Coonawarra Culinary Delight

https://leconfieldcoonawarra.com/news-and-events/

During this week I first met Nat at the Leconfield Winery in the Coonawarra District under totally different circumstances to wine tasting; it was the result of what began intentionally as an 'innocent' studio office acquisition between two local creative ladies (an talented interior designer that is Nat, and myself as a fine artist with the taste and appreciation of an interior designer).

As soon as we said hello to each other, I immediately recognised a genuine bubbly friendly person who I ended up sharing a lovely chat and giggle with over the sampling of Leconfield's Syn sparkling shiraz label that inspired me to 'run home raving' to my other half about this special wine discovery I had made.

(Oh yes, this is definately a must for the lovers of muscato who would like to try something a little different!)

Never did I anticipate this simple pleasure would be the precurser thrill of what we would eventually encounter when we decided to return a mid morning visit to the effervescent Nat, just a couple days later, so we could sample the possible rest on offer.

One thing that captured my attention the moment we opened the door, was the heady aromas of the gorgeous wines that welcomed us inside the tasting room. A simple but classic interior design set an ideal backdrop that did not fight but rather, enhanced the true essence which should take the stage: the showcasing of the wines themselves.

An enormous painted portrait of Sydney Hamilton sits above the fireplace located in the centre of the tasting room, and quite honestly was a breathtaking presentation of an man with a captivating legacy.

When you are priviledged enough to sample his black label on site, do so in toast of his memory and of honouring the contributions his passion and excellence in cultivating the quality produce that is derived from the estate's unique Terra Rossa soil.

Alongside on the adjacent far wall a local artist exhibition is featured, as part of this year's Penola Coonawarra Arts Festival and at the moment is showcasing gorgeous landscapes that are collectively titled "Newfields" by mother and daughter duo Di and Ros Pollard.

For me, it was a special moment to take in the well earned eminence, creativity (not just fine arts but also oenology), as well as the sensory scents and aromas of the wine cellar; notably because, personally I like the fine, and the classic, and the 'moodiness' these two aesthetics can create when done well in balance with each other, just completes the atmosphere.

We stayed for an hour (though it didnt feel that long because we were having such an great time) and experienced an exciting wine taste that revealed some hidden 'secrets' that became like an aromatic odessey unfurling in a glass (or two... or three...)!

With soft, fresh, yet bold and clean tasting wines, this is one winery with many palate gems which are well worth taking the time investing acquisition in! It was a standout from many other wineries (and their labels) which weve been to, to date, in the Coonawarra, McLaren Vale and Barossa, it is so far the only one which not only ticks all the boxes in general, but managed to secure every label of their range to become a staple in our domestic cellar.

With a few wine tastings under our belt, Leconfield at Coonawarra definately is a standout as a premium winery delivering wines that are genuinely exceptional quality, yet realistically priced, which makes it a joy to be able to enjoy their vintages on routine demand and not just a special occassion or event.

They also are a drop which lets you savour a crisp and lingering aftertaste which retains its delicate balance in body long after the wine glass remains empty; which makes it something special in itself.

Im not a cultured wine expert, but in every day terms, as a novice being 'trained' by her other half, who is more experienced in wines, even I could recognise how and why they have earned their accolades.

Aside from the quality full aromas and palettes, Leconfield labels rise above that 'offset period' where they have essentially by-passed the common eventual 'down-turning' of the wine on the palette (that many brands regretably do typically eventually go through) and instead managed to literally continue the 'high' on the palette long after the last sip, until it slowly vanishes delicately and discreetly across time.

What's magical about this quality in the Leconfield wines, is that it leaves you remembering what that vintage was all about, before then questioning when it was that you last savoured its taste, which naturally makes one muse over when it did eventually leave the palette because it disappated so unnoticeably gently, its almost like an admireable metaphorical rogue ninja move that does leave you questioning in the experience afterglow, 'where did my lover go??'.

Leconfield wines, truly is an leader in tantalising the love affair of the senses.

And Nat? Shes THE lovely lady to help make this romance happen, when you drop in for a look-see.

As our wine taste was late morning, we had no distinct plans except to wander around the countryside and follow our noses, so when all unexpectedly inspired and ready for a culinary experience, it left time for us to wander over to Ottelia Winery in the actual township of Coonawarra, for a woodfire lunch opportunity.

https://www.ottelia.com.au/

Now normally you need to make a reservation for lunch at Ottelia, but they were amazing and managed to still fit us in for a wine taste with lunch despite our rudeness in being pop-in's!

Again as we walked in the door, being the start of winter, the warmth of the woodfire oven was making its way through the building, so although a more crisper semi formal neutral setting, the woodfire effect and the warm lighting combined, made it for a comfy inviting 'get out of the winter chill and peacefully relax with some food and wine'.

We were seated by the window of an sunroom that overlooked an enormous native peppercorn tree and adjacent behind us was the feature wall of the original building which was a colonial sandstone facade from the19th century pioneering era but had become an internal wall of the sunroom dining space.

Personally, I found the native peppercorn tree very impressive, clearly size indicated its age and the creative in me could not help but imagine the generations, the social eras and the history it bore witness to, over these past hundred plus years.

Across the road from the cellar door of Ottelia's were the vineyards, and further down the road was the settlement store. It truly was one of those experiences where you felt like you were in the nook of the real countryside away from the bustling other townships and modern highway traffic. Because it was an overcast wintry day, the quietness of a weekday easily fooled you into feeling like you were actually relaxing on true rural Sunday afternoon, and not just a standard working weekday.

