Barossa Valley

Make the pilgrimage to the Barossa and you’ll be joining 60 per cent of all visitors to South Australia’s wineries. And no wonder, just an hour’s drive north of Adelaide, it’s undoubtedly Australia’s best-known viticulture and winemaking region.

Established in 1842 by immigrants from England, Germany and Silesia (now part of Poland), the region’s rich heritage is reflected in architecture, food and music – and internationally renowned wines.

Around 500 grape growing families, many sixth generation, today continue to supply nearly 60,000 tonnes of grapes to about 50 winemakers – including household names like Seppelt, Penfolds and Lehmann.

You’ll find 60 cellar doors, from big to boutique and new to heritage-listed. You can drink Jacob’s Creek wine right next to real thing in the new $5 million visitor centre at Rowland Flat. Wander among grand chateaux called Tanunda, Barossa and Yaldara. Or taste the global wines of Wolf Blass in the new $5 million, circular cellar door near Nurioopta.

The main red varieties grown in the Barossa are Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Grenache, while the key white grape varieties are Riesling, Semillon and Chardonnay. Shiraz has pride of place because this is the birthplace of one of the world’s great wines: Penfolds Grange.

Neighbouring the Barossa is Eden Valley, which has a reputation for premium wines that take advantage of the higher altitude and cooler climate, through grapes including Riesling, Chardonnay, Shiraz, Merlot and Cabernet. Here you’ll find five wineries with cellar doors, including the famed Henschke Wine Cellars.

72 km from Adelaide

80 Wineries Available

6 Attractions Available

Average Distance 240km

Average Duration 9hrs

Penfold

Penfolds Grange is an Australian icon – a heritage-listed wine protected by the National Trust of South Australia – which captures both a sense of place and the essence of Australian agricultural ingenuity and innovation.

The story of Grange is one of personal triumph and extraordinary vision, steeped in the Australian ethos. Yet it also bears a history, prestige and lasting quality that interconnect with the great wines of Bordeaux.

From its first experimental vintage in 1951 to its current release, Grange is unquestionably one of the world’s most prestigious, critically acclaimed and iconic wines. The winemaking philosophy behind this enigmatic wine has hardly changed since its inception, however a lineage of four visionary Chief Winemakers have been its proud custodians over time and have steadily refined and improved upon the winemaking process. Primarily Shiraz driven often with a small percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon, Grange is a beautifully seductive, defining modern wine, lauded by collectors and observers as a true wine of distinction.