Best Brisbane Wine Tours
— Compared & Ranked

The Granite Belt produces the best wines of any Queensland region — full stop. At 800–1,000m altitude on the edge of the New England Tablelands, it has genuine continental climate conditions producing world-class Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, and an extraordinary array of alternative varietals — Fiano, Barbera, Tempranillo, Vermentino, Graciano, Verdejo — that no other Australian region grows in any significant quantity.

The Granite Belt's “Strange Bird” movement — championed by Symphony Hill, Ballandean Estate (Queensland's oldest winery, 80+ years, with an Italian heritage built on Puglisi family winemaking), and Ridgemill — has attracted international attention by pioneering varieties rarely grown elsewhere in Australia. A day in this region feels like a wine education as much as a tasting holiday.

The catch: It's 2.5–3 hours from Brisbane, making it a long day. Most serious wine lovers either do it as an overnight trip — Stanthorpe town has excellent accommodation (including Allure Stanthorpe for glamping and boutique luxury) — or book a dedicated tour that maximises time on the ground at 4–5 cellar doors.

The Scenic Rim's Canungra Valley sits in the lee of the Main Range, producing decent reds (Shiraz, Cabernet) and a growing number of Italian-inspired varietals (Fiano, Vermentino, Tempranillo, Montepulciano) in a beautiful pastoral landscape. The real attraction is the scenery — this is the valley that opens onto Lamington National Park — and the combination of wine tasting with a dramatic mountain backdrop makes for a wonderful day even if the wines don't quite reach Tamborine Mountain heights.

Key producers: Kooroomba Vineyards (exceptional lavender farm alongside the cellar door, 180-degree views, French-influenced restaurant — one of Queensland's most photogenic winery settings); O'Reilly's Canungra Valley Vineyard (picnic baskets, wood-fired pizza, vineyards stretching along Canungra Creek); Bunjurgen Estate (rosé specialists, outdoor tastings under jacaranda trees). Combining a winery with a craft distillery makes for a more complete tasting day.

The Sunshine Coast hinterland is less established as a wine region but produces interesting Verdelho and Semillon in the Pomona/Cooroy area, and has developed an excellent craft spirits scene (gin, rum, whisky). It's better suited to those who want a wine-plus-craft-spirits day than a dedicated wine immersion. Bunderim Winery and Brouhaha Brewery in Maleny are the highlights. The scenery — Blackall Range views, rainforest and hinterland villages — is exceptional, making this an outstanding option if you're combining wine with Eumundi Markets (Saturday) or Maleny's artisan food scene.

Sirromet Winery at Mount Cotton is Brisbane's closest quality wine destination — just 40 minutes (35km) from the CBD — making it the ideal choice for time-poor visitors or half-day wine experiences. The winery uses primarily Granite Belt fruit (and is introducing emerging Italian varietals including Fiano and Sangiovese under director Nadine Delahunty's vision), with premium helicopter arrival packages available for special occasions. The cellar door, restaurant, and event venue are all on-site and of excellent quality.

It doesn't have the dramatic mountain scenery of Tamborine or the boutique character of the Granite Belt, but for a quick and high-quality wine experience from Brisbane — or as a pre-dinner experience before a Moreton Bay evening — Sirromet is genuinely outstanding value.