People enjoy the atmosphere at Noosa's famous food and wine festival. Photo / Noosa International Food & Wine Festival
You can't go past great food with a side of opera, says Eveline Harvey.
I felt a touch of apprehension as I looked through the programme for the Noosa International Food and Wine Festival: a Neil Perry-hosted meal in a beach marquee, lunch at a hinterland retreat, an opening night extravaganza in the festival village alongside the Noosa River.
What do you wear to events such as these? Sure, it said footwear was optional at the beach event, but did they mean it? It all sounded terribly flash.
In the end, I packed a suitcase of smart-casual attire — with a nod to sensible shoes. And it turns out I needn't have worried.
From the moment I arrived in this delightful shire, about an hour and a half's drive north of Brisbane, I was greeted like an old friend by all I met.
There was no pretentiousness here — simply a desire to welcome visitors and show them the best time imaginable, while sampling some of Australia's best food.
The convivial atmosphere was no accident. Festival director Jim Berardo's stated aim in organising last year's event was to "strip away some of the formality and make it one big party" ... and it certainly kicked off in that fashion, with the Foodie Fandango gala.
As we mingled before the concert, our first taste of the local fare — canapes of foie gras, arancini and delicious salmon cakes with tarragon mayonnaise — didn't disappoint.
Wines from producers across Australia provided a delicious match and saw the audience in a mood of cheerful lubrication as Opera Australia principals David Hobson, Taryn Fiebig and Jud Arthur took to the stage, accompanied by an incredibly assured scratch orchestra under the baton of Guy Noble.
The flavour Berardo had hoped to inject into the festival had firmly infused two hours later as the concert concluded with a trio of lively drinking songs. Audience members took to their feet (with footwear discarded in many instances) and joined in lustily with the brindisi from Verdi's La Traviata, before drifting off into the balmy night to a variety of dinner engagements.
The following morning saw us en route to Martin Duncan's Freestyle Escape in the Blackall Range, about half an hour's drive from Noosa.
We had a rental car but transport to the event had been organised for us - and thanks to the friendly locals that proved a masterstroke. There's nothing like an afternoon of noshing in the country, bookended by bus rides, to enable you to get to know people.
As the roads got narrower, so did our modes of transport. We bussed part of the way before being transferred to smaller coaches and finally to 4x4s for the final push up the hill to where our lunch was waiting.
A mini-farmers' market had been set up on site so we could chat to the producers and taste their wares before lunch. There was marmalade made from finger limes, chilli products, zingy ginger cordial and a range of bush herbs foreign to New Zealand, such as lemon myrtle and wattle seed.
Probably the most memorable flavour combination, though, was the strawberry gum from a eucalypt mixed with dukkah, which I tried at the Kunara Organic Marketplace stall. It was unlike anything I'd tried before — fragrant with just a hint of strawberry sweetness.
Of course, there was still lunch to come after all this nibbling, so we made our way to the tables overlooking the lush hinterland valley below for the feast prepared for us by Duncan, Cameron Matthews (The Long Apron), Matt Wilkinson (Pope Joan) and James Viles (Biota Dining). Rain settled in as we were being seated, but it only added to the rainforest atmosphere as it hammered on the corrugated iron roof above our heads.
Dishes as varied as lemon and garlic roasted chicken with cinnamon, thyme and honey, scorched tomatoes with white anchovies and grated pecorino and a divine salad made from egg, green olives and dukkah, appeared.
All were enthusiastically shared and well paired with pinot grigio or pinot noir from Mornington Peninsula winery T'Gallant.
Many of the producers who had displayed at the farmers' market stayed for the meal, giving an added opportunity to pick their brains. People like Kim Jago, whose locally grown produce was the star of one of my favourite dishes of the day: a salad of finely grated baby zucchini mixed with more mature specimens infused with garlic.
It was served as a side but was so simple and delicious many at our table agreed they could have eaten an entire plateful.
As the afternoon wore on and the food and setting worked their magic, conversation ran the gamut of topics, from giving teenage sons the birds and the bees talk to discussing what to do with feijoas, why you need green mangoes for chutney and who has the best wine - NZ or Oz.
It was a sated bunch indeed who made the return trip to Noosa as evening approached.
Back at the festival village, the food kiosks had opened and the welcome party was in full swing. I had to laugh once more at my earlier attire concerns as I surveyed the grounds, drenched by the same shower that hit us in the hinterland over lunch.
It was mud city already and there were three days to go - not that anyone cared in the slightest as they moved from stall to stall and danced under the huge main marquee.
The following day's Qantas Seafood Feast, hosted by Rockpool's Neil Perry and John Susman from seafood agency Fishtales, served up education as well as the freshest of ocean fare. Susman instigated a discussion about the importance of sustainability with regard to fisheries as Perry oversaw the creation of the six-dish menu.
Having been lucky enough to try the creations that emerged, I can think of no better argument for fisheries' protection than the food itself.
I particularly enjoyed the Kinkawooka mussels with black olive and black bean and the West Australian scallops, served with silken tofu and a moreish chilli soy tea. Preserving the viability of these species — and others — for future generations to enjoy should be of paramount concern to seafood lovers everywhere.
As I sat in this idyllic spot with my toes dug into the sand and watched surfers catch waves just metres away, I reflected on the simple pleasures of the past few days: delicious food, wonderful wine and friendly people.
Noosa has perfected the art of making visitors feel welcome and in doing so put the "festive" in its food and wine festival.
Make sure it's on your calendar for 2015, you won't be disappointed ... just remember your gumboots.
IF YOU GO
Getting there: Qantas flies from Auckland to Brisbane. The drive from Brisbane to Noosa takes about two hours.
Staying there: Culgoa Point Beach Resort in Noosa Heads has a range of self-contained apartments set alongside the Noosa River.
Further information: See noosafoodandwine.com.au.
The trendy spot is just six minutes from the Waikiki beach.