Fab fresh produce deliveries you can get in Victoria

Vic Country Market is kind of like an all-in-one shop for everything you’d ever pick up on a road trip around the state (and in Melbourne itself). This online store showcases everything from beer, wine and spirits to meat, fish, smallgoods and vegetables – all coming directly from world-class Victorian farmers and producers. A couple of must-buys for you: smallgoods from Salt Kitchen Charcuterie; olive oil from Grampians Olive Co; salted caramel from Middle Park business Misty's Salted Caramel; beers from Forrest Brewing Company; and maybe even some chocolates from Echuca Chocolate Company.

One of the few silver linings of lockdown (look, we’re trying to stay positive, OK?) is how much easier it has become to get restaurant-quality food at home. And with the launch of online retail hub Co Lab Pantry, your kitchen cupboard is about to get a serious upgrade, too. Founders Danielle Lebon, Natasha Buttigieg and Avin Chadee decided to launch the online store to bring together some of their favourite Victorian venues and brands in one place. The result is a drool-worthy virtual supermarket aisle with a Victorian all-star lineup that includes Chotto Motto, Drumplings, Fancy Hank's, Gingerboy, Meatsmith, Gelato Messina, Piccolina, Four Pillars and the Everleigh.

Skip the supermarket and get a delivery from Rochford Wines’ new online grocery delivery service. The fine winemakers decided to diversify their offering at the start of the first lockdown to help keep the Rochford group running while the cellar door, restaurant and winery team were out of work. The online store includes a selection of meat, eggs, cheese, deli items, vegetables, pasta, rice, freshly baked bread and, of course, bottles of Rochford’s incredible cool-climate wines. Everything can be delivered (contactless) within two business days across Melbourne metro and Yarra Valley areas.

Mornington Peninsula’s Green Olive is a brilliant stop on any peninsula road trip – once you dig into that cold-pressed olive oil, there’s no going back to the regular supermarket stuff. But while we can’t visit IRL right now, we can purchase some wares from Green Olive’s online store. Not only can you purchase bottles and 3L canisters of their EVOO, but there’s also a selection of olives, salts, spices, chutneys, jams, coffee and seasonal farm produce to purchase. Not looking for anything edible? There’s also the venue’s olive balm, soaps and lotions to pick up. 

We already know we can now watch the adorable Phillip Island penguins every night at home thanks to the livestream, but why not complete the whole experience with tasty cheese from Bassine Specialty Cheese, the region's premier small-batch artisan cheesery. You can pick up some of the cheesery’s smokey San Remo, Kernot or Peppato, or go all out with a pack of either hard cheeses, spicy cheeses or the affineur’s choice.

If you don’t live close enough to salume yourself silly at this Lygon Street deli, then don’t drop your sausages just yet. DOC Delicatessen offers almost every in-store item on its online store, so you can pick up your favourite pork products (try the bresaola or the mortadella in a sandwich, or add the guanciale to a lasagne), fresh gnocchi and pasta, coffee and coffee products (you aren’t a true Italian if you don’t have your coffee from a Bialetti cafetiere), aranciata and chinotto bottles and fresh cheeses galore.