Escape to Hillenvale

Deciding between a visit to Mclaren Vale or Adelaide hills? Explore both with a getaway to Hillenvale.

Imagine a South Australian vineyard escape where the biggest decision you have to make each day is which premium wine region you’ll visit.Will you turn left and head to McLaren Vale, or turn right to explore the Adelaide Hills? Or perhaps you’ll stay put and enjoy the serene luxury that the Hillenvale property offers.

Perfectly positioned at the junction of McLaren Vale and Adelaide Hills, Hillenvale was built circa 1859 on one of the region’s earliest farms near Kangarilla. Today, it is run by brothers Richard and Malcolm Leask, whose Hither & Yon wines are much-loved drops, along with their boutique cellar door in Willunga.

“When we came across the site, we saw the potential, as it is a hidden escape,” Malcolm explains. “Even we love coming here on a daily basis, it’s ever changing.”

While the original Hillenvale occupants would have lived a life of hard toil, visitors to this newly launched B&B enjoy a more lavish experience.

An intimate stone cottage nestled on a rugged hillside, the Coach House is an idyllic couples retreat. Its beauty is in the tiny areas you can retreat to – it’s all about lo-fi switching off in a heritage setting.

There’s the downstairs lounge with a roaring fire, leather chairs and opening doors onto the stone terrace garden. Or curl up with a book in the window bench seat reading nook overlooking the pasture and vineyards. While upstairs, the cosy study is perfect for relaxing and listening to music.

The Coach House also includes a fully equipped country kitchen and a luxurious bedroom and bathroom. And when it’s time for drinks, there’s a deck made for sipping on as you take in the beauty of this unique location.

Hither and Yon's Hillenvale vineyard is sustainably managed.

Beauty and care

Part of Hillenvale’s charm is the fact it remains a working property where purebred and pasture-raised lambs roam freely. Farmer Scott Binns encourages bio-diversity with native grasses and bush plantings, and his passion for regenerative farming practices are shared by Richard and Malcolm.

In fact, their Hillenvale vineyards, spanning McLaren Vale and the Adelaide Hills, are undergoing a renaissance, with the brothers working together to nurture the very best from the rich soils of the regions, while remaining respectful of the environment.

This has led to Hither & Yon becoming South Australia’s first certified Carbon Neutral winery, grown on certified sustainable vineyards, artisan made with designer style. A wonderful extension of the family’s local legacy, which began when Richard and Malcolm’s parents acquired their first patch in McLaren Vale in 1980.

A local dropping by the Hillenvale vineyard.

A celebratory release

To celebrate the opening of the Hillenvale B&B, Richard and Malcolm are releasing the first vintage of Hither & Yon’s Hillenvale wines.

The 2021 Pinot Noir, Malcolm explains, “is from the Adelaide Hills vineyard, 400 metres above sea level with views out to Kuitpo Forest and the Gulf St. Vincent beyond.”

The vines were planted in 1999, D4V2 clone on a westerly aspect, underlain by red gravel loam, siltstone and quartzite, a very structural and deep site. However, Malcolm says, they wanted to create a “bright, fun style, so we picked early and went for a cool, gentle whole berry ferment, finished in new and old 500L French Puncheons.”

This delightful wine is just another reason to book your South Australian getaway to Hillenvale. Then it’s just a matter of making that decision. Right to the villages and lush, cool-climate vineyards of the Adelaide Hills or left to McLaren Vale’s famed cellar doors and restaurants along the pristine Fleurieu Peninsula coastline.