Wine Times

Greta Main was all Ours

After we left Sydney, we headed a little way north to the oldest wine valley in Australia: The Hunter Valley.  We had a bit of a spooky experience there:  our guest house, the Greta Main Pay House, was a former coal mining pay house (from the early 1900s). It was the long weekend and the owners like to keep it low key - so it was just Adam and I and five other empty rooms.  I admit that it was a bit eerie, but we took advantage of the quiet to sleep long and have quiet breakfasts reading magazines and drinking coffee.

A picnic with style.

OK - the plastic cups aren't that stylish

We had a wonderful time touring wineries and tasting olives, wines, and fine cheeses, but we also realized that our "gourmet" needs are fulfilled after about 24 hours.  One day was perfect - two was a bit much.  That said, it was awesome to see the vineyards and taste the wines of the small (Little Wine Company for example) and big (Lindemans, Tyrells, Wyndham Hill)... wineries.  Our best day was touring a few wineries, having a perfect picnic (see photo) and then going for an impromptu hike for a couple of hours.

Tasting at Tyrells

View of the Vineyard Valley

This year they left the grapes on the vines - too much rain!

Ta