Margaret River Part 2

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Trip Start Mar 16, 2009 Previous
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  Margaret River, Western Australia, Australia
Sunday, April 5, 2009

Day 21. Margaret River, Western Australia.
This morning we set off around 9.00am and headed about 40km north of town to start our winery tour! We stopped off first at Yallingup Shearing Shed, home to some big merino sheep. It's basically just a shop and at 11.00am there is a shearing demonstration. As we'd arrived so early we didn't fancy hanging around a shop until the demonstration, so we had a quick look around and petted ONE friendly sheep (the others didn't want a bar of us). P.S They sell alpaca socks which looked really warm. DAD: Add that to your 'PRO' list for getting an alpaca.
Our first winery was 'Swings & Roundabouts'. By this stage it was 10.15am...god we felt like alcoholics! We sampled a few wines and the girl told us five full wine tastings was the equivalent of one standard drink. I only had 3 half samples (given the time) so I opted to drive. It was handy to know this as we never really knew how much we were drinking.
Our second winery was 'Clairault' where Aaron was the only one tasting. It was a beautiful set-up with a restaurant and outdoor area...very peaceful.
Our next stop was 'Bootleg Brewery'; as their slogan says 'an oasis of beer in a desert of wine'. What a fantastic spot! It overlooked a lake and the weather was just perfect. Aaron got a sample tray for $12 which offered samples of all 7 beers. They were very tasty and refreshing in the sunshine! We could of sat there all day...
We then moved onto Saracen Estate for lunch. Again it was a fabulous setting and the band were warming up to entertain the crowd that seemed to arrive just after Aaron and I. The food was great (although too much for us to finish) so to walk it off we headed across the dam to look around the little 'island' (all on the same estate). The place was enormous and really elegant...haven't seen a winery like it before.
We called into Gralyn, specialists in red wine and port. As it was now my turn to have a 'wee swally' I sampled all 6 ports (each of which was amazing). The lady was really lovely and we ended up buying a few bottles of port (to add to our morning collection).
We then headed back down South and went to the Witchcliffe Estate and Marron Farm. There was a beautiful pup who greeted us at the door (and refused to leave Aaron's side). We were toying with the idea of getting a Marron for dinner (basically a freshwater lobster) but they were enormous and pretty pricey, and, to be honest, I don't think it would fit in our billy anyway! We again had a few tastings...and again purchased a couple of bottles.
The Berry Farm was our final spot for a stroll and afternoon tea. Scones with fresh cream and strawberry jam...YUM! There is loads to see and do in Margaret River and I think we've managed to do quite a lot in the couple of days we've been here. It is a stunning place and huge! You can't drive for more than 500m without seeing a sign pointing to 1, 2 or 3 different wineries down small dirt tracks...then there are the ones on the main road! We were spoilt for choice but really enjoyed every one. We hadn't heard of any of the wineries we went to, so there was no expectation when tasting.
We're now fully stocked with about 12 bottles of red, white and port (should last us a few days!). I will try and hold back a couple of red for Uncle George when we catch up with them in a couple of weeks. We're now back at the caravan park and just chilling for a bit before we start dinner. We'll be setting off early tomorrow to head to Preston Beach (a few hours drive from here...not on our itinerary...just a last minute decision).
Until tomorrow...xxx

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Tasty Ale Samples	Bootleg Brewery View	Saracen Estate - Lunch	Saracen Estate - lunch again
Birdy

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