Restoring my soul.

Having recently moved to Strathalbyn South Australia, one of the quintessential small Aussie towns I am mesmerised by the sheer number of Historic buildings and ancient trees that line the wide streets. The people are lovely and polite and yet mildly curious to this interloper. For a town with a population of around 3000 people, the pub count is 4, the cafe count is 6 (so far), the antique stores 4, secondhand book stores 4, pharmacies 3, one major supermarket chain and an organic fruit and vege store, 2 large hardware stores, a feed store and 2 aged care facilities.

I highly recommend the bookstores and the antique stores, I am yet to try the pubs as I am a solo traveller for the time being.

Yesterday I took a short 30 minute car ride to an even smaller farming community called Biggs Flat that is the home to the one and only Jurlique skin care farm. I attended the farm tour a one and a half hour information session about the herbs and flowers used in the different products produced by Jurlique. It was a very hot day so I would suggest it for perhaps a Spring or Autumn tour as it is out of doors for the majority. The visit to the giant poly tents increased the temperature to 50 degrees Celsius at one point. The tour guide was friendly and informative and answered questions with a great level of knowledge. Overall I really enjoyed my time on the farm and it is something I would do again in the future. (oh and it only cost $30)

I followed my tour up with wine and cheese pairing at Hahndorf Hill Winery Cellar door. If you didn’t guess it is just outside of the historic German Settlers town of Hahndorf. the town was very busy as it is popular with tourists which means no parking and over run cafes and pubs. So I didn’t stop in town. The Winery was a treat, I was greeted by Cheryl who was very friendly and then served by Kate who had excellent knowledge about the area and the growing region as well as tips on growing vines and the terroir of the region.

May I suggest the Wine Flight $12- you have a choice of three different flights that showcase three different wines. There is a white wine flight (which I chose) that highlights the Gruner Vetliner style of wine. I give them all a ten out of ten rating. The Reserve Gru Gruner Vetliner was astounding at $50 a bottle it is definitely be one to impress your guests at a dinner party. I purchased a bottle of the 2021 Gru Gruner Vetliner at $30 a bottle, a beautiful addition to any informal table.

I saved the Red Wine Flight and the Mixed varietal Flight for my next visits. For chocolate lovers there is a pairing platter available for $30 pp. Did you know you could pair wine with ice cream? For $25 you can delight your sweet tooth with two sweet wines and two artisan ice creams. Something to look forward too on a future visit.

The cheese platter highlighted 4 local cheeses and one imported cheese that complimented the wines perfectly. Oh and the candied ginger was sublime with the camembert. $18

To imagine these little gems only 35 minute drive through the picturesque towns of the Adelaide Hills. There is so much more to see and do, I think I will be very busy for a long time. With any luck before it becomes my home town and I take things for granted I want to play tourist for a while and take in everything South Australia has to offer.

Let the adventure begin.