Cue the cheese-tasting and wine-sipping.
They say there’s nothing a glass of wine and a piece of cheese can’t fix, and now Geelong’s got a new destination to put that saying to the test.
Taking to Minerva Road, this new haunt is the collaboration between two local food and wine experts – The Cheese Society and Union Street Wine.
The key takeaways
- The Cheese Society and Union Street Wine have partnered up for a new store
- Union Cellars is the place to go for wine and cheese in Geelong West
- The venue opened in November and has been a favourite for locals ever since
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The new space – Union Cellars – is Geelong West’s answer to Geelong’s well-loved wine bar, which has become a famous retreat for local wine lovers in the past few years. It’s even received national recognition, having recently being named one of the country’s best wine venues for 2020. Led by the dynamic duo Andy Leigh and Lewis Phiddian, the guys have replicated their CBD venue, and have now curated an extensive new and interesting wine, beer and spirit offering for the new space, orchestrating the perfect balance of expertise and affable hospitality.
While this is brilliant news for the wine lovers out in the West who want to enjoy a refreshing rosé or pick up a hearty red after a long day without travelling into town, it’s the fromagerie that has won our hearts.
The brainchild of cheesemonger Alain Sparey, The Cheese Society is a venture spawned from a lifelong love of cheese. Growing up with an endless supply, Alain’s foray into the world of Brie, blue, and burrata truly began following at opportunity at the best deli at the Queen Victoria Market.
Quickly devoting his life to becoming a purveyor of cheese and fine foods, Alain has since worked with several great producers, chefs and venues over the years, all preparing him for this exciting venture at Union Cellars.
“I’ve been working with Andy and Lewis since the early days of the Union Street Wine Bar,” he explains. “For the new venture on Minerva Road, they offered an area to me to devote to cheese and smallgoods.”
No matter what language you’re speaking, everyone knows that cheese and wine is the ultimate combo, and this collaboration is all about bringing high-quality products to locals in a thriving and central location.
“The idea was to bring some of that great produce direct to the public within Geelong,” Alain explains.
“There will be a small but carefully selected range of products available, plenty of advice and recommendations of what is eating well right now, along with great wine to compliment from Union Cellars.”
You can expect lots and lots of artisan and hard to find cheeses, smallgoods and accompaniments (and bread and crackers from Newtown bakery Need The Bread), with a focus on local produce.
“As a small local business, we are hoping to work with lots of local producers and showcase them to our customers. Now more than ever we need to be supporting our local businesses and the local community.”
With everyone’s favourite double act on their playbill, the venue has also created a dedicated area for people to enjoy a glass of wine (or two) and try some of the cheese and smallgoods.
As if the allure of their immaculately styled venue, in-the-know staff and bloody good cheese wasn’t enough, Alain has also revealed that the space plans to host regular “Cheesemonger” nights where you will be able to come and selected from the full range of our products. They’ll even be offering online ordering and deliveries for the serious cheese lovers out there.
We’ve literally died and gone to heaven.
Union Cellars and The Cheese Society is located at 15 Minerva Road in Herne Hill and will operate from Tuesday to Sunday for retail, while the bar hours will be Friday and Saturday.
