Thursday January 8th, 2009 Hunter Valley

What a change! When we awoke this morning and went outside we were hit – not with a hot blast of 38 C temperature, but rather, a cool rainy morning – about 21C. The locals were very happy as it has been a little warm even for them.
Anyway, last night at supper we met chef Chad and his partner Naoma (events coordinator etc etc) from the Petersen’s Champagne House, who suggested we enjoy a wonderful breakfast at their establishment, so off we went, and did in fact enjoy a great meal. The restaurant, which is attached to the champagne house, was really lovely, and as we dined we looked out over the vineyards. Chad by the way is 6 ft 8 in, and Naoma is a little over 6 feet. A rather imposing and extraordinarily nice couple.
Then we were back to the Pokolbin Village Resort where we were entertained by these Australian Magpie’s as we waited to be picked up for our Wine Tasting Tour. First stop “Audrey Wilkinson Winery”. The most amazing part of this location is the magnificent view – 360 degrees around the facility. Here we tasted 3 whites, 3 reds and a dessert wine. All were very enjoyable wines, and all quite distinct from each other.
The second stop was Lucy’s Run which is operated by John a retired Airline Pilot and is named after his dog, not his wife! Again, very enjoyable wines, and also a taste of lovely Olive Oil and Dukkah (that nice nut mixture we had tried before).
Next stop was the Ernest Hill Winery where we sample a few more wines and had a few good laughs with the vintners as they provided us with some wonderful dessert recipes to use with their dessert wines. Here we had one very delightful dessert wine that is a bit bubbly.
Our next stop was lunch at the Old Brickworks Brewery. The meal was lovely, there was a good variety, and the atmosphere – lots of fun.
Next stop was the Iron Gate Winery were we were taken on a tour of the wine making facilities. Very interesting process. Again – several samples of very nice wines – red and white, and always a dessert wine.
Our last wine stop was at the McLeish Estate – again some very nice wines, a few different than what we get in Canada. The most popular white is a very citrusy Semillon which can be drunk very early, as within the first 18 months, or it can be stored for u[ to 7 or 8 years for a very different taste.
Next stop was the ‘Stinky Cheese Shop” - also called Tempus Two, where we sampled 5 different varieties of soft cheese, and a bit later a few bits of chocolate. (We would have all been happier with a bit more of this last sample. As you can see from the pictures – this is quite an establishment, with a restaurant, the cheese, chocolate and ice cream place, a coffee shop, a winery, and facilities for concerts with some very big name artists like Elton John.
By now, mid afternoon we had had enough to drink and eat, so we headed back to our resort, purchased some crackers and cheese and a bit of ice-cream, and enjoyed snacking for the evening.