Barossa Valley heavyweights clash over developmental future of wine region

Australia Broadcast Center

01-05-2025

It takes less than an hour to get from the centre of Adelaide to the Barossa Valley.
Most of that drive is highway; expansive bitumen running through low-lying mangroves, budding suburbs and empty plains.
But one right turn off the main drag takes you into a landscape dominated by rows and rows of grapevines, interspersed with humble cottages.
This is a landscape which has been preserved through legislation, with the "special character" of the Barossa region the subject of South Australia's Character Preservation Act.
Seasonal workers flock to the Barossa Valley for vintage each autumn.
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But one group of the valley's residents believe that rural amenity is under threat, as the urban development of Adelaide grows closer and closer to their agricultural community.
The Barossa Region Residents Association was founded in the 1980s, but has reformed to lobby further preservation for the valley's landscape and heritage.
Its president James Lindner said he feels the economic value of the Barossa's landscapes is in danger of being "eroded" if the community's voice is not heard.
"The community and the generations of people here, we're here because we love it and we're going to be here for generations," he said.
"We're the constant, aren't we?
"
As the constant, it's important we have a voice in where the future goes, and what we want our region to look like.
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James Lindner revived the Barossa Region Residents Association in recent years.
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The association with roots older than vines
Mr Lindner sees the Barossa as a region defined by heritage: German architecture in the towns, historic businesses passed down through families.
His experience is no different, taking on the role of general manager of sales at his family's Langmeil winery.
"I'm in a position that I am today, and Langmeil is in a position that we are today, because the work that the generations before us has done," Mr Lindner said.
The Barossa is filled with family wineries, none more historic than the 176-year-old Yalumba.
Its current proprietor is Robert Hill-Smith, a sixth-generation custodian of the Angaston estate.
Robert Hill-Smith is a sixth-generation custodian of the winery at Yalumba.
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Mr Hill-Smith was a member of the original Barossa Region Residents Association in the 1980s.
"A number of people looked at what the assets were the Barossa had other than wine," he said.
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What are the things that are distinctive that are worth hanging on to and ring-fencing for future generations to enjoy and build economic value from?
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He said the association was a key member in heralding Barossa wine around the world, and enshrining the heritage and beauty of the Valley in legislation.
"They were a formidable group that have reformed in recent years that really understand the long-term value in the distinctive assets the Barossa has ... other than just a vineyard or a building here," Mr Hill-Smith said.
Calls for recognition of legislation
But members of the association now think the Character Preservation Act is not being adhered to in the planning codes.
"I don't think agencies value it enough [or] see enough in it, and they therefore without seeing value in it and having a robust agency take it seriously, then they tend to just bypass it in all their planning," Mr Hill-Smith said.
"There are aspects to it in terms of interpretation that are pretty subjective ... and that leads to conflict."
That is a sentiment shared by another Barossa luminary, Rockford Wines proprietor Robert O'Callaghan.
He helped found the Residents Association, and believes the work he did is in danger of becoming undone.
Robert O'Callaghan fears the Barossa Valley is at risk of losing its value in heritage.
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"We all live various parts of our life with short-term decisions coming to bite us," Mr O'Callaghan said.
"This is about making decisions that are reinforced from a quality perspective for the long-term benefit for a region and its residents, and the state."
A major issue facing the Barossa Valley is a lack of accommodation, both short-term for tourists and long-term for vineyard workers.
The need to construct and develop additional housing and tourist accommodation in the region is clear to its residents, but it is the way to do that which is causing conflict.
"I'm not saying there shouldn't be opportunities for rural accommodation and premium rural accommodation, but ultimately it's where it sits and the size of it and how it works," Mr Lindner said.
Vineyards cover most of the Barossa Valley's 65,000 hectares, north of Adelaide.
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Ambitious project ignites debate
One of the more controversial development proposals in the Barossa Valley is the Oscar Hotel, a 72-room six-star resort-style hotel planned for Seppeltsfield Winery.
Warren Randall bought into Seppeltsfield in 2009 and has since redeveloped its cellar door, which has helped it to win numerous tourism awards.
Mr Randall believes the Oscar will elevate the winery yet again.
"We're determined to build Oscar, and it will be like the Sydney Opera House is to Sydney," he said.
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It will bring international tourists, it will be a magnet for them, a shiny lure just as the [d'Arenberg] Cube has been.
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The Oscar was subject to numerous complaints from members of the community, who say the structure is too prominent in the landscape and not in keeping with the Act.
The project was nicknamed 'the Slug' by some in the community due to its design.
But construction was approved by the local council in 2022.
Mr Randall said that while he appreciates the reason behind the community's concern, the Valley "needs a shunt".
"It's magnificent but a little boring,"
he said.
"It needs an iconic architectural building where people go, 'We have to go to the Barossa Valley, we have to go and see Oscar'."
Warren Randall wants to draw international tourists to the Barossa with The Oscar.
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Mr Randall said there is still community concern around the Oscar, but he will persevere with the project.
"There will be some people who love it and some people who hate it, but at the end of the day, it's my land," he said.
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I bought it, I own it, and I have the right to build what I like on it.
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The next generation prepares to take the mantle
Not all local winemakers are opposed to the design of The Oscar.
Dave Lehmann is the owner of David Franz Wines, and the son of Barossa icons Peter and Margaret Lehmann.
He said he did not particularly dislike the design.
"It's neither here nor there in some ways, but I think it's less about what Oscar was and more about the way it represented itself," Mr Lehmann said.
David Lehmann and his daughter Georgie Matene now work at their own winery outside of Tanunda.
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His daughter Georgie Matene, who is a winemaker at David Franz, agreed.
"A lot of us locals felt like we would maybe want to be a bit more involved in the designs," she said.
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It felt very like, 'This is what's happening'.
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The pair have recently decided to be more proactive in the community, by joining the Residents Association and being more outspoken.
"It was the Oscar development that's probably prompted a return to understanding about why it's so important to preserve what we're doing," Mr Lehmann said.
"With the next generation coming through, you've got that sense of continuity that we're not just protecting it for ourselves … it's about protecting it for Georgie."
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