I am the Walrus, but I'm not crying, I am smiling.

"I am he as you are he as you are me and we are all together,

  See how they run like pigs from a gun, See how they fly. I'm crying"

6.30pm Wednesday 18th April, 2012.

I'm not sitting on a cornflake waiting for the van to come. I am sitting in the back seat of a SaaB 340 waiting for my favourite REX air hostess, Rachel, to bring me a coffee, and writing this blog post on a 'sick bag' which is the only accessible piece of paper I have.  I know, right? Never miss an opportunity to write a story and my writing hand has been itchy but work has kept me very, very busy. As I sit on the plane, I am feeling most reflective and have just realised that I am sitting here with the most satisfied smile on my face. Perhaps in my work attire, it is not unexpected. Perhaps after my efforts of the past three or so years, it is not surprising. And my efforts of the past fifteen days have been enormous.

I met Rachel about a month ago when I flew to NSW for a job interview. I had a seat at the very front of the plane, just across from Rachel's seat. We had a lovely chat during the flight and I must say that I have been most impressed with all of the REX staff that I have dealt with in my recent travels, particularly Rachel who tonight could see how exhausted I was after working twelve hour days for fifteen days, with only three days off in between. She gave me a lovely smile and then handed me a pillow to rest my weary head. Noticing that I was in my work clothes (and remembering that when we first met I was on my way to an interview) she sincerely congratulated me on my success in getting the job that I wanted so much.

I have been away from the Barossa and my home for fifteen days only but in so many ways it feels like months. 'Time' has always been something that the concept of I struggle with, in every way, but moreso in recent weeks. Where I work now, I do not need to know what day it is and I don't, until it is time to pack my bags and head to the airport. I am at work well before the sun rises and back 'home' as it is setting. I have made new friends and look forward to meeting more people in the the future months.  I have turned my back on and walked away from my home, the Barossa and the wine industry. I never foresaw this and do no regret it. I thought I would be selling wine for the next five or ten years at the Collective Barossa wine sales outlet.

Life, like death, changes everything. And everything has changed for me. I love it. I love my new job, I love the part of Australia where I now work, I love my friends for being the amazing people that they are, for so many of them have helped and continue to help me with this new phase of my life.

I have done things in the past weeks that I never thought I could or would do. I have faced many fears and conquered most of them, so my piece of advice to you all is to embrace change, work hard and surround yourself with good people because no matter who you are or what you do, the world will truly be your oyster. Tomorrow never knows.

Cheers for now,

Marie

A few of my own Barossa Secrets.

I seem to have written a lot of blog entries recently on the McLaren Vale region, which I obviously love, so thought it was time to give my own region a bit of coverage. The Barossa is home to an astounding amount of wineries - some long established, others much newer. There are so many to choose from but of course, I do have my favourites; favourites to take my visitors to, for not only wine, but perhaps for the gardens or historical buildings (Rockford, Yalumba, Henschke), and my own favourite wines (Soul Growers, McLean's Farm, Loan, Hart of the Barossa, Kurtz, Michael Hall, Tim Smith, Gumpara, Wroxton). I often struggle to decide which bottle to open at night, when I am home and it's no wonder why. There is so much to love about the Barossa, wine-wise, but we also have an amazing array of gourmet goodies, and some much lesser known than the Maggie Beer range, or the meats from Schulz Butchers in Angaston, so I would like to share some of my favourite food places with you in this post.

Firstly, whilst many visitors to our area know of the Angas Park range of dried fruits, not many have discovered my ultimate favourite place to get special fruit goodies. A few kilometres out of Angaston on the northern side (the road to Moculta) there is a turn off onto a quaint country road called Gawler Park Road. Almost two kilometres along this road, on the left hand side, is a divine family business called Gully Gardens. The orchard has been tended for many, many years by the Steicke family (whom our family have known for a very long time) and they now have a gorgeous little shop (next to the same shed that I have sat in and cut freshly picked apricots for them) where you can buy their beautiful tasty produce, either dried or fresh.

Gully Gardens is owned and operated by Rick and Rosemarie Steicke with the help of their family. Some of their dried fruit specialties are apricots, nectarines, peaches, pears, prunes, minced products, confectionery, chocolate dipped fruit, goodie baskets and gift lines. Their fresh fruit in season includes apples, apricots, nectarines, peaches, pears and plums. They are open on Thursdays and Fridays from 9.30am to 3.00pm, Saturdays 9.00am to 12.00pm or by appointment. I highly recommend a visit there and as you will see from the photos with this blog entry, it is more than worth it.

Next on the list is Victoria and Frances McClurg's sensational Barossa Valley Cheese Company. Every time that I walk into this shop, it is a feast for the senses. Victoria, Frances and their small band of helpers make the cheese on-site and it really is an asset to the region, with the cheeses winning many awards already. The inspiration for this business was Victoria's travels through France, and she also did three vintages over there. She was incredibly impressed with France's love of cheeses so on her return to Australia she set about starting up her own gourmet cheese business, and this is the result of that, and her business partner and Mother, Frances, passion and hard work.

Their range of hand-made artisan cheeses include Vache Curd, Peri Feta, Babybert, Barossa Camembert, Barossa Brie, St. Kitts, Washington Washrind, Wanera, Petit Prince, and Petite Princess. The Barossa Valley Cheese Company is open Monday to Friday 10.00am to 5.00pm, Saturday 10.00am to 4.00pm, Sunday 11.00am to 3.00pm. You can visit their website here: www.barossacheese.com.au They are located at 67b Murray Street, Angaston.

