Australia Road Trip: Yarra Valley Wine Region, Day 11-12

February 12, 2016 1:24 pm / John

Hi All,

We left the Prom cottage around 8 am and found our way into the Melbourne industrial area where we dropped off the Winslow liferaft and our Epirb. Both will get serviced and then shipped back to Mystic.

We then made it to our hotel in the Yarra Valley for some wine tasting. Our hotel has an excellent restaurant so after having a very long wine tasting session we had a very late lunch. Kathy had the Wagyu burger. Wagyu beef has been on the menu several places but this is the first time we have tried it. Most of the beef in Australia is pasture fed…..much leaner and healthier for you…and it must be excellent grass as the taste is quite delightful. The one steak house we went to in Sydney did have some grain fed for 30+ days that was outstanding. Wagyu beef is grain fed for 300+ days….whoa!!! We found the taste to be excellent but the texture was slightly off….almost a pureed burger…hmmmm!!

The next day we made 5 wineries….Innocent Bystander, Tarra Warra, Coldstream Hills, Soumah, and Domain Chandon. Wow…..what a day!!! We went to Innocent Bystander first because they had a cafe that opened up early and they had some great coffee and pastries…..the best almond croissant and ham/cheese croissant since the French Baker in Barra de Navidad in Mexico…yummers!! After we started tasting I liked the first 5 wines I tasted….oh no, this could get expensive….but finally there was one I didn’t like so knew the taste buds were working:)))

Coldstream Hills was founded by James Halliday, a very famous wine critic and judge and his wine scores are closely watched….like Robert Parker in the USA. The wines were excellent and the views were great!

We both liked the wines at Soumah….a veyr small boutique winery with an excellent Italian restaurant. We had lunch overlooking the vineyards and the pasta was outstanding!!

Domain Chandon: We have been drinking this sparkling wine for over 30 years now. The parent company is Moet & Chandon, the makers of Dom Perignon. The winery was very modern, excellent tasting venue and they had some of the best views. We did the Champagne sisters proud:)))

Stats:
Traveled: 150 miles to Yarra Valley; 1325 miles total
Wrong turns: 0 today; 2 total:
Kangaroo/”Roos”/Skippy count: 1 this leg; ~201 total!!!
Skippy roadside warning signs: 8 this leg, 81 total
One Way bridges: 0 today; 14 total
Hotels: Bolgownie Retreat; very nice, great 2 seat spa, pretty good view of the valley
Food: First Day: restaurant at Bolgownie; we had a very late lunch, Kathy had the Wagyu burger and I had a smoked chicken and mushroom risotto….both excellent….also some Tasmani oysters which were just ok!!
2nd day: Soumah Winery: We both had the seafood linguine….outstanding!!

LIG!!!! Hope all is well!!

John
Mystic Moon