You know when you get those weeks that don’t seem to be quite real in how fast they’ve gone? That was last week. It’s been bananas.
Thankfully, we love bananas so we’ve kind of enjoyed all that’s been going on. You might remember we went to Marysville in regional Victoria the week before. Well, this week just gone we visited the Hunter Valley – New South Wales’ premier wine region. At the same time we’re organising our home and office moves and preparing for a trip to Tasmania in the second week of September.
The good news is we’ve survived. The even better news is it’s provided some pretty fine Instagram material!
Here’s our week just gone in our favourite photosharing platform:
Now we’re back in Sydney, it doesn’t seem quite real that we were just here. Buxton Trout and Salmon Farm in the next town from Marysville, Victoria. You can come here and catch your own fish dinner or just grab a pot of feed and watch the fish go into an eating frenzy with this magnificent backdrop.
Visiting this fish farm is one of our top things to do when you come to this beautiful part of Australia.
Also on the list of top reasons to visit Marysville, Victoria is the drive. This is part of the Black Spur – an incredible winding stretch of bitumen that takes you through amazing alpine forests up into the mountains and through the Yarra region.
Back in Sydney, we’ve gone to one of my favourite places for ribs and burgers. It’s called Ribs n Burgers as a matter of fact. What can I say – I don’t like food surprises!
I’ve gone for the slow-cooked spare rib burger (best of both delicious worlds) and Mrs Romance has opted for the bunless version – a whole rack of ribs! We’re here hanging out with our mate Jess and her mum in the Zetland branch of RnB. Check it out if you’re ever in the area. I’ve never been disappointed.
How’s this view? It’s just sensational, isn’t it?
It’s the outlook from the cellar door of the Scarborough family’s vineyard. In the distance you can see the bluff of the end of the Brokenback Range, which is a spur of the Great Dividing Range that runs the full length of the east coast of Australia.
Not a bad place to come a taste some beautiful wine, is it?
We’re here visiting Ian ‘Scarbie’ Scarborough and his lovely family. We can’t wait to get to know these amazing people a bit more – and their wines! The Scarborough family have been making the family label since the ’70s and they follow the traditional styles of the region.
Scarborough Wine Co is famous for their Chardonnays – and as you may know, we’ve been exploring the renaissance of this variety recently. So we’re excited to see what’s going on here.
If you’re going to visit the Hunter Valley, you might as well do it in style with a bit of romance. This is our astounding bathroom at the opulent Spicers Vineyard Estate just down the road from Scarborough Wines.
Not bad, is it? You should see the rest of the suite!
Tonight, we’re lucky enough to be having dinner with Scarbie himself, Sally his daughter, Jerome his son and of course his remarkable wife Merralea. We’ve also had the pleasure to meet and dine with Mark and Belinda Stapleton, who run Spicers Vineyard Estate. Mark is the executive chef of Botanica, the restaurant that’s part of the retreat here.
The food is ridiculously tasty, the company’s awesome and the wine is so good we’re really not looking forward to tomorrow when we have to leave.
Back in our room at Spicers, we’re relaxing with a complimentary cocktail brought round by the hotel staff and the crackling fire they’ve built for us while we’ve been out.
In the past I don’t think we’ve really seen the beauty of the Hunter Valley. But having this wine region explained to us by a local and by people in the wine industry, we’re starting to understand what this place is about. We can’t wait to share our new-found knowledge with you very soon.
Once again, we’re back in Sydney and celebrating with a big ol’ breakfast.
Why are we celebrating, you may ask. Well, we’ve just moved. Yup, we’ve finally left our little spot in Surry Hills after 10 years! We’re also celebrating because our awesome friends from San Diego – Mona and Brendan – are visiting. Just in time to help shift some boxes!
Just kidding. They timed it perfectly to just walk straight out to the pub with us for a hard-earned drink!
My new commute into the city looks a bit different, I must say. I’m glad I’ve got to get used to this. I don’t suppose it’s going to be quite as much fun when it’s raining though!
How was your weekend? What’s your commute to work like? Have you ever visited Scarborough Winery? Tell us all about it in the comments!
Daisy
Love the Hunter, and yes I have visited Scarborough wines before! They have such a lovely property and yummy wines, I remember walking out with quite a few bottles. Next time you head up there check out EXP restaurant at the Oakvale vineyard (close to Scarborough), seriously the last word in amazing ‘experiential’ dining. Hope you’re enjoying the new crib, that commute will be so lovely. Even after 7 years of getting the train across the harbour it never ceases to amaze how beautiful our city (and harbour) is.
Daisy xo
Mr Romance
Thanks for the tip, Daisy. Ian Scarborough actually recommended Oakvale as one to visit, so next time we’re up there (and I can’t wait for that), we’ll have to head over and check it out.
The move’s gone fairly smoothly, thanks. I’m sure we’ll be happy in our new pad – just takes a bit of getting used to. It’s a pleasure to see a different side to our lovely city (and harbour 😉 ) – I certainly don’t get bored of it!
Jxx