The South Australia guide: further afield

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This was published 13 years ago

The South Australia guide: further afield

Wynns Coonawarra estate.

Wynns Coonawarra estate.

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Fancy a road trip? The Coonawarra, Limestone Coast and the Clare Valley are all great destinations to explore if you have a little more time up your sleeve.

Coonawarra

Famous for its cabernet sauvignon, the fruit of rich terra rossa soil, Coonawarra is the premium wine-producing region at the "red centre" of South Australia's Limestone Coast. Among the tiny area's cellar doors - all within about 10 minutes' drive of each other - are the region's oldest winery, the acclaimed Wynns Coonawarra Estate (1 Memorial Drive, Coonawarra, 08 8736 2225, wynns.com.au) and Rymill Coonawarra (Riddoch Highway, Coonawarra, 08 8736 5001, rymill.com.au).

Taste award-winning wines from Jamieson's Run, Mildara and Lindeman's Coonawarra range under one roof at the Coonawarra Wine Gallery (Riddoch Highway, Coonawarra, 08 8737 3250, coonawarrawinegallery.com). In April, many cellar doors open at night for Coonawarra After Dark.

You can also visit the historic schoolhouse where Australian saint Mary MacKillop taught (corner Petticoat Lane and Portland Street, Penola, 08 8737 2092, mackilloppenola.org.au). Eat at elegant award-winning restaurant Pipers of Penola (58 Riddoch Street, Penola, 08 8737 3999, pipersofpenola.com.au) and stay in a self-contained eco-apartment from $175 per night per couple at Must @ Coonawarra (126 Church Street, Penola, 08 8737 3444, mustatcoonawarra.com.au).

Limestone Coast

This region is the home of Australian riesling, so what better place to hire a tandem or a retro cruiser and cycle the Riesling Trail, a flat 35-kilometre path along a former railway corridor linking picturesque towns and wineries (Riesling Trail Bike Hire, 10 Warenda Road, Clare, 0418 777 318, rtcvcottages.com.au).

It's an easy drive around the valley's cellar doors, which include heavyweights Cardinham Estate, winner of a "best riesling in the world" award (Main North Road, Clare, 08 8842 1944, cardinham.com) and Tim Adams Wines, whose riesling has won gold in international competition (Warenda Road, Clare, 08 8842 2429, timadamswines.com.au).

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Eat from the restaurant's organic vegie garden at Reilly's Wines (corner Hill and Burra streets, Mintaro, 08 8843 9013, reillyswines.com.au) or feast in the shade of the olive tree at the restaurant at Skillogalee Winery Restaurant (1 Trevarrick Road, Sevenhill, 08 8843 4311, skillogalee.com.au).

Formal evening meals are served in the dining room by a butler and maid to guests staying at Martindale Hall, the imposing 19th-century mansion that appears in the film Picnic at Hanging Rock (from $120 per night, Manoora Road, Mintaro, 08 8843 9088, martindalehall.com). Dig into the region's rich history at the World Heritage fossil site Naracoorte Caves, the only place on earth that has a continuous fossil record of the past 500,000 years (Joanna, 08 8762 2340, naracoortecaves.sa.gov.au) or visit one of the major sites in Australia's most significant volcanic precinct, Kanawinka Global Geopark, such as Mount Gambier's Blue Lake (kanawinkageopark.org.au).

In the Padthaway region, noted for its chardonnay and shiraz, visit Padthaway Estate Cellar Door (Riddoch Highway, Padthaway, 08 8734 3031, padthawayestate.com) where they make table wines and sparklings. Taste Cape Thomas sauvignon blancs at the Mount Benson Wine and Tourism Centre and find out about the region (Southern Ports Highway, Mount Benson, 08 8768 6155).

Sample the coast's finest aged beef at The Barn Steakhouse (Punt Road, Mount Gambier, 08 8726 8250, barn.com.au) or follow the Limestone Coast Real Food Trail, which links dozens of producers, farm gates, cellar doors, cafes and restaurants, producing everything from emu mettwurst to muntrie jam (0458 773 663, limestonecoastfood.com.au). Stay on the beachfront at Kingston Shore Villas from $220 per night (99 Marine Parade, Kingston, 0417 886 329, southaustralia.com).

Clare Valley

This region is the home of Australian riesling, so what better place to hire a tandem or a retro cruiser and cycle the Riesling Trail, a flat 35-kilometre path along a former railway corridor linking picturesque towns and wineries (Riesling Trail Bike Hire, 10 Warenda Road, Clare, 0418 777 318, rtcvcottages.com.au).

It's an easy drive around the valley's cellar doors, which include heavyweights Cardinham Estate, winner of a "best riesling in the world" award (Main North Road, Clare, 08 8842 1944, cardinham.com) and Tim Adams Wines, whose riesling has won gold in international competition (Warenda Road, Clare, 08 8842 2429, timadamswines.com.au).

Eat from the restaurant's organic vegie garden at Reilly's Wines (corner Hill and Burra streets, Mintaro, 08 8843 9013, reillyswines.com.au) or feast in the shade of the olive tree at the restaurant at Skillogalee Winery Restaurant (1 Trevarrick Road, Sevenhill, 08 8843 4311, skillogalee.com.au).

Formal evening meals are served in the dining room by a butler and maid to guests staying at Martindale Hall, the imposing 19th-century mansion that appears in the film Picnic at Hanging Rock (from $120 per night, Manoora Road, Mintaro, 08 8843 9088, martindalehall.com).

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Bellwether

Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon 2006 $50

Winemaker Sue Bell's vines are hand-pruned and picked, so the best fruit makes it in.

(Bell even painted the watercolour on the label too).

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