Driving further away from the desert towards the ocean where new adventures awaited, we came across one of South Australian wine regions, the Barossa Valley. Considered to be one of the country’s oldest and world’s most celebrated winemaking areas. Choosing to stick around and visit as many wineries as possible wasn’t hard. First stop, was a well-reviewed Rockford Vineyard.
Here’s what I didn’t like and loved about the Rockford Vineyard:
What I didn’t like: My initial impression was, this place seemed like it could accommodate a lot of wine lovers inside and have enough room and assistance for all to go around, well they didn’t. The cellar door is too small, and can quickly get overcrowded. Not many people could fit in comfortably without stepping on each other’s toes. The tasting is free; now this is controversial. Here it seemed that many people took advantage of this offer, by sticking around and drinking as much as they possibly could. Personally, I would rather pay for my tasting and have room to rest and enjoy my wine.
What I loved:
Even though it’s overcrowded and quite uncomfortable to stand around, the staff is like a wine encyclopedia. Equipped with useful information such as the history of Rockford Vineyard and the wine. Before tasting any particular wine, the staff starts to pouring the info on to you, (as well could be a good thing or not), if you’re visiting for the first time, it’s interesting.
What also made a positive impression on me, was the décor. A few tiny basement windows, large dark gray stones, and old chipped wood cover much of the space, creating perfect storage for exquisite wine. One thing is for sure the quality of the wine is superb! Unbelievable! I would even say Australia made me fall in love with red wine.
