With Spring finally making an appearance, albeit a brief one, it was a great time to head for the hills and spend a day enjoying what the Bickley Valley has to offer.
The scenery was green and lush with fruit trees and wildflowers providing wonderful colours everywhere you looked, and with the temperature being a warm 25 degrees, the scene was set for a fantastic day.
A small but enthusiastic group of members met in Kalamunda and ventured out onto the Hills Wine Trail, via a bush track or two.
A small but enthusiastic group of members met in Kalamunda and ventured out onto the Hills Wine Trail, via a bush track or two.
First stop was Piesse Brook Wines which will soon undergo a name change to Aldersyde Estate. One of the advantages (and delights) of visiting small family owned wineries is having the owners/growers/winemakers conducting the wine tasting sessions themselves.
Piesse Brook was no exception.
Surrounded by vats and barrels we were able to enjoy tasting the half a dozen varieties of wine they produce.
The big favourite being the rose, which was not overly sweet as many tend to be.
Several bottles of wine were purchased as we made our way out.
Piesse Brook was no exception.
Surrounded by vats and barrels we were able to enjoy tasting the half a dozen varieties of wine they produce.
The big favourite being the rose, which was not overly sweet as many tend to be.
Several bottles of wine were purchased as we made our way out.
From there it was a short drive to the beautiful Ashley Estate with its huge country house surrounded by wonderful gardens and the Piesse Brook flowing past the front door.
The cellar door was in fact the vineyard’s wine cellar located in the basement of the house.
The cellar door was in fact the vineyard’s wine cellar located in the basement of the house.
It was quite an experience to be a part of an intimate group of friends surrounded by thousands of bottles of wine and being attended to by the winemaker himself.
Ashley Estate specialises in Pinot Noir wine with vintages from 2003 to 2008 available for tasting. This was a wonderful experience in itself.
Ashley Estate specialises in Pinot Noir wine with vintages from 2003 to 2008 available for tasting. This was a wonderful experience in itself.
We were able to try to pick the subtle differences between the vintages, with one member of the group proving to be quite the connoisseur, much to everyone’s surprise, including his.
It was such a wonderful, relaxing, funny time that no-one was in a hurry to leave and no-one seemed to mind paying that little bit extra for our bottles of wine.
But lunch beckoned, so after a few nervous moments getting back onto the road we were soon at Fairbrossen Estate in Carmel.
After the obligatory wine tasting with the shiraz and champagne proving popular, we sat down at our table on the patio area of the little cafe overlooking the vines and the state forest.
Our meals were delicious and very reasonably priced with most people leaving a little bit of room for dessert. And why wouldn’t you?
After the obligatory wine tasting with the shiraz and champagne proving popular, we sat down at our table on the patio area of the little cafe overlooking the vines and the state forest.
Our meals were delicious and very reasonably priced with most people leaving a little bit of room for dessert. And why wouldn’t you?
The slices of lemon meringue pie were huge and tasted as good as they looked.
This was a fantastic way to while-away a few hours with friends.
The day had proven to be better than anyone expected.
The day had proven to be better than anyone expected.
We had chanced upon a couple of delightful little vineyards where we could take our time tasting their wines without the usual crowds, we enjoyed receiving the personal touch from the winemakers themselves in great surroundings, and we dined in style whilst basking in the warm Spring sunshine.
Thank you to those who went along and Brian for organising.
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