To celebrate the Santos Festival of Cycling, we went on a trip to Seppeltsfield Winery for some drinks and nibbles to go with the racing. At quarter past twelve, we watched the men on their bikes take off from out the front of Octeine Coffee and make their way along the track of their first race. The sunshine rained down on us as we watched them speed away.

After the excitement of the race, we were treated to some grazing platters in the Seppeltsfield Dining Hall, an elegant dining space with polished timber floors and high ceilings. Built in the late 1800’s utilising stunning bluestone, the Dining Hall was originally designed to cater for the Seppeltsfield workers and their families with three meals a day. Platters of cured meats, port-infused cheeses, marinated olives, chutneys and crusted white bread complemented our tasting of Seppeltsfields’ gorgeously smooth riesling and light, aromatic grenache.

Next, we were lucky to visit the Centennial Cellar, the remarkable vision of Oscar Benno Pedro Seppelt, who in 1878, began the legacy of maturing single vintage Tawny for 100 years before release. Aisle after aisle of fortified wine dating back until 1878 fill the Centennial Cellar and each is labelled after the year it was made. We each had a glass of fortified wine from the year we were born. The difference between all the wines were evident simply from the colour and aroma, and each had it’s own individual taste. The 1999 fortified wine was a gorgeous sunset orange in colour, whereas the 1976 fortified wine was a lovely, deep burgundy.

It is impossible to leave Seppeltsfield without taking something home to enjoy, so as we finished the tour we popped into the tasting room and purchased some of our favourite drinks from the day. For a gorgeous day this summer, be sure to hop on a bus or choose a designated driver and spend the day in the sunshine drinking beautiful wines in a beautiful place at Seppeltsfield.

Words by Elisabeth Marie