As you would be aware the Guild conducted a tour of Kangaroo Island from May 14th to May 17th. There are, effectively, only four Cellar Doors on the Island so the tour made good use of some of the many other attractions of the area.
With a certain degree of military precision, members of the Guild flitted hither and thon fulfilling a solid two and a half day schedule of activities.
Cellar Door visits included; Bay of Shoals, False Cape Wines, Dudley Wines and The Islander Estate.

A demonstration of what's possible when you have great hosts presenting a high-quality product. Both Peter Saturno and Martin Strachan did an excellent job of describing the wines and answering questions. A particular highlight was a selection of fresh grapes of several wine varieties – how often have you wondered if the wine can be tasted in the grape? - The food too was plentiful and delicious.

First event for 2021 was held at the rustic Russel's Pizza place in McLaren Vale. Tasting of 6 wines (3 white,3 red)followed by 3 course lunch, Antipasto plate, oven cooked pizzas and dessert. We were also treated to something never before experienced by the Guild Members. Cate is an opera singer and gave us a treat by performing a rendition of the Habanera from Bizet's opera Carmen.

Christmas Lunch was held at the National Wine Centre. As well as an excellent lunch, there was a scrambled grape varieties quiz and a blind tasting.

The October visit (the first winery visit this year due to COVID restrictions) was to Chateau Yaldara in the Barossa Valley. The visit included a guided tour of the cellars and maturation areas, wine tasting and 3 course lunch with matched wines in the Barrel Room, catered by Vintage Chef Co.

This year's AGM was held at Mount Osmond Golf Club. During the AGM Roger King was presented with Life Membership of the Wine Guild of SA in recognition of his outstanding and meritorious service to the Guild over the years.
James Boden, Head Sommelier at the National Wine Centre was the guest speaker.

Yale Norris from The Islander Estate Vineyards on Kangaroo Island brought wines over to Cumberland Park Community Centre for tasting. Yale gave an insight into the damage done to their production facilities, vines and wine in the devastating bushfires and their determination to re-establish the vineyard.

Christmas lunch was again held at the Public Schools Club, East Terrace, Adelaide. As well as a festive lunch there was a Heads and Tails game and a quiz.

23 people attended the Abode Murrumbateman Motel and 4 in caravans on the 24th October for drinks and nibbles then dinner, prior to venturing out to wineries over the next three days.
Highlights included: the hotel itself, which was clean, comfortable, convenient and practical base for our tour; a good spectrum of cellar doors and tasting experiences; (including a surprise fudge tasting experience; the pleasant and highly skilled bus driver; and last but not least, the opportunity to get to know each other.

The Wine Guild previously visited Mitchell Wines in February 2009. This follow-up visit was hosted by owners, Andrew and Jane Mitchell and included a tasting of current and older vintage wines and a delicious lunch.

Guest speaker Dr Creina Stockley - The health effects of wine

Wine with Matched Food Lunch – at Coates Wines, Kuitpo. 3-course meal, with matched wines hosted by Winemaker, Duane Coates, finishing with a Barrel Select Fortified.

This event, at Lord Melbourne Hotel in North Adelaide, included a blind tasting of 6 chardonnay and 6 shiraz wines, led by Sue Bastian, Associate Professor in the School of Agriculture, Food and Wine at The University of Adelaide.

Dell'uva Wines in Greenock, has one of the largest collections of European grape varieties in Australia. Delluva Wines owner, winemaker and viticulturist, Wayne Farquhar presented “ITALIAN VARIETALS IN FOCUS”, followed by buffet lunch catered by Barossa Country Kitchen.

Christmas Lunch was held at the Public Schools Club, East Tce, Adelaide.
In addition to a festive lunch, there was a wine-related quiz which got everyone thinking.

The October visit was to Bleasdale Vineyards in Langhorne Creek. The visit featured a winery tour with 5th Generation family member Robbie Potts, wine tasting hosted by Senior Winemaker and 2018 James Halliday Winemaker of the Year, Paul Hotker, plus a delicious buffet lunch provided by Peechabella Catering.

This year's AGM was held at Lambert Estate winery in the Barossa Valley - a visit to a winery and a wine tasting rather than a guest speaker made a change from previous AGMs. Excellent food, generous wine tastings and log fires, plus informative talks from Jim Lambert, the owner, and Deb made for a very enjoyable day.

The June visit was to Ngeringa Winery at Mount Barker Summit in the Adelaide Hills. Here we were treated to some excellent educational input whilst enjoying a tasting of their extensive range of wines. This included some vertical tastings to compare vintages, some barrel tastings, and tastings from the “Egg”.

The regional tour for 2018 was to the Coonawarra, Padthaway and Wrattonbully regions.
As well as visits to Raidis Estate, Redman Wines, Wynns Coonawarra Estate, Zema Estate and Penley Estate, the Wine Guild were hosted by Padthaway Wine Region at Henry’s Drive Vignerons, Padthaway and Wrattonbully Wine Region Association in Schultz Cave, Treasury Estates Vineyard.

The first visit for 2018 was to Murray Street Vineyards in Greenock in the Barossa Valley. We were treated to a structured tasting including two vertical tastings in the function room, which was originally part of the old winery. The meal provided by Barossa Country Kitchen definitely had the ‘wow’ factor.