“Our four-acre produce garden provides the inspiration and direction for what we do in the kitchen on our wood-fired asado grill. Every week the kitchen team spends time together in the garden.”

Beetroots fire-cooked overnight with turnip purée, estate black garlic, yoghurt, and estate figs; estate-grown Jerusalem artichoke tempura with smoked artichoke purée, charred broccolini, and goat’s curd; and coal-roasted honeynut pumpkin with fermented wheat, miso, stracciatella, and nori.

An advocate for the delights of the Mornington Peninsula for over fifteen years, the restaurant at Montalto winery has a mighty reputation as a supporter of the arts and home of award-winning olive oils and wines.

It sweats the small details, too, like the four-acre chemical-free garden that focuses on heirloom varieties, and the championing of sustainable fish species, including Spanish mackerel and whiting.

Most produce passes over the woodfired asado grill, whether it’s super-sweet and chewy honeynut pumpkin roasted over coals and served with fermented wheat, miso, stracciatella, and nori, or a dessert of burnt pear with sweetened goat’s curd and tahini shortbread.

Montalto recently removed the international wine list to focus solely on local and domestic wines, so it’s goodbye to Syrah from the Northern Rhone, but hello to a big, generous chocolatey Shiraz from Heathcote.

“Montalto is like a checklist to all the finer things in life, offering a lush dining experience amid a vineyard and kitchen garden landscape punctuated by impressive outdoor sculptures.” goodfood.com.au