Today (sadly) was the last winery tour I would be going on for this trip. I was picked up at 9:00 a.m. sharp by Oscar, our driver for the day, and joined a family from Northern Ireland (although one of the offspring lives outside London and the other and her fiancé live outside Perth), and a newlywed couple from Seoul, South Korea.
The drive to Mt. Tambourine, where there are a half dozen or so wineries, took just over an hour taking us through the Brisbane traffic and up into the mountain countryside past more horse farms than I could count. By just after 10:15 we were pulling into our first stop of the day, Witches Falls Winery (which actually proved to be my favourite winery of the day). The winery provided us with a printed tasting menu (always a good touch) and an option to buy cheese, crackers and meats. I ended up buying some cheese and crackers and the other folks bought some crackers and meats and there was so much food we ended up sharing all that we had bought (while we fought off the Australian magpies that flocked to our table once the food was brought out).
So as far as wines are concerned, first up was a 2023 Provenance Vermentino, a lovely white wine that all the women agreed was the best of the six we tried. Ironically, the next wine we tried, a 2023 Provenance Fiano, was the favourite of the men.
We tried one additional white wine, a 2023 Wild Ferment Chardonnay, which we all agreed was a bit too oaky for our tastes. We then turned to the reds with a 2021 Wild Ferment Aglianico first up, which was quite a full bodied red and was one of my favourites for the day.
The fifth wine we tried was a 2023 Provenance Shiraz, which I found a bit too spicy for my taste. The final wine was a 2022 Wild Ferment Lambrusco, which was spectacular. Great legs, full bodied and very, very smooth. Easily the best wine of the lot we tried all day.
So after we finished the wine tasting at Witches Falls Winery, we headed to Hampton Estate Wines where we were also going to have lunch. Now Hampton Estate Wines is apparently a big wedding venue (in fact the area was being set up for a wedding this evening). Sadly, I found the wines at this winery were mediocre at best. I think the whole wine tasting was a bit off putting for me because the fellow who was doing the pouring thought he was a comedian and kept trying to be funny when he clearly was not funny in the least.
Anyway, we started out with a NV Sparkling Rose, which was OK, although not really my cup of tea. This was followed by another sparkling wine, a NV Sparkling Brut, which I did not like at all. The third wine was a choice of a 2021 Classic Red or a 2023 Classic White. I opted for the red, but thought the wine was too bitter for my taste. The last wine we tried was clearly the best, a 2019 Tempranillo. This wine was full bodied and the smoothest of the lot. We later learned that the wines we had been served were what they called the “wedding wines”, the standard menu of wines served for weddings at the site. They apparently have higher end wines, but we were not served those so all I can say is the wedding wines left a lot to be desired.
Now lunch was another story. I opted for the roast chicken with mashed potatoes and asparagus and the meal was absolutely delicious. And desert was a chocolate tartlet that was perfection. Too bad the wines did not match the food.
Anyway, after lunch, we wandered around the site taking in the venue before piling back in the van and making a brief stop at a lookout point on Mt. Tambourine. In addition to the gorgeous views, there was a lovely indigenous statute on the site called “Visiting Earth Angel” dating to 2008. The inscription on the statute read “Gracing us with its presence, and calling for a renewal of our connection with nature, the Angel offers us hope, guidance and a moment for inner reflection.” I thought it was lovely.
So from here, we drove down a country road to Mason Wines. Now I found this place a little (OK a lot) off putting. The lady who served us the wines was about as friendly as a hungry pit bull. She dripped wine on the table, did not provide us with any background on the wines and rushed us through the tastings. Not a great experience. And of the five wines we tried, only one was what I would call really good. In fact one of the wines was so bad, we all asked for a bucket to toss it.
Anyway, first up was a 2021 Semillon Sauvignon Blanc. The wine was OK, but I thought it was a bit too bland. The second wine was a 2022 Verdello. This wine was a bit too biting for my tastes. Not smooth at all. The third wine was the 2022 Rose that was absolute crap and the one wine we all agreed on needed to be simply tossed.
The next wine we tried was a 2021 Petit Verdot Cabernet. This wine was actually not too bad, although not close to the wines we had at Witches Falls. The last wine was the best of the lot, a 2022 Cellar Collection Shiraz. This wine had great legs, would have paired well with a steak and was really smooth to drink.
So after the wine tasting, we wandered the grounds for a bit before heading back to the van. As we were walking back to the van, I heard these birds chirping and wondered what they were. I went looking and found two gorgeous pale headed rosellas. I took a few pictures and sadly the others missed the birds because they were already back in the van.
Anyway, from here, our last stop of the day was easily the most enjoyable. We drove through the little village of Mt. Tambourine to the Tambourine Mountain Distillery where all sorts of liqueurs and spirits are distilled. In fact, the list of tastings on tap was absolutely enormous and the inside of the distillery looked like a science lab. There were bottles of liqueurs everywhere as well as bottled ingredients covering almost a quarter of the main room. (And sadly, I never did find out what the ingredient “worm wood” was all about.)
And the proprietor of the shop was an absolute no nonsense hoot. When we dilly dallied with one of our tastings she chastised us. I loved this woman.
Anyway, we were given four different tastings starting with my absolute favourite of the day, Wattle Toffee. It tasted like caramel alcohol. It was divine. The second tasting was Lemon Myrtle Vodka and there was no sipping this one. On the count of three we had to hell ypa (Ukrainian for cheers), down the shot, breath in through our nose and then slowly exhale. The result is an icy sensation in your mouth. Pretty cool. I also loved the tribute to Ukraine.
The third tasting was our choice and I opted for Dutch Salty Licorice and it really tasted like a cross between black licorice (my favourite) and ozo (another favourite). It was spectacular. The last tasting was lemoncello and was, surprisingly, my least favourite. We were told that the lemoncello is different from Italian lemoncello in that this lemoncello contains about 20% more lemons. Not sure if that was the difference or not, but just was not my cup of tea.
So with that, our winery/distillery tour at Mt. Tambourine came to an end. The folks on tour with me had been great and the first and last stops had been fabulous. I have more day left in Brisbane and am planning on visiting the Lonesome Pine Koala Reserve tomorrow via a boat trip along the Brisbane River. The weather is supposed to be rainy tomorrow so I may opt out. Playing the wait and see game. Then on Saturday, it is on to Papua New Guinea.