Shoalhaven Delights
Illawarra Mercury
Wednesday May 21, 2008
Enjoy an epicurean escape this June long weekend and treat your taste buds to the culinary delights of two food and wine festivals, writes BREE FULLER.
Reclining on a blanket under the warm afternoon sun, sipping a glass of wine and admiring the beautiful surroundings is one way you could spend the June long weekend.Or, for the more adventurous, perhaps a helicopter joy flight or a winemaking course would be a great way to pass the time.Whether you're looking for the perfect excuse to laze around, or are keen to get out and about, the Shoalhaven Coast Winter Wine Festival has activities and entertainment suited for everyone.Eleven Shoalhaven wineries and vineyards will throw open their cellar doors to thousands of visitors over the three-day festival period.Nestled among the fertile Shoalhaven hills or set along the scenic coastline, each of the 11 venues will host a variety of activities suitable for families, couples and groups. Shoalhaven Coast Wine Industry Association president Shayne Bricker says that the beautiful locations and interesting activities will be a successful combination for the region's fifth wine festival."All of the wineries will either have food and/or entertainment - so it's like one large festival in multiple locations," Bricker says."Each year it has gotten bigger and bigger and last year's festival was 50 per cent bigger than the year before that. Last year there were more than 2000 visitors to the events and there was miserable weather, so we're hoping for even more (visitors) this year."Festival patrons will be able to tap along to a jazz performance, enjoy a winemaking tour, take in an art exhibition, watch cheese-making demonstrations, and take helicopter joy flights (Silos Estate only).For those looking to gorge themselves, several vineyards will hold gourmet barbecues, luncheons and dinners using some of the Shoalhaven's finest produce. The first 100 patrons to purchase wine at each of the cellar doors will be able to take home a free sample bag of some yummy Shoalhaven produce. The small boutique wineries found in the Shoalhaven provide the perfect opportunity for budding wine enthusiasts to taste some wines and learn more about the winemaking process, Bricker says."The wineries in the Shoalhaven are all family owned - so usually the person who is serving you behind the bar also tends to be the owner or the owner/winemaker. "So there is a more intimate feeling and you get more education than you would if you went to a commercial winery where they just have an employee behind the counter."Visitors can create their own wine trail, or choose to use the loop coaches that will be running between the eight northern cellar doors. Bricker says that between the various foods, wines, musical acts and entertainment - there will be something for everyone.Shoalhaven Coast Wine RegionClimate: Temperate.Region's best-produced wine types: Semillon, verdelho, chardonnay, chambourcin and cabernet sauvignon. Cellar Doors: 13.Vineyards: 21.Vineyards with labels: 19.Harvest: Mid-February to mid-MarchGrowing season rainfall: 737mm.
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