Taste for bikes . . . the Riesling Trail is a 35-kilometre track through the beautiful Clare Valley.Credit: SATC
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Helen O'Neill hits the Riesling Trail
They call the Clare Valley's off-road, vineyard-hugging, 35-kilometre bicycle route the Riesling Trail - and not because it has the odd corkscrew bend.
Neither is it because you have to down some riesling before you strap on a helmet and head off or because your water bottle is full of aromatic white wine.
No, it's because the Clare Valley, one of the country's oldest wine regions, wheeled its way into the annals of world wine lore on the back of this little German grape. And while the logic behind the trail's name is prosaic, the experience can be anything but.
Our foray coincides with January's Tour Down Under, the southern hemisphere's version of the Tour de France, in which elite cyclists from around the world hare like lycra-clad loonies along a six-stage South Australian course covering about 800 kilometres.
Timing the trip thus has its upsides. There is the buzz of being among thousands of spectators as the starter's gun is fired; spotting the top of Lance Armstrong's sleek head; watching elderly gentlemen - at least one of whom is sporting go-faster, high-tech leggings - attempt to race penny farthings; and perching on hay bales as the racing pack screeches down usually deserted country roads.
Our own two-wheel trek is destined to be quieter and slower, a realisation that clicks into gear the moment we spot our bikes - rough, tough track-rattlers better suited to strolling than sprinting and perfect for those who want to smell the vineyards' roses. Of which there are plenty at our first stop, Sevenhill Cellars.
Sevenhill has a few claims to fame. Founded by Jesuits, it is the area's oldest winery and features some of the region's most elderly vines. Its grounds are remarkably beautiful. Plus, it is the only Australian vineyard to export altar wine.
Tours, appropriately enough, are taken by its vintage winemaker, Brother John May, an 80-year-old study in oenological expertise, religious humility (his duties include tending crypts containing the vineyards' previous winemakers) and mischievous quipping.
"This is the 'Spirit Store'," he says, walking past a locked door. "The 'Holy Spirit Store', as we like to call it."
Pedalling away east through tall eucalyptus trees along a stony, winding track, we rejoin the trail, which runs the length of the Clare Valley through farms, woods and embankments, following what used to be the local railway line.
We head south, past the boutique, red-wine-producing Pearson Vineyard in the history drenched village of Penwortham.
From there, via a steep, gravelly detour, it's off to artist Murray Edwards's studio gallery, an idiosyncratic construction built from mud bricks in 1991. Edwards is busy showing another group of visitors through his impressionistic landscapes and figurative portraits.
"The sitter didn't like that one," he says of an image depicting a rather angry-looking woman. "Bit too close to the bone."
At Crabtree Wines in Watervale, another tiny outlet a short spin away, owners Rasa Fabian and Richard Wood crack open tasting bottles of riesling and shiraz and explain that being on a bike is no barrier to buying. Just let them know where you're staying and they will deliver.
Which is all well and good, except the prospect of getting back on a bike after a serious tasting may prove somewhat daunting.
Our final stop is just a few more kilometres down the trail, at O'Leary Walker Wines, and in terms of both blood-alcohol and enthusiasm levels, that's probably just as well.
Journey done, we dump our bikes, raise our glasses and head back to our lodgings by car - grape expectations fulfilled.
The writer travelled courtesy of the South Australian Tourism Commission.
FAST FACTS
• To cycle the Riesling Trail one-way, contact Riesling Trail Bike Hire in Clare (0427 842 232, rtcvcottages.com.au) or Cogwebs in Auburn (0400 290 687, cogwebs.com.au).
• Guided tours of Sevenhill Cellars winery are at 2pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays, or by appointment. They take 75 minutes and cost $7.50. Bookings essential, (08) 8843 4222, see sevenhill.com.au.
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