Two Hands Wines Cellar Door, Barossa Valley
Is there anything better than a sunny day spent tasting wine at a cellar door in some peaceful corner of the countryside? I don’t think so.
Lately I have had the very good fortune of doing a bit of this; leaning against a tasting bench, swishing and sniffing.
Let’s just say that I am not the human equivalent of a Beagle. They say blackcurrant and fig jam; I say, ‘Mmm … tastes like red wine.’ Nonetheless, I love visiting cellar doors because they are a portal to happiness (even if they are black hole for my credit card).
Two Hands Wines is set back in the hills of the Barossa Valley about an hour from Adelaide. You drive up a fairly characterless freeway and then turn left … and it’s this the turning left that makes all the difference because with one swing of the wheel, you find yourself in a golden paradise of vines and gum trees and glowing dusty air.
The cellar door is inside an old sandstone cottage and surrounded by lush green lawns, country gardens, a fountain and is neighboured by a old bakehouse that has a very unique feature; you can see through its glass floor to the cellar beneath.
Step inside the tasting room and you are transported to what could be any upmarket inner city restaurant. Smooth timber surfaces, stainless steel and glass – it reminds me of Longrain in Surry Hills. The staff are tropically friendly and yet razor sharp when it comes to dissecting the wines; we taste our way into 2009 Moscato, The Wolf Riesling, Yesterday’s Hero Shiraz and up through the rest of the Garden and Picture Series and on into the Flagship wines of Ares, Aphrodite and Aerope. Big, big, big reds. I love them.
My very kind hosts have organised lunch (a slow cooked lamb pie with the most obscenely buttery pastry served with a side salad and Maggie Beer condiments) so we finish the afternoon off in a carby, wine-soaked haze. *sigh* Like I said, happy place …
Tell me, winos, where are your favourite cellar doors? And when are we going?
I love McLaren Vale – where the sea meets the vines. It’s my idea of heaven. There’s a little winery called Foggo that is run by a very quirky family. The teenage son sometimes hangs out at the cellar door and serves you wines. The parents are crazy eccentrics who make amazing rose. You are welcomed in with open arms and subsequently leave with your arms full. Of Wine. The way they should be.
I’m a Hunter Valley girl, I’ve been to the Barossa too but prefer my home stamping ground. As a local, I’ve been to more of the Hunter’s vineyard than I can count, but I can never remember any of the names or locations through the winding roads and vine-laden hills so every trip is like the first.
I was also fortunate enough to visit a vineyard when I lived in Japan, I have no idea where it was but a whole group of us lounged the day away picnicking under these tall grape trellises. There was a lot of alcohol and a lot of fun.
I’m still keen to experience Napa Valley not to mention the wonders I’m sure I will find in France.
I have done the Hunter Valley as well as Napa and Sonoma Valley and I can’t really pick a favourite. They are both different, each for their own reasons, and I’ve gone at least twice at each because I loved them all. It’s my first visit to the Hunter however that made me not only like, but absolutely love wine!
However, a recent discovery in the Rocks in Sydney, Wine Odyssey, may just be a new favourite concept for me. It’s like the vineyards come to you all in one room, and you can simply stumble in and try out a few wines whenever you feel like it. Perfect for an impromptu wine tasting!
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