McLaren Vale

Winery

Angas Plains Wines

Phillip Cross planted his first vines here in 1994, a decade after buying the property, and pressed his first vintage — a Cabernet Sauvignon under the PJ's label — in 2002. The 25-hectare vineyard runs on stored dam water through summer. Fifty minutes from Adelaide, Langhorne Creek rarely gets the attention it deserves; this family operation is a good reason to make the detour.

Winery

Belvidere Winery

Located in Langhorne Creek on South Australia's Fleurieu Peninsula, this established winery specializes in contract winemaking and processing for both commercial and small-batch producers. Their experienced team offers comprehensive grape-to-bottle services, bulk wine solutions, and export assistance with over 20 years of industry expertise.

Winery

Bleasdale Vineyards

Frank Potts arrived in South Australia on the HMS Buffalo in 1836, eventually settling at what's now Langhorne Creek and founding Bleasdale in 1850. Six generations later, the Potts family still runs it — Halliday's 2024 Winery of the Year, with 47 hectares across 38 vineyard blocks on the natural floodplain that made this region.

Winery

Bremerton Wines

The cellar door occupies a restored 1866 stone barn — Langhorne Creek's oldest architecture pressed into daily service. Lunch draws on regional produce; the gin flight offers a counterpoint to the estate wines. It's a working winery operation, not a stage set, and the region's character comes through in both.

Winery

Cradle of Hills

Paul and Tracy Smith make about 800 cases a year at Sellicks Hill, at the southern end of McLaren Vale, where they live among the vines. Paul caught the wine bug in the Navy wardroom cellar; Tracy is a botanist who tends the vineyard. Shiraz, Cabernet and Rhône blends come off their own rows plus a little bought-in Grenache, everything done by hand from picking to basket press. Tastings by appointment, with olives, chickens and an orchard out the back.

Distillery

Cut Hill Wall Distillery

Single and double cask whiskies from a Hindmarsh Valley distillery on Mont Rosa Road, open Wednesday through Sunday. Three expressions in the current range — including the Allodola and a Single Cask — with limited releases available through the Stonecutters subscription club. The cellar door keeps short afternoon hours; worth timing your visit accordingly.

Distillery

Fleurieu Distillery

What began as the Steam Exchange Brewery in 2004 took a turn in 2011 when the stills arrived. Now the cellar door in historic Goolwa pours single malts — Albatross at $157, Tapestry at $185 — beside the kind of town where paddle steamers still dock. Open Wednesday to Sunday; closed when the mercury hits 35.

Distillery

Fleurieu Gin

Perched above Myponga on the Fleurieu Peninsula, this gin distillery and cellar door pours tasting flights and cocktails against coastal and countryside views. The kitchen runs Wednesday through Sunday — noon to mid-afternoon — making it a reasonable stop for lunch alongside a gin flight rather than a quick pour and out.

Brewery

Forktree Brewing

A bar and restaurant in Carrickalinga operating Thursday through Sunday, serving their own craft beers alongside a full kitchen menu. With a 4.7/5 Google rating, they offer both dining and drinking experiences with kitchen service ending earlier than bar hours.

Distillery

Ginny Pig Distillery

Fifteen minutes from McLaren Vale, this South Australian operation runs small-batch gin out of a newly opened distillery door in Mount Compass. The Botanic Gin — juniper, lemon myrtle, rosemary, Tassie pepperberry, elderflower — took Double Gold at the 2024 San Francisco World Spirits Awards. The Spiced Fig is the crowd favourite. Drop in or book a tasting flight.

Distillery

Henry Fisher

Lachlan Henry Fisher Rochfort started this small-batch distillery on Maude Street in 2020, steps from the Great Southern Ocean. The range has grown quickly: Citrus, Dry and Shiraz Gins, a Vodka, a Spiced Rum-style spirit, and a Single Malt Whisky now in the mix. Worth picking up a bottle if you're passing through Encounter Bay.

Winery

Kimbolton Wines

Family-run since their first vintage in 1998, Kimbolton has been farming Langhorne Creek with an eye on what comes after. The cellar door is the place to start; the Clubhouse wine club — 20% off, free delivery, member releases — is where regulars end up.