For a place like Ottelia's, having a weekday lunch like this away from the typical busy weekend patronage our wineries normally experience, is good for those looking for a more peaceful serene intimate dining experience, with no communal noises to compete with or be overshadowed by, so distractions from the focusing of savouring the culinary offerings in full depth were minimal.

In fact, and this is a compliment to Ottelia's, is that I havent had this kind of feeling where I felt truly relaxed, having a rural intimate experience where I didnt have to compete with other people, since the days of living in the Riverland, when as a child, I would be able to kick back on the farm on a Sunday afternoon in a warm sunroom, with the cold pressed weather outside unable to invade inside, and it was just serene and peaceful. No rushing to do anything, no hive of activity to set off the instinctual personal space alarm, it was pure ...bliss.

The menu with Ottelia's was generously broad in tastes and yet cleverly contained to certain dishes. This told me that the person doing the cooking was going to be well versed in delivering quality. I should mention, the person cooking at Ottelia's is not 'just a cook', but an actual chef. So it was next level from the typical pub meal.

So when we actually saw the menu and the prices, we were quite impressed by that alone. When you think of the cost of living for food now-a-days, even just home cooking, it is getting very expensive to the point that, as Ottelia's highlighted with our dining experience, that it truly is better value to go to lunch with them and have a professional make your meal (and do your dishes!), if its just yourself or you're in a couple.

For the cost of a chain franchise take away meal, it is now financially equivalent to go to a restaurant - so it makes complete sense to leverage the dining experience to a more personalised catered one when it comes down to definition of those factual stats.

Aside from the obvious of tasting better, the food quality used is actually fresh and local, it has flavour, and when it come to those points, Ottelia's knocked it out the park for us.

We ordered the woodfire pizza number 5, which is a hand made fresh dough base, with garlic oil, pork sausage, fresh yellow cocktail tomatoes, red onion, chilli, pecorino as the topping, as a share between us both. Initially we were suprised at the size of the pizza when it arrived but dont let size fool you. This puppy had oomph, flavour off the charts, and that satisfied your appetite in ways that meant you didnt need to overeat in a quest for satiation. This menu item truly was one of those meals where 'less is best' philosophy was really called into action, and it did not disappoint.

We also ordered a side salad to share as well, and the pairing made a good fit. It was titled as a side hustle leaf salad, which was a combination of some of the various different green leaves of the regenerative lettuces, there was what has been described as the 'house dressing' which for all the tang and sweet harmony going on, could easily be assumed as a vinegarette of special proportions like a trade secret recipe, with a touch of fennel and sprnkling of fresh parmesan.

That this tantalising salad is deemed a side hustle is cute in itself because once it came out and looked innocent like a salad does, it wasnt until we had tasted it, that we saw the delicious attitude of it emerge, making it definately deserving of such an prestigious accolade!

We almost said no to an desert because we were so feeling 'perfect' from the mains being so perfectly matched and balanced, but we couldnt resist tasting a desert offering. We did comment to each other that we may ruin a perfect status quo, but then the desert could be the holy trinity of delight ....or it could risk toppling our unexpected but pleasing feel good gastranomic vibe we had going... I think you can guess what we ended up doing.

It took us a good ten minutes to decide what we were each going to pick. Akin to a captain sailing a ship, we had to factor in the culinary version of wind speed, velocity of impact, tidal currents etc, it was serious stuff working out the finale piece de resistance which could make or break the amazing food and wine streak we had found ourselves on that day!

I finally chose brown cake with butterscotch sauce, and it was delivered with small biscuit sheets of incredible toasted patisserie flakes on top with a side scoop of vanilla bean gourmet icecream. The butterscotch was made from scratch so the flavours and textures were authentically rich and yet not overpoweringly sugar sweet, so the distinction between the butter and caramelisation was very palatable. So thankfully for me the holy trinity of yumminess was a winner.

My other half chose his favourite flavour chocolate bar (cherry ripe) in the form of a scoop of icecream. Not being a big fan of sweet, this was enough for him and said it did not disappoint. He could taste distinct pieces of cherry and chocolate throughout and so for him was a perfect balance for his trinity of delight.

On our way out of the dining to the register, drunk on a burgeoning food coma, we claimed one of Ottelia's 'infamous' sour bread loaves for dinner later.

Remember Nat from Leconfield? She comes from an Angus Beef agricultural family and so gave us the secret tips for making the best beef steak for going with Ottelia's sourdough loaf.

So on the way home back into Penola, we called in to see Jessy at Penola Butchers, because they truly do have the best quality and freshest local meat around. (Nat said it is best with time cured meat but hey we needed something that night so we had to work with what we had.)

When my other half went in to request 'I have come for 2 pieces of your best beef steak for us and lamb shanks for the beagles', he was immediately recognised as 'ohh! you're here for the beagle dog lady??', and next thing we know he's proudly come back to the car showing off his booty load of stunning cuts of steak which were perfect for our sourdough beef steak dinner and some fresh marrow bones for the dogs (Jessy and his team do look after us very well there, so check them out if you ever get the chance).

So this, folks, is where it ends.

It's not everyday we are able to go on a genuine food and wine experience, but I think, due to the genuine caring and hospitality of our locals, we had the best day out for a very long time, and very grateful for the much needed and inspiring adventure that has become our May 2026 Coonawarra Culinary Delight.

Much love!