5 Best Sights in The Clare Valley, South Australia

The area's first winery, Sevenhill Cellars was created by the Jesuits, and they still run the show, with any profits going to education, mission work, and the needy within Australia. In the 1940s the winery branched out from sacramental wine to commercial production, and today make a variety of styles including Riesling (try the St. Francis Xavier label), Verdelho, Grenache, and fortified wines. Enjoy a tasting (A$10, redeemable), then head on a self-guided tour of the grounds that takes in the cellars, the cemetery, and the church crypt where Jesuits have been interred since 1865.

Award-winning and internationally known Kilikanoon produces multilayered reds such as the dense, richly colored Oracle Shiraz that has been named best in the world; Prodigal Grenache is another beauty. Tiered tastings allow you to choose 7 or 14 wines highlighting the diversity of soils and microclimates in the Clare Valley, or book ahead for the premium Revelation Experience (A$60) that steps things up a notch with access to Kilikanoon's most exclusive wines including the ultrapremium Revelation Shiraz.

One of the most recognizable and popular wineries in the Clare Valley, Knappstein is located in the original 19th-century Enterprise Brewery, a Heritage-listed building and a well-known landmark of a township that's oozing with history. The four Rieslings are consistently excellent, and the same could be said for the Cabernet and Shiraz wines lovingly handcrafted here.

Known for its excellent Riesling, Gewürztraminer, and Shiraz, this boutique winery also has an excellent, if slightly dated, restaurant on-site. Wine tasting takes place in a small room in the 1850s cottage. Don't miss the sparkling Riesling.

There's also an on-site, self-contained cottage for rent.

The small, no-frills tasting room means there is nothing to distract you from discovering why Tim Adams Wines has a big reputation. The standout in an impressive collection of reds and whites, which includes a celebrated Riesling and delicious Fiano, is the purple-red Aberfeldy Shiraz, made from century-old vines. You can buy wine by the glass or bottle to enjoy with a cheese platter on the large deck.