Woodside: A complete travel guide to visiting the Adelaide Hills

Home to award-winning cheese and chocolate, Woodside is the town you’ll want to bring your empty Esky to.

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Welcome to Don’t Delay Your Stay, news.com.au’s campaign to support communities hard hit by this summer’s devastating bushfires. Many of these regions rely on tourism so one of the best ways to help is to visit and spend time in some of the most beautiful parts of our great country.

One of the great things about visiting the Adelaide Hills is the towns are all just a short drive apart.

About 15 minutes’ drive from Hahndorf you’ll be in the town of Woodside, home to award-winning producers of two key food groups – cheese and chocolate.

This is the place you really will want to bring your empty Esky.

There is literally chocolate on tap at Melba’s chocolate factory.

At Melba’s Chocolates, housed in an old dairy factory, you can watch how the chocolate and confectionary are made before getting down to the serious business of stocking up.

The cafe has chocolate on tap – literally there are taps with different chocolate flavours that when combined with various milk options can make up to 25 variations of hot chocolate.

Try, buy and learn how to make cheese at Woodside Cheese Wrights. Picture: Mike Haines, South Australian Tourism Commission

Next door is Woodside Cheese Wrights where you can try cheese, buy cheese and learn how to make cheese.

In the main street Woodside Providore showcases Adelaide Hills produce and wine and The Warehouse @ Woodside is crammed with great antiques, industrial vintage and plain quirky stuff.

Barristers Block Wines was hit hard by the fires, sadly losing its vineyard. But its cellar door and gardens were undamaged and are now operating as usual.

Stop in for a wine tasting and have lunch at the restaurant with pizza and tapas on the menu or you can go with one of the grazing platters.

Barristers Block restaurant and garden are open for business. Picture: Sven Kovac

Bird in Hand winery’s cellar door is also at Woodside as is Simon Tolley Lodge, which doubles as a vineyard and luxury accommodation. Its vineyards were damaged but the accommodation was untouched so all the more reason to stay here while visiting.

Artwine is also open for business.

Wash down your food with a tasting at Artwine Cellar Door. Picture: Ryan Cantwell

WHILE YOU ARE HERE

If you turn off between Hahndorf and Woodside you’ll get to Hay Valley, just near the township of Nairne, and that’s where you’ll find Lot 100. It’s a cellar door, brewery and restaurant, but that barely starts to describe this place.

It’s home to five local brands – Mismatch Brewery (craft beer), Hills Cider, Adelaide Hills Distillery (gin), Vinteloper (wine) and Ashton Valley Fresh (fruit juice).

Sadly, Vinteloper lost most of its vineyard and farmhouse in the fires so a visit to Lot 100 is a great way to support it.