Over 200 years ago, British, German, Irish, Polish, and Dutch settlers came to Australia and were greeted with lands that were ideal for raising livestock and fertile soil to support agriculture. Before long, they realized that the soil, air moisture, climate and sun, provided an ideal terroir for viticulture. Since the 1800s, the South Australia territory put the country’s winemaking prowess on the international wine map to become one of the revered wine capitals of world. Today the Barossa Valley is mentioned in the same breath as Bordeaux, Tuscany or Napa. The region is an oenophile fantasy land of world class wines, the Barossa valley wine tour and indulgent ways to experience one’s love of the grape such at the annual Barossa Camino.

Wine is big business in Australia. Today, the Yarra Valley, Hunter Valley and most recently Margaret River, produce what are now regarded among the finest new world wines. With all due respect to the aforementioned, the pinnacle of winemaking in Australia is found in the rolling hills and bucolic lands of South Australia; the Adelaide Hills, McLaren Vale, Coonawarra and grande dame of Australia’s winelands, the Barossa.  Without argument, this is best Australian wine region with esteemed names of Australian’s wine emanate from this region including Henschke Hill of Grace, Penfolds Grange, Seppeltsfield, Jacob’s Creek and D’Arenberg.

The conditions for viticulture are among the best in the world, with a rich diversity in geography and climate, which allows the region to produce a vast and superior offering of grape varieties. In fact, 80% of Australia’s premium wine originates in the region and it is also home to the oldest vines in the county. This is wine country and in the blood of inhabitants.

A sublime wine heritage encounter that takes place once a year is the Barossa Camino, a pilgrimage through the region’s most honored vineyards and with stewards who made them so. The Barossa Camino is traverses the stunning landscape of the Eden Valley of the Barossa, between their most revered vineyards, Hill of Grace, Hutton Vale Farm and Mount Edelstone, and into what can be described as nothing less than wine heaven.

Part of the Annual Tasting Australia Adelaide culinary festival, this Barossa valley wine tour and camino fully immerses wine enthusiasts into the tradition of two of Australia’s wine industry’s royal families, the Henschke and Angas clans. These two dynasties have been crafting wine for six generations since the mid-1800s. Generations of the Henschke and Angas families join the Camino with grandparents, adults and precocious preschool children clumsily traipsing along the way. The. little ones, in their pint size wellie boots, are the eigth generation and will one day take over the family business.

Generations of the Henschke and Angas families join the Camino with grandparents, adults and precocious preschool children clumsily traipsing along the way. This is their heritage and life that they have known since birth. The little ones from the eight generation are there, in their pint size wellie boots, struggling now to keep up, will one day take over the family business. It will be left to them to further elevate the prestige of the brand’s reputation as each generation had done before them.

The Henschke family has been making wine here since 1868 and today has built a reputation for their strong portfolio of ultra-premium single-vineyard wines. The label is best known for their top Shiraz wine from Australia but also produces a wide range of wines including Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Merlot, Grenache, Mourvèdre, Cabernet Franc, Semillon, Chardonnay and Riesling. Without question, Henschke is regarded as the best medium-sized red wine producer in Australia.

The Barossa Valley wine tour’s next stop is just beyond the church grounds, at the hallowed vineyards known as the Hill of Grace. One could call it a Shiraz Shangri la, with excellent wines from 150-year-old vines that continue to produce grapes of uncommon characteristics. These fields of gold have produced wines that have won a clutch of international competitions such as the most recent Henschke Hill of Grace 2012 was awarded the coveted ‘Wine of the Year’ and ‘Best Shiraz’ titles at the fifth annual Qantas epiQure Halliday Wine Companion Awards and goes for a hefty and well-worth price of  $550 a bottle.

Surrounded by these prized vineyards, the stewards of the estate, fifth-generation Stephen Henschke and his award-winning viticulturist and wife Prue, lead the Camino. Along the way, they share with their trek followers the history of these vineyards as well as why the terroir produces such admirable wines as well as the ups and downs of the harvest.  The couple are considered among the top winemaker teams in the world as evidenced by their award-winning wines as well as their joint distinctions such as the ‘International Red Winemaker of the Year’ from the International Wine and Spirits Competition.

There’s nothing like actually drinking these award-winning Shiraz wine from Australia in the vineyards from which they emanate and with the winemakers no less. The stop included a tasting of the prestigious limited-edition single vineyard released Henschke Hill of Grace vintage.

The Camino is about two of the Barossa’s founding wine families and it just so happens that their estates lie adjacent each other. The next foray  on the Barossa Valley wine tour brings us to Hutton Vale Farm vineyards and a visit with John Angas, the patriarch of the family. The 200-acre farm was established in 1843 by George Fife Angas and is managed by John from the seventh generation. He discusses that he’s never seen himself as the owner of the estate, just a temporary custodian, there for a limited time until he passes it along to the next generation, just as his father did before him.

With such a legacy to stand on and weight of responsibly to pass it along it along good condition, sustainability becomes more than a buzzword to him. Angus has been at the forefront of responsible farming which has led to be named Expedia’s top sustainable South Australian food and wine companies. Conserving water, solar energy, shunning herbicides, as well as innovative practices of using sheep to graze in the vineyards for weed control are just a few of the measures Angus has implemented to protect and preserve the land. Hutton Vale Farm is known for their Grenache Mataro, Shiraz, Riesling and Cabernet Sauvignon, all of whose vines have been taken from some of Australia’s oldest plantings. The stop included tasting from some of their delectable recent releases.

About halfway through the three-and-a-half-mile Camino trek found us at the next stop, which was a lovely picnic on Mt. Edelstone Peak. It is in fact the highest point in the area with panoramic views around the natural landscapes, that have changed very little since these two families arrived six generations ago. There the Camino tribe takes a long picnic break while taking in the views and conversing with other wine enthusiasts about how wonderful the day has been. We are given a picnic basket filled with lovely treats from local artisan food producers and farmers, as well as more wine tasting including the Hutton Vale Farm Riesling and Henschke Louis Semillon.

The Barossa Valley Wine tour continues with a walk though fields and pastures to the Angas’s Hutton Vale Farm’s rolling hills and terminates at their 150-year-old family farmhouse. The finale is a long table dinner under grape-vined trellises, as a musician sings while playing his acoustic guitar. With the sun dappling through rustic outdoor area, the group partakes in dinner in the garden on Cassoulet of Hutton Vale Farm Pekin duck, some delectable side dishes, hot homemade bread from the oven and finished off with apple cake. Needless to say, the wines remain the star of the meal with an extensive pairing including Henschke Julius Riesling, Stone Jar Tempranillo, Tappa Pass Shiraz and from Hutton Vale Farm, their Grenache Mataro, Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz.

For the wine enthusiast, the Barossa Camino is a day to remember. Emmersed in the best Australian wine region and walking through the 150-year-old vineyards that produce some of the world finest wines is akin to seeing the Sistine Chapel for the first time. Traipsing along with the winemakers who have toiled the lands for 200 years, is also one of life’s moments to cherish. All of that along with the wine tastings and long table dinner are nothing less than an oenophile’s fantasy come true.