Winter Reds Weekend – July 29 to 31

The annual Adelaide Hills Winter Reds Weekend is a mini wine festival celebrating the region’s cool-climate red wines. This year’s event is set to be the largest yet, with more than 40 participating wineries offering a diverse range of tasting events. Ticketed events include Sidewood vs France (July 30), a degustation dinner at Maximilian’s Restaurant; Shanks, Shiraz & Soul (July 31), a day of slow-cooked food, wine and music at Glen Ewin Estate; and the six-course Slow Pinot Lunch at the Stirling Hotel’s Grill Restaurant (July 31). Entry to non-ticketed events is free. Space may be limited at some Winter Reds events, so bookings are encouraged. See the Adelaide Hills Wine Region website for the full program.

Flinders Street ‘Sweet Tooth’ Market – August 6 and 7

Flinders Street Market’s special Sweet Tooth event will offer more than 80 stalls – open from 10am to 3pm – selling a range of treats including cakes, cookies, crepes, macarons, fudge, chocolates and doughnuts. Gluten-free, sugar-free and vegan options will be available, as well as cake-decorating demonstrations and other entertainment. Entry is free.

Get Stuffed Doughnuts at Flinders Street Market’s Sweet Tooth event.

Meet the maker at La Cantina – July 28        

Join La Cantina in welcoming Riccardo Bera from Piemonte’s Bera Wines for a tasting of eight of his family’s wines including the single-vineyard Rabaja Barbaresco. Cost is $40 per person. Bookings are limited to 20 people.

Sprout Cooking at the Gawler Farmers’ Market – July 30

Sprout Cooking’s Callum Hann and Themis Chryssidis will undertake a cooking demonstration and book signing of their new cookbook Quick. Easy. Healthy. which will be available for purchase on the day. Quick. Easy. Healthy. features more than 70 recipes using seasonal produce available from farmers’ markets. For more information, contact the farmers’ market.

Sprout Cooking’s Themis Chryssidis and Callum Hann.

Culinary masterclasses at Westfield

Join MasterChef contestants Adam Mizzi and Jessie Spiby for program of free culinary masterclasses at Westfield Westlakes shopping centre. Learn skills such as basic butchery (July 31), how to make the perfect coffee (August 7) and how to jazz up your cheeseboards with home-made jam (August 14). More information can be found here.

Jessie Spiby.

Coonawarra Cellar Dwellers Festival – Until July 31

Coonawarra wines are known for their ability to age well and the annual Coonawarra Cellar Dwellers Festival is a celebration of rare and aged wines that are not normally available for tasting. During the festival, the wineries will dust off some of their hidden treasures, making them available to taste and purchase as part of the Cellar Dwellers program of more than 30 events including masterclasses, dinners and vineyard visits. Read the full program here.

A Grappa Feast – August 2

Taste the difference between clear grappa, aged grappa and liqueur grappa (Italian brandy) matched to a selection of stuzzichini (Italian snacks) at La Cantina, Campbelltown, from 6pm to 7.30pm. There will be six grappa varieties available for tasting, with a bowl of pasta served at the end of the night to ensure there are no empty stomachs. Tickets are $40 per person and bookings are essential.

Grappa is made from wine grapes.

Bottega Rotolo Cheese Experiences

Fine food and wine merchant Bottega Rotolo presents cheese classes and workshops at its King William Road store exploring some of the best European and Australian varieties, styles, and food and wine matches. Classes include the Cheese and Whisky Experience (August 4), the Cheese and Chocolate Experience (August 11), the Spanish Cheese Experience (August 18), the Washed Rind Cheese Experience (September 8), the Goat Milk Cheese Experience (September 15) and the Raw Milk Cheese Experience (September 22).

Romeo’s Cheese Club

Romeo’s Foodland McLaren Vale has teamed up with local producers to present sensory experiences involving local wines, beers and a selection of cheeses from around the world from its new cheese room. Upcoming events include Winter Cheese and Wine (August 9) and The Goodiesons and Cheese (August 16). For tickets and more information call Romeo’s Foodland McLaren Vale on 8323 7714.

Adelaide Hills Foodies Book Club dinner – August 11

Join the Adelaide Hills Foodies Book Club members and guests to discuss leading food writer and restaurant critic Ruth Reichl’s memoir Tender at the Bone while enjoying a menu of dishes re-created from the book by chef Beverley Millott and Heathfield High School hospitality students at the Piltarilla Restaurant, Heathfield High School. Tickets are $45 for food (drinks to be purchased separately). Bookings for this event open on July 30 and close on August 4. For more information or to book, phone Gillian Copping on 8339 5700 or email [email protected].

Langhorne Creek Cellar Treasures Weekend – August 13 to 14

Discover hidden gems at Langhorne Creek’s Cellar Treasures Weekend as the region’s cellar doors uncover some carefully cellared wines. Learn about the benefits of cellaring wines as you taste the difference. See the Langhorne Creek Wine website for more details about this free event.

Olive oil tasting workshops

Improve your tasting ability and your flavour vocabulary, and learn how to pick a good olive oil from a bad one while enjoying award-winning South Australian olive oil and produce. These workshops being presented by national olive oil judge and sensory analyst Briony Liebich are being held at the Adelaide Central Market’s Market Kitchen (August 17) and at ‘Our Place’, Willunga Hill (August 31). Tickets are $60 per person and include a light supper.

Learn to taste the difference between a good olive oil and a bad one.

Pizza nights at Bar Mercato

Join Bar Mercato for pizza al taglio, Rome’s most famous street food. The traditional pizza dough is made with Bar Mercato mother yeast and leavened for 72 hours before being baked on rectangle trays and served by the slice. The pizza nights will be held on August 18, September 15, October 20 and November 17 from 6.30pm. Tickets are $25, which includes unlimited pizza and live entertainment. Bookings essential by calling Julia on 8337 1808.

Pizza ‘al Taglio’ at Bar Mercato.

An Islander Experience at Leonards Mill – August 19

Leonards Mill at Second Valley is hosting a five-course tasting menu featuring Kangaroo Island produce. Prepared by head chef Brendan Wessels and his team, each course will be matched with Islander Estate Vineyard Wines throughout the evening. Cost is $150 per person and bookings are essential. More information available here.

Winter Food and Wine Festival – August 28

The National Wine Centre’s third annual Winter Food and Wine Festival will this year feature more than 20 of South Australia’s finest food, wine, beer and cider producers. As well as tastings and masterclasses with the winemakers, National Wine Centre executive chef Tze Khaw will prepare decadent treats using seasonal ingredients on the terrace overlooking the Adelaide Botanic Gardens wetlands. The event runs from 11am to 5pm and tickets are $25 for early birds or $30 if purchased on the day, including a Spiegleau wine glass. Information and bookings here.

Fino Fridays – until September 1

Bring your best bottle and join Fino Seppeltsfield for Friday night dinner. Using locally produced Barossa Birds chicken, Schu Am Pork Toulouse sausage and The Dairyman heritage pork belly, Fino will prepare the ultimate winter dish – French provincial cassoulet – to be accompanied by a salad of Loralai’s lettuce and house-baked sourdough to mop up all the juices. Dinner is $30 per person and corkage is free on your first bottle (standard size, one per couple). An a la cart menu is also available. Bookings recommended.

News, tips and information?

The Forager would love to hear about your news, events and suggestions. Please contact us at [email protected].