We Will Dine on this Story for Awhile…

If you are looking for more photos of Evelyn you may want to skip this post (or I may just sneak one in…you can take your chances)…

We had decided that our time in Oz shouldn’t be limited to Canberra so we planned a trip to Adelaide and the Barossa Valley (very similar to the Napa Valley).  When I say we planned I actually mean Paul planned.  He was an outstanding guide and had us well organized for the trip…we told him that all we needed to make it complete was for him to carry a flag or umbrella and we would all wear lanyards with our names on them—it was great fun.

Also, “we” means Cheri, Judy, Paul and me…”we” left Andrew, Sarah and Evelyn at home to have some family time without us.

We flew out of Canberra on Wednesday morning and 90 minutes later we were in Adelaide (along with a half hour time zone change…I’d say only in Oz do you have half hour time changes, but it is true when going to Newfoundland in Canada as well…maybe it is a Commonwealth thing).

 

We picked up our rental car and with Paul driving and me navigating (along with their GPS…which they’ve aptly named Kate) we headed off to the Barossa Valley.  Our first stop was the Lawley Farm—a bed and breakfast in the middle of the valley.  Our accommodations (thanks not only to our tour guide but to the owners/hosts) were outstanding.  In the following pictures you will see our “building”, which appears to be a renovated horse barn.  I don’t have pictures of Paul and Judy’s room, but it was as nice as ours…it didn’t have the fireplace, but they had a very efficient heater.

 

 

 

 

 

I mentioned that our hosts deserve many thanks for making this a wonderful several days and it started right off when speaking with Leslie (she and her husband Jack own the farm) we asked about a place to have dinner.

The first nice thing they did was to recommend the restaurant 1918 in the nearby town of Tunundra.   We took their advice and thought we would call later for a reservation…but for now we wanted to go to a local cellar door for some wine tasting before they closed for the day.

 

so Cheri was getting ready to kick me away from the wine bar so we could find someplace for a heavy tea (I don’t know if that is an actual “thing”, but it sounds right—heavier than snacks but not a full meal).

Fortunately, Grant Burge’s cellar door was about 1.5 kilometers away (Grant Burge was one of the highly acclaimed wines that Paul brought to the tasting following Andrew and Sarah’s wedding rehearsal).  We sampled some great wines at this cellar door, but their kitchen had already closed for the day (we hadn’t had any lunch so we were all getting a little hungry)

We mentioned to the lady serving us that we were going to go to 1918 for dinner and she likewise said it was a very good choice…she then offered to call and make the reservation for us.  She came back a few minutes later and said there was no need because Leslie had already called and made the reservation for us!

 

The cellar door was closing and it was not time for our dinner reservation so we headed into Tunundra to find a coffee shop.  Fortunately, the parking spot we found was right in front of The Red Door coffee shop.  So we found comfortable chairs, avocado scones with pesto (I opted for a traditional scone with jam and whipped cream), mochas, tea and espresso.

 

Somehow in our conversation with the barista we mentioned that we were going to dinner at 1918 that evening.  She also said it was a great recommendation but if possible we should try and get into (and I thought she said Fantasia) for dinner while in the Barossa Valley.  I didn’t fully catch the name (a combination of my hearing and not wanting to acknowledge that the accent threw me a little), but decided we could figure it out later.

 

On the way back to the Lawley Farm we did see that the St. Hallett’s cellar door was still open so we stopped in to have a little taste.  While there we found that we liked their port and decided it would be nice to have a bottle in our room to enjoy by the fire…maybe with a little chocolate…so we picked one up.

 

We got back to the farm and realized we had to place our orders for breakfast with Leslie before heading out for the evening.  Paul and I went to see her and while there we thanked her for making our reservation at 1918 that evening.  We also mentioned that the barista at The Red Door recommended someplace that sounded like Fantasia for the next evening.  Leslie said that is it Ferment Asian (which is you say it quickly can be either fermentation or…with a bit of an accent…Fantasia) and that it is difficult to get a reservation.  Bookings are typically weeks in advance…but she knows the chef and while we were standing there she called and got us in ( we wanted an 8 pm reservation and she could only get us in at 7:30, so we decided it would have to do).

