Barossa Valley
After our fabulous cruise down the Murray River on the Proud Mary, our small group of six neighbours arrived back in Adelaide on 27 June, 2022 to spend three nights in the Hotel Indigo Adelaide Markets. The next day we were picked up at our hotel by Di of Ambler Touring for a private chaffeur driven tour to the Barossa Valley, a wine-producing area northeast from Adelaide. This was part of a two-day personalised itinerary prepared especially for our group.
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The Whispering Wall |
Our first stop was at the Whispering Wall which is located in the Barossa Reservoir Reserve built between 1899 and 1903. It is known for its unique acoustic effects. Words whispered at the far end can be clearly heard at the other end more than 100 metres away. We had some fun testing this out.
Our next stop was in the town of Tanunda, which was first settled by German immigrants in the 1840's. Here we stopped at the Chateau Tanunda Winery for a cellar door wine tasting and afterwards a morning coffee in the coffee shop in the Chateau.
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In Maggie's Kitchen |
We then continued on to
Mengler Hill in the
Barossa Ranges to get a sweeping panoramic view over the whole
Barossa Valley and also saw the weird and wonderful sculptures made of local marble and granite in the
Sculpture Park scattered around on the hill around the lookout.
We then continued on to Nuriootpa to visit Maggie Beer's Farm Shop and Pheasant farm. The shop was warm inside with a slow combustion fire in the centre. At one end of the shop was Maggie's kitchen where she filmed her TV show with Simon the chef. The kitchen was homely and inviting with the stovetop set up for photo opportunities where people could pretend they were cooking in Maggie Beer's kitchen! Di took our photo in the kitchen for a bit of fun!
We then wandered outside to see the Lake, the cooking school and dining room and also the various farm animals including peacocks.
Di then drove us to Angaston, a charming tree-lined historic town. This town was settled predominantly by Cornish miners and other settlers from Britain. We had lunch in a local restaurant and afterwards Ken and I wandered around the town and local Park taking photos.
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Zion Lutheran Church |
One building that caught our attention was the Zion Lutheran Church, looking quite magnificent, constructed with bluestone walls and soapstone quoins and surrounds.
We then drove down Seppeltsfield Road in Seppeltsfield. This is an avenue of Canary Island Date Palms, five kilometres long, planted by the
Seppeltsfield workers during the Great Depression. Over 2000 palms now line the sides of the Road and other roads in the Estate. In fact, there are palms everywhere in Seppeltsfield!
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Seppeltsfield Winery |
Seppeltsfield Winery dates back to 1851 and is considered a National treasure which helped shape Australia's wine industry. It was started by German immigrants, Joseph and Johanna Seppelt. Over 400 acres surround the Estate which combines ancient vineyards, historical buildings, majestic gardens and priceless architecture.
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Canary Island Date Palms |
The Seppeltsfield Estate is a destination experience with cellar door tastings and the Jam Factory which is a unique hub for craft and design. It is located within the 1850 stables building and provides studio space for professional artists working in a variety of media, including knife making, jewellery, millinery, glass and leather. There are also artisan shops and workshops. We looked in at the millinery shop and the knife making shop as well as looking at the ceramic exhibition.
We also had a look in Vasse Virgin housed in one of the historic buildings and saw products made from olive oil including a range of skin-care products. There is also a gourmet food room in this building showcasing a range of olive oils and food products and there is also a workshop attached.
We were quite tired after our walk around the Seppeltsfeld Estate as there is a lot of walking involved between the different buildings and around the gardens.
Di then drove us back to our hotel in
Adelaide and arranged to pick us up in the morning for the second day of our itinerary, a journey to
Victor Harbor and
McLaren Vale.
Acknowledgements
1. SA Gov.au (information about Whispering Wall)
2. Ultimate Winery Experiences.com.au (information about Seppletsfield)
3. Wikipedia
2 comments:
Wow that was an interesting and comprehensive tour.
Thanks Joan. It was great to actually catch a plane and go away on an interstate holiday again. It seems so long ago that we were able to do anything like that!
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