The Sunshine Coast may not yet rival the Barossa or Hunter Valley, but its compact wine region is one of Queensland's most rewarding — a collection of boutique vineyards and cellar doors set among the stunning hinterland scenery of the Blackall Range, with distilleries, cheese producers and craft breweries woven into every trail.
Vineyards are scattered across the region's diverse microclimates, from the cooler elevated slopes around Montville and Maleny (420 m above sea level) to the warmer valley floors near Eumundi, Traveston and Doonan. This diversity allows a surprisingly broad range of varieties — Chardonnay, Verdelho, Sauvignon Blanc, Chambourcin, Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot all thrive here, alongside fortified wines, honey meads and fruit liqueurs that showcase distinctly local flavours.
The best way to experience it all is on a guided tour: cellar door tastings paired with artisan cheese, long lunches overlooking the vines, and the scenic drive through charming hinterland villages — all without worrying about the road home. Cooee Tours offers private and small-group winery tours with door-to-door pickup from Sunshine Coast accommodation between Caloundra and Noosa.
Sunshine Coast Wineries & Cellar Doors
Flame Hill Vineyard
Perched at the highest point in Montville, Flame Hill is the Sunshine Coast's most established vineyard and an essential stop on any hinterland wine trail. The estate produces 100% estate-grown wines from three vineyards — the Montville property (planted in 1998 with Verdelho, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz) and two cool-climate Granite Belt vineyards near Stanthorpe, with some plantings up to 80 years old.
The award-winning cellar door and restaurant sit on the crest of the hill, offering sweeping views across the Blackall Range. Tastings cover the full range — warm-climate whites alongside cool-climate reds and the popular dessert wines. The kitchen uses beef and herbs from their own farm, and the deck is one of the most scenic lunch spots in the hinterland. Their annual Stomp grape harvest festival is a calendar highlight.
flamehill.com.au · Open for tastings, lunch and events · Accommodation available on-site
Clouds Vineyard — The Barrel
You can't miss it: a multi-function space shaped like a giant wine barrel, set against the breathtaking scenery of the Maleny hinterland. The Barrel at Clouds showcases the best wines from South East Queensland, with a rotating monthly focus highlighting different wineries — primarily from the Granite Belt and Stanthorpe regions.
The tasting room is complemented by local craft beer on tap from Copperhead Brewery and Sunshine Coast Brewery, cheese and meat platters, and a bistro menu. The grounds are stunning for a leisurely afternoon, with panoramic views stretching across the hinterland and down to the coast. A natural pairing with Maleny Cheese just a short drive away.
Dingo Creek Vineyard
Celebrated as the first vineyard established in the former Gympie Shire and regularly described as one of the prettiest wineries on the Sunshine Coast, Dingo Creek is nestled on 26 picturesque acres overlooking Mount Cooroora. The vineyard grows Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Sauvignon Blanc and Merlot, along with a luscious liqueur Muscat and the popular Honey Mead.
The cellar door is a charming timber building with a covered deck — the setting for bookable wine tastings (you keep a souvenir glass), signature grazing platters and picnics among the vines. The atmosphere is relaxed and personal, a world away from the coast despite being just 40 minutes from Noosa. Check opening days before visiting: typically Friday to Sunday.
dingocreek.com.au · Cellar door Fri–Sun 11 am – 5 pm · Bookings recommended
More Wineries Worth Visiting
Noosa Valley Winery in Doonan is a hidden gem just 10 minutes from Hastings Street — a bed-and-breakfast property with 550 Chambourcin vines, acting as a satellite cellar door for Robinson Family Wines (established 1969 in the Barossa-connected Ballandean region). Open Wednesday to Saturday, it combines wine tasting with a genuine rural escape.
Mason Wines in Montville village is an easy stroll from the main street boutiques and galleries, while Castle Glen (also Montville) offers a vast range of liqueurs, ports and spirits. Further afield, Woongooroo Estate at Mount Archer (near Kilcoy) is a family-owned vineyard producing award-winning reds, whites, sparkling wines and ports since 1997 — with a small olive grove to complement the tastings. And down near Eumundi, Maroochy Springs Wines adds to the trail with subtropical-grown varieties.
Distilleries & Craft Spirits
The Sunshine Coast's spirit scene has exploded alongside its craft beer revolution, and no wine tour is complete without at least one distillery stop.
Sunshine & Sons
Based in Woombye at the old Big Pineapple precinct, Sunshine & Sons is the region's flagship distillery. Their Original Dry Gin took Gold at the Australian Gin Awards, while the Small Batch Barrel Aged Gin was named Best in Class for Best Matured Gin. The range also includes volcanic rock-filtered vodka, Jet Juice — a Maroochy River sugarcane spirit — and Mr Barista, infused with coffee and macadamia. The tasting room is a polished industrial space with cocktail options and behind-the-scenes tours. sunshineandsons.com.au
More Distillery Stops
Eumundi Distillers produces the distinctive Folktale Gin from a custom-built copper still using traditional and local botanicals — visit after browsing the nearby Eumundi Markets. Twenty 20 Distillery in Cooroy is known for its award-winning GEORGE gin and small-batch approach. Pomona Distillery and Seaborne Distillery round out a growing spirits trail through the Noosa hinterland that can easily fill an afternoon of guided tasting.
Suggested Hinterland Wine Trail — Full Day
A classic guided route combining cellar doors, cheese, chocolate and hinterland villages. Cooee Tours can customise this for private groups.
