McLaren Vale invites visitors to linger over wine while enjoying the vineyard scenery. Photo / South Australia Tourism
From vineyard soaks to pub wine cellars, McLaren Vale rewards travellers who slow down and trust local knowledge, writes Newstalk ZB radio host Roman Travers.
One of the highlights of McLaren Vale is the ease of getting to where you need to be next. Nowhere is so far that you’re put off the journey.
The people are warm and helpful too, and there’s also genuine respect for the First Nations people, here thousands of years before the colonists arrived.
The Kaurna are the original people of Adelaide and the Adelaide Plains. Then came the European explorers, whalers and sealers from the early 1800s, and then, finally, the South Australian colonists of 1836.
I’m staying in an exquisitely renovated colonial workplace, at The Old Chaff Mill Retreat, just a few minutes out of Willunga.
While the bathroom isn’t often the highlight of one’s stay, my room’s monsoon shower and giant bath boast floor-to-ceiling views across the retreat’s Shiraz vineyard, and up into the Sellicks Hills.
It’s not often in life that any of us get the opportunity to lie in a bespoke bath or stand in a shower for as long as we want to, without the pressing needs of work or children. So, I took my time under the hot water and watched the evening hues of orange, red and soft purple paint the vineyard and Sellicks Hills.
The Victory Hotel stands with authority, high on the Sellicks Hills with vast views of the Gulf Of Saint Vincent. I stroll in and note the easy mix of local drinkers, tourists and families, all enjoying the incredible meals and extensive drink options before wandering up to the bar to meet the owner, Doug Govan.
“What are you drinking?” Doug asks after a quick rundown on the pub’s layout and history.
The Victory Hotel has been a success story for all sorts of reasons, beyond the sensational views out to sea, the fabulous food and extensive beers and wines on offer; it was also a practical resting place for those travelling up the hills from the plains and further south along the peninsula, with their horse and cart transport.
You do need to brace yourself for a “far out!” type moment when you descend the stone stairs into the wine cellar.
This is quite unlike any wine cellar I’ve ever seen – and certainly a “far out!” moment when you realise just how vast Doug’s wine cellar is.
When Doug bought The Victory Hotel, he knew there were cellars below, but he had his work cut out for him when he began removing huge amounts of stone, to restore these vast caverns into what you see today. You seriously could be in any fine cellars of any fine wine selling region of the world.
With that first drink still in hand, I’m feeling a little silly that I ordered a local beer, only to be surrounded by hundreds of the finest wines of McLaren Vale.
Thankfully, Doug also has a beer in hand as we walk through three separate cellar chambers, complete with vastly long dinner tables and wall-to-wall wines on racks, as far as you could throw a cricket ball.
Doug has some unique relationships with local vineyards.
One of them, Wendouree, is incredibly difficult to buy from, in fact, you must write to them by hand to request an appointment. Doug has many of their vintages and they’re all for sale at prices regarded as very reasonable, compared to what you’d pay in a restaurant.
Despite his clear expertise, Doug is one of those rare folk who is so genuinely passionate about wine, he doesn’t need to impress with complicated terms or lingo. Instead, he delights in sharing his love of a good drop with anyone eager to sit and chat.
So, if you ever do find yourself near The Victory Hotel, you must come and see what I saw and ask for Doug Govan. His staff are warm and easy going and like Doug, they love what they do. Many of them have worked there on and off their entire working lives.
Another day dawns in McLaren Vale, and I’m off on a tour with sommelier Matthew Kurko, who offers an exclusive peek into the region’s small producers and boutique cellar doors on his ‘Small Batch Wine Tours’.
We arrive at Lino Ramble and winemaker Andy Coppard talks with easy confidence about his connection and love of organic and biodynamic viticulture, and his celebration of his unique Mediterranean and Australian style wines of McLaren Vale, but he also makes vermouth, which he learnt to make while working in France and Spain.
He freely talks about the way in which winemaking is taught in universities, which teach one way – but as Andy says, there are many ways to cook an egg, just as there are varying ways to create gorgeous wine and vermouth.
It’s not all vintage success here in McLaren Vale, and Andy tells me that the industry needs to play more to their strengths, using Grenache as an example of a sustainable varietal that grows and produces well without the need for irrigation. There are now 22 Italian varietals in McLaren Vale, where just 35 years ago, there was one.
The Lino Ramble wines I tried and loved here include Artino, Nero D’Avola, Falanghina, and Saparavi. If it’s a hot day, ask Andy for one of his chilled reds; a common drink in Italy and surprisingly delicious.
Eventually, Matthew drags me away to ‘Never Never’, the perfect place for gin lovers. This gin distillery stands on the crest of a hill with views that demand your attention. You have to see (and taste) ‘Never Never’ to appreciate just how epic the architecture is, and how vast their selection of top notch, bespoke gins and cocktails is.
Who knew that a juniper is actually a conifer and produces a cone, not a berry? Daily tours, lunch and tastings are a gin lovers treat, which I reckon is a must when you come to McLaren Vale.
MCLAREN VALE, SOUTH AUSTRALIA
GETTING THERE
Air New Zealand operates a direct Adelaide–Auckland service year-round. The airline also runs a seasonal Christchurch–Adelaide route twice weekly on Mondays and Fridays (October–March), with this year’s seasonal schedule extended through to May 1 2026.
DETAILS
The journalist travelled courtesy of Air New Zealand and South Australia Tourism.