45 minutes from Adelaide: Top 5 must-dos in McLaren Vale wine region

45 minutes from Adelaide: Top 5 must-dos in McLaren Vale wine region. Photo / Karawatha Cottages

Sure, New Zealand has wine to write home about, but the McLaren Vale wine region in South Australia is worth leaving home for, writes Alex Mitcheson.

Visiting wine country is a great way to spend time away from it all. Moods are high, the backdrops beautiful, and you’re never far from a full glass of wine. Spoilt as we are, New Zealand has some of the most pristine and green-leaning wine regions in the New World. Still, for the wine lover willing to travel, South Australia’s McLaren Vale is packed with passionate vintners and gorgeous wineries vying for you to cross the Ditch. And it has the title of being the country’s most sustainable wine region — as if you needed further encouragement. But what outstanding inclusions should you have pencilled in?

Gemtree Wines in McLaren Vale is one of the region’s most lauded organic and biodynamic wineries. Photo / Supplied

Take to the skies — Helivista

Taking in your surroundings between vines and ultra-modern tasting rooms is one thing, but what if you could do it from the vantage of your own chartered helicopter flight? You elevate your visual perception and appreciation for the whole wine-growing region — quite literally. Whether it’s couples looking for a secluded fly-in, fly-out lunch or friends eager to bolster a tasting day out with incredible views, they don’t get much better than this.

Take in the surroundings from the vantage point of your own chartered helicopter flight. Photo / South Australian Tourism Commission

Pilot and wife duo Paul and Mei Ling at Helivista have years of aviation experience behind them and make all guests — including those uneasy with flying — feel safe and comfortable from the word go. Once in the air, you witness the unique topography of this cherished grape-growing district with diverse altitudes and its often-overlooked closeness to the St Vincent Gulf. Plus, doing a fly-by of the beach is something you won’t forget in a hurry. helivista.com.au

A fly-by of the beach by helicopter is something you won’t forget in a hurry. Photo / Duy Dash

Who’s leading who? — Journey Home Vineyard Donkey Walking Tours

Meandering through elegant rows of manicured vines is a popular and tranquil undertaking. And particularly for those who like a holistic overview and understanding of how what they find in their glass got there. For the audacious-minded and those perpetually open to spicing things up, you can add some affably-natured donkeys to the equation. Guests at Journey Home Vineyard are called upon to take the reins of either Agatha or Winsome while Jodie Armstrong, your host-cum-viticulturist and small-batch winemaker, guides you through varying vineyards. The pace is slow and the ambience is irrefutably bucolic as you learn and hear about the different soil types and growing aspects from a seasoned winemaking veteran. You’ll bump into fellow winemakers and take in all sorts of flora and fauna — such as kangaroos thundering their way through neighbouring paddocks — with perfectly placed stops to sample a glass or two from the vines you’ve been walking among. journeyhomewines.com.au

Guests at Journey Home Vineyard are called upon to take the reins of an amicable donkey for vineyard walks. Photo / Supplied

Organic and biodynamic winemaking at Gemtree Wines

After travelling the world in 1994, it was Melissa Brown’s wish was to return home and work in her family’s vineyldards in McLaren Vale. And since then, she and her husband Mike — with viticultural trials along the way — have created one of the region’s most lauded organic and biodynamic wineries.

Get to grips with organic and biodynamic farming practices at Gemtree Wines. Photo / South Australian Tourism Commission

Understanding organic and biodynamic farming practices isn’t an easy task. But fear not. For the curious, there are regular guided tours of their regenerative garden and Biodynamic Hut, where the intricacies of working in harmony with nature and the moon are completely demystified. Apart from plenty of great wine to taste and native food platters to accompany them, the Gemtree Eco-Trail is a secluded biodiverse wetland teeming with wildlife. Restored from past farm use with some 50,000 plantings of native trees and shrubs, you can self-guide yourself on the 1km trails or take part in a removed wine and dine experience in this serene environment — with only tall gum trees for company, naturally. gemtreewines.com

Settle into seclusion at Karawatha Cottages

Built on an old orchard farm site and fringed by pine forests, these three self-contained cottages are a flawless choice to stay and immerse yourself in McLaren Vale. Being in the Blewitt Springs area, the property experiences a noticeable touch of altitude and one of the many different microclimates the region is famous for. Combined with an easterly aspect, waking up to an amber sunrise and catching the morning dew dissipate across nearby vineyards is a divine start to any day.

Karawatha Cottages are built on an old orchard farm site and fringed by pine forests. Photo / Karawatha Cottages

There are three self-contained cottages, sleeping between two to four people and coming with enough rustic yet contemporary charm to satisfy all tastes. Grab yourself food supplies, a bottle of wine (or two), run a steamy bath and throw another log on the fire. Trust us, McLaren Vale nightlife doesn’t get any better than this. karawathacottages.com.au

Better together— Experience Chalk Hill Collective

Stunning views are never in short supply in this part of the world. Capitalising on this with a medley of great wines, first-rate gins, and delicious Italian food is an avant-garde domain where three separate home-grown businesses have come together under one roof. The joint timber boardwalk leads you to a manicured lawn where picnic blankets, smiles, and lost hours are aplenty.

Never Never Distillery beckons all gin aficionados at the Chalk Hill Collective. Photo / South Australian Tourism Commission

The Chalk Hill tasting room is sleek and inviting; it is a chance to explore handcrafted, award-winning wines with views across their neighbouring organic vineyard. Never Never Distillery beckons all gin aficionados with a ridiculously well-curated list of decadent and interesting cocktails formed with their bespoke spirits. Oyster Shell Martini, anyone? Cucina di Strada is the Italian street food eatery cum pizzeria binding the two together with delectable wood-fired pinsas — think of a focaccia meets pizza hybrid — that you can enjoy outside or inside anywhere across the site. chalkhill.com.au

For more things to see and do, visit southaustralia.com