 

 

There was still a little time before heading out to dinner, so we gathered in our room for a little taste of the port.  It turned out that the room included a bottle of port for the guests (and we later found out that it is port from Grant Burge…so it was very good). Paul did point out that Leslie and Jack would notice that the bottle in the American’s room was almost half empty while the one in the Aussie’s room went untouched…. The photos show why…

 

Dinner at 1918 met all expectations.  We brought a bottle of Grant Burge to go with the meal (all the restaurants in Tunundra allow you to bring wine with a corkage fee) and had a wonderful time.

 

The next morning we were all up before the time we’d scheduled our breakfast service, so we set out for a walk along one of the service roads between the vineyards.  It was a great opportunity to walk-about and take some photos.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Soon after we got back to the Farm Jack brought us our breakfasts.  Since it seemed warm enough (at least to me) we decided to eat outside and enjoy the morning sunlight.  The breakfast choices were outstanding with Cheri and I having the salmon, capers and scrambled eggs the first morning (Paul and Judy had eggs Benedict and eggs and bacon)…we then switched it up the next day.

We did get an updated photo of Evelyn overnight…so here is your Evie fix…(and the caption is, “what do you mean my grandparents went on a trip without me?!”

Late morning we headed out to explore the countryside and to make our way to some cellar doors.  The light was still very good for some photos and we enjoyed seeing the rolling hills and the valley floor.

 

 

Eventually we made our way to Wolf Blass and started our tastings.  While there we were able to at least try some of the Black Label.  Wolf Blass ranges from red to yellow to silver (most of which we get it the States) to gold, grey (which Paul brought to the wedding tasting), and black.  We were fortunate to be able to taste some of the black while we were there. We continued to work our way around to some cellar doors, including the Artists of Barossa—a cooperative arrangement that let’s you try several vineyards in one place—where we ended up splitting a case delivery to Paul and Judy’s (where Paul assures me he will keep a close eye on our portion of the case).

 

 

Although we did walk next door to the Rockwell Cellar door for a light taste…and we found out that the lady serving us not only highly recommended our dinner choice but that she was a part of the Lehman family and she would be filling in as a waitress at Ferment Asian that evening.

Lunch was a great platter (an arrangement of breads, cheeses, sliced meats, olives and pickles…a very civilized way to do lunch) at Peter Lehmann’s vineyard.  We then made our way to another cellar door for a quick stop before heading back to the Farm…we wanted a little down time before heading out to dinner.  Ferment Asian ended up being better than any of us could have expected.  The lady from Rockwell’s was our waitress and she along with the rest of the staff were very attentive but not obtrusive.  We had a Prix Fixe (what is called a banquet in Oz) meal that consisted of seven courses…each one better than the last.  The chef stopped by to see us following the mains (we were in a semi-private room), and besides talking about the meal with us she also bussed the table.

Separately there is an interesting story about the Wolf Blass wine we brought with us for dinner…but you have to hear it personally from either Paul or myself…it is just a much better story in person.

The next morning was walks again (a little longer this time since we were eating and drinking so well), and then we said our goodbyes to Lawley Farm.  Our travels were taking us to Angaston (where we had a coffee and parked among the trees) and then to our last cellar door.

It is full Spring in Oz so many of the flowers are blooming and we were pleased to see so many wild-flowers along the road.

We headed back to Adelaide and had time to stop by the Migration Museum which was very enjoyable.

A quick supper at Glenelg Beach near the airport and then we were on our way back to Canberra.

 

A Couple of Brilliant Australian Ideas

When you enter a parking garage there are indicators at the end of the row letting you know how many empty spaces there are down that row…in addition the red lights indicate filled stalls and the green indicate empty stalls…

At The Red Door the sinks were located on top of and a part of the water closet.  As you wash your hands the waste water fills the cistern for the water closet and is later used for flushing.

At the farm and elsewhere there are rainwater cisterns that are used for irrigation and other watering needs.

The Adventures did well by the Barossa Valley (and the Valley did well by us)!