CHRIS RINGLAND’S FAVOURITE BAROSSA RESTAURANTS

For a long lunch: Vintners Bar & Grill

“Vintners offers a grand wine-country lunch,” says Chris Ringland. Feast under a vine-covered pergola overlooking the picturesque garden or in the dining room of this restaurant just outside Angaston. Order a raw dish to start – perhaps the subtle gin-cured kingfish – then follow Ringland’s lead and have the beef ribs to share. “It’s impeccable,” he says. “And it goes so beautifully with our style of shiraz.”

For a romantic dinner: Ferment Asian

“To me, this is a dinner restaurant; the food lends itself to the evening,” says Ringland. “That’s something I learnt when I worked in Spain – you can have a big lunch but dinner is best kept light.” Ringland’s menu recommendations for the intimate restaurant, housed in an elegant renovated stone cottage in Tanunda, include Hanoi spring rolls with herbs (“You have to have them!”); crisp pork belly with ginger and orange sauce (“There’d be a rebellion if it wasn’t on the menu”); and snapper in yellow curry (“It’s just extraordinary, mindblowing”). And, he adds, “This style of food goes so damn well with wine.”

“The Barossa is amazing. It has a wonderful climate, is only an hour from Adelaide and, of course, has all the things that make life fun!”