Port Lincoln is known to many as the ‘Seafood Capital’ of Australia and the Southern Bluefin Tuna fishing industry is responsible for a lot of wealth and growth in the town.

Port Lincoln is also known as the home of Great White Sharks and cage dive tours to see them, and one of the best racehorses in Australian history, ‘Makybe Diva’, but move aside I say and replace that with – a new food and wine destination.

Beer Garden Brewing is a pretty nondescript building that you could easily pass by on the busy London Street in Port Lincoln, but when the string lights are on in the beer garden, you know that they’re open and should definitely make a stop.

This craft brewery has grown over the past few years to now include ‘beer, beats and eats’. They have a range of beers with appropriately local names like ‘Salty Session’, ‘ Cage Diver’ and ‘Captain Porter’ and also offer wood fired pizzas, local seafood and other special food nights. Live music can also be enjoyed in the rustic, warm and cosy indoor space, complete with a wood fire on these chilly days. Check out the Beer Garden Brewing facebook page for all the latest news and coming events.

Hotel Boston is not far off London Street, on King Street and has recently undergone a huge transformation.  Its dark blue painted exterior and crisp white trim make it very noticeable and inviting and when you walk inside you see glimpses of the expansive al fresco area. There’s a huge family friendly lawn area and spaces to suit diners, as well as groups or couples just stopping in for a drink.

This al fresco area also has killer views of Boston Bay and the foreshore, its own outdoor bar ‘The shack’, and music playing which adds to the atmosphere.

The restaurant in the hotel is called Hooked and Hunted and it offers pub favourites as well as some very special dishes with ingredients sourced from local fisherman and local farmers. We dined here and loved it and enjoyed the beer garden as much as possible in the cold weather.

Finally on the food and wine front, make sure you are in Port Lincoln over a weekend so that you can experience Peter Teakle wines, which at the moment is only open on Saturdays and Sundays.

The restaurant is called The Line and Label and very recently it came in at number 40 in South Australia’s best restaurants. The restaurant is open from Thursdays to Sundays and the hours and a sample menu can be found on the Peter Teakle Wines website.

When we visited we booked a tasting experience and cheese platter and as much as for the wines, I was really looking forward to seeing the cellar door building itself. The architect used was a local of Port Lincoln and the tasting room building resembles wine barrels. From inside the warm timber and stone invites you in and you can sit comfortably with heating, in the barrel shaped outdoor area overlooking the vineyard and distant hills views.

The guided wine tasting experience of the full estate range costs $10 per head and along with the tasting, you get really informative and personal attention with all your questions answered from the knowledgeable cellar door sommeliers. The cheese platter that accompanied the tasting and cost $30 for a couple, was also prepared by the onsite restaurant and suited the tasting perfectly.

We had a terrific time here and would recommend a visit, allowing around an hour for the tasting and longer if you want to linger and enjoy more of the wines and views.

In Port Lincoln we stayed at the Port Lincoln Tourist Park which like a lot of places in town takes advantage of some pretty magnificent views of the water.

The park is quite hilly and sites have been terraced so that almost everywhere you park a van, you’ll have a view.  The other bonus is that the park has its own jetty, which even though it’s small, it’s big enough for anyone staying in the park to share the space and like us, have a bit of fun catching squid.

From the park you can also take the Parnkalla Trail, a walking track which goes in both directions, following the water, either back into the town centre or towards the marina and other landmarks out of town. It’s a really picturesque walk and a good one for dog owners to take.

Enjoy the tastes of Port Lincoln,

Glenys