September 24, 2012
The new October long weekend is being held this coming Saturday, Sunday and Monday… and so is the very first South Burnett On Show festival.
Six of the region’s wineries and cellar doors have banded together to put on nine events over Saturday and Sunday, ranging from “Bubbles and Bocce” to the “Big Booie BBQ”, wood-fired pizza vineyard and winery tours, and even a traditional Australian Sunday roast beef lunch.
In addition, the Booie Bello Vista restaurant will be putting on a special menu and live entertainment; Kingaroy’s Commercial Hotel will be staging a combined Oktoberfest and NRL Grand Final on Sunday; and major annual events such as Nanango’s Boots & Bulldust Festival and the Wondai Spring Garden Expo have also put up their hands to be part of the initiative.
The event is the brainchild of the South Burnett Wine Industry Association which wants to “claim” the new public holiday for the region by acting quickly before other regions fully realise its tourism potential.
But the idea of a relaxed rural festival showcasing a weekend of food, wine and good times certainly isn’t new.
In fact, the SBWIA happily admits its original inspiration came from Victoria’s Heathcote wine region, a small town of not quite 2700 people located almost midway between Echuca and Melbourne.
For several years, the Heathcote region has been running the Heathcote On Show Festival over the Queen’s Birthday long weekend in June.
From modest beginnings, it’s grown to be the biggest single festival in that region which – this year – involved 60 regional winemakers and growers, chefs, brewers, farmers, artists and musicians all rolling out the welcome mat in over 30 locations.
The Wine Industry Association believes the South Burnett is well placed to duplicate Heathcote’s success and that the new October long weekend – right at the tail end of the South Burnett’s peak tourism season – is an opportunity too good to pass up.
SBWIA President Jason Kinsella says the South Burnett’s location just a few hundred kilometres from Queensland’s major population centres makes it a perfect “drive tourism” destination for short-break holidays.
“We have a lot to offer that’s quite different to anything on the coast,” he said, “and for a short break we’re only a few hours drive from Brisbane, the coast or Toowoomba. So all we need to do is tell people about it”.
To put the initial program together, the wine industry decided to take a low-key, low-cost approach to encourage as many operators as possible to “give it a try”.
They printed a two-page flyer which is being distributed through Visitor Information Centres and at participating outlets; started a Facebook page; and are using the Wine Industry Association’s website to list events being run by SBWIA members.
Other events are listed on southburnett.com.au’s popular Daily Calendar.
Many participants are also promoting the festival to their email lists and through their own websites.
And while the organisers would welcome an avalanche of tourists at the festival’s locations, expectations for the first event are modest, too.
“Every event has to start somewhere,” Jason said.
“If you look at the Goomeri Pumpkin Festival, it started out small but has grown to be gigantic. The same applies to Wine & Food In The Park.
“So we hope that South Burnett On Show will grow over time, too”.
