Week Two - Melbourne....a way of life

I think you only truly take life in properly when you're not working...not on holiday rather not having a job. 

Having travelled this way twice in my life now I know this is when you truly open your mind, lift your head and take in everything and everyone around you.  It frees your mind to be curious where a holiday doesn't (they're never long enough or subconsciously a little bit of our heads is already planning for the return to work etc).

So given my privileged position of not working at the moment, here's what my mind has been opened to this week...

...Melbourne is not just a city, it is the most amazing, vibrant way of life.

It starts very early here....on a walk at 7am you'll be surrounded by people walking, running, cycling, playing volleyball, rugby, cricket, golf, rowing, working out with personal trainers, doing yoga.....and all on a work day.

By 8am the cafés are starting to fill up for the ritual of catching up over one of the best coffees in the world (the first thing you have to do on a visit to Melbourne is grab a coffee...they are a step apart for some bizarre reason), or over lunch where the variety of cuisines, the colours, smells and taste of the foods ignite every sense.  On a visit to NSHRY on Beaconsfield Parade at lunchtime I ordered fish and chips.  However here they aren't what you'd expect in the UK.  The fish comes in a sesame coating and served with a beautifully dressed salad, wasabi infused tartare sauce and Thai dressed rice noodles with a few chips.  It's a taste sensation.

There's always something going on in this city....this week has been the Australian Open tennis, soon it's the Australian Grand Prix, concerts, fashion weeks, horse racing...you name it.  And more informally you have some of the quirky things they do which show Melbournians at their confident fun loving best.  This week it was a piano at Flinders St Bridge right next to the train station which had been gifted for anyone to play....and they did.  Crowds gathered to hear impromptu concerts by anyone and everyone who was passing....brilliant.

Then there is just the city itself...compact enough you have the sense of being in a village where the beach meets the CBD.  Beautiful besch communities, stunning Victorian architecture, the parks (Albert Park has to be one of the best), the botanic gardens, the Yarra river and all the life that exists on its banks.....it's stunning.

And beyond the city there are a myriad of options.  With my current focus on all things wine, I took myself down to Mornington Peninsula to visit three wineries around Red Hill...Montalto, 10mins by Tractor and T'Gallant.

By a country mile Montalto stood out on all fronts....the setting, the food, the friendliness and enthusiasm of the staff for the wine they were presenting and obviously the wine itself (more to follow on that).

The rest of this week had been about catching up with my amazing set of Melbourne friends who once again pulled out all the stops to make sure we could catch up and who's hospitality is never ending.  Thank you all.

So I raise my glass to Melbourne...the epitomy of a healthy, happy, fun loving, energetic, inclusive, relaxed, friendly way of life.

During my time in Melbourne I...

....HUNG OUT in Port Melbourne, Middle Park and Albert Park....my favourite suburbs that I wish I'd had the foresight to buy property in when I first arrived 16 years ago when prices and exchange rates were very favourable...

....WINED ON...many wines at Montalto but was blown away by their 2012 Montalto "Estate" Pinot Noir, 2013 Pennan Hill Moscato and their 2013 Pennon Hill Pinot Grigio; a refreshing, zesty, citrus wine which became the perfect partner for the beautiful dinner of Oysters Kilpatrick, Scallops with garlic butter and butterflied prawns, crushed potatoes and pea shoots cooked by my dear friends The Sadlers....

....DINED ON....many beautiful meals but the stand outs have to be the two places I dined on pizza...Oscars in Errol Stret and Ragazzi in Middle Park where Effie has been welcoming me back with a huge bear hug and many compliments for the last 10 years...and my friends The Mullis family and I have been ordering pretty much the same meal for the last 11 years!!

Next time....Christchurch and Blenheim

Week One - London Town

It's Wednesday 15th January 2014; my brothers birthday.  It's 9:30am.  In front of me are three white wines, two red wines and a dessert wine.  "Let's taste the first one" says our tutor Jim.  I know I'm renounced for enjoying my drinks but this may even be pushing it too far for me...

I arrived in London on Monday at the start if a trip and a transition to a new career that has been months in the planning (ask my work colleagues).  In the one hand it was bizarre that it was happening but on the other it had been so meticulously planned that it went without saying.

Once again my dear friend Lindsey had very graciously let me stay with her for a week whilst I undertook my Wine Society Education Trust (WSET) Level 2 course....the beginning of turning me from someone who thinks they know something about wine to one who realises they know nothing and back out the other side.

By way of background, I decided a couple of years ago it was time to go find a career I loved rather than one I'd been trained to do (I may regret writing this if I end up back in the corporate world).  After two stalled attempts at actually leaving (I always thought you needed the grand master plan and I didn't have it) everything suddenly fell into place.  I love the artistry and creativity of wine and winemaking....I want to be a part of it.  I'm 40, I'm off my head....ah well time to give it a go and see what happens.

So I'm in London, I'm on a WSET course and I have no idea what comes next.

The course has been fantastic.  Intense (I know what you're all thinking...it's wine....you're drinking it all day...what's hard....well you try working out the geography of the regions and sub regions of France and the best wines that come from each.....if you're interested I may run some wine tasting courses in the future and explain it all in lay mans terms).

What did I learn....well aside from the technicalities I won't bore you with:

1. I can taste and evaluate a wine without swallowing
2. On the premise of (1) my limit is about 18 wines a day
3. I have; subconsciously; been visiting wine regions of the world for years and am very fortunate to have travelled as much as I have.....Italy, Sicily, France, Spain, Napa Valley (USA), Margaret River, Yarra Valley, Rutherglen, Hunters Valley, Mornington Penninsula (all Aus), all of NZ, Stellenbosch and Franschoek (South Africa)
4. With what I have learned I have to travel to these places again with a "wine connoisseur" hat on....this year Yarra, Mornington, South Island NZ, South America, Brighton (England).

So week two starts with me here in a lounge at Heathrow flying out to Aus and NZ.  Next big stop....2 months in a vineyard / winery in NZ.

I'll keep you posted.

During my time in London I....

....HUNG OUT in Blackheath.....if you're in London don't miss it.... A great suburb with brilliant shops, cafés, farmers markets and more importantly a massive Heath filled with sporty sorts, kite surfers, walkers, strollers, duck feeding, the church where Terry Waite worked...all set against a juxtaposed view of Canary Whsrf...the centre of UK capitalism...

....WINED ON....too many to mention from the course but Sainsbury's Winemaker Selection Albariño from Rais Baixas....balanced perfectly with Jamie Oliver's Mustsrd Chicken.....

....DINED ON....The Railway Pub, Blackheath's Roast Norfolk Pork with all the trimmings and apple and sage sauce YYYUUUMMM.

Til the next time...

Happy birthday brother....and hope the boys loved the pics of the only thing they were interested in....Big Ben