WINE - Elgee Park, Merricks North
Elgee Park planted its first vines in 1972, three years before the next person on the Peninsula summoned the nerve. That history is not a marketing angle; it shows in the Viognier, which has been made from the same old-vine block for decades and tastes like it.
Spring is when Viognier earns its keep. The 2025 vintage, currently pouring at the cellar door, carries the apricot kernel and white pepper weight the variety needs without the flabbiness that catches warmer-climate examples out. The cellar door itself is small, unhurried, and run at the pace of the people who made the wine rather than a hospitality brief. There is no food theatre here, just a counter, a view over the vines coming into leaf, and whoever is pouring that day.
Phone ahead to confirm weekend hours before driving out. The cellar door is at 24 Junction Road, Merricks North. Allow ninety minutes. This is not a quick stop.
Pair this with a walk along the Merricks Beach trail before or after, and consider combining with Baillieu Vineyard a short drive away.
WALK - Moorooduc Plains Flora Reserve, Baxter
The Moorooduc Plains grassland is at its best for exactly six to eight weeks in September and October, when the spider orchids flower. Ground orchids on the Peninsula are not rare, but spider orchids on a basalt plains grassland are specific enough to plan around.
The reserve sits off Moorooduc Highway near Baxter, managed by Parks Victoria, and the main loop takes around fifty minutes at a sensible pace. The orchids - mostly Caladenia species, including the Moorooduc spider orchid - sit low in the tussock grass and open fully only in direct morning sun. Arrive between 10am and noon on a clear day. An overcast morning means half the flowers stay closed, and you will have walked past most of them.
No booking required. Wear shoes you do not mind getting damp. The track stays muddy from winter runoff until mid-September, so check conditions if it has rained in the previous two days.
Pair this walk with the Balnarring Farmers’ Market on the third Saturday of the month - the market runs until 1pm and Moorooduc is twenty minutes away.
DISCOVERY - Balnarring Farmers’ Market, Balnarring
The Balnarring Farmers’ Market is what the Peninsula’s food producers actually use to sell direct, rather than what gets written up as a lifestyle destination. That is a meaningful distinction in spring, when the seasonal gap closes and the tables shift.
September’s market - the third Saturday, 19 September, 8am–1pm - runs at the Balnarring Recreation Reserve on Coolart Road. Regular stalls include Moorooduc-grown vegetables, eggs from the Hastings end of the Peninsula, and at least two bread producers who sell out before 10am. The cut flower stalls start filling from late August; by mid-September the freesias and ranunculus are at full run. Locals come early, specifically before 9am, because the produce worth buying is gone by the time visitors arrive from the freeway.
There is no entry fee and no booking required. Allow an hour if you are buying, thirty minutes if you are browsing.
Pair this with Elan Vineyard’s cellar door at Balnarring, which is ten minutes by car and worth phoning ahead to check opening hours.
Quick Reference
Elgee Park 24 Junction Road, Merricks North Open weekends approx. 12pm–5pm - phone ahead to confirm elgeeparkwines.com.au
Moorooduc Plains Flora Reserve Off Moorooduc Highway, Baxter (near the Quarry Reserve) No booking required - best visited 10am–noon, September–October Parks Victoria managed
Balnarring Farmers’ Market Balnarring Recreation Reserve, Coolart Road, Balnarring Third Saturday of the month, 8am–1pm Next market: Saturday 19 September 2026
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Questions readers actually ask
FAQ
When is Elgee Park cellar door open?
Elgee Park is open on weekends and public holidays from approximately 12pm–5pm. Phone ahead to confirm hours before visiting, as times can vary. The cellar door is at 24 Junction Road, Merricks North.
When is the Balnarring Farmers' Market held?
The Balnarring Farmers' Market runs on the third Saturday of each month, 8am–1pm, at the Balnarring Recreation Reserve, Coolart Road, Balnarring. The September market falls on 19 September 2026.
Where exactly are the Moorooduc Plains wildflower walks?
Moorooduc Quarry Flora Reserve and the adjacent Moorooduc Plains Flora Reserve are managed by Parks Victoria, off Moorooduc Highway near Baxter. No booking required. Allow 45–60 minutes for the main loop. Best visited mid-morning in September when spider orchids open with the sun.
