Cellar Doors and Restaurants at South Australian Wineries Will Close From Midnight Tonight

Cellar doors and restaurants at wineries across the state will be forced to close from midnight tonight, SA Police commissioner Grant Stevens announced in a press conference this afternoon.

All takeaway sales from those cellar doors and restaurants are also banned, however, booze can continue to be sold online or over the phone.

The move follows a cluster of coronavirus cases linked to two tourist groups in the Barossa Valley and comes before the Easter long weekend and school holidays, when many people would usually be travelling to Adelaide’s outer regions.

“We’re trying to discourage people from undertaking unnecessary trips to what might normally be considered tourist destinations … And trying to prevent what’s happened in the Barossa Valley from happening in other locations in South Australia,” commissioner Stevens said.

He also announced the banning of any tasting or sampling of produce (whether drinks or food) in premises of any kind across the state.

The restrictions come into effect at midnight tonight.

Importantly, the new measures will not stop production or wholesale distribution.

More to come.