Deviation Road

Mystery, terroir, season, science “and a wink to the heritage” are the promises from hand-crafted sparkling wine specialists Hamish and Kate Laurie. They are celebrating 25 years at Deviation Road. Hamish is a fifth-generation vigneron in SA, and winemaker Kate has woven her passion for all things French into this local experience. Their still wines also reflect the cool-climate Adelaide Hills, notably in chardonnay and pinot noir. An all-day grazing menu is part of the package at their seven-day cellar door, along with regular masterclasses and special events. It’s family- and dog-friendly. Resident wine dog, Aggie, a Hungarian vizsla, might stop to say hi.

Tilbrook Estate

Seated tastings happen in the eco-friendly cellar door, circa 2021. The zero net carbon, solar and thermal powered site follows the green “second passion” of James and Annabelle Tilbrook, who began this ambitious enterprise in 1999. For their first passion, wine, they adhere to the catchy and admirable philosophy of “hand made by our hands”. Tastings are complemented by wine-friendly weekend lunches starring produce from neighbouring Scarfo Organics. Truly Italian pizzas are the core of the menu, sometimes enhanced by live music. It all heightens the experience of wines grown in a “less-common fashion”. The French-inspired aim is consistence from low-vigour rootstocks grown in close-planted vineyards. 

Lobethal Road

The main cellar door oozes a delightful eco-friendly Euro-barn feeling with abundant warm timbers. A new “garden room” for leisurely weekend lunches and private parties has been added. Bookings are best for the intimate space seating up to 30 people. You can graze the menu by the fire, or in the courtyard on more summery days. Wine flights are available. Taste the breadth of the specialty drops made with minimal intervention on a site that operates completely off the grid, supplying its own water and generating all its power by solar energy. “Miles” are also minimal with winemaking one kilometre from the vineyard.

Between the Vines

A small stable of premium wines made from hand-pruned, hand-netted and hand-picked vines, somehow delivers some pretty affordable options with typical Adelaide Hills appeal. From Friday to Monday the cute boutique cellar door hosts tastings and sales of wine, even by the glass, along with simple platters. The delightful home-style venue has recently been made available for hire. It would be a gorgeous spot for an intimate wedding or a special event for up to 60 people. Most of the wines are less than $25 a bottle and for special toasts, consider estate-made sparklings, The Leapling and All That Glitters.

Somerled

Welcome to the fold. This is such an inviting space created by the Moody family, be it for a tasting, lunch, or an evening at the bar. And it’s all right in the main street of Hahndorf where it can be the small or better part of a big day out. Friday nights have become the most “buzzy, cosy times”, says daughter Lucy who prepares the likes of soups and ragus, to go with wheels of artisan cheese on the bar. With wines made by exacting “never rushed” Rob, this is delicious family time. Ask about the Museum Release with some vintages back to 2001.

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Shaw & Smith

Most of us know this wine well. But for all aside from dedicated wine buffs, there is certainly more. At the stunning cellar door, “experiences” will lend greater insight. Drink in the incredible wine-country views while working through a wine flight, partnered with nibbles as you like from the winery’s Cold Larder Menu. The most popular flight is a tutored tasting that will include four new-release wines and one aged wine. Or you might choose a single-vineyard education, tasting as you learn how climate, elevation, aspect and soil heavily influence these wines. If you have two hours to spare, see it all on the “Balhannah Tour”.

Tapanappa

Brian Croser is arguably one of the best-known names in SA’s wine world. His story is filled with challenges and hurdles so the name, Tapanappa, meaning “sticking to the path” is so apt. It also reflects his drive to find the right sites and fastidiously build a highly respected label. His family wine company is managed by daughter Lucy and her husband Xavier Bizot. Another son-in-law, Sam Barlow, runs the winery adjacent the cellar door at the foot of the oldest vineyard in the Adelaide Hills, The Tiers, recognised for outstanding chardonnay. On any day, taste and enjoy the significant view, perhaps over a platter.

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Pike & Joyce

The P&J restaurant and its seasonal sharing menu are about as famous as the wines at this idyllic Hills space. The light and bright mod wing-roofed cellar door, restaurant and shaded garden area enjoys a birds-eye location with giant windows for peering down the manicured rows of vines and across Onkaparinga Valley. Recent renovations have expanded the areas for weddings and special occasions, yet there are intimate settings for smaller groups. The wines form a cool-climate corral around all styles, from pinot noir rosé to a bank of rieslings and respected reds.

Murdoch Hill

The third generation is tending this property, on land brought into the family fold in 1939. Brothers Michael, Andrew and Henry Downer make a valuable trio, each in different wine-centric roles. All of the grapes hail from the Hills, creating what the family calls a “mixed bag” of chardonnay, sauvignon blanc, shiraz, cab sav and cabernet franc. At the vineyard, near Oakbank, they can be sampled in an informal tasting room which opens to a sunny deck with views to rolling paddocks and giant majestic gum trees. Local cheeses are freshly prepared to match your choices.

The Lane

All the superlatives belong in the description of this excellent winery, mod cellar door and restaurant. It is simply stunning. No wonder it’s one of the state’s most popular choices for brides and grooms with good food, wine and the best wedding album in mind. Yet it is just as inviting for smaller groups who appreciate the wine and innovative modern Australian food. If you prefer to be in the heart of that incredible scenery, The Lane walking map will take you to a private picnic table. Armed with chef’s seasonal hamper and a Lane bottle or two, it’s another way to enjoy a picturesque little party.

