South Australia offers some of the best wine tours and tastings, accompanied with beautiful landscapes and delicious foods! As mentioned in our last article, Welcome to Corroboree West, we were guests of Tourism Australia and, not only did we visit a number of fine vineyards and Cellar doors, we also bottled our own wine with two blending activities. Join me on a visit to a few of them.
National Wine Centre of Australia
Housed on the campus of the University of Adelaide you’ll find the National Wine Centre of Australia. Here you can sample 120 different varieties of wine from Enomatic servers. Choose, pour, and taste swine from the best Cellar Doors across Australia
Penfolds
Penfolds wine company at Magill Estate was founded in 1844 by Dr. Christopher and Mary Penfold. In the beginning, they began practicing medicinal winemaking with cuttings they brought with them to Australia. By 1920, Penfolds produced 1/3 of all South Australia’s wine. After touring the winery and learning the history, we were treated to a tasting of six wines: Koonunga Hill Autumn Riesling, Bin 311 Chardonnay, Koonunga Hill Shiraz Cabernet, Bin 8 Shiraz Cabernet, Bin 150 Marananga Shiraz, and St. Henri Shiraz.
The Lane
Our next stop was The Lane Winery, located in the Adelaide Hills near Handorf. Altitude, latitude, climate, and ancient soil all play a part in producing their intense fruit flavors and perserving their natural acidity and structure. Here we got to play “mad scientists” and blend our own wine.
d’Arenberg Winery – a.k.a – The Cube
The d’Arenberg Cube was created by owner Chester Osborn, to reflect the puzzles of winemaking and the “art of being different”. It’s a five story masterpiece designed to entice and excite the senses, and even includes an Alternate Realities Museum on the ground floor. (From what we were told, the Cube’s quirky decor gives you a look into the mind of Mr. Osborn.) Currently touring at d’Arenberg is the Salvador Dali Exhibition, which showcases some of Dali’s most iconic imagery and sculptures.
Wirra Wirra Vineyards
We had a wonderful tour and tasting while visiting Wirra Wirra. Their Church Block Shiraz is said to be the best-selling red belnd in it’s category in Australia. The folks here don’t take themselves too seriously and love to have fun (think flinging watermelons, by catapult!). While visiting, you’ll get exclusive access to our historic ironstone winery, Trott’s Cellar, and the opportunity to ring their 3/4 ton Angelus Bell. Today’s tastings included Catapult Shiraz, Original Blend Grenache/Shiraz, 2017 Woodhenge Shiraz, 2018 Woodhenge Shiraz, and Catapult Shiras – MUSEUM.
Boston Bay Wines
Our last winery tour and tasting was at Boston Bay Wines in Port Lincoln. We enjoyed a beautiful view of Boston Bay, delicious food, and of course, wine! Our pairings – natural oysters with sauvignon blanc, Spencer golf king prawn cone wth Riesling, blue muscle Thai salad with Miss Ruby, and cold smoked tuna with Merlot.
So wine lovers, if Australia isn’t already on your list of places to visit for good wine, add it now! Contact us today so we can help you plan your memorable wine trip Down Under!
