Ascend Wine Odyssey: What to expect on SA's luxe new wine tour

Fly amongst the vines with the luxe new wine tour from Ascend Wine Odyssey.

The ground gives way below as the roar of propellers fills our ears, despite the overhead earphones covering them. I’ve been to plenty of wineries before, even in South Australia, but I’ve never hopped between them via helicopter. Nor have I seen the vineyards from this height, or the country between. This is Bryce Courtney land, dry and spotted with livestock, as we Ascend Wine Odyssey flies us between three popular wine regions and three female-owned and/or operated wineries.

At each stop, a different experience with the owners and makers – from tasting in the vines to lunch to cheese pairing – and a chance to compare how the different geography of each region gives a unique flavour to their wines. This is truly a luxurious wine tour.

Stop one: Oliver’s Taranga, McLaren Vale

Arriving at Oliver’s Taranga – one of Australia’s oldest family-run vineyards, onto its sixth generation – we’re ushered into the tasting room and restaurant. It’s a beautiful, rustic space for a few warm-up wines, but today we’ll be taking the vineyard buggy (lovingly named Ollie) out into the vines for a Taranga Terroir Tour.

Glass in hand, we make stops around the vineyard to learn about the different vines, wines and views – tasting each drop next to the plants that grew them. Along the way, we meet Corrina Wright, sixth generation in the Oliver family and current director and winemaker. She shares a few insider secrets before joining us back in the restaurant for a pre-lunch grazing board (and a few more wines to taste, of course).

Ollie the buggy on a Taranga Terroir Tour at oliver's taranga — Explore the vines as you taste the wines.

As the only female winemaker we’ll meet on this tour, Wright explains why it’s so important for this tour to focus on women in the field.

“I’m part of the Australian Women in Wine board. When we started 10 years ago, there were 10 per cent less women in production. It was 50/50 going through university but [not] coming out the other side…That has increased to 15 per cent and the industry is taking it more seriously now," she explained.

Corrina Wright Corrina Wright, sixth generation in the Oliver family and current director and winemaker at Oliver's Taranga — Get insider secrets from the owners and makers. (Image: Kassia Byrnes)

Stop two: Golding Wines, Adelaide Hills

Now, it’s helicopter time. No more four wheels for us, it’s birds-eye views from here-on-out. We soar over vineyards and vast countryside, all the while chatting with our pilot, thanks to sturdy headsets that offset the noise of the propellers. An easy 20-minute ride has us in a whole new wine country and vineyard: Golding Wines .

outdoor tasting platform at Golding Wines, Adelaide Hills — Taste wines in the great outdoors. (Image: Kassia Byrnes)

Owners Lucy and Darren Golding are waiting for us beside their winery, but before heading inside, we’re whisked up to a bespoke tasting platform built on a hilltop, with gorgeous views over the vines. Here, we snack once again, chomping on freshly baked focaccia bread, dips and other goodies crafted using produce from the onsite estate kitchen garden. While the Goldings talk us through their vision and the wines they brought for us to taste.

Next is lunch at their restaurant, Ginko . We sit outdoors amongst the apple trees as several dishes are brought to us. The menu here shows off the best of South Australia, focusing on locally-sourced, seasonal produce.

Sit down to lunch at Ginko restaurant, Golding Wines, Adelaide Hills — Sit down to lunch at Ginko restaurant.

Stop three: Kimbolton Wines, Langhorne Creek

Satisfactorily full, but not to the point we have to worry about weighing down the helicopter, we jump back in our ride and soar over to Langhorne Creek. This might be a lesser-known and smaller wine region of South Australia, but if Kimbolton Wines is any indication, it packs a serious punch.

wine and cheese pairing experience at Kimbolton Wines — Try a range of wine and cheese pairings. (Image: Kimbolton Wines)

Here we meet one half of the brother-sister duo, Nicole Clark. As the fifth-generation owners of Kimbolton, the family have grown up with winemaking in their blood, and put it to good use. Clark takes us into the adorable converted shipping container tasting room where a line of wines and a platter of cheeses are waiting. With what little space we have left in our stomachs, we start my favourite activity of the three stops: experimenting with wine and cheese pairings.

With incredibly happy tastebuds, the time comes to catch our helicopter back to where it all began, Oliver’s Taranga, before heading back to our hotel in Adelaide for a well-earned nap.

aerial of helicopter on Ascend Wine Odyssey — Fly between stops for a unique experience.

The details

An Ascend Wine Odyssey tour runs daily from 9:30am to 5:30pm (unless the weather interferes). The cost is $7000 per couple, with a two-person per-tour maximum (weight limits apply). Start and finish at Oliver’s Taranga, and find your own way to and from this winery – it’s an easy 40-minute drive from Adelaide.

WA might be enormous, but the right insider knowledge brings its mysteries a whole lot closer.

“Western Australia is a land of record-breakers,” says Carolyn Tipper, a Travel Director working on AAT Kings Western Australia tours. “It has the second-longest fault line, the second-largest meteorite crater, the second-fastest flowing river—it just keeps surprising you. And every area has its charm.”

From tropics to deserts, Australia’s largest state is a land of extremes. You can’t see all of Western Australia in a lifetime, but with the right guide, you can discover its hidden pockets of magic.

Carolyn wishes to reach her guests’ hearts. “I want them to enjoy and be in awe,” she says. “I want them to have the holiday of a lifetime.”

1. Mimbi Caves

You wouldn’t expect a Great Barrier Reef in the outback – but that’s what you’ll find at Mimbi Caves. Once part of a 350-million-year-old reef, these caves hold marine fossils, ancient Indigenous rock art, and Dreamtime stories shared by a Gooniyandi guide.

