This iconic SA winery took out a global award for its food and wine experience — and you can try it for less than the price of a pub lunch.
“Snacks doesn’t quite capture the full sense of the experience,” says Mark Maxwell of the dishes at his McLaren Vale cellar door that beat finalists from some of the world’s largest wine regions to win the Culinary Experiences category at the 2026 Great Wine Capitals Global Best Of Wine Tourism Awards.
“Their appearance and their flavours and their originality are all just quite out there.”
Not your usual cellar door spread
Maxwell Wines has long been known for its on-site restaurant and multi-course tasting menu, but the cellar door offering is now equally impressive – and something quite different. Its Tasting Room snack menu also by Executive Chef Fabian Lehmann, the dishes are small but mighty, designed for eating with fingers.
“It’s upmarket food and wine in a relaxed setting,” Mark says. “People know they can come to McLaren Vale on a weekday without being committed to a long meal. They can come to Maxwell’s, sit out on the terrace, have a glass of wine and three or four snacks – which can make for a tasty lunch.”
Think oyster mousse baked into a replica shell you eat whole, kingfish sashimi tucked into a buckwheat crisp, and a tart with crispy chicken skin in place of pastry.
Prices on the snack menu start from $10, and you can pair them with a guided wine or mead tasting from $25 – or grab a bottle to share on the terrace.
How SA stacks up globally
Most South Australians don’t realise just how good we’ve got it, Mark says – even though SA produces about 80 per cent of the country’s premium wine, with more than 300 cellar doors across 18 regions.
“There’s a perception that if you’re doing a wine tour of Tuscany, you’d get really exotic foods,” he says. “But it happens here in South Australia, where there is similar attention to detail.”
“If South Australians dream about going to the Napa Valley or Bordeaux, they’d just be suprised at how expensive it was. The relative value here is amazing, we’re not on the world stage in price. We have a lot of American people who come and just go, ‘wow, wow’ – they can’t believe how lucky we are.”
And a tasting in Napa, he says, can cost around USD$150 a head. In McLaren Vale, it’s closer to $20.
Built for food from the start
Mark grew up in McLaren Vale, the son of a winemaker, and started Maxwell Wines with his father in 1979. When he built the current winery into a limestone hill in 1997, he included a commercial kitchen from the beginning.
“We were early on in that idea of offering food and wine together,” he says. “There weren’t many wineries that had a full restaurant offering.”
The business is still family-run, with Mark’s son, Jeremy, working alongside his dad as general manager.
Australia’s oldest mead producer
Mead actually came first. Mark’s father released the first commercial Maxwell mead in 1966, and the winery remains Australia’s oldest – and largest – mead producer.
“The way I explain this drink is: as cider is fermented apple juice, mead is fermented honey,” Mark says. “You pour it into a saucepan, warm it up, and drink it in winter with the cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg lifting in the vapour”
There’s also a Maxwell honey mead – closer to what Vikings would have drunk – a liqueur mead, and even a sparkling canned version.
Sustainability focus
Sustainability is a focus, with Maxwell certified under Sustainable Winegrowing Australia.
Instead of relying on chemicals, the team uses compost made from grape skins, adds natural inputs like seaweed, and runs sheep through the vineyard in winter to manage weeds. The winery also runs partly on solar, with 262 panels on the roof.
“It’s about getting the soil to look after itself,” Mark says. “The good bugs work in the soils and keep them active and happy for the vine roots.”
What to drink right now
Mark has a few tips on what’s doing well in McLaren Vale right now.
Grenache is stepping up this winter as a popular alternative to heavier reds like Shiraz, while the light, fresh Fiano and Picpoul – both well suited to the region’s climate – are becoming go-to whites, he says.
“In France, Picpoul is considered the great food match for fresh oysters.”
What are the Best Of Wine Tourism Awards?
Each year, the Best Of Wine Tourism Awards recognise the standout wine tourism experiences across the world’s 11 leading wine regions. The global awards are an initiative of the Great Wine Capitals Global Network, which links South Australia with other world-class regions like Bordeaux and Napa Valley.
Adelaide’s membership in the network is a partnership between the Department of Primary Industries and Regions (PIRSA), the South Australian Tourism Commission, the South Australian Wine Industry Association, and Adelaide University.
Together the partners work alongside the global network to support the South Australian wine industry – from recognising excellence through the awards, to sharing knowledge, backing research and building skills across wine and tourism.
Plan your visit or explore the Maxwell Wines menu here.
