28 Jul 10
a whale of a time doing sundown drinks
This is why we have booked to go there next July shhh don't tell anyone ;)
I was born in Ngara at what is now the Fig Tree Hotel in Kenya.
Went to University of Warwick in the UK, and did a degree in computer systems engineering.
Have worked all over Africa and moved to Australia in the late 90's.
Founded and still run a web design and development business in Perth Western Australia
Married with two gorgeous daughters and surrounded by awesome friends. Life is good.
This blog is my little soap box on which I plan to stand and make myself look taller :P
This is why we have booked to go there next July shhh don't tell anyone ;)
Enjoying the Perth winter? No.
Just cleaned the pool and got snapped whilst waiting for the backwash to finish.
Perth, where you can wear board shorts, a tee and thongs (flip-flops) in winter!! I am supposed to be sick with a flu!
This is how all Sundays should be!
One of the nice things about Perth is that we get the sun! Even though the morning start was a quite cool 13degrees centigrade, the sun warms you up as long as the wind is still.
Breakfast today like most Sunday's..
The town of New Norcia has buildings in a Spanish style of architecture..
It was a place of learning boys/girls school and a monastery (still is). Also has a really yummy bakery and makes the best ale!
It is one of the few places to still boast a collection of family pictures of aboriginals and possibly one of the only European settlements that treated the locals with respect..
If you go, make sure you attend prayers, it is surreal and beautiful how the monks 'sing' their prayers.. The museum and tour are well worth it.
Vino, tequila chilli & lime olives and pool..What more can you ask for?
Yes that is a big call!
We discovered a little winery and cafe called Harris River Estate tucked away some 7km from Collie, a coal mining town about 200km south of Perth in Western Australia.
Given we were a group of 20, and booking at the last minute on Easter Monday, chances of sourcing a booking in Margaret River would have been impossible. We expected the same in Collie. We were pleasantly surprised when we called HRE they said they were more than happy to accommodate us, but we will have a smaller menu to choose from (pasta, fish or steak).
When we got to the winery we were surprised there was none of the standard razzle dazzle of cellar doors that we see so much in the established wine growing regions down south. This is a simple, yet very functional labour of love establishment and it shows..
Not really sure how the pics will work if you don't have flash, also if you want to see the captions might be better to view the slide show in full screen or on the flickr site
The tasting
Whilst the kids were organised we got down to the tasting.. The wines were just to die for, and the winemaker Jane Gilham had put together some bold mixes to get away from the norm that we are all accustomed to.. enter the tickle me pink series.. As Julie Lawson (gun HR person in a former life and still provides seminars at the winery) took us through the wines, Karl Hellier the owner decided to take us all on a tour to show us how it is done..
It then dawned upon me, that we often complain about how expensive wines are at the cellar door, and how cheap bottle shops (liquor stores) are.. Our complaints are unfounded. What we pay for is literally craft fashioned from the love of wine making. Pushing the art to the limit and creating a perfect brew, has to have an artistic value to it otherwise they might as well be a Fosters production line blazing out bland drinks that are a dime to the dozen..
Just like in my industry where web design companies take pride in their work and expect to churn out stuff that is different from the rest, wineries are no different..
The Food
Scrumptious, filling and well worth the price best describes the food. The stand-outs were the grilled fish and the home made chilli sauce. Coffee left a bit to be desired but I am very fussy when it comes to coffee! At about $30 per head including the wines, dessert and Easter surcharge it was reasonably priced as well!
A big thank you to Karl, Julie and Kacey for making our visit a memorable one and I am sure we will always visit the winery if we ever pass through again!
Sunday brings Shakespeare to my world!
Saturday night brings us to the western suburbs of Perth for Pizza
Odd place to go for the humble pizza, situated on Waratah Avenue in Dalkeith
The drive to the restaurant is a sight to behold as you see all the grand mansions of old money in Perth all lit up and looking quite majestic!
When we first discovered it, it was called King Pizza and it was arguably the best pizza in Perth, Little Caesars in Mundaring is probably worth of that honour now. If wood-fired pizza's or the amazing calzone is not for you, there is plenty of traditional Italian fare to choose from.
This place is now called Lo Zucchero (think that means sugar in English) and has gone through many owners and names over the last few years.
But one thing that has stayed the same has been the quality of food.. For good Italian fare in a posh suburb with amazingly cheap and yummy food, give it a try!
website: www.lozucchero.com.au
BYO available, corkage $2.50 per wine - Question about corkage I have is with the advent of the screw top, do we call it screwage now?
Mains from $16
