Top Food & Wine Tour Destinations
Opera and Wine, Sustainable Eating and Artisan Coffee
The handful of near-to-Adelaide tourism regions boast some of the top food and wine tour destinations in the state. Indeed, some are arguably amongst the best in the country.
A leisurely hour’s drive from Adelaide city puts you in reach of a smorgasbord of cellar doors, cafes, restaurants, markets and artisan food producers. Beautiful people food and wine; all wanting to contribute their individual stories as part of your personal journey.
With over 200 cellar doors in South Australia, it is sometimes a daunting decision just where to start on your gourmet wine and food tour.
Let us help you by shining a spotlight on just 5 of the 100’s of unique and wonderful food and wine destinations awaiting you.
This is the first part of ‘Top Food & Wine Tour Destinations’. Our 2nd part of ‘Top Food & Wine Tour Destinations’ will be here soon!.
1. Wine, music & drama – Top Note Wines
Igniting passions is something synonymous with the story of wine. Encouraging creativity and the setting aside of inhibitions have also long been ascribed as some of the benefits of the (moderate) consumption of wine.
There are a number of new generation winemakers who were not born into the industry, but who have adopted the art. Others have taken an existing interest in a creative pursuit and love of fine wine and combined them to embark on the exciting and challenging world of wine-making.
One of our top food and wine tour destinations to experience new age winemakers fusing these passions is Top Note Wines in the Adelaide Hills.
The creative people behind Top Note Wines
After years of honing their respective creative skills in Europe, opera singer Cate Foskett and her IT guru husband Nick were looking for a lifestyle change in the beautiful Adelaide Hills. A cool climate 24ha vineyard property tucked away near Kuitpo Forest planted to five varieties caught their eye.
As many a successful creative person will attest, it takes training and practice, practice, practice. The virtue ‘patience’ should also get a mention at this point. So the couple enrolled in training, Cate in postgraduate viticulture and Nick in wine-making at Waite Campus. Armed with this new knowledge they have embarked on their journey together, producing their first vintages and recently opening their cellar door. Now all efforts are on perfecting their new found passion for making wine.
Quality Wine and Terroir
The wines we find are a true reflection of what motivates this wine-making couple. They echo the enchanting local terroir, embrace the benefits of the cool climate and altitude and are crafted in a way that reflects the essence of a true grand opera. As Wagner once proclaimed; opera is a union contracted like a perfect marriage between drama and music. So too are their wines a product of theatre and composition, artistically expressed fruit but with a serious side.
We look forward to taking you into the woods, so to speak, and introducing you to Cate or Nick at this gem of a cellar door.
A Platter with Top Note wines
We can combine it with a local sharing platter at the cellar door or local food and produce on either a Adelaide Hills or McLaren Vale full day tour.
A day of adventure awaits, there a so many more amazing unique places to share along the way.
2. Sustainable Eats – Hutton Vale Farm
Slogans of “Farm to Fork”, “Paddock to Plate” and my favourite “Home Grown” all conjure up raw produce taken straight from their source. Better still if waved over an open fire and then served up on a slice of tree stump. Eating with your fingers is encouraged, adding that extra level of “Paleo” theatre.
Sustainable Gourmet Dining
Although we are happy to share such experiences, there are some just as legitimate but a little more refined. Foraging may be fashionable, but on this tour we focus on sourcing food that is grown sustainably and not all picked from the roadside.
Another top food and wine tour tour destination is the Barossa Valley at Hutton Vale Farm.
Fine foods since 1843
Tucked away off the beaten track, Hutton Vale Farm in the Eden Valley has produced fresh produce, sheep, cattle and grapes since 1843. Sixth and seventh generation members of the Angas family continue to manage the business and ethically farm natural and environmentally sustainably grown produce.
They promote the natural environment and are proud to show you their large (2000 acre) bit of paradise on a personal walking tour. This is truly an amazing experience, so exclusive, unique and engaging that small select groups of food and fine wine lovers from around the world even visit by private charter on fly in gourmet weekends, landing at the private aerodrome.
Free-range lamb and chicken with award winning wines
The star of the show is surely the hand prepared free-range lamb and chicken, matched with their own award winning release wines and home-made chutney & preserves. The kitchen and pantry are as authentic as it gets, rustic and unpretentious. The dining areas and farm courtyards and buildings simply enchanting.
Numbers are again extremely limited and bookings are naturally essential. A visit to Hutton Vale farm for lunch and wine tasting is truly an extraordinary experience and a worthy addition to our top food and wine tour destinations.
3. Grounds for discussion – Dawn Patrol Coffee
Artisan coffee is another of those historic fermented products that has become a popular experience. Coffee roasters have become another top food and wine tour destination on our tours.
Although there are a number of artisan roasters, there are only a small number which have a cellar door smack in the middle of a famous wine growing region, McLaren Vale.
We would like to introduce you to Dawn Patrol Coffee, our 3rd top food and wine tour destination.
Single origin 100% sustainable, traceable coffee beans
Established in 2014, the focus is on single origin 100% sustainable and traceable beans. If you have never researched the history and global business side of the growing and trading of coffee, it makes for some interesting reading.
In Kangarilla overlooking neighbouring vineyards the guys Dom and Nick grind and brew beans in a variety of methods to highlight the complexity and uniqueness of the beans. They relate what they do to their neighbouring wine makers and grape growers, talking about favour profile, complexity, terroir, farming methods and processing.
Be guided through the coffee roasting process
Like many new age winemakers, a lot of experimenting goes on in the world of artisan small batch coffee roasting and brewing also. The guy’s love to explain and take you through the process and the impact it has on the stuff in the cup. You can take part in the mini-masterclass and learn about the complexity of the product and tasting your way through a coffee flight. You can compare the differences between beans from El Salvador, Guatemala and Panama, natural or washed process and others.
They provide home-made baked goods to complement the great coffee and their cellar door makes for a relaxing break between wineries.
Read more in our second part of top food and wine tour destinations to visit on a full day tour.
Opening times are very limited so contact us on 0411 752 062 or [email protected] to request adding these stops on our McLaren Vale Food and Wine adventure itinerary.