Barossa Valley - 17 August, 2009

Today we ventured out to visit the famous wineries of South Australia - The Barossa Valley. Our first point of call was a famous brand - Jacob's Creek. We managed to arrive just as they were opening up the what is known as "Cellar Door", to taste some of their wines. Michael and I enjoyed the surroundings of the vineyard but felt 10.00am was too early to sample some wines! Maybe twenty years ago this would have been a hair of the dog as they say for some people, being in our forties we try to put our sensible hats on as much as possible (LOL!). I should mention that majority of the vineyards are placed in and around the towns Nuriopta, Angaston, Tanunda and Seppeltsfield.
After Jacobs Creek we visited the Keg Factory where they make the wine keg's for not only the wineries but for commercial sales. Unfortunately were unable to view the coopers carrying out their fine out. A cooper onsite explained the process to the kids with some examples, in various stages of completion, enough for them to understand the process.
From there we ventured over to "Seppelts". This vineyard was amazing, which included a tour, outlining the vineyard and its family history. You really felt that the history of the Barossa was here at Seppelts. The tour covered what was made at the winerie and the way the Seppelt family looked after its workers, by providing accomodation, food and pay during the good and bad times of the 19th and 20th centuries. Several years ago Fosters bought out the winery and held the rights to whatever wine/spirits/ports etc that were produced from here, halting production of specialty lines such as, red cordial red and white wine vinegars, and focussing on the site as a tourist centre. Thankfully for us, Fosters realised that they no longer wanted to be in this particular business and sold it back to private owners. Our guide returned to the vineyard he grew up on as a result of the change of ownership and now worked several days at the vineyard whilst starting one of his own. He explained to us that not only is he a wine maker, but his father done his apprenticeship here, and that his grandfather worked for the Seppelts family when it was owned by them. History says a lot about generations and families. The original owners were German and decided in 1840's that they would migrate to Australia and start a tobacco farm as a result of religious persecution in Germany. They realised after many failed attempts that tabacco wasn't suited to the climate of South Australia. As others around them were having success with grapes, the family decided to give them a go. The rest is history- so to speak. We managed to sample some lovely ports, and a red cordial that the kids loved, which we subsequently purchased.
The kids stomachs were grumbling( eventhough we had been through fruit, crackers, muesli bars unfortunately forgot the cheeses we purchased the day before - they will wait until another afternoon with a drop of the red we have purchsed. So we headed for one of the famous bakeries of the Barossa at Nuriootpa, to sample some pies, pasties and a german apple cake. Hit the spot and satisfaction had by all.
One more stop at the McGuigan Estate, where we tasted some cheeses and then headed back to Adelaide, arriving at about 3.30. The kids were keen to play some pool and table tennis while we prepared dinner.