Golden Drop Winery, Biboohra: Mango wine in the Atherton Tableland

The Golden Drop Winery in Biboohra, Queensland, does wine-making rather differently. This Atherton Tableland fruit winery makes mango wines.

A lot grows well in the Atherton Tableland near Cairns, but one thing that most certainly doesn’t is grapes. This hasn’t stopped the Golden Drop winery in Biboohra, Queensland, though. Instead of making conventional wines you might find further south in areas with considerably less rainfall, this Queensland winery has simply switched the grape for a fruit that loves these conditions – mangos.

Mango wines in Queensland

The neatly spaced mango groves at Golden Drop are the brainchild of Carmello “Charlie” Nastasi. He was known as “Cowboy” due to his penchant for wearing cowboy hats. He planted 3,600 mango trees in 1975 on what was originally a tobacco plantation. But tobacco can ruin soils, so another crop was required. Nastasi originally just sold the fruits, but then Golden Drop tried something different – making tropical wines out of the mangos.

Golden Drop winery tastings in Biboohra

Tastings at this Atherton Tableland mango winery are held inside a glorified shed, and the major surprise is that not all of the wines are massively sweet. In fact, the medium option is really rather more-ish – even for those who don’t usually enjoy sweet drinks.

Golden Drop mango wine is made in Biboohra, Atherton Tableland, Queensland

Those that do enjoy sweet drinks, though, are going to be rather happy with the port and the mango cello. There’s even a dragonfruit cello to try – Golden Drop in Biboohra is branching out into other fruits.

And branching out is exactly what the Atherton Tableland does best. It’s all too easy to stay on the coast and head out to the Great Barrier Reef. But prepare to take on the hairy mountain roads, and you can discover a whole different side to far north Queensland.

Other highlights of the Atherton Tableland, easily explored in a hire car from Cairns, include Mount Bartle Frere, Windin Falls, Lake Eacham and the Danbulla National Park. There’s also Millaa Millaa Falls and the Yungaburra Markets in Yungaburra.