Holidays June 2020

It took a little time getting sorted due to the China Virus, but with regional travel opening up from the eastern states of Australia, it was time to pack the Camper and finally escape the cold winter weather of Adelaide. Sunday the 14th of June I was off and the first overnight stop was just over 660km away in Hay, NSW. The Sandy Point Reserve is a great little free camping spot if you have the ability to go off grid.

So the next day started early, back on the road towards West Wyalong. Luckily I was fresh as the first hour of driving was just endless nothing.

I wasn’t going to push it today so a travelling distance of 440km didn’t feel like a stretch. The Day 2 stop was Peak Hill, NSW. But before that I made a quick detour to see the world famous ‘Dish’ telescope just outside Parkes, NSW. Unfortunately it was closed due to the virus situation but I got to see it from afar nonetheless.

Day 3 and back on the road early. Cessnock the destination camped up in a friends backyard for a week. Arrived early enough to get all setup before the cold weather set in.

After a late start it was time to start my assault on the vineyards in the Hunter Valley, 1st stop Peterson’s wines. Lovely spot, good sparkling wines, good aged reds, good semillon. You would definitely like to be there in summer on a weekend with live music going, as it just feels like a relaxing, cruisy atmosphere.

It was a good start and I thought, well it certainly was an eye opener as to the amount of imported grapes from other regions. What I quickly found out was that the Hunter Valley really concentrate on Semillon, Chardonnay and Shiraz.

After I sat down that night and pondered on where I should be going to next, I forgot I packed a bottle of Langhorne creek Blanc de Blancs which went down a treat.

I got to do a little bit of sightseeing with driving around checking out the scenery. Even due to the weather and heavy rain, I managed to get to a nice lookout.

It was absolutely freezing overnight with 0 degrees and no wind. Which meant the next day was superb!

Next stop, Kelmans Wines. A fantastic little boutique vineyard in the heart of a housing estate of the same name. All the houses have vineyards around them and really does make for an outstanding view. First thing they asked in the tasting room, where are you from? Haha, here we go, the stigma has began. As soon as you mention your from SA, and particularly close to McLaren Vale the wine talk starts.

Nonetheless the wines, and particularly their Semillon was outstanding, the Reds are alot softer than what I’m used to but that is part of the appeal of Hunter Valley Shiraz. The alcohol content is slightly less at about 14% which is refreshing as big boozy wines are a dying breed thank goodness. Buy Tawny if you want something heavier.

Drayton’s family wines are known throughout the region as being one of the few vineyards with a reputation for they excellent fortifieds. With this in mind I knew the tasting session was going to be a long one, especially with a huge range of wines to choose from. Obviously this was a challenge so I mainly targeted the local stuff. The wine tasting experience was definitely a 10 here, great knowledge and good humour from the staff.

So after Drayton’s, the wonderful staff referred me onto Gundog Wines. Another boutique winery with a very cute cellar door.

I’m so happy to be sent here, their wines were brilliant! It took a little time to warm up but after an hour just chatting with the staff and winemaker, they even got the reserve out for tasting. Must be the red wine snobbery of South Australia talking haha. At the tasting, I also met a lovely couple from Port Maquarie who were just starting their caravan life which was awesome.

After a quick refuel for lunch it was back to the vineyards and Ivanhoe wines, the sign on entrance was they specialise in big, bold reds. You had me at hello! 😂

The best thing was they weren’t kidding, terrific tannin structure and spice with most of their reds.

After about 40 tastings for the day, stick a fork in me, I’m done!

Definitely needed a rest day after that but time to move on and I decided to get closer to the vineyards by checking into the local caravan park for a few more days. The sunsets were smashing as the sun went over the mountains.

Managed to squeeze in Ben Ean, Lindemans and the Chocolate factory the next day!

After another hectic day, met up again with the couple from Port Macquarie around a fire in the caravan park.

Another early start as alot of vineyards open at 10am.

Tulloch, Audrey Wilkinson and Pepper Tree wines were on the menu for the next day. Tulloch being first and it did not disappoint with consistency and quality throughout their range. Even managed to talk them into off the wine list tastings.

Another great tasting experience was to be had at Audrey Wilkinson and quite possibly the best view from the cellar door to all the surrounding hills and vineyards. Beautiful place and lovely wines to boot however the top end of the range was very expensive.

A quick trip back for lunch again, then onto Pepper Tree. I don’t think there is a better more manicured garden at any other vineyard. The old charm of barn buildings and wooden floorboards really set this place apart from alot of other vineyards. Their wine, too sweet for my tastebuds but the Chardonnay was bang on target.

With the last day in the Hunter Valley, I got a couple more vineyards in before the pack up starts. Tempus Two is well known and I made it known I wanted to try local stuff again which the staff were happy to accommodate. Even cracking out the reserve wines at $150 a bottle.

The Reserves were nice, but no way would you fork out that much money when knowingly there are much better selections out there and better quality for a lot less. Just my opinion so don’t shoot the messenger.

Onto Beckers and this was the surprise of the whole stay. Some varieties never heard of, some wines which were soft, some wines with decent tannin and some wines which blow your mind. Consistent? No, but great fun and the winemaker definitely makes wine to drink and enjoy.

A beaut sunset to finish off my stay!

Next stop is Harringtons Beach, north of Newcastle in NSW. Time to relax, do some washing, wait for the Queensland border open announcement and chill out for 4 days.

Had to stop into the Irish pub, schnitty was good! And even hiked up Ellenborough falls which was a nice 5 hour round trip.

One day went for a drive south through the great lakes, 7 mile beach, the split town of Tuncurry/Forster. Very tropical rainforest like scenery and fantastic beaches.

And of course it was traditional to have a glass of vino on the last night before I head off again to Port Maquarie! I had the perfect wine ready.

Hopefully you haven’t nodded off reading this post and stayed tuned for more adventures next month. Till then, it’s midday somewhere in the world! Enjoy 🍷