Wine & Food

In the butcher shops of Tanunda and Nuriootpa, the scent of smokehouses still lingers today. There, mettwurst is smoked according to a recipe handed down through generations. The sausage arrived with the nineteenth-century Silesian settlers. It survived two world wars against Germany and still remained on the menu, often under a slightly altered name, but with a flavor that has stayed almost unchanged.

On Saturdays, the Barossa Farmers Market opens in Angaston. There, bakers sell streusel cake and bee sting cake alongside cheese, sausage, and vegetables from the valley. Both cakes come from the same culinary tradition as the mettwurst: South German and Silesian baking traditions. They were passed down through generations even as an English-speaking country grew up around them.

No one has made this cuisine as well known as Maggie Beer. From a farm in the valley, she spent decades showing how simple, regional ingredients like game, quinces, and goat cheese could become something celebrated far beyond the region.

A bold Barossa Shiraz with its dark fruit and hint of chocolate calls for exactly this: smoked mettwurst off the grill. Its smokiness and fat soften the wine's tannins. A mature, spicy cheese from the farmers market, on the other hand, further amplifies the dark aromas in the glass. A light, pale white wine would simply be lost next to this food.

Conversely, a GSM blend of Grenache, Shiraz, and Mataro shows just how versatile the valley's wines can be. It's fruitier and less heavy than a straight Shiraz. That makes it a great match for milder dishes too, like roasted poultry or a quince dish of the kind Maggie Beer made famous, all without losing the heartiness of German cuisine.