Not entirely by accident one weekend we found ourselves North of Adelaide in an area known as the Barossa. Out of the three wine regions of Adelaide the Barossa produces some of my favourite wines. Long, lined vineyards meld with old and withering eucalyptus trees and lowly stone houses spaced far between. On a delightfully rare Saturday off, and with sisters-in-law in tow, my husband and I braved the sub-10 degree wintery cold to make our way to the Barossa for a day of wine tasting. On the way up we agreed to first line our stomachs at the Barossa Saturday Markets, then – with the first opening of cellar doors by 10AM – attend three, maximum four vineyards, in order that we might be back in Adelaide for an afternoon cup of tea.
The Barossa Markets hail some of the finest delicacies in the Barossa region. In the midst of olive trees and vineyards, a large shed houses a host of stalls with cured meats, oils, cheeses, loaves of bread and much more – all which tip their hats to the German roots of the Barossa. Skipping breakfast in Adelaide we all eagerly awaited the infamous bacon roll that the markets had to offer. After finding a rare park we queued for our rolls, and with a mug of coffee in hand found a seat at a long crowded table of tourists and locals. The bacon was flavourful, the rolls handcrafted and both were added to by a fried egg, fresh vegetables and a selection of locally sourced and homemade sauces. We left fully satisfied and ready for the day ahead.
TanundaView on Map
I won’t bore you with too many details of the wine and vineyards but in summary, the outcome resulted in emptier bank statements and the visitation of not three, not four but six vineyards. Despite the delicious well intentions of our carb-heavy breakfast it had worn off by lunchtime and although the sensible and right thing would have been to have gone home, eaten some celery and taken a nap – the more attractive option involved a bakery and continuing to try the local wines.
So that brings us to Tanunda Bakery. It sits almost on the outskirts of town, on the main road, a short drive away from the main shopping district, and well placed for tourists and locals driving through. It was packed with patrons and had a huge display of baked goods, most notably a huge array of donuts. In a homage to America, the donuts span over several full cabinets, with not just one simple option for each type of donut but multiple options. Take for example the chocolate topped donuts. The options in the display cabinet included chocolate topped, “real” chocolate topped, chocolate topped with flakes and chocolate topped with sprinkles. Then we throw in the pineapple donuts, the lemon glazed donuts and as if donuts weren’t kid-friendly enough they even had a smiley-faced donut. So well done to Tanunda Bakery on the options, the beautiful display and as we will soon see the donut they produced. For the record as tempting as a lot of the donuts were I opted for the standard sprinkle topped donut to keep the ratings fair, but I think given another blog post and an option to review all the donuts in this bakery they could have really excelled.