Winery

Lake Breeze Wines

The Folletts have farmed this Langhorne Creek dirt since the 1850s. Their cellar door pours forty-year-old-vine Cabernet, Malbec, and an Italian-leaning range that now includes Pecorino. Lunch runs seven days on a terrace overlooking the old vineyard and river red gums. The annual Handpicked Festival in November turns the property into something else entirely.

Brewery

Little Pete Brewing

Agronomist Warren Burgess named his brewery after his great-grandfather — a WWI veteran and devoted beer drinker, small in stature, large in character. Warren and wife Beck run the show from 543 Step Road, where river red gums frame an open-air bar pouring their own Summer Session, Peninsula Pale, Dark Ale and Stout. Build-your-own platters available.

Distillery

Lost Phoenix Spirits

Hindmarsh Valley distillery with a farm kitchen next door and a nose for local produce. The Australian Dry Gin uses lemon myrtle and mountain pepperberry picked on-property; the Barrel-Aged Apple Gin gets its spiced apple character from fruit roasted by the farm's chefs. The Foraged Berry Gin draws on wild blackberries from the Adelaide Hills. No added colours, no shortcuts.

Winery

Magpie Springs

Seven grape varietals grown on-site, small-batch wines available only at the cellar door, and a rotating art gallery that has shown sculpture, photography and painting by local and international artists. The southernmost cellar door in the Adelaide Hills Wine Region sits on Willunga Hill, rustic buildings opening onto gardens wide enough to hold a wedding.

Distillery

MCW Distillery

A family-owned distillery in Mount Compass producing world award-winning spirits and liqueurs that showcase the unique flavours of the Fleurieu Peninsula. This Australian-made operation combines traditional distilling methods with local passion to create distinctive products for visitors to experience.

Winery

Metala Wines (by Appointment) No Cellar Door.

Based in Langhorne Creek, one of Australia's oldest wine regions, this estate produces full-bodied Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon wines that stay true to the region's character. Operating by appointment only since 1981, they craft estate wines with heart and dedication to their terroir.

Distillery

Moo's Distillery

A working distillery in the Waitpinga valley, south of Victor Harbor, with four gins on the shelf — dry, citrus, navy strength with hibiscus and spearmint, and a blueberry vodka — plus a single malt whisky (Macca Batch 001). Open Thursday to Sunday; the firepit, pizza and local nibbles make it easy to stay longer than planned.

Distillery

Mount Compass Spirits

David and Jenny Martin — both from Liverpool — founded their Fleurieu Peninsula distillery in 2014, taking until 2015 to secure licensing and begin production. The range runs wide: gin, rum, vodka, whiskey, brandy, agave, and moonshine, all made under the Mount Compass Spirits name. A cellar door rounds it out.

Winery

Sabella Vineyards

The Petruccis grew grapes in McLaren Vale for other people's labels for two decades before bottling their own from 1999. An immigrant family from Molise who planted on McMurtrie Road in 1976, they now have Michael Petrucci, third generation, making the wine. Alongside Shiraz and Cabernet the range leans into its Italian roots with Nero d'Avola, Aglianico and Colorino. The cellar door sits on McLaren Vale's main road, pouring the range with Italian cuisine and live music.

Winery

Shaw Family Vintners

Richard and Marie Shaw started with 5 acres. They now farm over 1,200 across McLaren Vale and Currency Creek, with a winery built in 2000 to process the lot in-house. Six labels span the range — from everyday Stonemason and Steeple Jack through to single-vineyard and the premium RMS tier.

Brewery

Smiling Samoyed Brewery

A microbrewery on Hansen Street in the small Fleurieu town of Myponga, pouring four house beers: a Kolsch, IPA, Dark, and the flagship 12 Paws. Lunch daily, longer on weekends, with delivery running to Adelaide and down the peninsula. Uncomplicated, unhurried, and better for it.

Brewery

Steam Exchange Brewery

A former railway goods shed on the Goolwa Wharf, restored and fitted with brewing tanks, pours four house ales — Steam Ale, IPA, Dark Ale and Stout — Wednesday to Sunday. The paddlesteamer town has been making beer before; this is its current answer to that history.

Winery

Vineyard Road Cellar Door

A premium winery located at 697 Langhorne Creek Road offering wine, chocolate and natural skincare experiences in a working vineyard setting. Known for their grower-made wines where the people who grow the grapes also craft the wines, specializing in Langhorne Creek varieties including Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and their signature 'Block 9' Estate Shiraz.