Red snapper with Sevenhill Inigo Riesling

January 5, 2011

What a beautiful red snapper

My friend Brett Travis had given us the above red snapper before leaving on a fishing trip to Samoa. This was a wonderful opportunity for another wonderful lunch at our vineyard. We prepared the fish for a six persons meal.

Yummy veggies

It was a beautiful summers day. The fish was “crying” for a white wine too. We took the opportunity to open one of the recently acquired bottles from Sevenhill Cellars in the Clare Valley in South Australia where our mate Neville Rowe is the general manager.

The ‘2009 Inigo Riesling’ is a typical Clare Valley wine. It is young and fresh and lively. Of course I prefer German Riesling wines, and it is my view that Australian Riesling cannot reach that ultimate Riesling level which I love so much.

Sevenhill Cellars is the oldest wineries in the Clare Valley. It was founded by Jesuits in 1851 to produce sacramental wines. We enjoyed the “sacrament” with the delicious fish, and thank all our benefactors. Cheers mate.

2009 Inigo Riesling by Sevenhill, Clare Valley

Leave a Comment » | food, vineyards, wine, wine regions, wineries | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by themanfrommoselriver

Australian breakfast at Two Hills Vineyard

January 3, 2011

The mornings on our farm cum vineyard are just splendid. The sky is high and blue, the air fresh and crisp, in short it’s just gorgeous. We are having a great time out here in Glenburn, and do not miss the big city in Thailand which is our home these days. Breakfast can be simple and sweet or hearty-savoury.

The local paper and a cup of tea

“Horse over egg”, a creation by my daughter Lucy

2 Comments | general | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by themanfrommoselriver

Happy New Year from the Man from Mosel River

December 31, 2010

Greetings from Two Hills Vineyard in Glenburn, Victoria, Australia. Today, the year 2010 is coming to an end. As usual it was another busy year, a year which made us mothball our small family vineyard and wait for better times of the Australian wine industry. We are not giving up at this point in time.

Blogging has been fun and a great learning experience. Although my day job does not leave me much time for my food and wine passion, I was able to turn our a few pieces.

To all my friends, readers and followers: thank you very much for supporting me and my blog by your visits, comments and suggestions during the last year.

You folks keep me going; now that I will be entering the fifth year of “my life as a food and wine blogger”.

I wish you and your beloved ones all the best for the festive season at the turn to the new year. May you enjoy life, health and togetherness and, of course, a glass of wine here and there.

I have another poem by Jelalludin Rumi for you.

This We Have Now

This we have now
is not imagination.

This is not
grief or joy.

Not a judging state,
or an elation,
or sadness.

Those come
and go.

This is the presence
that doesn’t.

What else could humans want?

When grapes turn to wine,
they’re wanting this.

—————————
Happy New Year. Have a good start into 2011.

Leave a Comment » | vines, vineyard management, Vineyard profile | Tagged: , , , , | Permalink
Posted by themanfrommoselriver

On the farm

December 30, 2010

Goodness me how the time passes. The year is almost over. Before coming to Glenburn, I thought that I could find the time to post every day a picture at least. And now I have not touched my beloved blog for a couple of days.

Christmas was wonderful. We celebrated with family and friends and it went on for three days. I got a new camera for Christmas, a Nikon Coolpix, and I have been playing with it. The photos below come from this new toy.

Our two dams are full after all this rain

The sky is blue with beautiful clouds

And in the evening the clouds turn red

And the night sky is just fantastic

Needless to say, we drink a lot of Two Hills Merlot these days. The days are warm and the nights are cool. The air is crisp and clean. It is very quiet here, especially in the night. This is paradise, heaven on a stick so to say. More soon.

Leave a Comment » | general | Tagged: , , , , | Permalink
Posted by themanfrommoselriver

Two Hills Vineyard in November

November 16, 2010

The mothballed Sauvignon Blanc block

Today, my brother in law, Michael, send me some photos from our vineyard. The above one depicts our 2 1/2 acres of Sauvignon Blanc which have been mothballed for the coming season. It look a bit wild. I will slash the grass in a few weeks.

Michael also met a snake in the grass. Is it a black or a tiger snake? Anyway, they are all poisenous.

Thanks Michael for the great photos.

Leave a Comment » | Vineyard profile | Tagged: , , , , | Permalink
Posted by themanfrommoselriver

Wild pig from Schoden, Saar

September 15, 2010

I am afraid some of you might not like this post and the pictures which I present today. But meat comes from animals and they have to die so that we can enjoy the meals we make from it. Wild pigs are a real pest in Germany theses days, and very difficult to hunt and kill. My friend Heinz shot the little boar in Schoden, Saar.

