Over at Barton Estate Julie Chitty is channelling her inner Nigella Lawson, perhaps lit by the light of her fridge late at night, as she works on a Nigella-inspired slow-cooked Moroccan lamb recipe.

At Shaw Vineyard Estate, Tanya Olinder is looking over her new high-end cellar door, wondering how it’s going to cope with its first big event.

The makers of Murrumbateman are getting ready to have you over for a celebration.

Over the weekend of September 29-30, 19 participating wineries and specialty producers in and around Murrumbateman are opening their doors, offering up a little taste of the region, and a little insight into the people that are so passionate about what they do.

It first began in 2006, when the region’s pioneers, Ken Helm, John Kirk, Rob Howell, Rick Ruker and Duncan Leslie, got together, over a few wines one might suggest, and decided to showcase what they were all doing, what the region was doing.

The cellar door at Tallagandra Hills is more like a living room. There’s the jukebox in the corner, some vintage furniture in glorious shades of orange and brown, old posters and family photos on the walls. Mac the golden retriever might curl up at your feet in a sunny corner if you ask him nicely, he gets very tired from his role as winery marketing manager. And Faulks and his partner Mary McAvoy are just as likely to forget they’re meant to working and join you for a chat.

“The Moving Feast is about food and wine but it’s also about good company and story telling and sharing the vibe of the region,” says Faulks.

“My experience has been there's a small proportion of people who are only interested in, if you like, the technical side of wine, but the vast majority of people want to share your experience as a local, as a person who has invested time and energy into producing something of value, and we've always found in doing that, spending time with people who visit, is the most beneficial.

“We like to see ourselves as treating people as part of the family and hosting them in the same way we would my brothers or my sons. For us that’s been a major part of what we've tried to build with the business since we took it over a couple of years ago, that connectedness with people that we have with our own family and friends.”

It’s been a busy year for Tallagandra. In May, former My Kitchen Rules winner Bella Jakubiak opened Bella’s restaurant onsite to much acclaim and now they’ve secured an export deal to the United Kingdom, sending almost 200 cases of wine overseas.

For the moving feast Jakubiak will serve twice-cooked pork belly, pommes puree, fig glaze and watercress matched with a 2016 The Favourite Son tempranillo. For dessert there’ll be a dark chocolate pot, hazelnut white chocolate creme, triple strawberry bang matched with a 2017 The Diplomat viognier.

“It’s just a cellar door,” says Tanya Olinder, from Shaw Vineyard, of the new building, with high cathedral ceilings, ceiling to floor windows that overlook the vines, open fires, cosy nooks, and a huge verandah that will be the perfect spot on any afternoon.

Two years in the planning, designed by Oztal Architects and built by Classic Constructions' Pier Projects, the cellar door sets a new benchmark for the region.

Previously Shaw hosted tastings in Olleyville Restaurant on the property but it wasn’t working as best as it could for either party.

“We felt we'd lost our own identity as a wine destination,” Olinder says.

“We didn’t have the ability to showcase our wine the way we wanted to.”

Now there’s a lounge area where you can buy a bottle and just relax yourselves, an area for seated tastings and a private tasting room for big groups.

“We can’t wait to see how this new space just adds to the whole experience,” she says.

For the feast there’s a cured ocean trout, parsley salad, puff quinoa, shaved heirloom carrot matched with their estate riesling. For dessert a dark chocolate dome, raspberry gel, fudge brownie matched with a botrytis semillon or estate merlot.

At Barton Estate, Julie Chitty is getting a little worried about how many people might be coming over for lunch.

“We don’t do food usually,” she says. “And we find that’s one thing people love about this weekend, some places do do food, but for the ones who don’t, the smaller places, it does almost feel like you’ve just been invited over for lunch.”

The trick is, she says, to “whack the word rustic in there somewhere” and just make sure people have a fun time.

“It’s all about the relationships, it’s all hands on deck and the wine maker might actually be the one serving you the meal, it’s a good chance to showcase who we all are as people and not just the wine.”

Here there’s aromatic Moroccan lamb and lentil stew: slow cooked and served on couscous, garnished with coriander and toasted pistachios and served with crusty bread. The vegetarian option is roasted cauliflower and mushroom casserole, matched with a petit verdot or Bordeaux style cabernet blend. Dessert is warm lemon buttermilk cake, served with riesling syrup and double cream matched with Elva, a late picked riesling.

For more information about the Moving Feast and a full list of participating venues head to makersofmurrumbateman.org.au

Eden Road: Trio of arancini: pumpkin and goat cheese with rocket pesto, syrah infused braised beef cheek and parmesan with chilli jam, wild mushroom with persian feta and micro salad. Matched with their 2015 Murrumbateman syrah or 2017 Long Road pinot noir.

Helm Wines: Chef Paul Butler from Chef at Home will be serving barbecued bratwurst from Griffith Butchery, sauerkraut, mustard and relish. Matched with a glass of cabernet sauvignon or riesling.

Gallagher Wines: Dark chocolate cream filled snowball doughnuts, served with a shiraz and berry coulis. Matched with their 2016 sparkling shiraz.

Wins Creek Meadery: Honeyed chicken and aubergine biryani: an aromatic array of herbs and spices accompanying honey glazed free range chicken, raita, chutney and naan. Matched with their ginger mead.

Granitevale Estate: Individual banoffee pavlova: a decadent mix of cream, slivered almonds, banana, crushed chocolate covered honeycomb and drizzled with caramel sauce and chocolate fudge sauce. Recommended wine: 2016 PinkIce sangiovese/sauvignon blanc.

* Savoury dishes are entrée size, $25. Desserts are $20. All meals include a complimentary glass of wine and a Riedel wine glass valued at $20 to keep.

While it’s called the Moving Feast you could stay put in Murrumbateman and check out the four-star Abode hotel which opened earlier this year. Manager Tony McEvoy says the hotel offers the perfect base for locals and visitors to experience the Moving Feast.

“Close to many of the participating wineries, a sleepover at Abode Murrumbateman takes the fuss out of deciding how you’re going to get home after dining your way through the cool climate wine region,” he says.

“Our Escape Package is the cherry on top; packed with extras, including complementary Abode bike hire to help you cruise about the Moving Feast map.”

He says the Murrumbateman community has warmly welcomed the hotel into the district and he is particularly looking forward to visiting Shaw new cellar door and try the menu at Eden Road.

More details on Abode at abodehotels.com.au/hotels/murrumbateman/