Boutique hotel The Lake House in Victoria, Australia, stays ahead of the curve

A boutique guesthouse, spa and restaurant, The Lake House is a 90-minute drive from Melbourne, and located in the teeny regional Victorian spa-town of Daylesford. Its beautiful waterfront rooms and suites are set in delightful rambling grounds complete with a bountiful orchard and kitchen garden. The property over-looks a lake on which geese and ducks parade and in which a cheeky oversized Murray cod (a native fish) has proved impossible to catch, try as the chef might.

During the 30 years The Lake House has been in business, its owners - the Wolf-Taskers; chef Alla and her artist husband, Allan - have managed to stay ahead of the cultural, creative and culinary curve, treating guests to world-class service, fresh local cuisine and an award-winning wine cellar.

The Wolf-Tasker family has been at the forefront of the push for local producers and the results are menu standouts. From the garden: freshly foraged elderflowers, aromatic fennel, heritage beets, zucchini blossoms and purple garlic. From surrounding pastures and waterways: heritage chicken, inland eel and belted Galloway beef. From beyond: Victorian hard and soft cheeses and vermouth from Western Australia.

Australia's standard-bearer of food and wine trends, magazine recently awarded The Lake House its Australian Wine List of the Year and Best Victorian Wine List awards. The cellar is open for guests to explore at their leisure. It showcases more than 800 labels sommelier-plucked from the surrounding wine regions of Heathcote, Bendigo, the Pyrenees and Grampians, and from benchmark old-world vineyards globally. The wine paired degustation menu offers a feast to be remembered.