Bringing together the premium producers in the region, Otways Producers' Festival is a snapshot of the places, produce and product all found on the Otway Harvest Trail.
Not just picturesque views of still volcanic plains, umbrellaed and draping rainforest ferns and foliage, and concealed cascading waterfalls as mapped by winding roads, the Otways region is so much more than a pretty face.
These lands double as a breeding ground for some of Victoria’s best produce and product. With a perfect seasonal combination of aspect, soils, climate and farming practices, the distinctive and exceptional flavours derived from the Otway hinterland are second to none. From berries to beef, chilli to cheese, wine to wool and stores to stays, Victoria’s South West is littered with hidden gems to explore.
Otways Producers’ Festival
Presented by Otway Harvest Trail
- Sunday 20 October, 2024
- Colac Showgrounds
- 9:30am to 3:00pm.
Keep up with the latest food and booze news across the region here.
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Highlighting the local makers and growers in the Otway region is a dedicated travel guide, Otway Harvest Trail. Otway Harvest Trail connects the bountiful boastings of the Otway Ranges, mapping out the exquisite food, wine, produce and other attractions that make up the district’s DNA. As the go-to tourist information hub since 2009, the Otway Harvest Trail appears as both a literal map and in guide form detailing the best the Otway hinterland has to offer according to season.
The Otway Harvest Trail currently sits at 68 food, drink, fibre, flower and related businesses long, covering the Surf Coast inland through to the basalt lakes and plains to the Heytesbury. The list covers award-winning restaurants including proud owner of three hats in the Good Food Guide, Brae, cafes and wineries such as Berry World and Berry Good Thai, Dar Teta, Fusion Restaurant Colac, Gentle Annie Pennyroyal Valley, Otway Estate, Alt Road Wines, Babche Wines, and Babenorek Estate, preserves and jam businesses including 3 Full Jars, Buukaar Waaruung Boutique Apiary & Artisan Honey, and Hot Chilli Mama and distilleries like Otways Distillery, Timboon Railway Shed Distillery and Forrest Brewing Co. There are also B&B’s and stays, flower farms and retail stores to see.
The new printed guide for the 2024/25 season will be launching this weekend at the Otway Producers’ Festival. Taking place at Colac Showgrounds on Sunday 20 October, the Otway Producers’ Festival is an introduction to the impeccable range of producers listed in the guide along with other local makers. Gathering suppliers of food, drink, fibre, flowers and other related businesses, the festival will include more than 40 local makers and growers in an indoor market experience and offer fun and informative activities.
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Organised by the Otway Harvest Trail, the festival will shine a light on local people behind small-scale food and fibre production. It will also celebrate the people who add value to the Otways food basket – winemakers, distillers, brewers and makers of ice cream, cheese, pasta, preserves and others tasty treats. Appearing at the event will be Otway Harvest Trail highlights:
- Schulz Organic Dairy
- 3JARSFULL
- Timboon Fine Ice Cream
- Otway Pasta Company
- Lake View Cafe Colac
- Drakes Fresh Produce
- Otway Flower Farm
- Timboon Railway Shed Distillery
- Otway Brewing
- DK Potatoes
- Babche Wines
- Keayang Maar Vineyard
- Tarndwarncoort
- Apostle Whey Cheese
- Hot Chilli Mama
- Otways Distillery
- Unearthed Produce
- Boundary Road Beef
- The Loaf and Lounge
- Camperdown Chocolate Co
- The Otway Kitchen
- Forrest Brewing Company
- Common Ground Project Food Hub
- Heritage Alpaca Co.
- Homebush Pastoral
- Irrewarra Sourdough
- The Vault – Hastings Ostrich Farms
- Moorpark Farm Pastured Eggs
- Yeoview Potatoes
- Smooth Vibes
Other treasured farmers, producers, makers and cooks from the Otway region who will be trading at the market include:
- Saint Aire Grass Fed Beef
- Stir Crazy
- Heather Bryant Leather Goods
- Otway Sweet Treats
- Kazbah Coffee Roasters
- Mr Squidgy
- Yeowarra Hill
- Colac West Rotary Club
- Lions Club of Colac
- Crucible Cider
- WoolGrow Australia
- Wanna Coffee
- Lauren McQuade Handmade
- Otway Golden Baked Potatoes
- Wildfields Farm
- Dutch pancakes Oma’s way
The Otways Producers’ Festival will feature market stalls with farm-fresh products from across the region, along with hands-on family activities, maker demonstrations and an informative line-up of speakers on the festival stage. There is a bunch of fun for the whole family including a station to prepare your own vegetable seedlings for home, an animal nursery, a meet and greet with an Alpaca, face painting, a chance to test your ice cream and butter churning and a pop up Art in a Jar exhibition in the Colac Makers Space shed.
The Otways Producers’ Festival is a taste of what you can expect from the Otway Harvest Trail all conveniently at the one place! The event will be running from 9.30am until 3.00pm with only a $2 entry fee.
There is a world to be explored in the Otways – let the Otways Producers’ Festival feed your interest and the Otway Harvest Trail lead the way!
Find out more about the Otways Producers’ Festival here, and the Otway Harvest Trail here.
