Wine tourist heaven across the Tasman

By SIMON HENDERY

During dinner at Magill Estate Restaurant in South Australia I decided I had reached wine tourist nirvana.

It was a combination of the superb wine list, great company, the vista of Adelaide's twinkling lights below, and the restaurant's setting among the 50-year-old grapevines of Magill Estate, historic home of Australia's most famous wine, Grange.

Oh, and the food at Magills is also outstanding.

But back to the wine. At $320 a bottle - or $80 by the glass - the 1973 Grange is one of the cheaper of the 24 Grange vintages on the wine list at Magills. The 1966 will set you back $1200 a bottle, and the 1976 costs $1350.

Having already devoured a couple of bottles of more modestly priced wine, our table's budget stretched to only a single glass of the 1976, which was enthusiastically passed around, snorted, sipped and discussed.

We chatted up the sommelier, and were rewarded with a second glass, plus his take on the wine's nose.

"It's been described as like brushing a horse," he informed us. Anywhere else, that type of descriptor would have gone down as the ultimate in wine-snob absurdity. But this was Magills. We nodded in agreement.

If you're seeking your own wine nirvana, Australia is a good place to go looking.

But how do you get the most out of a wine holiday across the Tasman?

Here are 10 tips.

Do your homework

Pre-trip planning will improve the experience. There are many books on the Australian wine scene. I found leading commentator James Halliday's Australian Wine Companion indispensable - a sort of Lonely Planet for wine tourists.

Get off the beaten track

The Hunter, Yarra, and Barossa valleys are perhaps the most well known of the dozens of wine regions across Australia but if you're looking for something a little different, consider the Canberra Wine District. Like New Zealand, it is a cool climate growing region and produces spectacular chardonnay, riesling, pinot noir and other varietals.

See Chasing big Aussie reds in the Barossa valley

Arm yourself on arrival

Wherever you choose to visit, pick up that state's wine tourist guide and regional winery maps and guides for the area when you touch down.

Victoria has printed a new, free 132-page guide book this year, The Wine Regions of Victoria, which is comprehensive, easy to read, and should set the benchmark for the other states.

Seek professional help

Each wine region has specialist tour guide companies that take the hard work (and the driving) out of vineyard-hopping. Wine guides know the best places to visit and the good ones have the contacts to get you behind the scenes.

Try, try again

The visit to the vineyard "cellar door" is a chance to sample the full bounty of this most diverse and exciting beverage. It's about introducing your palate to new wines, asking and learning as you go. Most wineries provide tasting notes for the wines available for sale and sampling. Don't be afraid to ask even the most basic questions about the wines or winemaking in general. You can't learn if you don't ask.

Spitting is socially acceptable

Sampling even a mouthful of each wine during a long afternoon of tasting will soon take its toll. The good news is you don't have to swallow to appreciate the product (although some are harder to spit out than others). Sniffing, slurping, and spitting is the way to go. The best advice I've heard - practise in the shower, and whether you're spitting or not, drink plenty of water, which is also always available free.

Try something new

Australia may be world famous for its shiraz but be adventurous and try something a bit different. Some of the sauvignon blanc now being made across the ditch is quite good, and there is also some interesting work being done with Italian varietals, especially pinot grigio (the pinot gris grape processed in an Italian style), and sangiovese.

I was particularly impressed by the Italian styles made at T'Gallant on Victoria's Mornington Peninsula and at Coriole at McLaren Vale, South Australia.

Get interactive

In South Australia, there is no better introduction to the Australian wine scene than a visit to the National Wine Centre in Adelaide.

The mix of static and interactive displays tell the history of wine in Australia, explain all aspects of grape growing and wine making, and help you to distinguish different wine varietals. You can also "interact" with famous Australian food and wine personalities who appear in hologram form to answer questions.

Then, when you've learned all about it from the experts, put your winemaking skills to the test with a computer simulation of making your own wine.

Take time out

Unless you are a James Halliday type who samples wine for a living, there is a limit to how many wineries you can visit in a day. Even the most ardent wine lover will probably be sick of swilling after seeing about half a dozen cellar doors in a day.

The good news is there are plenty of non-wine activities to be found not far from the vineyard.

The TarraWarra Museum of Art is a fascinating new gallery attached to the TarraWarra Estate cellar door in the Yarra Valley. The stunning multimillion-dollar gallery was built by TarraWarra owners and art lovers Eva and Marc Besen who gifted it to the Australian Government.

At Montalto Vineyard on Victoria's Mornington Peninsula, diversion from wine and food comes in the form of a walk around the vineyards and wetlands to view a series of large outdoor sculptures. Montalto hosts an annual sculpture competition, and many of the works stay on the property.

Indulge yourself

If you have $450 to $600 to spare, treat yourself to a night of luxurious accommodation. The options are almost limitless.

An estate suite at Peppers Hermitage in the Barossa Valley costs A$490 ($547) a night, for which you get the stunning spectacle of watching the sun set over the grapevines outside your room.

A River suite at the gracious Chateau Yerring boutique hotel in the Yarra Valley costs A$535 ($597) and has the advantage of being next to the impressive Yerring Station winery.

Woodman Estate on Victoria's Mornington Peninsula is another elegant boutique hotel. A suite at the Manor House costs from A$330 to $495 ($368 to $552) a night, but it is worth stepping up to the A$595 ($664) for one of Woodman's secluded lakeside chalets where the deck-side view at sunset is heart-warming.

* Simon Hendery travelled to Australia courtesy of Qantas and the Australian Tourist Commission.