Food & Wine - Gourmet Travellers Secrets -

Get to know Australia's newest major food and wine destination.

It’s no secret that Queensland now competes with the rest of Australia on its own terms, but the state now crackles with so much creative energy and so much going on that it can be hard to keep up.

The insider secrets on these pages are just a few highlights of the many good things Queensland has to offer to those who like to travel with fork and glass in hand. Are you ready for a taste of things to come?

BRISBANE

Australia's most talked-about city shows no sign of slowing down: Hot nights and a cool scene make for unforgettable breaks and an idyllic base.

1. GoMA

Brisbane has become one of the nation’s arts hotspots, and the city’s latest claim to cultural fame is GoMA, the Gallery of Modern Art. Located on the South Bank of the Brisbane River, it ticks all the modern art boxes: dynamic design, a provocative collection and dining that’s all but a destination in itself. Winning casual options include the Watermall and River cafes, and for something more special there’s The Foyer Café. Queenslander Travis Grigg offers a menu full of fresh flavours. Dishes such as the wok-tossed yabbies, tiger prawns and scallops with green papaya and nahm jim are attracting a following - one you’re sure to want to join. www.qag.qld.gov.au/goma

2. FARMERS’ MARKETS

These popular events are growing all over the state. "Half the price and twice the flavour of supermarkets," is the catchcry of the Brisbane Farmers’ Market founder Jan Power, and a visit to this event, held every second and fourth Saturday of the month, quickly proves the truth of her statement. Walking around the grounds of the striking Powerhouse building next to New Farm Park, you can pick your way through the freshest local produce, including fruit, great teas, mud crabs, prawns and much more. Shop for lunch, or just take a walk, eating as you go, and soak up the atmosphere. www.janpowersfarmersmarkets.com.au

SOUTH-EAST QUEENSLAND COUNTRY

All the space you could ever need: the south-east is where wilderness connects with cultivation, drawing wine lovers and pleasure seekers alike.

3. PEPPERS SPICERS PEAK LODGE

On a mountain top on the cusp of the World Heritage-listed Main Range National Park , just 90 minutes’ drive from Brisbane , Peppers Spicers Peak , an exclusive 10-suite lodge, has raised the bar for accommodation in Queensland . The setting is unique, and fine dining, naturally, is a key part of the package. The lodge’s restaurant presents a choice of degustation menus daily; chef Ben Lanyon teams the likes of asparagus, scallop and breadcrumb soup, verjus-braised pork with apple, celery and radish, and chocolate fondant with orange ice-cream. A fine selection of local and imported wines also impresses. www.peppers.com.au/spicers

4. QUEENSLAND WINE

"Southerners don’t rate our wine at all," winemaker Mark Ravenscroft of Queensland’s Ravens Croft Wines told Melbourne’s The Age, "But then they didn’t rate our footy team either." Recent vintages have confirmed what was once almost unthinkable: Queensland is home to some wine regions to be reckoned with. The state produces more wine than Tasmania. In the Tropical North you will find many specialty fruit wines, and the Granite Belt core production area’s 60-plus wineries are joined by ventures in Mount Cotton, Mount Tamborine, Toowoomba, North and South Burnett. Wine pundits are watching with great interest.

THE GOLD COAST

Sophistication meets sunshine and the heartland meets pure hedonism, all as naturally as the surf meets the sand.

5. ABSYNTHE

French chef Meyjitte Boughenout held two Michelin stars in Europe, and the experience he offers in his dynamic restaurant at the base of the towering Q1 skyscraper is every bit the gourmet extravaganza. Rev up your tastebuds and prepare for a wild ride with confit of vine-ripened tomato in vanilla oil with eggplant ice-cream, truffled egg mousse in its shell topped with gold leaf, or the simple luxury of Iranian caviar with potato blini. Throw a 600-bottle list of wines Boughenout has collected from around the world and you’re looking at a very worthy detour indeed. www.absynthe.com.au

6. CHEFS ON THE MOVE

Queensland is a magnet for professionals of all stripes, and chefs are no exception. The burgeoning culinary culture has drawn diverse individuals from around Australia and the world. Among those attracting the most interest are newcomers to Queensland like Nick Holloway of Palm Cove’s Nu Nu, who wows with his hot-smoked red emperor, pink pomelo, and green papaya relish on betel leaves, or Bruno Loubet, who maintains Berardo’s of Noosa’s reputation for excellence with dishes such as his veal sweetbreads and foie gras boudin blanc with corn custard. www.nunu.com.au; www.absynthe.com.au; www.berardos.com.au

SUNSHINE COAST

The Decadence of Noosa is just the tip of the iceberg for flavour-driven visitors to the Sunshine Coast, as the hinterland reveals its charms.

7. HINTERLAND COOKING SCHOOLS

Beachfront cafes are a familiar sight to many holidaymakers, but many of the region’s best kept secrets lie further afield. The Sunshine Coast Hinterland offer some of the country’s best cooking schools. The Tamarind, a luxe bed-and-breakfast operation in Maleny, has a year-round schedule of one-day classes and residential retreats with Darley Street Thai-trained chef Paul Blain. Thai is also on the menu at Yandina’s beautiful Spirit House Restaurant & Cooking School . For something a little more Western, Amytis Gardens Retreat specialises in Italian, French and - wait for it - chocolate at its classes. Learning never tasted so good. www.thetamarind.com.au; www.spirithouse.com.au www.amytisgardens.com

8. FOOD AND WINE EVENTS

Queensland is home to many gourmet events and one of the biggest dates on the food and wine calendar is Celebration of Australian Food and Wine Noosa Style held over three days each May. The city’s vibrant community plays host to a battalion of visiting chefs, winemakers, food media and food lovers for a mixture of fun, informed debate and plenty of good eating and drinking. Sumptuous banquets, food trails, cooking demonstrations, masterclasses and farmers’ markets take over the town in a distinctly Noosa-paced event. www.celebrationofaustralianfoodandwine.com.au

TROPICAL NORTH QUEENSLAND

With waters teeming with superb seafood and a lush abundance of produce on the shore, the tropical north is a sun-loving flavour-raiders dream.

9. THE AUSTRALIAN COFFEE CENTRE

Australia has been going through a caffeine revolution. We are now a nation dedicated to the ways of the short black and flat white, and boast the most sophisticated coffee-drinking culture of any English-speaking nation. The latest development has been home-grown coffee beans, and it’s here, once again, that Queensland leads the premium-produce pack. The Australian Coffee Centre, a two-storey timber complex high in the Cairns Hinterland, is just the place to get the full story. A 54-seat cinema gives you the local history of the bean in all its high-definition glory, while you can indulge your other senses at the coffee laboratory, restaurant and, of course, the shop, where you can buy all the pure Australian Arabica you need. www.skybury.com.au

10. FRESH PRODUCE

Queensland grows a greater diversity of tropical fruit than almost anywhere else in the world. And it’s not just fruit that grows in abundance; the region is home to some of Australia’s finest seafood, prime beef, exotic herbs, vegetables, spices, coffee and tea. Stop in at one of the roadside stalls that are a common sight throughout the state and try the fruits of local producers’ labours for yourself. www.australiantropicalfoods.com