Lancemore Milawa Alpine VIC
- 13 minutes ago
- 3 min read
The route to Milawa is probably one of the prettiest in Victoria: it’s a straight run up the tree-lined Hume from Melbourne and then you turn right into Snow Road, which flows through green white-fenced horse country, the picturesque town of Oxley, with its warm brick Victorian era buildings, and then into the equally charming Milawa.
Lancemore Hotel is just past several intriguing foody places such as the Mustard Shop (housed in the Old Butcher Shop) and of course Milawa Cheese. Promising ourselves we would investigate these later, we drove in the gravelled front entrance of Lancemore Hotel, parked between a short avenue of palely leafing-out London plane trees, and crunched in the entrance, where a pretty receptionist came out from behind a bronze-tiled reception desk to greet us.
We were exhausted from Getting Away and collapsed with moans of bliss on the firm bed and humungous soft-but-firm pillows. Where do they find these pillows? They were so perfect I began wondering if I could absent-mindedly take one with me. Would anyone notice and do anything about it? If they did notice, the staff were so nice, they would probably think, poor worn-out creature, she deserves it. Could one—just one—be regarded as … complimentary?
But it isn’t just the pillows that make Lancemore restful. Everything contributes to a feeling of serenity and space: the wide corridors; the lounges and the bedrooms with the huge windows framing the view of the vineyard, trees and misty mauve hills; and the décor, which manages to be sleek but not cold. So the walls are cream rather than a blaring white, the chic industrial concrete floors are enlivened by coir carpets, there are touches of gold and bronze, and burnished framed prints of Sydney Nolan’s Ned Kelly series glow on the walls—very appropriate, as Glenrowan is, in country terms, just across the road, and this whole area is Kelly country. The final thing which makes Lancemore restful is the garden design, which with the long straight hedging surrounding the rectangular lily-filled pools, is reminiscent of a stripped-back French formal garden or a Moorish one. In fact, the widespread use of the rectangle so characteristic of Moorish architecture is one of the aspects of Lancemore which makes it so restful.
These pools, which contain small fountains, are outside each room, and along with goldfish (part of the gold theme) and water lilies contain frogs. I must admit, as I lay drowsily contemplating, that I wasn’t too sure if I approved of the regular, spaced grouk noise of the frog in the pool outside our room, but it was kind of soothing, and both it and the little fountain politely stopped about five o’clock.
And by then it was almost time for the degustation dinner I had booked at the Merlot Restaurant which is part of the hotel. Oh, my. We normally don’t go for degustation dinners because we find them far too filling. I start thinking of how the Romans made themselves vomit so they could stuff themselves with more larks’ tongues or whatever, and this thought is rather off-putting.
As a one-off experience, however, this was perfect. Each course was exquisite and, for me but not my husband, the whole was only slightly too much. We sat at a window table and enjoyed not only the meal but the slowly deepening dusk, which gradually turned the elm tree outside, which had had been braceleted with fairy lights, into a glowing sculpture.
The next day, after a delicious breakfast, I strolled round the hotel grounds, admiring the wisteria tumbling from the balconies, the serene hedged gardens with the rectangular pools, the outdoor lounge areas, and the swimming pool and spa. These initially seem to break the rectangular theme, but then I realised they don’t: the pool is a rectangle plus two circles. A unique, practical and pleasing shape. Then I went upstairs, where the conference facilities are. The expansive (and of course rectangular) conference room seats fifty, and looks out onto a huge balcony and the vineyard. There are also attractive lounges to either side which would be ideal for tea breaks or for smaller group discussions.
I’ve already booked for our next stay.
