Follow that feeling to Pomonal
Feel like this weekend’s knock-offs deserve a mountain view?
Pomonal may be small, but there’s more than enough here to fill a few very good days.
Grampians (Gariwerd) National Park provides the backdrop, Lake Fyans is just down the road, and there’s local wine worth lingering over, great food and plenty of reasons to slow things down.
The best approach? Don’t over-plan it. Taste a few wines. Stay longer than expected. Give an afternoon to the lake. Keep an eye out for wildlife along the way.
There’s really no need to rush any of it.
Quality time with quality wines.
Black & Ginger’s Wine Shed isn’t really a swirl, sip and move-on kind of cellar door.
Find a comfy spot, choose a few wines, pull out a board game and settle in.
Their tasting experiences are a little different too. Sip Your Way lets you choose three or six wines to explore at your own pace, while Jam & Juice pairs four wines with curated playlists.
Apparently, wine tasting needed a soundtrack.
Feeling hungry? That’s easily solved. Barney’s Bar & Bistro is right next door, and Friday to Sunday between 12–2pm you can also order from Barney’s and have your food brought over to enjoy at the Wine Shed.
- Good to know:
- Black & Ginger Wine Shed is open Thursday–Sunday, 12–6pm, with tastings available from 12–5pm.
- Dogs are welcome, with some restrictions indoors when food is being served.
- Groups of eight or more are advised to book ahead.
- Have a look at the tasting options before you go and decide whether you’re more Sip Your Way or Jam & Juice.
Come hungry.
An old shearing shed might not be the first place you’d expect to find lunch or dinner, but that’s part of the charm of Barney’s Bar & Bistro.
Expect hearty food, regional wine, craft beer and plenty of character.
Then there’s IRIS by Block and Cleaver, on the grounds of Pomonal Estate, where Executive Chef Dean Sibthorp puts seasonal ingredients and regional produce at the centre of the menu.
Lunch runs Tuesday to Sunday. Friday and Saturday evenings bring Chef’s Canvas, a bookings-only dining experience shaped around the best ingredients available at the time.
And Sundays? Roast and a Red. A choice of roast served with a glass of regional red. Reassuringly simple.
The wine list is worth exploring too, showcasing producers from across the Grampians, including smaller wineries without cellar doors of their own.
Good to know:
- IRIS is open Tuesday–Sunday for lunch.
- Chef’s Canvas runs Friday and Saturday evenings and bookings are essential.
- Roast and a Red is available Sunday lunch.
- Check the current menu and what’s pouring before you visit — both change with the weather.
A little Pomonal Estate know-how.
Here’s where knowing how things work comes in handy.
IRIS by Block and Cleaver, the Pomonal Estate Cellar Door and the Pomonal Estate villas are all on the same grounds, but they operate separately.
From Tuesday to Friday, you can taste Pomonal Estate wines through IRIS.
Come Saturday or Sunday, head to the Pomonal Estate Cellar Door for tastings and sales. And regular visitors might be pleased to hear that the wine and chocolate paddles are back, matching Pomonal Estate wines with locally made chocolates from Kerrie’s Kreations. There are beer and wine paddles too.
Good to know:
- The Pomonal Estate Cellar Door is open Saturday and Sunday, 11am–5pm.
- Pomonal Estate tastings are available through IRIS Tuesday–Friday.
- The seven villas are available to book throughout the week too.
- Check current accommodation offers. Midweek deals regularly give you another reason to stay a little longer.
Give the afternoon to Lake Fyans.
Just down the road, Lake Fyans gives you plenty of options — including doing very little at all.
Drop a line and see what’s biting. Pack a picnic. Get out on the water. Or simply find a good spot and enjoy having nowhere else you particularly need to be.
Want to do a little more? Absolute Outdoors offers guided paddling experiences on the lake.
The mountains aren’t going anywhere. Neither should you, for a while.
Good to know:
- Absolute Outdoors’ Twilight Canoe experience runs for around two hours and is suitable for beginners and children aged four and over.
- Bookings are required, so check upcoming sessions before you arrive.
- If fishing is more your speed, Lake Fyans is known for trout and redfin.
Get a little closer to the locals.
A short drive from Pomonal, Halls Gap Zoo is home to more than 120 species from Australia and around the world.
You can wander the 2.5-kilometre walking track, hand-feed the deer or go one better and book an animal encounter to get closer to some of the zoo’s residents.
Allow at least two to three hours, although once the kids discover the animal encounters, you may want to allow considerably longer.
And outside the zoo? Keep your eyes open. Kangaroos, emus and birdlife are part of the landscape around here too.
Good to know:
- Halls Gap Zoo is open daily from 10am–5pm, except Christmas Day.
- There are picnic areas and free BBQs, and the main track is suitable for prams, strollers and wheelchairs.
- Animal encounters are an additional experience, so check what’s available and book your favourite before you visit.
Stay here or just down the road.
There isn't loads of accommodation options in Pomonal itself, but there are some lovely ways to stay in the surrounding area.
If you want to stay right in Pomonal, seven villas sit on the grounds of Pomonal Estate, with options for couples, families and groups.
And once it gets dark, look up. The open skies are great for stargazing, while Mt Cassel Villa comes with a private outdoor spa.
Bubbles and bubbles. Enough said.
Towards Halls Gap, Grampians Pioneer Cottages offers four individually styled, self-contained cottages surrounded by native bushland.
Or head to Lake Fyans Holiday Park and put the lake on your doorstep, with cabins, a holiday house and powered and unpowered sites.
Different stays. Same very good excuse not to drive home.
Good to know:
- Staying on a particular night or travelling midweek? Check the latest offers and availability before you decide where to base yourself. A good accommodation deal might just make the decision for you.
Tomorrow can wait until tomorrow.
That might be the trick to Pomonal.
There’s plenty to do, but very little pressure to do it all.
Taste the wine. Order dessert. Go fishing. Get out on the lake. Meet a few locals.
Sit around the campfire.
Or just decide lunch should probably roll into dinner.
Pomonal is particularly good when you give it a little more time.
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- Follow that feeling to Pomonal