Horner Wines

Horner Wines is a boutique, family-run winery at 188 Palmers Lane in Pokolbin, where Ash and Lauren Horner pour their own small-batch, minimal-intervention wines in a relaxed, no-snob cellar door. It sits on the quiet Palmers Lane pocket of the Hunter Valley, and dogs are openly encouraged rather than merely tolerated.

Dogs at the cellar door

Well-behaved dogs are welcome to join the tasting, inside and out, which is rare even by Hunter Valley standards. Keep yours on a lead and settled, mind other guests around the intimate tasting space, and clean up promptly. Water bowls usually appear without asking, and a pat from the crew tends to come with the welcome.

The tasting

The lineup is handcrafted and limited-run, leaning organic and minimal-intervention, poured without ceremony in a space that sits beside the working barrel room. Beyond the standard seated tastings, a barrel tasting add-on takes you through wines straight from barrel with a guide who walks you through the vineyard-to-bottle process. Fortifieds are part of the range too.

Getting there and parking

The cellar door is on Palmers Lane with on-site parking nearby. Hours run Friday and Saturday from 10am to 5pm, Sunday from 10am to 4pm, and the door closes Monday to Thursday, with weekday visits possible by appointment. The lane itself is peaceful and low-traffic, part of the Palmers Lane Wine EcoTrail linking the boutique estates along the stretch.

Pair it with

Summer afternoons suit a milder hour for a dog in tow, and the lane is calmest on any day the door is open. John Wallace Wines sits next door along the same trail, with Meerea Park Wines and Saddler's Creek Wines close by for a longer loop. The broader list is on the NSW wineries page, and the Pokolbin guide covers the area.