Ivanhoe Wines Cellar Door Hunter Valley

Ivanhoe Wines at 525 Marrowbone Road is a family-run vineyard worked by the Drayton line since the 1850s, with Stephen and Tracy Drayton running the cellar door today. Tastings are seated and look across the vines to the Brokenback Range, and unlike most Pokolbin doors it is not just the deck that is open to dogs, which makes it an easy all-weather stop.

The dog setup

The venue's own FAQ confirms well-behaved leashed dogs are welcome across the outdoor areas and the covered verandah, and staff generally carry that welcome into the tasting room when things are quiet, so a rainy day does not have to mean a dog left at the car. Water bowls are kept on site. The verandah is the pick on a fine day: shade, the view, and room for the dog to stretch out while you work through the tasting.

Pepsi: the verandah over the vines, a cheese platter between us, and nobody minds the dog at all. That is the whole visit sorted.

Worth knowing

Tastings run daily, 10am to 5pm Monday to Saturday and from 10am to 4pm on Sunday, and the team recommends booking, more so on weekends when the verandah fills. The range covers Hunter classics plus the cheese platters that get a regular mention, and staff are chatty about the family history if you ask. An eighty-acre property means a leg-stretch walk with the dog is easy after the tasting.

Getting there and parking

Ivanhoe is on Marrowbone Road a few minutes off the main Broke Road strip, with free parking right at the cellar door. The driveway in is short and gravel, and the walk to the verandah is flat and easy with a dog.

Pair it with

Saddler's Creek Wines is at the other end of the same road with a pet-friendly wine garden, and Meerea Park Wines is a short drive on for another small-batch tasting.

More doors are listed in the NSW wineries guide and on the Pokolbin destinations page.