“That’s when the real connection happens,” says Carolyn, who has taken guests through on the AAT Kings Wonders of the West Coast and Kimberley tour . “When guests connect, not just with the land, but with the people who have called it home for tens of thousands of years.”

Eye-level view of traveller exploring Mimbi Caves. — Walk through ancient limestone passages. (Image: Tourism Western Australia)

2. Kalbarri National Park

Nothing prepares you for the Kalbarri Skywalk: a 25-metre platform jutting over Murchison Gorge, 100 metres above the red cliffs and river below. From July to October, join the AAT Kings Untamed Pilbara and West Coast tour to see over 1000 wildflower species paint the park, and listen as an Indigenous guide shares their uses, bush foods and medicine plants.

“I want our guests to have an emotional experience,” says Carolyn. “It’s not just about seeing the land, it’s about stepping into the stories.”

An aerial view of the Kalbarri Skywalk, one of the secret places in Western Australia, with visitors on the edge. — Stand on the Kalbarri Skywalk in Western Australia. (Image: Tourism Western Australia)

3. Hamelin Bay Wines

Margaret River isn’t just a top wine region – it’s a winner in every category. Where the Indian and Southern Oceans collide, granite cliffs rise, limestone caves sprawl and Karri forests tower. It almost distracts from the world-class Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay.

Almost.

Out of over 100 cellar doors, AAT Kings pick Hamelin Bay Wines as a favourite. Hosted tastings of small-batch wines on the Western Wonderland tour end with a group meal. The menu shifting with the seasons.

“Get off the beaten track to one of WA’s most relaxed venues for some amazing red and white signature wines,” explains Carolyn, “accompanied with upmarket pub food.”

Spectacular views.

A person raising a glass of Chardonnay against a glowing Western Australia sunset. — Sip world-class wines at Hamelin Bay in Western Australia. (Image: Getty)

4. Wildflower Guided Walk, Kings Park

Western Australia is home to 12,000 native plant species – 3000 bloom in Kings Park’s Botanic Garden. Stroll past Kangaroo Paw, Banksia and blooms from the Goldfields, Stirling Ranges and Kimberley. “The diversity of Western Australia is immense,” says Carolyn, who leads guests through on the South Western Escape tour .

Couple enjoying the view from the Lotterywest Federation walkway at Kings Park and Botanical Garden. — Wander among thousands of native plant species. (Image: Tourism Western Australia)

5. Hoochery Distillery

Did you know that between Kununurra and Emma Gorge lies the state’s oldest continuously operating distillery? Well, the oldest legal one. Set on a family farm, Hoochery Distillery was hand-built using materials found on the property, conjuring up award-winning rum from local sugarcane, wet season rainwater and yeast.

Today, visitors can sample a hearty nip of rum, along with whiskies and gins – all crafted using traditional, labour-intensive methods. It’s the ideal way to soak up the ‘spirit’ of the Kimberley on the AAT Kings’ Untamed Kimberley tour .

People enjoying a rum tasting at one of the secret places in Western Australia. — Sample award-winning rum. (Image: Tourism Western Australia)

6. Geraldton

The wildflowers of the Midwest will make your heart blossom. In Geraldton, the Helen Ansell Art Gallery brings the region’s botanicals to life in vivid colour and intricate detail. In nearby Mullewa, wander bushland trails lined with everlastings and native blooms. Further afield, Coalseam Conservation Park bursts into carpets of pink, white, and yellow each spring. Do it all on the Wildflower Wanderer tour with AAT Kings.

woman walking through Wildflowers, Coalseam Conservation Park — Chase vibrant wildflower trails. (Image: Tourism Western Australia)

7. El Questro

Wake up after a night under the stars at Emma Gorge Resort, ready to explore the mighty beauty of the El Questro Wilderness Park. With deep gorges, thermal springs, and cascading waterfalls, time slows here.

Join the AAT Kings’ Wonders of the West Coast and Kimberley tour to drift through Chamberlain Gorge, where sheer sandstone walls glow burnt orange in the sun, archer fish flick at the surface, and rock wallabies peer down from ledges above. Then, step into Zebedee Springs, a secret oasis of warm, crystal-clear pools among prehistoric Livistona palms – a moment of pure, wild stillness.

Emma Gorge Resort at El Questro. — Wake to adventure at Emma Gorge Resort. (Image: Tourism Western Australia)

8. Lake Argyle

Once vast cattle country, Lake Argyle now sprawls like an inland sea – Western Australia’s largest freshwater lake, created by the damming of the Ord River. Scattered with over 70 islands, its glassy waters teem with life, like freshwater crocodiles, barramundi, bony bream, sleepy cod and over 240 bird species. That’s nearly a third of Australia’s avian population.

Glide across the lake’s surface on a cruise as part of AAT Kings’ Untamed Kimberley tour , where the silence is only broken by the splash of fish and the call of birds. For Carolyn, this place is a perfect example of how WA’s landscapes surprise visitors. “Lake Argyle is a big puddle of water that became a game-changer,” she says. “Seeing it from a boat, coach, and plane is mind-blowing. It puts time, isolation and the sheer scale into perspective.”

Aerial View of Triple J Tours on the Ord River, near Kununurra. — Glide past islands on Western Australia’s largest freshwater lake. (Image: Western Australia)

Discover more of Western Australia’s hidden gems and book your tour at aatkings.com.

The most luxurious wine tour in Australia