The tasty side of the region will be on full display at the inaugural Autumn Food and Wine Festival, on from March 23-25 at the picturesque Lake Crackenback Resort and Spa. The weekend's program includes a cheese appreciation class, gin and wine tasting, a long brunch and a five-course cool climate chef's dinner by Ben Willis from Canberra's two-hatted Aubergine Restaurant.

Meet some of the region's producers who are on the program:

Wildbrumby Distillery

It was 15 years ago that Brad Spalding and wife Monika set up Wildbrumby Schnapps Distillery in the Thredbo Valley. Monika's family had long fermented fruit, made schnapps and distilled back in her native Austria, so the couple decided to have a go at it themselves in Australia.

Living in Thredbo at the time, they set their sights on a vacant property on Alpine Way.

"It was for sale for a long time", says Brad. "It was an old trout farm and deer park that had been on the market a while. It was about to fall down, the animals were living in the house, and we just thought it was a renovator's delight."

They initially started making schnapps, and a few years later expanded into vodka and then gin production, all distilled on site.

Open to the public, the Wildbrumby distillery sits right on the main drag for the ski traffic, with free tastings in the stillhouse, a cafe and gardens which you can wander through.

The cafe has a bit of a nod to Monika's Austrian heritage mixed with locally sourced produce, and chef Sebastian Druge with breakfasts, lunches, smallgoods platters and desserts.

Alpine Way, Thredbo Valley. Open 10am-5pm daily. wildbrumby.com.

Paddock Perfect

A move to the Snowy Mountains in 2012 was initially motivated by finding more space for Larissa and Brett Woonton's seven children. The duo had owned two pharmacies in Queanbeyan but visited their holiday house in Thredbo often, so were familiar with the area.

They came across a 21 acre property in Jindabyne - a deceased estate that needed a seriously good clean up. There was infrastructure and irrigation set up, and an orchard that had been planted 30 years prior, but the paddocks had been used as a bit of a "dumping ground".

The family bought the farm, with no initial plans to turn it into a business.

"People around here used to call this place 'frosty hollow' and they used to tell us that we'd never be able to grow anything here," says Larissa. "But I could see huge potential in the garden as a productive farm."

It took around 12 months to clean up the property, which is when they discovered just how much was growing on the property. They started Paddock Perfect, Brett let his pharmacist registration lapse and they now farm on the property full time.

These days, they have 30 bee hives, hundreds of chickens, and goats to keep the weeds at bay. They produce garlic, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries and quince. A couple of years ago they also installed a commercial greenhouse to add a few things that won't grow in the cooler climate, like tomatoes, citrus, pumpkins and zucchinis.

But most of what they produce loves the cooler climate.

"We've got the polystyrene hives that come from Finland... and those hives are quite often under snow in winter, but because they're so well insulated, the bees have just really taken off," says Larissa. "We hope to have 100 hives next year. And the chickens love the cold - they actually don't like the heat."

While they do supply to some local businesses, they sell the majority of their produce at the Paddock Perfect roadside stall with an honesty box on Alpine Way, Depending on the time of year, you can buy eggs, honey, jams, herbs and other seasonal products.

"When we originally bought this property we had no idea that it would lead to what it's led to. The lifestyle change was purely family based and a business has kind of evolved out of it."

Alpine Way, Jindabyne. Roadside stall open daily. facebook.com/thepaddockcrackenback.

Shut the Gate Wines

Having worked in the wine industry for most of their lives, Richard Woods and Rasa Fabian started Shut The Gate Wines in South Australia's Clare Valley about a decade ago, specialising in small batch wines.

In recent vintages, the couple has turned their sights towards higher altitudes, at Tumbarumba on the western edge of the Snowy Mountains.

"When we were both previously working with the big companies we discovered the Tumbararumba region," says Richard. "And we absolutely loved the chardonnay particularly, but also pinot gris and cool climate wines in general. So over three years ago we started to source a little bit of fruit - chardonnay and pinot gris, and a little bit of shiraz - out of the Hilltops region to build a little bit of a cool climate portfolio in our business."

For their cool climate selection of wines, they buy they fruit out of Tumbarumba and it is trucked to Murrumbateman for processing.

"It might be a little unfair, and there are exceptions, but I think some of the bigger companies have used the fruit for their bigger blends and bigger makes without really recognising the area on the label," says Richard.

"Tumbarumba's really flown under the radar I would say. And we're really happy to be working with the growers there as a small producer and to have Tumbarumba on the label and promote the area."

Richard and Rasa now spend four or five months of the year based in Jindabyne, travelling between their two sites.

To showcase the cooler climate varieties, they also opened a Shut The Gate Wines cellar door at Berridale, midway between Cooma and Jindabyne just over two years ago. "The cellar door is a unique offering in what isn't really a major wine area," says Richard.

It has free tastings and a wine lounge, and visitors can also enjoy a glass of wine in the hedged gardens with a DIY picnic selected from the providore store, with local and imported cheeses and condiments.

39 Jindabyne Road, Berridale. Open daily 10am-5pm. shutthegate.com.au.

The inaugural Autumn Food and Wine Festival is on March 23-25 at Lake Crackenback Resort and Spa. Tickets are available for individual events, or there are packages which will get you into everything and include accommodation. See lakecrackenback.com.au.