Explore with Fran

Join me on the journey as I travel, eat, and drink my way around the world

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My travel DNA

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As I plan to embark on perhaps one of my biggest adventures, my thoughts turn to how I actually got here. I’m not sure when it happened. Or whether it was something that occurred suddenly. But, I definitely have a gene in me that is wired for travel. You could say that it is in my DNA. And has been for a very long time. Am I a “traveller” by definition? Is there even such a thing?

It wasn’t always like this. Up to the age of 23, I had only ever left the country twice on overseas holidays. And both for scarcely homesick inducing periods of 1 week each. Holidaying at Butlins through my childhood, I first ventured on a plane at 17 years of age for a week in Tunisia, followed by a week in Ibiza the year after.

So what happened to me? How did I develop into this itinerant nomad? Where did my peripatetic lifestyle come from? It could probably be traced back to a chance conversation in 1993 with my old mucker, Steve. “Fancy doing a bit of travelling?”, I asked. “Where to?” was Steve’s first response” After ruling out Europe, too close, we decided on Australia, on the basis that we had heard it was “warm there isn’t it?”.

And there we were, in the departure lounge of Manchester airport, Steve’s dad carrying his rucksack, and my mum worryingly checking out my fellow passengers. Astutely noticing that many of them were of a foreign appearance, I had to remind her that was because I was flying to Bangkok, the first step on a 12 month working holiday to Australia.

Almost 20 years later, my travel cravings remain hard to satiate. Long backpacking trips around South America and much of the rest of the world just leave me returning with an always-increasing travel bucket list. I meet people who have been to corners (metaphorically speaking) of the globe that just invite exploration. Lists of must see sights and cultures.

As I plan to make the move to start a new life down under, I muse whether this will be the start of the end of my constant global wanderings, or whether it will just be another start.

Should I put the iron away and travel?

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I have loved travel for most of my life.  And when I say travel, I don’t mean holidays. (Although, I do bloody love holidays).  I mean what I would call real travel.  Not cocooned in some 5 star hotel, plumping my pillows, and bedding down in Egyptian cotton sheets of the highest quality thread count, whilst the locals can’t afford food and drink, let alone shelter.  Not soothed by air conditioning when the locals live in temperatures that could cook an egg.

And not visiting a place, to stay imprisoned within the confines of a resort, owned by an overseas conglomerate, never to venture outside, to interact with the locals.  No.  I want to sample some amazing street food.  I want to smell the spices.  I want to be visually bombarded with colour, and activity.  I want to contribute to the local economy, not the faceless one.

When people tell me they have been to a certain country, when in fact they never left their international hotel resort drives me mad.  If you are going to visit a country, visit that country, its people, and its customs.  India is not best seen through the windows of your air-conditioned tour bus.  You won’t see some of Mexico’s best temples, from early civilisation, from your lounger in a US run holiday resort.  And the UK is not best seen from an open top bus in London.  Whilst I’m on that point, no open top bus is probably good advice, knowing the English weather.

The amount of people I talk to here who tell me they went to the UK and loved London.  The end.  The whole of the UK, and they loved London.  If I had a Bitcoin for every time somebody here asked me “when do you fly to London” whenever I visit the UK, I still wouldn’t understand Bitcoin.  But I would have a lot of them.  By the way, I blatantly stole that one, so if you are reading this, over your freshly baked focaccia with smashed avo, I do heartily apologise.  The blank stares I get when I ask people what they thought of the Lake District, the beautiful Cornish coastline, or the wonders of Edinburgh and Glasgow, confounds me.

One of the greatest travel writers, Paul Theroux, said “tourists don’t know where they have been, travellers don’t know where they are going.”  And that encapsulates the feeling, and the joy of travel.  Waking up one day, not knowing where you will be going to bed.  The unbridled freedom this gives.  Backpacking.  Independent travel.  Whatever label we want to give to it, it is about immersing yourself in a country, and a culture.  Find your favourite local bakery.  Your favourite spot for morning coffee.  Order it in the local language.  OK, I admit this could be difficult in Scotland.  Laugh along when you get it completely wrong.  Walk the streets, smell the smells.   Listen to the cacophony of sounds.  See what the locals do.  Just sit and people watch.  Let your mind wander.  A form of meditation.  Be present.

This is the travel that I have in my heart.  What I yearn for most days.  Trapped in an office, earning the money to be able to escape the office, and go off and do these things feels like a Faustian pact.  Modern life has a way of keeping you in chains.  To enjoy a lot of the things that we want to enjoy, we need money.  And so we sell our services, to the highest bidder.  A roaming troubadour.  A means to an end.

And this is where our life conditioning comes in again.  We are told that we need to work hard, save lots of money in our superannuation, or pension, and then, when we reach retirement age, which seems to keep creeping inexorably up, we can take that money and “enjoy” life.  And I have seen how that works out for a lot of people.  My own father amongst them.  His dream was to retire and move to Spain.  A very modest dream.  And that man worked harder than anybody I have ever known.  But he never got to live out his dream.  Cancer took his dream away.

