The Wines of the Piccadilly Valley
Written by: Cameron Ward
Published: 09/26/2017
Reading time: 3 mins
Sitting between the towns of Summertown, Sterling, and Aldgate, the Piccadilly Valley is an important part of Australia’s wine regions.
In the south, the Mount Lofty Ranges soar skywards, creating an impressive backdrop filled with incredible scenery. To the east, Adelaide City centre unfolds in a bustling show of culture and charm. The Piccadilly Valley homes a hub of delightful wineries and vineyards for you to explore.
The region makes up the Adelaide Hills wine region as well as the Mount Lofty Ranges zone.
For many years, the Piccadilly Valley was only a market gardening centre. Seasonal and native produce is farmed and sold in the Adelaide region and overseas markets. Today, the majority of the valley grows local “cool climate” grape varieties.
The Wines of the Piccadilly Valley
Though the Piccadilly Valley is much smaller in size than many of Australia’s other wine regions, it still forms an important part of the country’s wine industry. The regions cold, mesoclimate wines, has seen it skyrocket in popularity. Be sure to get a taste of their delicious sparkling varieties!
Its location behind the soaring Mount Lofty Ranges, makes the valley one of the highest wine regions in Australia. Its large size allows it to produce more cool climate grapes than other areas.
A mixture of cloud and fog envelopes the picturesque vineyards, lowering temperatures and creating new, distinct wine flavours. Because of its elevated location, it also receives more rainfall than other lower regions. The makes site selection for vineyard developments is crucial.
Today the Piccadilly Valley is renowned for its production of delicious sparkling wines made from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes. Additionally, fruits growing on warmer slopes create delightful wines too.
More adventurous wine producers in the region have successfully been experimenting with northern Rhone-style Shiraz-Viognier blends. Like many other wine sub-regions the Piccadilly Valley is beginning to get a name for itself as a unique producer of delicious tipples.
If you find yourself exploring the Adelaide Hills and want to delve into the unique wine industry that permeates the region, a visit to the Piccadilly Valley is definitely in order.
As well as marvelling at the stunning scenery of the Mount Lofty Ranges in the background, you can discover the unique variety of cold climate grapes that are grown in the region. Continue on to and learn more about the different ways the wineries turn these into world-famous bottles of wine.