Finally, my favourite place in Tanunda for a light lunch or coffee: Keil's Coffee & Fine Foods is a little cafe' at 63 Murray Street, Tanunda, and a visit to them is one of my daily habits (their fabulous coffee often helps me get through the day after only five or six hours sleep, when I am working at the Collective Barossa shop:)

They have the most divine range of home-made cookies, slices, cakes, wraps, quiches and other light and lovely lunches. Shortly, they will be also offering freshly made fruit and vegetable juices. Their coffee is sensational and they also sell bulk packets of it, and a small range of other goodies, such as olive oil and olives. I send a lot of my Collective Barossa customers there as it is only a few minutes walk, and some of them have even popped back into the shop to say thanks for the recommendation (a sure sign that I am on the right track when I say that Keil's is a great place for a cuppa and a bite to eat:). The staff are always friendly and though it's small, it's comfortable and cosy. Keil's Coffee and Fine Foods is open Monday to Friday 7.30am to 5.00pm, Saturday 8.30am to 5.00pm, Sunday 9.00am to 4.00pm. Closed on Christmas Day.

So there you have it, three of my favourite non-wine Barossa Secrets. Make sure you put them on your list when next visiting the region. You will love them all!

There's no business like wine business.....

Wine Business Magazine's Top 100 regional focus this month was on the Barossa, or more specifically small wineries from the Barossa. A new group has been formed recently - the Barossa Small Winemakers Group - and we are one of about 70 wineries involved with the group. It is certainly an interesting mix from the sub-regional aspect. When you attend a BSWG meeting you have the opportunity to see and taste the fantastic standard of wines and quickly realise that our combined produce is something that we should all be very proud of.

We were most fortunate to be included in an editorial in the current edition (March 2009) of WBM's Top 100 - a magazine primarily for the trade sector of the wine industry.

Here is what the editorial said in regards to Karra Yerta:
Family Affair: "History and heritage surrounds the families in the Barossa, just as it does the vines.
James and Marie Linke of Karra Yerta Wines both originally hail from Angaston but have lived in Flaxman's Valley since 1985.
Their ancestors, the Linke and Pohlner families, arrived at Port Misery (Port Adelaide) in 1847. The Pohlners, early pioneers of Flaxman's Valley, were the third largest landholders in the area in the 1900's. In 1910 Charlie Pohlner still owned between 4,000 and 7,000 acres, but over time the land was broken up and sold off (or divided up due to marriages) to other now well-known families in the area: Argent, Randall, Zander and Thorn. The precious old, dry-grown Flaxman's Valley vineyard that produces their Eden Valley Riesling and Shiraz is situated on a high ridge in Randall-Town, neighbouring the vineyards of Chris Ringland and Greg Hobbs. All three vineyards were planted by the Randall families in the early 1900's. The restoration of the Karra Yerta vineyard is an ongoing venture, currently consisting of 50 year old Frontignac, 80 year old Riesling, 80 year old Semillon, 50+ year old Shiraz and 10 year old shiraz. This small family business grew from a ten-year hobby and annual production is just around 350 cases."

Click on the group photo below (I'm in the foreground at far right:) to have a closer look at which wineries were involved. To read the main articles on the Barossa, and for all of the small wineries contact details, buy a copy of the March edition of WBM. For information specific to the BSWG phone Jan Angas on 0414639088.

The sad loss of a true Barossa Icon

There has been a long time between blogs on this wine page and that is because business has, to a point, taken a back seat as we deal with other issues. James and I have been grappling to understand life and the fragility of it over the past weeks. Time is certainly our most precious resource but we often do not realise it.

One of our dearest friends, Mark Short, who was well-known in the Barossa Valley and beyond for having one of the most amazing collections of antique Barossa Germanic furniture and other historical collectables has just passed away after a month long battle with pancreatic cancer. Although he had been ill for a few months, none of us were aware of the severity of his illness, including him. The decline in his health was so fast that it sent us and our closest circle of friends into a spin. He was an amazing man - a true Barossa Icon - who we shared many fun times with over the past twenty-five years. His passing will leave a void in our life that can never be filled.

Some of you may remember meeting Mark at our "Afternoon in Eden" wine event last November. He provided the antique furniture - the tables we sat at and benches, and the many other items that were on display. We had planned to have an exclusive event displaying more of his furniture in a combined showcase/wine-tasting weekend with Rik Eubel, one of the Barossa's finest furniture restorers, but alas, this never eventuated.

If there is any good news to come out of this however, it is likely that quite a few significant pieces of Mark's collection are going to be purchased by another local businessman to place in a Barossa Museum so as to keep some of the Barossa's heritage in the area. This is a lovely gesture and one that gives us and many other of Mark's friends some comfort as his furniture was his life and it was so important for him to "keep some of the best things in the Valley".

I guess it's times like this that make us all reassess what is important in life. Running a business is always hard work and we often do not take time out to do things we should, so even though we have to continue to work hard at selling and making our wine, we are committed to finding more balance in life so that we can spend more time with people we care about and to find at least some level of fulfilment in life each day.

The photo with this blog is of Mark with an antique (completely wooden) Barossa rake. It was taken at the end of our wine-tasting day in November 2007. His passion for his collectables and furniture gave him so much happiness in his short life. He was only 51. He left us far too soon but now at least his pain is over and he can finally rest. RIP "old matey".

Our sincerest sympathies to Mark's wife, Genny, his daughters Melissa and Emma, step-daughter Kylie and the rest of his family.

"There is no dark side of the moon really. Matter of fact it's all dark." PINK FLOYD