... Hunter Valley Wobbly Wine Tour...

I ticked another travel experience box today. Ever since mum & Vince came back from their anniversary and enlightened me about their wine tasting experience at the Hunter Valley I've always had it on my things to do list.

So up at the crack of dawn I headed off to the sunny vineyards of the Hunter Valley for a Wobbly Wine Tour.

En route to sampling some vino we had a brief visit to the Australian Reptile Park. This was ace because we got to experience the rare sight of a funnel web spider being milked for its venom. Some crazy guy was deliberately antagonising this deadly arachnid so they'd be able to create anti-venom from its juices. Talk about a mad profession; if you met a bloke down the pub and he told you he milked spiders for a living you'd honestly think he was winding you up!

We also got to feed kangaroos at the park, and saw a gigantic Galapagos turtles, dingos and various other creatures native to the land of Oz.

Once at the idyllic spot of the Hunter Valley (located in Cessnock) we welcomed by the beautiful surroundings of gorgeous lush green vines. The place was amazing and the best bit was we were able to get up close and personal with it all; as opposed to having a coach ferrying us around to the different wineries we toured the area on bicycles. Was a great novel way to explore the region and a real giggle.

We visited three wineries including Draytons & Lindemans but Tullochs was by far the best with an amazing selection and a brilliant host. During the day we got to sample sparkling wines, whites, reds and I have a new found love of dessert wines and ports… mmmmm….Plus we got to try some rare & up-and-coming grapes and blends as well as finding out a wealth of knowledge on the vineyards, the process of making wine, and the industry on a whole. So I'm well on my way to becoming a ponsey wine buff!

This has definitely been one of my favourite trips so far and a great way to get out of the city for the day.

Now where did I put that corkscrew…

Photo: On your bike! Me outside the Lindemans' vineyards

[Next blog entry: Sydney Tuesday January 1st 2008]