Picnic in the Vines
A long-table lunch in the vines, Sunday 4th October 2026.
Picnic in the Vines is a long-table lunch held in the picnic grounds at Saddler's Creek Wines in Pokolbin, overlooking the vineyard and the Brokenback Ranges. Share-style Italian feasting, six Italian wines you choose yourself, live music from Zenith Pop Funk, and the launch of our Single Suitcase Italian varieties.
đź“… Sunday 4th October 2026, from 11:30am
đź“Ť The Picnic Grounds, Saddler's Creek Wines, Pokolbin
🍷 A long-table lunch in the vineyard, share-style Italian feasting with six wine tasting tokens to spend how you like and live music from Zenith Pop Funk
A long lunch in the Hunter Valley, spent at long tables in the vines
A Hunter Valley long lunch at Saddler's means long tables in the picnic grounds, everyone seated together, and four hours with nowhere else to be. The food comes in courses, grazing to start and then the feast, served on shared platters down the table rather than as individual plates. Six Italian wines to make your way through alongside it.
It is the meal the Laureti family have been having their whole lives, only bigger. Italian heritage, a long table, and the understanding that the food is not the point of the gathering so much as the reason for it.
The best afternoons are the ones nobody wants to end.
Nothing about the day is rushed. We will show you to your table, the platters will start arriving, and from there the afternoon looks after itself.
Share-style Italian feasting with porchetta over the coals
The feast is Italian, share-style and generous, cooked by our Venetian-born chef, Chef Chiero. Grazing starts the afternoon, then the hot food comes out on platters to the tables, and the porchetta is carved live over the coals in the picnic grounds.
That carving station is the theatre of the day. Whole porchetta, cooked slowly over coals and carved in front of you, then brought through to the tables on platters.
Six Italian wines, and you choose your own
Every adult ticket comes with six tasting tokens, and you spend them however you like across the six Single Suitcase Italian varieties. Two whites, Pecorino and Fiano. Four reds, Sangiovese, Montepulciano, Barbera and Nero d'Avola.
Try all six, or find the one you love and spend the rest of your tokens on it. Our team will be pouring all afternoon, so ask them what to drink with the porchetta or which red to finish on. Matching food and wine is what we do here, and they will happily talk you through it. Then take home the one that won you over.
What is the Single Suitcase series?
Single Suitcase is our small-batch collection of Italian varieties, grown and made in Australia. Grapes like Fiano, Nero d'Avola and Montepulciano, planted here because they suit our conditions and need less intervention to grow well.
The name comes from the migrants who arrived in Australia in the 1950s with one suitcase and a plan for a better life. Alessandro Laureti was one of them. This lunch is where the collection is properly launched, poured alongside the food it was made for.
Live music from Zenith Pop Funk
Zenith Pop Funk play across the afternoon. Covers old and new, horns out front, big vocals and a line-up of players who know their way around a groove.
Pop, soul, disco, funk and jazz, pulling from Dua Lipa, Adele, Harry Styles, Bruno Mars, ABBA, Amy Winehouse, Earth, Wind & Fire and Kool & The Gang. The kind of set list that turns a long lunch into an afternoon.
The menu
To start, grazing
Porcini and Asiago arancini with rosemary mayonnaise. Chef Chiero's meatballs in a rich tomato sauce. A selection of Italian cheeses, Parmigiano Reggiano, truffle pecorino and Gorgonzola. A selection of Italian cured meats, Prosciutto di Parma, Salame Felino and Mortadella. Homemade rosemary focaccia with garlic whipped butter, Italian EVO oil and aged balsamic vinegar.
The feast
Porchetta over the coals, whole roasted and carved live in the picnic grounds. Pan-seared salmon with peas and broad bean ragu, lemon and dill sauce. Caserecce with homemade basil pesto, sundried tomato and pecorino.
Sides
Roasted duck-fat potatoes. Rocket, walnut, pear and smoked ricotta salad.
To finish
Pannacotta. Mini cannoli.
What's on in the Hunter Valley this October long weekend
Picnic in the Vines runs on Sunday 4th October 2026, the Sunday of the NSW Labour Day long weekend. If you are planning three days in wine country, this is the long lunch to build the weekend around.
Doors open at 11:30am and the afternoon runs about four hours. Come for the lunch, stay for the music, and you still have the Monday public holiday to explore the rest of the valley.
Plan your visit to Saddler's Creek in Pokolbin
Saddler's Creek Wines is at 15 Marrowbone Road, Pokolbin, about two hours from Sydney and forty minutes from Newcastle Airport. Taxis and rideshare operate locally, and there is parking on site.
The picnic grounds are outdoors, on grass, overlooking the vineyard and the Brokenback Ranges. Wear something comfortable and bring a hat. There is no dress code. Early October in the Hunter can be warm in the sun and cool in the shade, so a light layer is worth having.
Where to stay near Saddler's Creek
The lunch finishes mid-afternoon on the Sunday with the Monday public holiday still ahead, so most people make a weekend of it. These are the places we point guests towards.
