OysterPalooza returns in 2026McLaren Vale, Australia

There are food festivals. There are drinks festivals. And then there’s OysterPalooza; the annual McLaren Vale event where somebody decided oysters and frozen gin should probably spend more time together. And honestly, fair enough.

Returning for its fifth year from July 31 to August 2, OysterPalooza is taking over the Oyster Shell Distillery Door once again with a full weekend dedicated to South Aus-tralian Pacific oysters, cocktails and an atmosphere that usually convinces people to stay ‘just one more hour’ until it’s sunset.

Tickets include two drinks from the special OysterPalooza menu, Oyster Shell Gin tastings, half a dozen fresh oysters with cold dressings and a ‘Shellie’; the distillery’s frozen Oyster Shell Gin served directly from an actual oyster shell.

Across the weekend, guests can also expect live oyster shucking, music, drinks spe-cials and the return of the famous Shellie luge, which feels like something that prob-ably shouldn’t work nearly as well as it does.

The Friday night “Boom Shuckalaka!” event kicks things off before the festival rolls into deck bookings across Saturday and Sunday, with extra oysters available for an-yone fully committing to the experience.

And in genuinely good news for Queenslanders, OysterPalooza is also heading north for the first time, with a new event planned for Landers Pocket.

Early bird tickets are currently sitting at 2021 prices (AU$40) until the end of May 2026, which feels increasingly rare in this economy. Get on it ASAP.

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