Barossa Valley
Posted on Jun 11, 2008 under Adelaide |
The Barossa Valley is Australia’s best-known wine-growing district. It stretches as a shallow depression 29 km long by 8 km wide, just west of the Mount Lofty and Barossa Valley Ranges. A large wine area, it extends into the hills around the charming town of Angaston.
The valley was originally settled by German Lutherans who planted orchards, olive groves and vineyards and built charming towns and wineries very much in their native European style. The German cultural heritage is still evident in the shop-front names, German wursts, lovely fresh breads and the German influenced food in restaurants and wineries.
The wineries range from amongst the biggest in Australia (Penfold/Kaiser Stuhl/Jacob’s Creek) to the very tiny (Gnadenfrei), and the wines cover the whole range but are generally of a high quality.
To explore this area, particularly during the Vintage Festival every odd-numbered year, is to discover a region and lifestyle unique in Australia. Many wine lovers come from interstate and internationally to see what the fuss is all about with the Barossa Valley wines.