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South Australia’s 18 diverse wine regions continue to punch above their weight in delivering world-class wine tourism experiences.Promotional feature
The Best Of Wine Tourism Awards celebrate innovation and excellence in wine tourism and provide an opportunity to gain exposure and recognition for their commitment to providing leading wine tourism experiences.
From 27 finalists, the South Australian winners of the Best of Wine Tourism Awards are:
Accommodation – Inkwell Wines (McLaren Vale)
Hotel California Road @Inkwell is a new luxury all suites micro-hotel located amidst the vineyards. Built from twenty repurposed shipping containers, the entire project emphasises re-use, repurposing and recycling; extending on their commitment and demonstration to sustainability in wine tourism.
Architecture and Landscape – d’Arenberg (McLaren Vale)
The d’Arenberg Cube is an iconic, award-winning architectural puzzle, where guests can relax, have fun and soak in the stunning views. The five storey multi-function centre and tourism destination, designed by Chester Osborn, was inspired by the complexities and puzzles of winemaking.
Art and Culture – Coriole Vineyards (McLaren Vale)
Coriole offers a consistent annual events program across various forms of the performing and visual arts. Taking these art forms out of the traditional theatre setting into a relaxed and family-friendly atmosphere, is encouraging new audiences to embrace the live and classic arts.
Innovative Wine Tourism Experience – Penfolds Magill Estate (Adelaide Hills)
Penfolds Magill Estate is one of the world’s very few urban single vineyards and successfully combines experiences including fine and casual dining, historical tours and tastings, underground tunnels that give a real sense of place and history for bespoke tourism experiences.
Sustainable Wine Tourism Practices – Gemtree Wines (McLaren Vale)
Certified organic and biodynamic, the Gemtree Wines Cellar Door is sustainably built and powered. The Biodynamic Hut enables visitors to learn about biodynamic farming principles and as well as visiting their 10 hectare nature reserve and eco trail, adjacent cellar door.
Wine Tourism Restaurants – The Lane Vineyard (Adelaide Hills)
The Lane Vineyard is at the forefront of destination food and wine experiences. With unsurpassed outlooks across the region, it is renowned as the ‘epicentre of laid back luxury’. The Lane takes great pride in sourcing local ingredients for its comprehensive and diverse menu.
Wine Tourism Services – Elderton Wines (Barossa)
Elderton understands that tourism excellence is the development of quality visitor experiences that meet, and ultimately exceed, consumer expectations. The new Elderton Cellar Door has created a visitor experience that embraces its history and invites visitors to become part of their future story.
This year McLaren Vale’s d’Arenberg has been awarded the coveted ‘International Best Of Wine Tourism Award’ for Architecture and Landscape, with the Cube recognised for its bespoke structure and design in South Australia.
Announced at a gala dinner as part of the Great Wine Capitals Annual General Meeting, the iconic d’Arenberg Cube was celebrated as a building masterpiece, which offers guests a chance to ‘lose themselves’ among stunning views and interactive, educational and gastronomical experiences.
Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development Tim Whetstone congratulated d’Arenberg on receiving such an illustrious award.
“McLaren Vale’s d’Arenberg Cube is an iconic wine tourism experience that continues to gain worldwide traction for being so unique, easily eclipsing visitation expectations,” said Minister Whetstone.
“The Cube’s design creates a venue that is remarkable and has been deservingly recognised on a global stage through these awards.
“Congratulations to the South Australian winners and nominees of the Best of Wine Tourism Awards and the finalists – this is wonderful recognition for the outstanding wine tourism experiences on offer in our state.”
About the Great Wine Capitals Global Network
Founded in 1999, the Great Wine Capitals Global Network is an alliance of ten internationally renowned wine regions – Adelaide|South Australia; Bordeaux, France; Lausanne|Switzerland; Mainz|Rheinhessen, Germany; Mendoza, Argentina; Porto, Portugal; Bilbao|Rioja, Spain; San Francisco|Napa Valley, USA, Valparaiso|Casablanca Valley, Chile and Verona, Italy.
The Best Of Wine Tourism awards serve as an industry benchmark for excellence and recognize leading wineries and wine-tourism related businesses within each Great Wine Capital that have distinguished themselves in areas such as innovation, service and sustainable practices. For more information visit www.greatwinecapitals.com.
