Capercaillie

Alasdair Sutherland built this small winery at Lovedale in late 1995, on a vineyard already twenty years old, and named it after the Scottish woodland grouse. The seven-hectare home block went in mostly to Chardonnay in the mid-1970s, and a slice of the ageing vines was later replanted to Chambourcin and Petit Verdot, which is why the tasting list runs wider than the Hunter norm.

A standard tasting is $5 a head, which makes it one of the cheapest first or last stops in the region, and $25 buys the premium flight with a Binnorie Dairy cheese board. Coach and tour groups taste for $10. It is a straightforward, welcoming cellar door rather than a polished experience, and the Clan Club is worth asking about at the bar if you find a wine you like. Open seven days across a range of reds, whites and a Gewurztraminer.