Cider, Beer & Gin Trail
A hops-and-apples circuit through Hay Valley, Lobethal and Hahndorf for everyone who's done the wine.
The plan
Everyone does the cellar doors, but the Adelaide Hills has a whole other drinks story built on apples and hops. This loop starts at LOT.100 in Hay Valley, between Nairne and Woodside, where a cidery, a distillery and a brewery share one orchard precinct, then swings through Lobethal and finishes in Hahndorf for a German-pub send-off. Take a designated driver and an empty boot.
Start mid-morning at the Hills Cider Company while you're fresh - proper dry apple and pear cider made from local fruit. Then stroll across the same precinct to 78 Degrees (formerly Adelaide Hills Distillery) and Mismatch Brewing, so you can taste native-botanical gin and fresh craft beer back to back without moving the car.
Push east to Lobethal Bierhaus for craft beer in the former Onkaparinga woollen mill, then loop south to Prancing Pony Brewery at Totness for award-winning ales. Finish in Hahndorf, where the Hahndorf Inn keeps the German beer-hall tradition alive with steins and schnitzel. LOT.100 opens Wednesday to Sunday and the Bierhaus Friday to Sunday, so run this trail on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday. Eat well, drink slowly, and let someone else drive home.
Day 1
6 stops-
1Hay Valley
The Hills Cider Company
Open here while you're fresh - dry apple and pear cider from genuine local orchard fruit, poured on big lawns.
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2Hay Valley
78 Degrees Distillery
Native-botanical gin and small-batch spirits from the distillery formerly known as Adelaide Hills Distillery.
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3Hay Valley
Mismatch Brewing Co
Clean, drinkable craft beer in the same LOT.100 precinct - taste it back-to-back with the gin.
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4Lobethal
Lobethal Bierhaus
Honest German-style brewing in a former Lobethal wool mill; a hearty lunch stop.
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5Totness
Prancing Pony Brewery
Award-winning ales at Totness - the India Red Ale is the one to try.
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6Hahndorf
The Hahndorf Inn
Finish in Australia's oldest German town with steins, schnitzel and a proper beer-hall buzz.
On the map
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Image credits
- New Zealand Apple Orchard(GN04833).jpg by State Government Photographer , CC0 via Wikimedia Commons