Shaw + Smith Unveils New Tasting Room

Shaw + Smith has extended and fully renovated the Tasting Room at its Balhannah winery.

The reimagined Tasting Room is once again a collaboration between Chris Connell (Hero at ACMI, Caffe e Cucina, Melbourne Wine Room, Bar Carolina and Il Bacaro) and JBG Architects, who designed the original Tasting Room in 2000.

The Tasting Room has since gone on to win numerous awards including Best Tasting Experience and Best Large Cellar Door on multiple occasions.

The new Tasting Room is very much an extension of the old, utilising the same steep-pitched roof design, modern flat-roofed Tasting Room and recycled blackbutt timber flooring throughout.

It has a seating capacity of 60 indoors, 40 on the terrace outside, and a new private tasting area for up to 12 people.

It features new Australian custom-made furniture throughout.

Visitors can purchase various wine flights with or without up to eight starter-sized dishes that can be ordered individually or paired with wines.

Those who are not up to the formality of a wine flight can order wines by the glass or bottle and enjoy the 180-degree views over the vineyard and dam.

Shaw + Smith has teamed up with highly rated Adelaide chef and restaurateur, Andre Ursini of Orso, to cater for private wine events on-site.

Shaw + Smith co-founder Martin Shaw, who has driven the project from inception, said: “We will now be able to accommodate more people, particularly in winter when space is limited, give more attention to our wine club members, offer a private dining space to visitors and broaden our general wine education offering.

“We have always loved Andre’s food so having Orso on-board is quite a coup.”