The world renowned Barossa Valley wine region in South Australia has so much for travellers to experience, that a weekend is never going to be long enough.

But with a plan, you can get a tempting taste of the wines, brews, gins and exquisite food all produced locally.

On our latest visit we stayed at the Discovery Park Barossa Valley, which is in Tanunda. This is a great base for visiting the nearby towns of Nuriootpa, Angaston, and Greenock. All of these towns are full of boutique shops, cafes, resaturants, wineries and more, hence the need for more than a weekend to discover it all.

The caravan park at Tanunda has good size sites for vans and barbecues are dotted around the park to use. There’s a large camp kitchen, a water play park and pool and everything is spick and span with staff always busy, keeping it looking good.

When you’re staying here, you have to visit Barossa Valley Brewing which is conveniently across the road from the park, making it easy to walk to for a tasty meal and drinks in the beer garden. They brew a big range of stouts, ales and lagers and of course there are plenty of Barossa wines on the menu too, along with tapas plates, pizzas and hearty comfort food. Barossa Valley Brewing is open 7 days from 12pm.

Tanunda is a pretty village with the entry way welcoming visitors into the town and oodles of shops for homewares, fashion, books and more and at the visitor’s centre you can pick up some brochures and locally made produce or get some helpful advice on places to visit that suit your interests.

As well as wineries, breweries and distillers, the Barossa has many cafes and places for fine dining, family restaurants and pubs for casual meals. There are also many art galleries and markets, including the Barossa Farmers Market which is held every Saturday morning from 7.30am to 11.30am.

This market in Angaston, really showcases the fresh produce of the area and you can pick up something tasty to eat and a great coffee to enjoy while you wander and decide what to buy. As well as fruit and veg, there are breads, cakes, smallgoods, flowers and plants and many other food and drink products. The market is held indoors with more stalls outside if the weather permits.

Don’t worry if you’re tempted by all the tasty food on offer, you can always walk it off back in Tanunda, by using the walking guide available at the Information Centre. A map leads you to spots of interest along the central, Murray Street and nearby streets in town.

There are a couple of significant churches to see in the main street with impressive entry ways. One is the Tabor Lutheran Church and the other Langmeil Lutheran Church. You can also see some original historic buildings and cottages that give the town such character.

You don’t even have to leave the main street to partake in some wine tasting with a few cellar doors along the way to try. They offer wine tastings, or you can buy drinks by the glass or bottle and regional food platters to stop a while and enjoy.

When in the Barossa, we love visiting the smaller and quieter wineries, not those necessarily on the tourist radar, and this time we found the quaint ‘Hart of the Barossa’ winery, a short drive out of Tanunda. This family owned artisan wine brand is totally organic and owned by the Hart family, one of the pioneering wine making families of the region.

You can visit the winery on Fridays and Saturdays and enjoy a wine tasting in the unique Tasting Shed, which was once stables and a blacksmith shop, located in the midst of the vineyard. It’s a warm and welcoming space with lots of interesting nooks to relax in and take in the surrounding vineyard views.

The Stockwell hotel was another venue we were keen to see this trip, a little over 16 kilometres from Tanunda. The ‘Stocky’ underwent major renovations a little over a year ago and is now a must see pub in this area. The garden area at the front of the hotel is an inviting spot for a drink in the warmer months and it has a unique silo bar.

The rugged stonework exterior is gorgeous and it continues inside along with wooden features and a huge new deck to the side for indoor/outdoor dining with a huge open fire. There’s also a dining room indoors and a cosy bar area. The Stockwell is open from Wednesdays to Sundays.

For one more brewery experience we took a drive to Lyndoch, 13 kilometres south of Tanunda to the Ministry of Beer. The brewery has comfortable spaces indoors and a pet friendly shaded beer garden, where you can sit and sample a range of 16 beers. The specialty of this family owned brewery is barrel aged sour beers, but they also make pale ales, pilsners and stouts.

Another venue with really friendly service from people passionate about their craft.

Before you know it, another weekend in the Barossa Valley is over and for all the new places we visited I think we’ve added double to see next time. It’s a good thing the Barossa is such an easy region to visit and explore.

Cheers

Glenys