My mother prepared a wonderful Sunday lunch with the best parts of the meat. We enjoyed it together with a bottle of our Merlot (2004 Two Hills Merlot), and I tell you that was just heaven on a stick, as we say in Australia.

Wild piglet hide

The carcass

…from a different side.

The butchered boar meat

…and in the pan

…and finally on the plate

How tender is this?

My favorite Australian Merlot

Leave a Comment » | food, food and wine, vineyards, wine, wine regions | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by themanfrommoselriver

“Rain rain rain rain beautiful rain”

September 4, 2010

This is how a song line from South Africa goes. Paul Simon and Ladysmith Black Mambazo made it famous in my circles. Now the drought in Victoria seems to have come to an end (after 13 years or so). It rains and rains in northern and central Victoria.

Of cause rain brings also destruction, landslides at Mount Buller for instance, flash floods, rivers rising, people had to be evacuated, in short chaos across the state of Victoria. In some places they had 150 millimetres.

But our dams at Two Hills Vineyard are full now. That’s the good news. I have not seen our big dam as full as now. ‘Brownies landing” is floating for the first time in years.

Dam at Two Hills Vineyard

Leave a Comment » | Vineyard profile, vineyards, wine regions, wineries | Tagged: , , , , | Permalink
Posted by themanfrommoselriver

Australia: WFA Vintage Report 2010

May 17, 2010

Two Hills Vineyard Merlot grapes 2010

The new figures are out. Today the Daily Wine News presented the Winemakers Federation of Australia (WFA) vintage report 2010. About 360 wineries participated in the survey, representing about 89% of total production.

The basic findings are well known to grape growers, vintners and wine makers. 2010 was a dreadful year especially for grape growers. The 2010 vintage of about 1.53 million tonnes (did they count my grapes as well?) was lower than 2009 (-12%) and 2008 (-5%).

The decline in white wine grapes was sharper (-14%) than the red ones (-8%), but I sold my white though almost nobody bought my Merlot and the Pinot Noir). My own experiences do not conform to the trend, I guess. Especially regarding my Pinot I must have missed something (+26% increase to 35,ooo tonnes). Or was it the other way round: because of the increased intake I could not sell my Pinot Noir?

Well the real reason is that my buyer walked out on me after a perfectly beautiful fruit which my buyer wanted to have some more days of sun was subsequently hit by rain and with it the destruction rain might bring at this time of the year.

Australia’s Sauvignon Blanc crush increased by 15%. OK, I sold all of mine. SB is still Australia’s third most important white variety after Chardonnay and Semillon.

Good that I ripped out my Cabernet (total production 213,000 tonnes), it further decreased in intake (by 14%) as did Merlot (total tonnage 109,000 tonnes), The big winner seems to be Shiraz which we unfortunately do not produce at Two Hills Vineyard. I love Australian Shiraz wines.

What does the enthusiastic Riesling drinker from the Mosel think of the Australia’s Riesling vintage: incredible, there is a 11% decrease in the crush of Riesling. Can you believe this? My most favoured wine available in much less quantity? I hope the quality shows just the opposite trend.

Leave a Comment » | wine, wine regions, wineries | Tagged: , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by themanfrommoselriver

And out they go: The exodus of vintners in Australia

April 29, 2010

The recent ABC Landline report nicely summarizes the predicament of the Australian winegrowers. A$ 250 per tonne for your fruit is just not covering costs. Grape growing has no future, it seems. I find it quite shocking somehow. The documentary depicts the individual detiny in a very touching way.

Click on the link below and watch this very informative film.

ABC Landline

1 Comment | vines, vineyard management, vineyards, wine, wine regions, wineries | Tagged: , | Permalink
Posted by themanfrommoselriver

Country meals with Rocky Passes Syrah 2005

April 24, 2010

Chicken, vegetables and cauliflower

Lunch in the vineyard is always a highlight, especially if the weather allows us to have it on the terrace outside with those spectacular valley views. Of course wine is an important ingredient in a successful lunch. We had another bottle of Rocky Passes Syrah, the 2006 vintage this time. It received 92/100 Parker Points by James Halliday.

2005 Rocky Passes Syrah

Later the same day we followed the 2006 vintage with a 2005 Syrah. I had just one bottle of the 2005 vintage left which had received a whopping 94/100 Parker Points. Vitto Oles is doing a great job on these stony slopes of Rocky Passes Estate. Good food and good wine, that’s what makes a great day. The other two ingredients are old friends and good music.

Hope you have a good Saturday yourself.

Leave a Comment » | food, Vineyard profile, wine, wineries | Tagged: , , , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by themanfrommoselriver

« Previous Entries
Next Entries »