Chapman River Cellar Door, Kangaroo Island, Australia
Australia Family Travel Ideas Foodie Travel Ideas Oceania Wine Tasting Travel Ideas

Australia: Chapman River Wines, Kangaroo Island

Okay this food and wine heaven is not SO easy to get to. First you have to get to Australia, then to Adelaide in the state of South Australia, then drive to Cape Jervis on the Fleurieu Peninsula and catch an (expensive) ferry across Backstairs Passage to Kangaroo Island (more about things to do on Kangaroo Island here).

Then drive for half an hour on an unsealed road to the Chapman River boutique winery. It’s in a rural setting, on the Dudley Peninsula, near the Cape Willoughby Lightstation and just inland from Antechamber Bay.

Chapman River Cellar Door, Kangaroo Island, Australia

Run by Diana and Bruce Keir (they will charm your socks off) it is part cellar door and part art gallery, displaying Diana’s artwork and her art collection. The tasting room is an old aircraft hangar, where you can eat and drink outside on the lawn or in the Andalusian-inspired lounge area.

Chapman River Cellar Door, Kangaroo Island, Australia

The tasting platter was an outstanding ensemble of delicious local and homemade delights. Yes that’s grilled haloumi, roasted vegetables and freshly shaved peccorino with homemade sesame seed crackers.

Chapman River Cellar Door, Kangaroo Island, Australia

The Happiness wine selection – do the wine tasting first of course before ordering a glass or bottle – was good and we purchased a lovely Rose and a Pinot Noir.

Chapman River Cellar Door, Kangaroo Island, Australia

There’s no doubt Kangaroo Island has a good reputation as a food and wine destination, with some agreeable Sauvignon Blanc wines at a range of cellar doors across the island but particularly here on the Dudley Peninsula. This was my favourite place.

The final big tick for Chapman River Wines on Kangaroo Island is only relevant if you travel with children. Here a picture says it all:

Chapman River Cellar Door, Kangaroo Island, Australia

By Natasha von Geldern

Tell me about your favourite wine tasting experience in Australia or in the world!

By on .

3 Comments

  1. Siddie Nam

    Can’t believe I missed this! How could I have been so foolish?

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.