West Victoria, Coonawarra and the Great Ocean Road
As son James, a medical student, is currently doing a stint at Hamilton Hospital in west Victoria, we decided to take a break and visit him and also take in some of the South Australian vineyards just across the border. We arrived inHamilton early afternoon after a pleasant drive across state via Ballarat. A real bonus for me was spying a fox sitting at the side of the road. The closest I’d previously been to a fox was my mother’s old silver fox fur cape - one of those ones complete with head and legs. We collected James and headed down to the coast to Portland. It was a couple of days to Anzac Day and there was a sea of white crosses on the lawn by the war memorial. There were little markers in the lawn spelling out “LEST WE FORGET” and it looked like these would be replaced by lights for the dawn ceremony. This coastal town has the only deep-sea port between Melbourne and Adelaide and is apparently a major exporting centre for wool, grains and manufactured products from the region. It has some great historic buildings and, as we suspected, was a busy whaling centre in the 1800s. At its peak, 40 boats were whaling in the bay. We pressed on to Port Fairy, past a windfarm with a string of majestic machines turning slowly on the skyline. The 120 turbines produce enough energy for 113,000 homes each year. Port Fairy is a pretty coastal fishing village. Unfortunately we didn’t have much time to explore but we’ve earmarked it for a return visit. It has more than 50 buildings classified by the National Trust. We headed inland and back to Hamilton. A bit more excitement for me when I discovered what I thought were tree stumps were in fact several kangaroos having a dusk gathering in a field. Previously I’ve only seen kangaroos at the zoo or on my dinner plate. Hamilton’s population is around 10,000 and most of them were tucked up beside a heater at home on Sunday night and there weren’t too many places open for dinner but we did find a pub serving better than average pub grub. Next morning we headed off for South Australia. As a small boy, James could sniff out a chocolate hidden in the deepest recess of a high, dark cupboard. He knew every corner store in walking distance from our house. Being a tidy Kiwi, he always had pockets stuffed with lolly wrappers – and he still managed to have cavity-free teeth. Naturally he knew that Coleraine was home to Glenelg Fine Confectionery, chocolate-makers. We were soon gathering up gifts for those back in Melbourne. All right, yes, and for personal consumption… Next stop was Casterton. A signpost on Henty Street, the main thoroughfare, indicated this was a street beautification project and indeed the autumn leaves on the trees on either side were a real picture. The four-wheel drive vehicles boasted layers of good honest backroad trail dust, were driven by chunky men and held bits of rural hardware and stuff for bucolic pursuits. Casterton is the home of the kelpie sheepdog and at the far end of the main street there’s a statue of a sheep with a kelpie on its back. Australia “rode on the sheep’s back” well into the 20th century. The kelpie was an integral part of pioneering life and is still an asset to farmers. Kelpies quickly became legendary for their ability to muster livestock in all types of environments and conditions. (I learned that from the sign beside Annette Taylor’s concrete and clay work.) We continued on through beautiful countryside punctuated by hundreds of trees. The sight of single large gum trees, planted in the fields to give the animals shade, brought to mind the words of the song “I think that I shall never see a poem lovely as a tree”. As we crossed the border into South Australia there was a noticeable deterioration in the standard of road upkeep. Interesting.
