Fine Wine Wanderings: Adelaide to Barossa Valley travel guide

It’s not far from South Australia’s capital, so on this particular road trip you’ll be spending the bulk of your time exploring a single region. But since the Barossa is a world-renowned wine region, you’ll find plenty to stay occupied.

WHY YOU SHOULD DO IT

The silhouette of man backlit in a cellar filled with wine bottles, Chateau Yaldara, Lyndoch, Barossa Valley

There’s a single word most associated with the Barossa Valley: wine. With good reason. Its viticulture history dates back to 1842, making it one of the oldest wine regions in Australia and home to names such as Chateau Tanunda, Chateau Yaldara and Yalumba. Among astute sippers, it’s known for its full-bodied, spicy shiraz, but you’ll also find excellent riesling, grenache and Mediterranean varietals like fiano and tempranillo.

After white settlement, German Lutheran immigrants from Prussia came to the area and their influence remains, with Barossa-Deutsch, a German dialect, still spoken in parts. You’ll likely come across some of the old German ways while exploring the Barossa’s charming villages, like Tanunda and Marananga.

FIVE ON THE DRIVE

  1. It traps the water for the Barossa Reservoir, but the Whispering Wall attracts visitors for another reason altogether. When you talk very quietly at one side, someone else can clearly hear what you’ve said at the other, more than a hundred metres away. This feat of engineering was completed in 1903, and you can find out more about its construction during a visit.

  2. With so much choice, a few days in the Barossa Valley can challenge the indecisive. That’s where the Butcher, Baker, Winemaker Trail can help. Pick up the VIP experience from the Barossa Visitor Centre, and you’ll get a cooler bag, cheese board and knife, wine glasses, a booklet of vouchers and a map. Now, you just have to tour the places mentioned – some of the stops include Apex Bakery, Barossa Valley Cheese Company and Thorn-Clarke Wines – and build the perfect picnic.

  3. Maggie Beer is a Barossa Valley legend. The Farm Shop is where she sells her delicious range of products, but daughter Elli has created The Farm Eatery and Experience Centre. This is a sophisticated yet completely unpretentious spot for a long lunch, with a menu of share plates created using local, seasonal produce. Next door is the cooking (and gin) school, where you can learn about making pasta or mastering baking.

  4. While Prussian immigrants made their mark on the Barossa, the pretty village of Greenock was founded by Scots. Many of the historical buildings remain, but there’s lots more happening too. Raise a glass at Alkina and taste semillon, grenache, mataro and more. If you’ve had your fill of wine, try the offers of Greenock Brewers, or book a table for lunch at El Estanco, where local food gets a South American makeover.

  5. If you need to supercharge your digestion, try Kaiserstuhl Conservation Park, where the 10.5-kilometre Wallowa Hike takes you through the varied natural landscape of the region, past formations like Horse Head Rock and Capped Rock, and to a scenic lookout with panoramic views of the valley.

DON’T MISS

Heritage buildings with the word Seppeltsfield painted in large letters on the roof, Barossa Valley, South Australia

From the moment you see the driveway lined with 2,000 enormous date palms, you know you’re in for a treat. Seppeltsfield is one of the best known vineyards in the Barossa, with senior winemaker Charlie Seppelt the fifth generation of the family to work there. It’s a huge operation, with a plethora of experiences available. Want to tour the grounds on a Segway? You can do it. Treat yourself by booking Taste Your Birth Year. In the Centennial Cellar, someone will extract a tasting of Para Vintage Tawny from the barrel filled when you were born. The collection, which dates back to 1878, represents the longest lineage of single vintage wines in the world.

WHERE TO STAY

Seppelts View Cabins

You could easily blow the budget in the Barossa, but there are also some excellent wallet-friendly options. With their fireplaces, Seppelts View Cabins are neat and cosy, plus they have kitchenettes so you can whip up breakfast using your haul of local produce.

Blickinstal Barossa Valley Retreat

Set among vineyards and with epic views – you’ll want to catch the sunset – Blickinstal Barossa Valley Retreat is a cluster of welcoming cottages just a five-minute drive from Tanunda.

Barossa Weintal

Barossa Weintal in Tanunda is more of a traditional-style hotel, with modern, spacious rooms. It has an onsite restaurant called Angus & Co, serving three meals a day.

HERE’S HOW TO DO IT

Seppeltsfield Wines, SA

The Barossa Valley is a mere hour’s drive from Adelaide, so it’s as simple as picking up your Apex rental car at Adelaide Airport and heading off. If you want to see South Australia’s epic coastline, detour to the Yorke Peninsula (its closest point is two hours from Adelaide), explore there for a couple of days then head back towards wine country.

WHEN YOU’RE DONE

Kayaking on the Murray River, Yarrawonga, VIC

Head directly east from the Barossa and you hit South Australia’s Riverland country. Renmark, set on the banks of the Murray River, is about two hours away. Here you’ll discover life slows down by the water. Explore the ochre-coloured cliffs, spot birds in the wetlands and get on the water in a kayak. You can even hire a houseboat here.