Our winery-vineyard tours are for visitors to wine country who are interested in getting a general overview of grape growing, vineyard management and the winemaking process. It’s worth joining one of the public tours offered by some of the wineries (usually the bigger wineries, as they have more staff available to conduct the tours).
Although for most of the year there is not much wine making to really see taking place, visitors can view the equipment used – grape crushers, fermentation tanks, etc. – as well as the barrel room where much of the wine is matured and stored. Depending on the weather and season, some tours also take groups out amongst the vines to explain the grape growing process and vintage.
The tours I have been on in the Hunter Valley usually last about an hour, depending on questions asked, and are fun and informative without getting too technical or scientific. Tours are usually followed by a tasting of the end product at the cellar door, giving visitors a full grape to glass experience. For our Hunter Valley private tour groups we are happy to include one of our winery-vineyard tours in the itinerary.