Next to Last of the Hunter Valley

The top picture is just a view from where we stopped to get lunch. I bravely decided to have a roast beef baguette which was actually quite good. Almost all Aussie sandwiches are loaded with various veggies and very little by way of condiments. One curious feature, to North Americans anyway, is that many sandwiches include beetroot (beets to us) slices. I don't think I would always have these on a sandwich but they are actually a tasty addition from time to time. There is a brewery attached to our lunch spot- for $12 one could get a paddle with 6 holes in it in which 6 small glasses of different beers were placed. I wanted to try them but decided it would just be too much. I hear they were very good though.

The next picture is from our tasting at Tintilla. The guy and girl at the bottom, both from Chicago, are the people I talked to most. She and I tended to agree about the various wines, and we both made fun of her boyfriend who liked sweet whites the most. We suggest that in a few years he would grow up and develop a taste for the reds which I find much better- at least much more complex.

The guy in blue was Garry- our driver and guide with bluetooth headset in ear. As you can see the grapes are ripe- indeed much harvesting was going on. The grapes are I think Shiraz and, as you can see, each vine is quite laden.

In the bottom you see what looks to be a lime tree, but what is more likely to be a lemon tree with green lemons. We have some here grown in our own little tree. The other trees are olive trees which are quite abundant in the Hunter Valley. So many olives are grown in Oz that olive oil is very popular. And indeed many of the soft margarines are olive oil based.