BAROSSA VALLEY

The Hon. G.A. KANDELAARS (15:18): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Tourism a question about the food tour of the Barossa.

Leave granted.

The Hon. G.A. KANDELAARS: The Barossa is one of the world's great wine regions. While the—

Members interjecting:

The Hon. G.A. KANDELAARS: I will start again, Mr President. The Barossa is one of the world's great wine regions. While the reputation of the Barossa's wines has strong international appeal, the region's food exhibits the same integrity, quality, diversity and heritage. I understand the minister took the opportunity to visit a number of businesses in that region. Can she tell members about these visits?

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries, Minister for Forests, Minister for Regional Development, Minister for Tourism, Minister for the Status of Women) (15:20): I thank the honourable member for his most important question. I recently did some travelling around the Barossa visiting various businesses, and I was delighted to be taken on a Barossa food tour by the chair of the Regional Food Industry Association, Jan Angus. I am sure members are aware of the real riches in the Barossa and what the Barossa has to offer when it comes to food and wine. The valley is definitely a food lovers' paradise and has quite amazing local produce on offer.

As Minister for Tourism and Minister for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries obviously I have a great interest in regional food and wine, and I believe they can make wonderful tourism experiences if well done. The Barossa is a fine example of this. Visitors to the region are spoilt for choice when it comes to cellar doors and other places to eat and drink. The tour with Jan was absolutely delightful, I have to say. She was a wealth of knowledge and a lot of fun. It was a great opportunity to see the region and to see what it had to offer.

After a visit to the Barossa Visitor Information Centre our first stop was to the quite amazing Apex Bakery located on Elizabeth Street in Tanunda. The bakery was established in 1924 and to this day still bakes using an amazing huge wood oven—it is quite amazing. The paddles are unbelievable in length because the oven is so deep. Pasties were being cooked while I visited and, although I did not partake while I was there, I am told that cooking using the wood oven creates a taste that cannot be matched by conventional ovens.

During the visit I was able to talk to 'Nipper', who was manning the wood fire oven at the time, and doing a very good job. I was told that the bakery is run by brothers who share the labour, including raising and harvesting trees for the particular type of wood used in the oven and, like many other businesses, Apex Bakery uses local Barossa produce whenever they can and they make all their pastries and bread on-site and everything is cooked in their own oven.

I also visited Careme Pastry and, although I was not able to meet with the Woods, who own the business, I was able to talk to staff who were there, very busy, and was able to watch pastry being rolled out. The pastry is of a very high quality. It is frozen and all hand made, and they endeavour to use locally produced wheat. I think it is rapidly frozen to about minus 18 degrees. It is quite an amazing technique. That pastry is used both commercially and domestically far and wide. I also visited Weich's Noodles, where I talked to the owner, David West, and saw spaghetti being made by hand. It was quite amazing. The staff working at both these businesses are very committed to providing food prepared and processed traditionally, and both use local produce wherever they can.

Our next visit was to the very impressive Louise and the Appellation Restaurant. The establishment offers wonderful accommodation and is home to the renowned Appellation Restaurant, located in the vineyards and rolling hills. The Louise is a great stand-out and has been hugely successful. One of the Luxury Lodges of Australia, the Louise is obviously a labour of love for all involved. I had the opportunity to visit one of the suites—quite amazing. It was absolutely beautiful: beautifully appointed, tastefully fitted and extremely private. No, I did not eat lunch there and did not stay the night either, as I was way too busy. The staff I spoke to were passionate about their region and providing a wonderful local experience for guests.

Following a drive past a number of iconic spots such as Maggie Beer's site and the Barossa Farmers Market, the food tour ended at Jan's farm at Hutton Vale, and there I met a range of businesswomen.

The Hon. D.W. Ridgway interjecting:

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: No, we didn't have lunch there either. I find it amazing that the Hon. David Ridgway is totally preoccupied with food. All he has done is eat his way through the Barossa—you know, snout in the trough—and fed his way through the Barossa.

An honourable member interjecting:

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: No, I didn't. But I did meet with a number of local businesswomen who were very impressive and obviously their love for the Barossa and their commitment to their work was quite impressive. Obviously these visits were a great opportunity for me to speak with local businesses and allow me to really appreciate the range of local of produce available. I place on record my thanks to all of those I met and to Jan Angas for helping me organise this tour.