Welcome to the Riverland

While you’re in the Riverland there’s so much to see and do we’d like to give you some ideas for your free time or in case you’d like to extend your stay. Many places are open on limited days and require pre-booking so hopefully this list will be helpful with planning your stay.

Please note the Bay to Birdwood car rally will be held on the previous Sunday, 19th October. Early booking is essential for participation however viewing the cars along the route is free and the Stag club will arrange a suitable place to congregate. The public are invited to inspect the cars at the Birdwood Historic Motor Museum after the rally, entry tickets can be purchased online or at the gate – check the website closer to the event.

Naturally there are a number of wineries plus a brewery and a distillery, but there are also museums and historic sites, painted silos and murals, and assorted interesting places to visit.

Wineries:

Riverland Wine Centre: Many of the wineries don’t have a cellar door so this is a great place to learn about them and try their wines. The views from the centre are wonderful and there is a lovely outdoor area to sit and enjoy the vista. The centre showcases most of the 30-plus local wineries, but they are also the outlet for Pike River wines and a selection of Riverland produce. For those who arrive on Friday, we will meet here for lunch or just to get to know each other.

Bassham Estate Wines: A family owned affair with an impressive selection of wine varieties, particularly European varieties not often found down under. If you like white wines you might like to try Fernao Pires, Petit Manseng, Arinto, Pecorino one of the more common varieties such as Verdejo, Albarino, Fiano or Vermentino. For the red wine varieties you could choose from Aglianico, Mencia, Tinta Barocca, Prieto Picudo or Alfrocheiro or stick to the better known varieties such as Saperavi, Graciano, Nero D’Avola or try a big Durif or Lagrein. There’s even Shiraz on offer for the less adventurous.

Angoves Family Winemakers will be well known to many and their outlet in Barmera not only has a variety of wines of offer but also the famous Angoves Brandy and Ginger wines. They offer a tour of the brandy making part of the winery where you are able to see the large copper still and try some of the aged produce.  Pre-booking is required for the tour.

Mallee Estate Wines

Another family owed winery with award winning wines from second generation winemakers and a wonderful Greek restaurant, located very close to the centre of Renmark. This is a popular lunch spot with outdoor and indoor seating so booking is essential.

919 Wines:  Tucked away in Glossop, this little winery specialises in high quality wines, including fortified wines, in fact 919 wines has a list of awards to be envied. This small family owned winery suggests a BYO pizza or picnic to enjoy while sampling the wines.

Banrock Station is an iconic winery with popular wines known throughout Australia and overseas. The Ramsar accredited wetlands are full of native trees and shrubs, creating habitats for wildlife. There are a variety of walking tracks to view the wetlands and birdlife and a restaurant to enjoy some lunch while you take in the view. Then of course, they do sell wine as well, check out the lightweight bottle designed to take up less space and less weight for campers and caravan enthusiasts. Or try the vegan friendly options.

This is just a sample of what the Riverland offers in wine tasting experiences, there are more options such as Whistling Kite biodynamic wines on the banks of the River Murray and Ricca Terra with a wine room available in the centre of Renmark.

Brewery and Distillery:

The Riverland also has other beverage outlets that are well worth a visit.

The Woolshed Brewery: Situated on a bend of the River Murray, the outlook from the deck is gorgeous. The brewery is, as the name suggests, in an old woolshed and on offer are a wide range of crafts beers, ciders and hard lemonade. They also hire out houseboats if you have a bit more time on your hands. We plan to visit the brewery on Saturday.

23rd St Distillery: Named after the location on 23rd St in Renmark, the building is quite intriguing, starting life as a winery with the huge concrete vats now used as seating cubicles. Tours are available. Spirits on offer include an extensive range of Gins, Vodkas, Whiskeys, Brandy plus even Ouzo and Rum. An amazing list of cocktail recipes is also available. This is a very popular venue with tourists and locals with a very good reputation for great pizzas.

Historic Sites / Museums:

The Riverland also provides some interesting places to visit:

Loveday Internment Camp for POWs in WW11, located near Barmera.  Established in 1941 on 180 hectares. Some old buildings remain. A display is available at the Barmera visitor centre.

Olivewood Estate Homestead and Chaffeys Museum in Renmark. This display is  extensive and well worth a visit.

Paringa Community Museum: A small display of farming equipment.

Loxton Historical Village: This is a little “town” demonstrating how life was before supermarkets, airconditioning and  microwaves. Over 45 buildings exhibit the various aspects of life in and farming in the late 1800s.

Interesting Sites:

Nippy’s Outlet:  Local fruit juices available as well as flavoured milk, ginger beer and spring water.

Almondco Almond Hut: Almonds and almond products available direct from the factory.

Lake Bonney: The shore of the lake at Barmera is a great place to enjoy the sunsets over the water and the Barmera club offers lunchtime and evening meals.

Overland corner Hotel: A popular spot for locals and visitors, particularly on weekends when they provide live entertainment. This limestone Hotel was built in 1856 and there is a small museum area depicting aspects of life back in those days. Bookings are essential for meals but a large garden area is well laid out for enjoying a beverage or two.

Headings Cliff lookout: This popular lookout is on the way to the Woolshed Brewery and is a great place to view the river and see the weathered, crumbling cliffs.

Silos and Murals: There are two Silos in the Riverland at Waikerie and Paringa plus murals in Renmark. More silos are are short distance South in Galga, Copeville, Karoonda (also has evening light displays) and a new stunning silo at Lameroo.

The Bend Motorsport Park

A few people have enquired if it is possible to drive their cars on the the track at the “The Bend”. There are a number of packages available on the website and there is currently an offer for an overnight stay for a couple with dinner, breakfast and a few laps around the track for around $300 per couple with a minimum of 15 cars. If a number of people from a club are interested in this option either prior to the Riverland rally or afterwards it may be possible to make up this number, otherwise, bookings would be on an individual basis only.