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Wine Festivals in Australia 2026

14 wine festivals, harvest celebrations, and food-and-wine events — with dates, tickets, and travel tips.

Worth Traveling For

Festivals worth planning a trip around.

Destination Event

Tasting Australia

Adelaide, Australia100K

Adelaide's biennial celebration of Australian food and wine brings together the nation's top producers and chefs for a week of events spanning the city and surrounding wine regions. The open-air festival hub in Victoria Square hosts free tastings, while ticketed events cover everything from a Barossa sunrise breakfast to a Coonawarra masterclass. Australia's most ambitious culinary festival.

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Tasting

Clare Valley Gourmet Weekend

Clare, Australia10K

South Australia's Clare Valley celebrates its world-class Rieslings over a May long weekend, with a twist: the festival is built around cycling the famous Riesling Trail between wineries. Over 20 cellar doors offer food pairings, live music, and exclusive releases accessible only on festival weekend. Flat to rolling terrain makes cycling accessible to all fitness levels.

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Food & Wine

Hunter Valley Lovedale Long Lunch

Lovedale, Australia$120-$1754K

A self-drive wine and food trail across eight Lovedale Road wineries in the Hunter Valley, each hosting a unique long-table lunch on a May weekend. Ticket holders drive between wineries at their own pace, with wine matched to courses at each stop. The Lovedale precinct's intimate scale and cellar door character gives it a more personal feel than Hunter Valley's main events.

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13-15 Nov 2026Tasting

Margaret River Gourmet Escape

Margaret River, Australia$50-$50025K

Western Australia's premier food and wine festival, featuring international celebrity chefs, beachside dinners, and vineyard tastings across the Margaret River region. Events range from intimate winemaker dinners to large-scale beach barbecues. The combination of world-class wine, surf coast scenery, and culinary excellence is unique.

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Food & Wine

McLaren Vale Sea & Vines Festival

McLaren Vale, Australia$30-$20020K

McLaren Vale's signature winter festival pairs the region's robust Shiraz, Grenache, and Cabernet with the best of South Australia's seafood. Over 30 wineries host intimate long lunches, live music, and cooking demonstrations across the Fleurieu Peninsula over three days. The contrast of rolling vineyards and nearby Gulf St. Vincent beach is a unique setting.

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Destination Event

Melbourne Food & Wine Festival

Melbourne, Australia200K

Australia's largest food and wine event transforms Melbourne for ten days each March. The World's Longest Lunch — 1,600 seats along a single table — is the festival's iconic event, alongside masterclasses, restaurant pop-ups, and producer markets. Over 200 events span the CBD, Yarra Valley, Mornington Peninsula, and regional Victoria.

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9-11 May 2026Tasting

Hunter Valley Wine & Food Festival

Pokolbin, Australia$20-$20050K

A month-long celebration of Hunter Valley wine and food throughout May and June. Events range from opera in the vines and long-table lunches to blending workshops and cheese-and-wine pairings. As Australia's oldest wine region (since 1828), the Hunter offers a unique mix of tradition and modern wine tourism.

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Tasting

Rutherglen Winery Walkabout

Rutherglen, Australia$30-$608K

Victoria's Rutherglen celebrates its legendary fortified wines — Muscat and Topaque — over a Queen's Birthday weekend in June. Eighteen heritage wineries open their doors simultaneously, offering tastings, barrel room access, and live music. The 'Indulge, Explore, and Discover' trail format encourages leisurely exploration of Australia's oldest wine families.

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9-15 Apr 2026Harvest

Barossa Vintage Festival

Tanunda, Australia65K

Australia's longest-running wine festival, held biennially since 1947. A week of vineyard events, open cellar tastings, food experiences, and community celebrations across the Barossa Valley. The festival preserves the valley's German-Silesian heritage with traditional foods, brass bands, and barrel-rolling competitions.

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12-18 Aug 2026Tasting

Barossa Gourmet Weekend

Various (Barossa Valley), Australia$12-$3015K

Three days of food and wine experiences at 40+ Barossa Valley wineries. Each winery pairs a signature dish with their wines, prepared by local chefs. The format encourages leisurely exploration of the valley, with each stop offering a unique culinary and wine pairing. One of Australia's top food and wine weekends.

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Food & Wine

King Valley La Dolce Vita

Whitfield, Australia5K

Victoria's King Valley celebrates its Italian immigrant winemaking heritage over the June long weekend. The valley's Italian families — Dal Zotto, Pizzini, Chrismont — open their cellar doors for Prosecco, Sangiovese, Nebbiolo, and Pinot Grigio tastings alongside traditional Italian food. Australia's most distinctly Italian wine festival experience.

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2026 Festival Calendar

All 14 festivals organised by month.

Insider Tips for Australia Wine Festivals

Tasting Australia

The free hub in Victoria Square gets crowded — buy tickets for the premium events which sell out fast. The regional 'Out There' events in the Barossa, McLaren Vale, and Adelaide Hills are often more memorable than city events.

Clare Valley Gourmet Weekend

Hire a bike in Clare township the evening before — rental shops sell out on the morning of the festival. Jim Barry, Grosset, and Skillogalee have some of the best food pairings; Pikes is excellent for a long lunch stop.

Hunter Valley Lovedale Long Lunch

Hire a driver or buy a designated driver ticket for one person in your group — police enforcement is strict during this event. Tickets sell out within days of release (usually February) so subscribe to their newsletter.

Margaret River Gourmet Escape

Book beachside dinners with smaller producers like Leeuwin Estate and Vasse Felix months ahead; they sell out first and offer far superior wine-pairing menus than celebrity-chef events. Hit the smaller winery walkabout events on the festival's final days when international attendees leave and you'll gain sommelier-level insights from winemakers themselves.

McLaren Vale Sea & Vines Festival

Book long lunches at d'Arenberg Cube or Coriole at least 3 months ahead — these premium events sell out in hours. The free cellar door tastings are excellent across all 30 wineries.

Melbourne Food & Wine Festival

The World's Longest Lunch books out in under 30 minutes when tickets drop — set a calendar alert. Many smaller satellite events in the Yarra Valley are less crowded and equally excellent.