Closest to the cellar door
voco Kirkton Park Hunter Valley is a 70-acre country manor estate on Oakey Creek Road, minutes from us. Seventy rooms and suites look out over the gardens and vines to the Brokenback Range, with estate-to-plate dining at Locavore, a fireside drink in the Epoche Lounge Bar and picnic hampers you can take out onto the lawns. The most polished stay this close by, and a favourite for couples and special occasions.
Elfin Hill has boutique studios and a self-contained loft in peaceful bushland at the foothills of the Brokenback Range, with a pool and true country hospitality. On Marrowbone Road, just along from us.
Elfin Hill, boutique country accommodation on Marrowbone Road, just along from Saddler's Creek.
If you want the full resort
The larger Pokolbin and Rothbury resorts are worth it if you want golf, a day spa or a water park on site. Good options include Oaks Cypress Lakes Resort in Pokolbin, Chateau Elan at The Vintage in Rothbury, and family-friendly Rydges Resort Hunter Valley with its water park in Lovedale.
A house to yourselves
If you are booking for a group, Hunter Holidays are the local specialists for cottages and houses across the region, and Ferguson House is worth a look for a whole house.
There is more on building a weekend around the valley in our guide to planning a Hunter Valley wine trip.
Picnic in the Vines FAQs
What is Picnic in the Vines?
It is a long-table lunch in the picnic grounds at Saddler's Creek Wines in Pokolbin. Guests sit together at long tables and share Italian-style platters cooked by Chef Chiero, with six wine tasting tokens each and live music. It runs about four hours and is our signature spring event.
What's on in the Hunter Valley this October long weekend?
Picnic in the Vines runs on Sunday 4th October 2026, the Sunday of the NSW Labour Day long weekend. It is a four-hour long lunch in the vines at Saddler's Creek in Pokolbin, with share-style Italian feasting, six Italian wines to choose from and live music.
Who is playing the live music?
Zenith Pop Funk, a covers band with a horn section, playing across the afternoon. Their set runs through pop, soul, disco, funk and jazz, pulling from Dua Lipa, Adele, Harry Styles, Bruno Mars, ABBA, Amy Winehouse, Earth, Wind & Fire and Kool & The Gang.
Where should we stay?
voco Kirkton Park Hunter Valley on Oakey Creek Road and Elfin Hill on Marrowbone Road are both minutes from the cellar door. If you want a resort with golf, a day spa or a water park, look at Oaks Cypress Lakes Resort in Pokolbin, Chateau Elan at The Vintage in Rothbury or Rydges Resort Hunter Valley in Lovedale. For a house to yourselves, Hunter Holidays are the local specialists for cottages across the region.
How far is Saddlers Creek from Sydney?
About two hours by car. Saddler's Creek Wines is at 15 Marrowbone Road, Pokolbin, in the heart of the Hunter Valley, and roughly forty minutes from Newcastle Airport. There is parking on site, and taxis and rideshare operate locally if you would rather not drive.
What's included in the ticket?
Your ticket covers the full Italian share-style feast, from grazing through to Italian desserts, plus six wine tasting tokens to spend across the Single Suitcase Italian varieties. Live music from Zenith Pop Funk runs across the afternoon. Under 18 tickets include the same food without the wine tokens.
What wines can I try?
Six Single Suitcase Italian varieties, grown and made in Australia. Two whites, Pecorino and Fiano. Four reds, Sangiovese, Montepulciano, Barbera and Nero d'Avola. Your six tokens are yours to spend however you like, so try all six or stay with a favourite.
Is there a Club Equus member price?
Yes. Tickets are $159, or $149 for Club Equus members, and $59 for under 18s. Members book at the member rate through their account. If you are not a member yet, joining Club Equus gets you the member price here plus first access to events before they go public.
Do I need to book ahead?
Yes, and early is wise. This is a catered long lunch with limited seats, and bookings close one week before, on Sunday 27th September 2026. Once seats are gone they are gone, so there are no tickets available on the day.
What happens if it rains?
The lunch goes ahead either way. It is held outdoors in the picnic grounds, and if the weather turns we move undercover on site, into the Barrel Room or the undercover tasting area. We will be in touch before the day if anything changes, so there is no need to call and check.
Is it family friendly?
Yes. There is an under 18 ticket at $59, which includes the same share-style feast without the wine tokens. Saddler's is a family-owned winery with lawns and picnic grounds, and this is exactly the kind of long lunch children are meant to be at. Book their seat with yours.
What should I wear and bring?
Come as you are, there is no dress code. The picnic grounds are outdoors on grass, so comfortable shoes are a good idea and flat shoes are better than heels. Bring a hat and sunscreen for early October sun, and a light layer for the shade.
The Laureti Way
Saddler's is more than just a winery, it's a Hunter Valley destination we created for bringing people together over good food and wine, family hospitality the Laureti way. The live music, the food from Mangia at Saddler's, the picnic grounds where families gather, they all exist because the point was never just the wine, it was the connection around it. This is a place for making memorable occasions over a glass, the kind you remember long after the glass is empty.
Wine crafted with heart and soul, made for sharing.
Wendy Laureti
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