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The crew behind Daylesford’s much-loved food store and bottle shop Winespeake Cellar & Deli have opened Leggatt St Wine Bar, an all-day indoor-outdoor spot overlooking Lake Daylesford.
“It’s a place for people who enjoy thoughtful produce and wines, like we do at Winespeake,” says owner Jen Latta. “We’re bringing that energy to the lake.”
The menu is snacky, with wood-fired focaccia, gildas, cheese platters and mortadella skewers with fior di latte and pesto. There’s also pâté (duck but also barramundi), a hummus plate with confit garlic, and piquillo peppers piled on toast with ricotta and herbs. “We work with producers we love, and the snack menu will be forever rotating,” says Latta.
A two-level room steps down towards the water with warm timber finishes and textured brick walls giving a vintage country cottage feeling. A terraced deck is a few metres from the lake. “We’ve captured the view,” says Latta. “It’s the perfect place to watch the sun go down or finish your walk around the lake with a glass of wine.”
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On cold days, a fireplace will keep the interior cosy, and a wood oven will be used for braised dishes as the team beds in.
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The 40-seat bar is in the timber building that housed the beloved Bookbarn, a second-hand bookstore which closed in 2019, after which the building slowly fell into disrepair. “A lot of people have fond memories of the place back to the 1990s,” says Latta. “I saw a ‘for lease’ sign in the window in May and a week later it was signed, sealed and delivered.”
Then the hard work began. “It was very dangerous, hanging by a thread, shingles falling off, a project where you correct something only for something else to be uncovered.”
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There are around 300 wines on the list, with 20 available by the glass. An experienced team, led by venue manager Marty Hinck (also from Winespeake), can talk visitors through the offerings in a friendly manner.
An accessible approach is important to Latta. Her husband Owen was born into a wine family and makes wines under the Latta Vino label, as well as his family’s Eastern Peake brand. But it definitely wasn’t wine that brought the couple together.
“I met Owen when I was living in a share house, drinking from goon boxes,” she says. “The first time he showed me the Eastern Peake chardonnay, I poured it in a glass and added orange juice. It’s amazing he stuck around.”
Open daily 11am-sunset, from Thursday, September 17
1 Leggatt Street, Daylesford, instagram.com/leggatt.st.bar
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Dani Valent is a food writer and restaurant reviewer.AdvertisementAdvertisement