Barossa Valley hosts some of Australia’s best vineyards. We took a 2 day tour through Clare Valley, Barossa Valley and Adelaide Hills sampling and buying wine on the way before ending up in Adelaide. The countryside is very beautiful and less arid than Port Augusta. There are rolling hills, scattered vineyards and lovely wineries. The towns and villages have many stone  houses and it all looks very affluent - no doubt owing to the great wine grown here and exported around the world.

We visited and bought wine from :

  • Penfolds. I tasted some of the best Cabernet Sauvignon ever and David and I ended up buying 2 very expensive bottles (Cellar Reserve) to keep long term.
  • Jacob’s Creek
  • Yalumba
  • Seppeltsfield
  • Wolf Blass
  • Peter Lehman
  • Bird in the Hand (Adelaide Hills)

After that we staggered back down to Adelaide for David’s last night in Australia . The taxi drivers turned out to be real mercenaries and Anna and I got refused a lift and told that the restaurant the other taxi had taken the rest of us was just 3 blocks away. After 20 minutes walk a local explained we needed to take a tram! Eventually we got a taxi with a nice Chinese driver in time for a great steak and more beer.

Today we drove to Quorn, about 45 minutes from Port Augusta,  in 40 degree heat. Quorn is in the Flinders mountains and was a staging point on the old Ghan railway. Today it seems a magic place where time stood still and all the shops, pubs and railway stations are just as they were 100 years ago. The drive there and back to Port Augusta passes some wild empty scenery. I am writing this at 7pm and outside it is still 37 degrees.