Whether it’s a day trip from Adelaide or you settle into this wine-steeped locale for a night or two, the hospitality here is legendary.

The drive up along the Northern Expressway is an ideal one for the 1976 Mercedes Benz 450SLC, it really settles into stride. Before long we are pulling into the main street and making a quick stop at the historic Apex Bakery. Lunch is not far but the Fechner family’s old wood-fired oven is impossible to resist for a snack.

The historic oven at Apex produces the best pies and pasties in the region and their sweet baked treats exude lovingly crafted traditional flavours. If you’re in the mood for a sandwich, they fill their fresh-baked bread with oven roasted chicken and accompaniments and this is a local secret well worth exploring.

Just around the corner we pull over to admire the new Medallion Homes project in Tanunda’s main street. Set on a prime corner location, it has been built for a well-known wine industry family and is a landmark of style and luxury for a client whose values are built around quality workmanship.

Back in the Benz and en route to lunch, we still have enough time to make a whistle stop tour through a handful of the region’s best cellar doors, including Elderton, Hewitson and David Franz. These are experiences that blend the best of the traditional values and quality that really define the Barossa with a refined contemporary edge.

Elderton is a stand-out cellar door and sits amid estate vineyards that flank the township of Nuriootpa. The rambling family homestead has been converted into a luxurious cellar door that delivers bespoke tastings and wine flights through the Elderton range. Their wines are in career best form.

Hewitson’s hedged cottage is both accommodation and cellar door and the tasting room open up across a patch of cherished old vines that sit on the edge of the Para River. Here you’ll find bottles made from some of the oldest vines in existence, a valuable aspect of the Barossa’s rich history.

And David Franz, son of Margaret and the late Peter Lehmann, has crafted a cellar door experience that is built in an intricate hand stitched style. Tasty small goods, great coffee and ancient fortified wines are served alongside his understated whites, reds and rosé wines overlooking a sweeping vineyard vista.

Vintners Bar & Grill

The next destination is the region’s most famous restaurant, Vintners Bar & Grill, a local institution and a temple to great dining and all things Barossa food and wine. They recently toasted their 25 year anniversary, an impressive milestone, and their secret is quality and consistency in everything they do.

Expect to see a handful of the region’s most famous winemakers and families in the room, as this is the favourite haunt of locals who dine here often. There’s a cellar full of the best local drops to choose from, including special back vintages and hard-to-find bottles, and the menu marries the best in season South Australian produce with expert technique at the hands of chef Peter Clarke and his kitchen brigade.

You’ll relax in comfort in the luxurious dining room with a stunning bar, historic timber beams and walls crafted from local stone. This place just begs for long lunches and grand dinners. The award-winning service and wine selections are delivered by Rami Heer and her Vintners team, who famously welcome first-time diners just like they are locals.

There’s a warm fireplace in winter, a leafy outdoor terrace in summer and the delicious combination of great food, legendary wine and award-winning service is on offer all year round.