Coonawarra Cellar Dwellers filled the wine region with barrels of activity on the weekend.
This marked the first weekend of the annual festival, which Coonawarra Vignerons executive officer Hugh Koch hailed a success.
“The cellar doors I spoke to were commenting on the quality of the visitor who was here, they were really interested in the place, they were interested in what Coonawarra was all about,” Mr Koch said.
“They were happy to sit around for quite a period of time; they wanted to really understand the Coonawarra story which is tremendous.
“You just got the sense from a few that were here for the first time that this was just a taste of Coonawarra and they wanted to come back.”
Mr Koch said there were visitors from both near and far in the region and praised cellar doors for their hard work throughout the festival.
“All our cellar doors, they put on an enormous amount of effort for the events we do and in July everyone is doing something different,” he said.
“The ones I have spoken to, I think they have started to get some reward for that effort which is fantastic.
“I think people, particularly when they come to Coonawarra, it is not just about tasting the wine – wine is certainly what they are interested in, but people really feel they have had a great experience because they feel like they have been educated in some way or they feel like they have learned something.
“That really resonates with them when they leave the place because they then think of the memories which have been created.
“I think we do that really well here, and in July the type of people coming through who are wanting to be able to spend a bit more time to be able to get that learning from the cellar doors particularly and some winemakers who are popping in there as well, they can have that conversation.
“That is what they remember, those who are arriving looking for a really good educational opportunity and learning opportunity, they feel like they have had a really good experience as a result.”
This weekend, taste Hollick Estates’ 2014 vs 2022 ‘The Gondolier Barbera,’ enjoy Pizza and Tunes at Raidis Estate and visit Brand’s Laira for their Shiraz Vertical Tasting.
Drop into Ottelia for their ‘Guess the Capsule’ game for a chance at winning a cellar selection of Ottelia wines and go ‘Back in Time with a 10 Year Old Wine’ at Balnaves of Coonawarra.
Visit DiGiorgio Family Wines to try a wine specially picked by Frank DiGiorgio himself, a wine flight matched with regional bites and aged wine and vintage pies or visit on Friday for a private tour and tasting.
Or get in early on Thursday for ‘Musing in the Museum’ at Zema Estate for an informative tasting in their nostalgic museum area and do not forget to try their 2013 vintage wines in the cellar door.
People are also encouraged to participate in the Cellar Dwellers Passport Program, where guests who get stamps at five participating wineries will go in the draw to win a case of Coonawarra wine.
Visit coonawarra.org to view the entire program and book tickets to events.
