A Thirsty Spirit

Seppeltsfield, founded in 1851, has the largest solera system outside of Spain. They focus on fortified wine production

In addition to the palms, there's a rose garden, the Pine Forest and the Elm Walk, where we're strolling above.

A wide range of styles was presented - from Fino-esque sherry through to XO Tawny. The Para Grand, made from Grenache, Shiraz and Mourvedre, with an average age of 18 years, was an incredible value at $32. Nutty, with caramel apple and orange blossom, it made me hungry for a cheese plate.

Yup, that bottle says 1911. In 1878, the stone cellar was completed by Benno Seppelt and to celebrate, he selected a barrel of his finest wine and gave instructions that it was not to be bottled for 100 years. This became a tradition and Seppeltsfield is the only winery still with significant, consecutive stock of over 100 years worth of vintages. This particular wine was released on February 20, 2011, to celebrate the 160th anniversary of the winery. This viscous tawny reminded us of a fine aged balsamic.

A miniature replica of the Seppeltsfield grounds prompted one of my colleagues to proclaim, "It's like a dollhouse for drunks!"

Certain to be the best tawny in the lot, at 32 years young.

South Australia received an inordinate amount of rain this past vintage, making it challenging for many producers. Stuart was quite pleased with the quality of the fruit that came in for him, though, and is showing it off to us here.

Note the press that runs along tracks so it can moved under any tank.

Stuart admonishing that this system is a babysitter and not a nanny - it should not be used to raise the kids, but rather just to watch the kids so mom and dad can hit the town.

Barrel sample of E & E Black Pepper Shiraz on the right and the current release (2006) on the left. It was fun to see how the wine will evolve.

Sevenhill was founded by Austrian Jesuits who came to South Australia as chaplains to a group of 130 Catholics, who were fleeing from political and religious oppression. The immigrants settled near the township of Clare, impressed by the fertility of the soil, and purchased 100 acres of land in 1851, naming it Sevenhill, after the Seven Hill district of Rome. Pictured here is St. Aloysuis' Church, made from local stone, and completed in 1875. We also toured its crypt, the only one below a parish church in Australia.

Some of the vines on the property are up to 140 years old.

Fortunately, no one tried to spook me while I was taking this photo.

My favorite current release Riesling was the 2010 Grosset Polish Hill; pretty orange blossom and cantaloupe notes, some herbaceousness and tons of minerality. My favorite with some age was the 2006 Paulett's Reserve; incredibly concentrated with lemon head candies and lovely petrol notes.

Taking a morning stroll through the Kaiser Stuhl Conservation Park in Eden, we were able to see our first kangaroos at a photograph-worthy distance.

In addition to grazing, I saw them kissing.

I also saw them hopping (duh).

Our group, among the gums. I am thankful for such a lovely bunch of folks, as we are spending an ungodly amount of quality time with one another. I wonder how many bottles of wine have been consumed between us so far? I bet someone has been keeping track. I may or may not publish that number.

On our way to Adelaide, we passed through a high koala traffic area.

Turns out that in the tree next to the caution sign along the highway, we spotted a koala.

It was lovely to be greeted by the setting sun and top Clare Valley winemakers after a long day of traveling.

At this point on the trip, we were 2 for 2 when it came to hilltop oysters. This time the pairing was Riesling instead of Semillon.

Winemaker from Paulett's with slate in his hands. Friable and plentiful, this soil contributes to the flavor of the Clare Valley Rieslings.

While visiting the Paulett winery, we had the opportunity to sample 2 different Riesling clones, grown and processed under the same conditions. Distinct aromatic and flavor differences were evident in the two tank samples we tried, despite the shared vintage year and winemaking techniques.

We ended up with Pinots from California, Burgundy, Switzerland, Italy and New Zealand. A few folks had the same idea of bringing Pinots from Central Otago because it is the most southerly wine region in the world. Even with a Premier Cru Burgundy in the mix, the group favorite was a 2006 Staete Landt from Marlborough, NZ.

Grilled pork tenderloin with beluga lentils, bacon and ramps. We thought the dish was a good representation of our spring - a lot of brown with finally some green coming through!

A new transmission, body work to remove the rust spots, and a winter spent in a garage - she's like new and ready for the 2011 camping season!