It was time for lunch at Red Fingers, formerly an old school house. I tried a tasting plate and a glass of local sauvignon blanc while the men tucked into a hearty sausage and bean hotpot. I noticed some of the other lunch guests cooking their own meals on a large indoor barbecue. The mantelpiece held several empty six-litre Methuselah wine bottles. I am guessing there have been a few memorable parties there! The Di Giorgio Family Wines vineyard was next. Stefano DiGiorgio, who arrived from Abbruzzi, Italy in 1952, started acquiring land and developing farming businesses in the Lucindale district near Coonawarra. Today, the family farm covers a vast area and includes cattle, sheep and wool production together with interests in horticultural produce as well as viticulture. In late 1989, the family set aside 4 hectares on their Lucindale farm for vines. Two hectares of Cabernet Sauvignon and two hectares of Pinot Noir were be planted. As a result of its success, the family moved with great speed to develop the vineyard to its 126 hectares today. During the 90s, the fruit was purchased mainly by the large winemaking companies based in Coonawarra and the Limestone Coast region. The varieties planted now encompass Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Shiraz, Chardonnay, and Pinot Noir. In 1998, the family decided it was time to produce their own bottled wines from the quality fruit being produced in the family vineyards. These wines have been nurtured through the winemaking process and are just now being released on the commercial market. Their wines are profiled here: http://www.digiorgio.com.au/The_wines1.htm. Nearby at Zema Estate the founder Demetrio Zema was manning the cellar door. He came to Coonawarra from Italy in 1959 to marry his fiancee, Francesca. He established himself as the local painter in nearby Penola. With a great passion for wine, Demetrio found Coonawarra would provide him with the opportunity to fulfil his lifelong ambition of purchasing his own vineyard and producing his own wines. The dream became reality in 1982 when Demetrio and Francesca, with two sons Matt and Nick, purchased one of the finest parcels of in Coonawarra wine region. A new cellar door, office complex and warehouse was opened a few days before we visited and the quiet Demetrio was obviously proud of it. This year marks Zema’s 25th vintage. There’s more about the Zema wines here: http://www.zema.com.au/pages/wines.html On to Jamiesons Run. The original Jamiesons Run was a remote outback sheep station owned by the Jamiesons Brothers in the mid 1800s. The winery was named as a tribute to this pioneering past. Jamiesons Run's connection with Coonawarra started in 1953 (as Mildara Wines) under the guidance of director Ron Haselgrove, who purchased what turned out to be some of the most sought after parcels of terra rossa soil in Coonawarra. Near the cellar door there is a Cabernet Sauvignon vine that is a survivor from the original Coonawarra fruit colony. It was more than 80 years’ old when it was transplanted there in 1976 from the mid area vineyard and is still bearing fruit. Must be something in grapes that is good for longevity. That’s what I told myself as I sampled the wines (showcased here: http://www.jamiesonsrun.com.au/brands/jamiesons/wines.asp). We ended our tasting tour with several bottles from each vineyard and an admiration for the men who made their dreams reality. We paused on the return journey to photograph the glorious autumn trees along the road to Penola. We certainly didn’t need a large meal that night so it was a quick amble down to a local pub and a light snack. I am totally mystified why just about every eating establishment I come across in Victoria insists on serving prawns with a risotto. Not a particularly happy marriage - at least from the prawns' point of view. I asked if I could have my garlic prawns with a salad instead, and the chef happily obliged. Next morning Hamilton’s Anzac parade was taking place as we went in search of breakfast. Well fortified, we farewelled James and set off home via the Great Ocean Road. It’s definitely the long way home but was worth it for the scenery along the way. The road wound through forest and farmland, then would emerge beside the coast. Warrnambool, on the edge of Lady Bay is the only city on the Great Ocean Road and it is a very captivating place we plan to explore more fully soon. Rugged hills and a rocky coastline punctuate the “shipwreck coast” where more than 160 ships foundered. Some are still embedded in the sand. Time and tide has also had its impact on the Twelve Apostles, impressive limestone stacks in the sea. One toppled in July last year and there are now only eight still standing. These are viewed via a well maintained boardwalk. It was nightfall by the time we reached Geelong and the freeway back to Melbourne. A long drive but an interesting one. |
We stopped by the visitor information centre in Penola and were
soon armed with a map detailing the many vineyards in the area.
We decided to limit ourselves to four so as not to confuse our
palates (and ourselves) and designated driver James pulled up
at the cellar door of Wynns Coonawarra Estate, one of the largest
and oldest vineyards in the region. We instantly recognized the
three-gable winery from Wynns wine labels. Wynns Coonawarra Estate
was founded by Scottish pioneer, John Riddoch. He recognised
the potential of a small strip of fertile red soil, the terra
rossa. He planted the vineyards in 1891. The vines were very
colourful in their autumn garb. If you want to know more about
the Wynns vintages, check out their website, Email | ©2007 Churchill Communications