Hogget Kitchen

If you know a thing or two about Australian natural wines you’ll have heard the names William Downie and Patrick Sullivan. The Victorian winemakers teamed up with Gippsland chef Trevor Perkins to open Hogget Kitchen on the outskirts of Warragul in early 2017.

The trio had been working together for a few years when the lease came up at Wild Dog Winery.The 130-acre property looks out to the Strzelecki Ranges and is home to a spacious, award-winning restaurant (overlooking that incredible view) and an even larger winery.

Perkins’s father is a butcher and passed nose-to-tail appreciation down to his son. The kitchen sources ethically farmed pigs from Happy Valley Free Range Pork, white dorper lamb and Black Angus from Tennessee Tasty down the road, and Noojee-farmed fish from Alpine Trout Farm.

But meat isn’t the only hero on this menu. Perkins goes to the Baw Baw Food Hub twice a week to collect seasonal bounties direct from farmers, and dairy is care of Butterfly Factory. Some produce also comes from the on-site veggie patch and Perkins’s mum’s garden, and the team can often be found foraging for mushrooms on days off.

The wine list is solely Victorian highlighting small and independent growers with a focus on those working with organic practices, including Sullivan and Downie’s own wines, plus many-a-Gippsland vigneron.

Explore Gippsland further using our detailed Out of Town to West Gippsland guide.