The leading Langhorne Creek cellar doors every wine lover must visit this winter
As the weather gets cooler, many of us put the whites away and reach for the reds. Wine that is. And with an abundance of top-quality varieties and multi award-winning cellar doors, the Langhorne Creek Wine Region is best placed to offer up the finest to warm even the coolest of nights.
Bremerton keeps getting better
Starting with Bremerton Wines, sisters Rebecca Willson (winemaker) and Lucy Willson (marketing) have an eye for detail. Their latest cellar door remodel has created the most warm and comfortable space, perfect for snuggling up with your favourite red and pizza combination.
Their signature range in recognition of the family’s heritage includes the 2019 Selkirk Shiraz and the Coulthard Cabernet. It reveals the pure varietal expression of Langhorne Creek’s well-known range and can be matured or enjoyed straight away (who could resist!?).
The best way to taste Bremerton is with a wine flight matched to a regional tasting platter (which is so good, it won the team the Best Tasting Experience at the 2022 Gourmet Traveller Wine’s Best Cellar Door Awards!).
Take a flight your tastebuds won’t regret
Ever heard of a wine and cheese flight that the whole family can get onboard? Kimbolton Wines is famous for the experience, taking you on a journey of discovery pairing its best wines with four local artisan cheeses. With options dependent on the weather or the season, we’re thinking it’s the perfect time to board the current flight – pairing hearty cheeses with warm reds.
Meanwhile, the kids will pick up Bickford cordials, kabana, cheese and chocolate. Classic options that please all. They’ll also be given colouring pencils, an activity book and bubbles to keep them entertained for the rest of your visit.
While you’re there, make sure you grab a 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon, with each purchase supporting Monarto Safari Park’s Grapes for Good initiative to save animals, in this case the cheetah, from extinction.
And it would be remiss of us not to mention the purpose-built cellar door, made of industrial shipping containers and recycled timber. Earthy, modern, and very aesthetically pleasing. A worthy recipient of the Star Cellar Door Award at the Gourmet Traveller Wine’s Best Cellar Door Awards.
Views galore from Lake Breeze
With amazing views from the upstairs deck, Lake Breeze is the perfect place to rug up and drink up over a long lunch looking out across the stunning views of the family’s old vineyard, majestic river red gums, and the Bremer River.
Named the 2022 Halliday Wine Companion Best Value Winery of the Year, this place offers quality wine at reasonable prices. Try the 2019 Bernoota – the original name given to the homestead, and an Aboriginal name for ‘camp among the gum trees’.
Best Large Cellar Door at this year’s Gourmet Traveller Wine’s Best Cellar Door Awards.
Go beyond the cellar door at Bleasdale
If the winery wasn’t enough, you can now experience the inner sanctums of Bleasdale with their new Beyond the Cellar Door Tour.
A guided tour into the depths of the historic winery, in small groups of no more than eight people, you’ll be taken through the entire process. Tasting wine directly from the barrel is a bonus! You’ll also get to see the original 1892 red gum press used to squash grapes.
This tour just took out the Best Additional Cellar Door Experience at the Gourmet Traveller Wine’s Best Cellar Door Awards, so book now!
Wine, skincare, art and more
With a unique three cellar door locations, Vineyard Road Wines’ Langhorne Creek site offers the complete experience and is also dog friendly! A good selection of traditional and emerging varieties are on offer, why not try the NV Reserve Sparkling Shiraz, a blend of shiraz from various estates.
When you’re done with the wine, you can peruse Vasse Virgin Skincare, a large collection of natural products to suit every skin type. Or, you can get your art on, and take part in a ‘Laugh, Paint, Sip’ workshop, mentored by local artist Kathy Hardy Smith. There are also chocolate treats from the Fleurieu Chocolate Company that might tempt you. Something for everyone indeed.
Good food and good times
This place oozes character. With an electric mix of old and new, The Winehouse stocks four award-winning boutique local labels, Ben Potts Wines, Gipsie Jack, John Glaetzer’s John’s Blend and Heartland by Ben Glaetzer.
And if the wine isn’t enough, the food doesn’t get much better than this. Delicious fresh and seasonal foods, hot coffee, and homemade sweets.
The best pub in town
When it comes to good wine, who could forget The Bridge Hotel. This pub prides itself on fine beer, great wine and good food using produce sourced from the area – even the food scraps go back to the local chickens!
Nestled among an abundance of wineries, the Bridge Hotel has the best of the best in stock, so if you can’t decide what winery to visit – this is an easy way of tasting them all. And if you need some pointers, the staff here are some of the friendliest you’ll meet.
…. Many, many others
We can’t forget Rusticana Wines, with 25 acres of vineyards planted on the flood plains of Langhorne Creek. Planted in the early 1990s, their delicious red wines are made nearby at Matilda Plains winery. You can pick up the popular, locally-made Newman’s Horseradish products from here too.
There’s a full menu to choose from at Angas Plains, and we’re talking both wine and food. You can even pick up some delectable produce gifts, with options including PJ’s Shiraz Sauce and PJ’s Cabernet Crush. And on occasion, this cellar door has live music too.
Windsong Wines is the newest cellar door to pop up in Langhorne Creek and boasts an elegant new venue space which showcases wine, art and books. Here you can pack your own picnic to be enjoyed beside the orchard, or dive into some poems, paintings and stories from South Australian artists.
If you’d rather stay out of the driver’s seat, there’s always available tours or charters to help you get from A to B – or to plan out your entire experience. Check out Juggle House’s Langhorne Creek tour!
Or take your visit on two wheels with Bike About’s unique Safari and Wine tours. You’ll often see cyclists in this town, so don’t be afraid to bring yours out and enjoy the fresh country air and landscape as you cycle to different venues.