredibly tasty and executed faultlessly.

Polperro is a must-visit for anyone who hasn’t been. And a must re-visit for myself.

Tuerong Farm sour dough - with cultured butter and fennel ash.

Ora King cured salmon - with goats curd, grape, heirloom carrots, caviar and nori.

Duck liver pate - with brioche, pumpkin and rose vinegar.

Kangaroo tartare - with Heritage Farm cured duck yolk, green olive and nori.

Hawk’s Potato millefeuille - with rouille, wild fennel and brown butter.

Spiced pumpkin - with wild rice, basil, sriracha yoghurt and cumin.

Vanilla and jasmine mousse - with texture of orange and orange snow.

Polperro Winery

150 Red Hill Rd,

Red Hill, Victoria, 3937.

(03) 5989 2471

https://www.polperrowines.com.au/