Petaluma

Comparisons between the Adelaide Hills and Champagne in France are commonly drawn. Our Hills have proven to be the ideal place to nurture and form sparkling wines. At Petaluma, the confirmation is in the Croser Vintage and Croser Late Disgorged wines from the Piccadilly Valley, described as a remarkable place to the east of Mount Lofty, and the highest point in the Hills. Petaluma’s cellar door in Woodside is the best place to taste the phenomenon for yourself. A host of experiences is offered, including one that’s a little different. The Horse Trail and Tasting gives you a different perspective of the vineyards in a “true grape-to-glass journey”.

Bird in Hand

Undoubtedly one of the most significant destinations in the Adelaide Hills, this winery deals in the broad experience. You can take part in seated tastings of magnificent wines indoors by the fire or outside enjoying simply stunning outlooks designed by talented garden designer and owner Susie Nugent. Or dine in the excellent new LVN degustation-style restaurant, and you can stay in a beautifully styled suite. It is a family business built by Susie and husband Andrew. With art in their hearts, the wine and the property are their ever-evolving canvas. Sustainability is cleverly woven into the mix.

Mt Bera

Estate-grown wines are the pride of Mt Bera. Tastings of six or 12 of its most favoured drops are offered. Warmth and a sense of the rustic feature in the cellar door, where you can also relax with a glass or bottle, a platter or shared plates. Chef Manuel Prieto is the wine-friendly menu creator in the restaurant. Dine inside or on a cosy covered deck overlooking heritage gardens and the Torrens Valley. His generous dishes are made for sharing and pairing. There also is a three-bedroom vineyard cottage which easily acts as a base for an Adelaide Hills visit.

Artwine

This light and bright cellar door doubles as a wine bar. You can pop in for a tasting or linger over a glass or share a bottle, with the option of small plates and local platters, designed to suit with gluten free, vegetarian and vegan options. They reflect the estate-grown ethos where single-vineyard vegan-friendly wines are created with minimal sulphites. Members reap the benefits, including new releases such as the recent Ti Amo Arneis (Italian variety) which won the Best White Varietal trophy at the Royal Qld Wine Show. It was followed by another Italian gem, Artwine’s Bella Donna Falanghini.

Sidewood Estate

As success stories go, this winery and restaurant arguably rank high and very visually in the best-of mix. Owners Owen and Cassandra Inglis fell in love with a sloping parcel near Oakbank, where their two loves, horses and wine, could co-habitate. Since then, their success has fed rapid expansion and an overflowing prize room with more than 50 Trophies and 400 Gold Medals. The best-known face of it all is the mod cellar door and a popular restaurant on the outskirts of Hahndorf. Book in for a guided wine flight, a masterclass or casual sampling, or team the tasting and dining experience.

Simon Tolley

A wine and popcorn tasting experience showcases the fun side of fifth-generation grape-grower Simon Tolley’s serious wine business. As do the jaffles on the cellar door menu if you seek a change from ubiquitous platters. The deceivingly unassuming tasting space is set to make the most of panoramic Hills’ views whether you nab a spot indoors or out. The same can be said of a five-bedroom Lodge for groups to call home on an Adelaide Hills getaway. Regular events and live music further colour the scene. Also ask about the limited-edition barrel-aged brandy made with smoke-tainted fruit after the devastating 2019 Cudlee Creek bushfires.

Mt Lofty Ranges Vineyard

If taking visitors to one destination truly depicting our Adelaide Hills beauty, this could be it. The smart cellar door and chef-hatted restaurant have enjoyed uncommon success and popularity over more than a decade, not only for the superb food and wines, but for the incredible location perched at the top of one of the most picturesque vineyard zones in SA. Flights are the fancy if visiting for tastings, but they are not pre-set. “This is your journey, your way,” promises the cellar door team. Twenty bright Hills wines will tempt you. As for the restaurant and its fine local-food menu, well, wow.

Anvers

A strikingly sleek cellar door in the form of a steel-rimmed case of glass is on equal wow-footing with the bushland outlook. It adjoins the vineyard in Kangarilla in the Mount Lofty Ranges, owned by Wayne and Myriam Keoghan. The backdrop is frequently chosen by brides and grooms, with a sharing-style restaurant completing the remarkable package. Wayne’s traditional winemaking approach is blended with foresight in the form of best-viticulture, sustainable practices, including minimal irrigation. Tastings will reveal the results. Also consider the tawny port and a fortified shiraz.

Howard Vineyard

A “youthful confidence” is behind this winery’s reputation for welcoming the challenges of the wine world with an eye on the traditions and the changes. The cellar door, built around a bar topped with a handsome, shiny, vertical tree section, hosts both intimate and group tastings. One is all about “enjoy now” wines, the other is an elevated experience from signature bottles. You can then easily choose the wines to pair with a long lunch at the winery’s Clover + Stone restaurant where chef Chang Koog Lee’s menu has a Southeast Asian tint. Or, try the curated “chef experience”.

Golding Wines

“Our philosophy is simple,” say Lucy and Darren Golding. “Great wines taste even better when shared in beautiful surrounds.” Since their first vintage in 2002, both aspects have been achieved. Their Lenswood vineyard is the exclusive source of fruit for the feted Golding Wines. It is home to their “contemporary-meets-rustic” cellar door, and an inviting multi-faceted restaurant with all from finer shared foods to casual pizzas. Wine-centric experiences also abound, including a hamper in the Hills, a stylish “pallet picnic”, an intimate tasting “nest”, a wine safari, and even an “odyssey” where the three wineries from three SA regions play host, with the help of a helicopter.

This article first appeared in the 2025 issue of SALIFE Food+Wine+Travel magazine.