HEAD FOR THE HILL
When we moved to the Huon Valley in 2003, the reputation of Home Hill Winery restaurant loomed large, blazing a trail as the standard bearer of hospitality years before the buoyant cafe/restaurant scene in the valley today.
Chefs have come and gone over the years, but owners Rosemary and Terry Bennett have remained, maintaining the course they set 16 years ago.
Home Hill now ticks over with a steady flow of customers sampling wine at the cellar door and grazing in the dining room.
We are greeted warmly and the conviviality extends throughout the meal with excellent service from an attentive and knowledgeable waiter.
We enjoy some good housemade bread and butter garnished with burnt onion powder and choose the spring vegetables and the octopus to start.
After some consultation with our waiter, my dining companion chooses a glass of 2016 estate pinot noir from a list that is almost exclusively from the Home Hill range. Several beers and ciders are also available.
The spring vegetables look painterly and taste delicious. A jumble of warm vegetables, each is liberally seasoned and enrobed with chimichurri vinaigrette with little dabs of beetroot puree and Persian feta punctuating the assemblage.
We also share the charred octopus, served with spiced cauliflower, labne and braised seeds. While the octopus is flavoursome, it is laboriously chewy. Also detracting from the overall dish is the aroma of the labne. Warmed by the heat of the plate, it evokes a curdled scent I find unappealing.
The vibe of the dining room is upbeat and relaxed. Gazing out over the budding vines and well-kept expanses of lawn, it is clear why Home Hill is such a popular wedding reception venue.
The appearance of our mains segues us back to the here and now. We share stripey trumpeter in the nicoise style and the special of locally farmed duck.
It is a very generous serving of the fish, deeply coloured and crispy skinned with the customary nicoise ingredients: olives, potato, beans, anchovy, tomato and egg. However, I find the burnt butter an unnecessary addition.
The duck looks splendid and plentiful. I usually choose duck on a menu, as its cooking tends to demonstrate a kitchen’s prowess – or lack thereof. While the flavours are terrific and the confit leg excellent, it is sadly let down by the breast being difficult to cut and chewy.
Of the three desserts and one cheese course, we choose the bittersweet lemon, yuzu jelly, meringue, shortbread and lime leaf ice-cream, which is a textural and tasty triumph.
The honey and apple pudding, caramelised apple, yoghurt sorbet and almond granola would have been the star if it hadn’t shared the stage with the lemon dessert. Both are outstanding, beautiful and delicious.
Finishing with espressos, we linger at the cellar door, perusing an assortment of bespoke woollen garments on display.
Home Hill is an accomplished venue and a testimony to the enduring efforts of its owners, and I wouldn’t let a couple of missteps put anyone off from visiting and enjoying it.