Private tasting room, full wine flight, hinterland views. Allow 1 hour.
Cheese selection and a glass of wine for tastings. Farm-fresh yoghurt and local products.
Wine tasting with cheeseboard or bistro lunch overlooking the hinterland. Allow 1–1.5 hours.
Browse galleries, Mason Wines and Castle Glen. Optional chocolate tasting at Fudgebar or Chocolate Country.
Finish with a craft beer paddle at Brouhaha in Maleny or gin tastings at Sunshine & Sons in Woombye.
Wine & Cheese Pairings
The Sunshine Coast's artisan food producers turn any wine tour into a full culinary experience. Maleny Cheese on the Blackall Range is the essential pairing stop — their tasting room offers locally made cheeses alongside yoghurts and deli products, all sourced from hinterland dairy. A cheese platter and a glass of Flame Hill Verdelho on the Maleny hills is a quintessential Sunshine Coast moment.
Kenilworth Dairies and Kenilworth Country Foods produce artisan yoghurts, cheeses and cream — supply much of the region's restaurant scene. At the coast, the Sunday Noosa Farmers Market (200+ stalls, 7 am – 12 pm) offers hinterland avocados, macadamia products, artisan breads and local honey that pair beautifully with a bottle picked up on tour.
For chocolate, Fudgyboombahs in Montville offers 70+ fudge flavours alongside handmade chocolate, while the Noosa Chocolate Factory in Noosaville produces single-origin bars and truffles. Many wine tours include these stops as standard — it's the Sunshine Coast approach to making every tasting a multi-sensory experience.
Vineyard Dining & Hinterland Restaurants
Several Sunshine Coast wineries offer on-site dining that elevates a cellar door visit into a full lunch experience. Flame Hill's restaurant cooks with farm-raised beef and kitchen garden herbs — the deck overlooking the vineyard is one of the best lunch settings on the Blackall Range. Secrets on the Lake at Lake Baroon near Montville pairs fine dining with a romantic rainforest setting, and is a popular lunch stop on wine tours.
In Maleny, Brouhaha Brewery serves excellent wood-fired pizzas and hinterland-inspired pub food alongside their award-winning beers — a natural finish to any wine trail. The Barn on Flaxton offers paddock-to-plate modern Australian with verandah views across the coast and hinterland, while Spill Wine in Maleny is a dedicated wine bar shaped by regional produce. For the full Sunshine Coast food scene, see our food & wine guide.
The hinterland wine, cheese, brewery lunch and gin tasting day trip was amazing. The winery had lovely wines paired with delicious cheese, the brewery had great tasting paddles and farm-to-fork sharing lunch, and Sunshine & Sons was the perfect finish.
— Recent Sunshine Coast wine tour guestThe Sunshine Coast Wine Region
While not yet an officially designated wine region, the Sunshine Coast's viticultural story is one of steady growth. Vineyards have been established at Montville, Maleny, Flaxton, Kenilworth, Eumundi, Traveston and the Mary Valley — taking advantage of microclimates that range from warm subtropical (ideal for Chambourcin and Verdelho) to cooler elevated slopes (supporting Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc). The Sunshine Coast was declared a UNESCO Biosphere in June 2022, joining the existing Noosa and Great Sandy Biosphere Reserves.
Combined with the region's 24+ independent craft breweries — earning its title as Australia's Craft Beer Capital — and a growing distillery scene, the Sunshine Coast offers a beverage trail density that rivals more established wine regions, just with a distinctly tropical, hinterland character.
Practical Information
Best Season
Year-round. Autumn (Mar–May) for harvest and mild weather. Winter for clear hinterland skies.
Tour Duration
Full-day tours typically 9:30 AM – 4:30 PM. Half-day options available for 2–3 cellar doors.
Pickup
Door-to-door from Caloundra to Noosa. Brisbane CBD on selected dates for an additional fee.
What's Included
Transport, guide, scheduled tastings. Lunch and additional tastings at your own expense unless specified.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many wineries are there on the Sunshine Coast?
Around 8–10 cellar-door wineries and vineyards, with Flame Hill, Clouds, Dingo Creek and Noosa Valley Winery the most established. The region also has multiple distilleries and 24+ craft breweries, making combined wine-and-spirits tours very popular.
What wines are grown on the Sunshine Coast?
The diverse microclimates support Chardonnay, Verdelho, Sauvignon Blanc, Chambourcin, Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Several estates also produce fortified wines, honey mead and fruit liqueurs. Flame Hill sources additional cool-climate wines from their Granite Belt vineyards.
Are winery tours guided with transport included?
Yes. Cooee Tours offers guided hinterland wine tours with door-to-door pickup. Tours include air-conditioned transport, an expert guide and scheduled cellar door visits. This means everyone can taste freely without a designated driver.
Can I combine wine tasting with other experiences?
Absolutely. Popular combinations include wine and cheese (Maleny Cheese), wine and craft beer (Brouhaha Brewery), wine and distillery (Sunshine & Sons gin), and wine with hinterland village exploration in Montville and Maleny. Tours combining wineries with Eumundi Markets are also available on market days.
When is the best time for a winery tour?
Wine tours run year-round. Autumn (March–May) is ideal with harvest season and mild temperatures. Winter brings clear hinterland days perfect for tasting. Check individual cellar door opening hours — most operate Wednesday to Sunday or by appointment.