I read of people who strive every day, struggle every day, ticking off the days to retirement.  Then retirement comes along, and they are suddenly struck down with a fatal heart attack.

OK, OK, I know I have being a little morbid.  And a trifle dramatic.  I am not naive enough to think this happens everyone.  Lots of people do get to retire, and go off and do the things they have dreamt about all their hard-working life.  But is it worth taking the chance?  Every day I bottle up all these feelings.  Keep the lid on them.  Do a job that I feel trapped in.  Office bound.

That I am doing this until some arbitrary date in the future seems pointless.  I have money in the bank.  And I have my health and fitness.  For now.  I have to admit, my knees give me cause for concern most mornings.  So why am I not off travelling?  Living the life I would prefer to live.  Tipping the scales so that the balance is in favour of travel, and less so on work.  There are places in the world I am desperate to see.  Why am I still ironing shirts for work on Sunday afternoons, and not packing my bags?

Only I can answer that.

Hunter Valley wine tour with Kangarrific Tours

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Like wine?  Then come with me on a Hunter Valley wine tour with Kangarrific Tours.
Australia is a country blessed with good wine growing regions, a fact probably borne out by the amount of wine that gets exported, ending up in the supermarkets of the UK.  From the Margaret River in Western Australia, Barossa Valley in Adelaide, South Australia and the Hunter Valley, outside Sydney.
The Hunter was where we were visiting, and after a search on the internet we found Kangarrific Tours.  A relative newcomer to the tour scene, Sam of Kangarrific had already started to build up a solid reputation as somebody who provided an excellent day out.  We would see.
We got picked up in the Central Business District (CBD) of Sydney at around 8.00am, ready for the drive north, across the famous Harbour Bridge and up to the Hunter Valley region. 
First stop was at just after 9am, for morning coffee at the Australian Walkabout Wildlife Park, in Calga on the outskirts of the Central Coast.  Entrance fee being included in the very reasonable $99 full day trip price, we were able to get up very close and personal with some of our favourite Aussie wildlife.  Stroking the Koalas, petting the Kangaroos, and keeping a wary distance from the Emus.  This is the sort of place you could spend much longer at be we had somewhere to be and at around 11.15 we got to Lovedale, home of the Hunter Valley Chocolate factory.  A chocolate lovers dream.  Yet still not the highlight of my day.  My reason for coming today was just around the corner, the grapes.  Or more specifically, the stuff that comes from fermenting them.
Meaning “hillside”, Warraroong winery was the first we visited.  A boutique winery giving us the opportunity to sample wines that you wouldn’t find in either the bottle shops, or the big supermarkets, in Australia or overseas.  However, for $10 they do ship to Sydney.  Hmm, hold that thought.
Whilst here we got to try some very good Semillon Sauvignon Blanc (2010 on the Tin Soldier label), Long Lunch white, a 2009 sparkling Moscato, a 2010 Merlot and a Shiraz, finishing with an exquisite Sticky Semillon dessert wine.  The day had officially started for me.
And so we were off to winery number 2.  Much more mainstream, Tempus Two is the sort of winery that does supply the places you are more likely to pick up a bottle of wine on the way home to have with the evening BBQ.  A very corporate affair, the winery incorporates the excellent “Smelly Cheese Shop”, where we had the opportunity to taste some delicious, locally made cheeses.  We were then set free in the deli/shop and I succumbed all too easily to the lure of parting with my dollars.  That said, the cheeses I had picked up would no doubt be perfectly complemented by the Tin Soldier Shiraz I had purchased earlier.
In the afternoon we had winery number three, Wynwood Estate.  Another boutique winery it was here that I tasted, and thoroughly enjoyed, a wine I hadn’t had before.  Originally grown to blend into Shiraz, Chambourcin was now being made and sold as a wine in its own right.  And a bloody good wine it is too, evidenced by my immediate purchase of a bottle.  We also sampled a 2012 Verdelho, a white wine that sits somewhere between a Semillon and a Sauvignon Blanc.  Another purchase was in the form of a Plum Blossom Shiraz, lighter in style than a usual full-bodied Shiraz, so much so that it can be lightly chilled.  Finishing at Wynwood with a dessert wine, an Old Jack Muscat, I was starting to feel the effects of lunch and the amount of wine we had imbibed.  Had there been a hammock knocking about, I could have happily had a snooze in the early afternoon sunshine.
However, we had somewhere else to be and off to the only brewery in the Hunter we went.
The Hunter Beer Company, located at Potters Hotel Brewery resort is open to the public between 10am and 5pm, seven days a week for tastings.  Sam, the amiable and very knowledgeable owner of Kangarrific Tours had arranged a special deal for us and we were able to get two tastings of the various beers for only $3.  I don’t think the lime and coriander infused beer is something that I will be drinking many schooners of.  After a final sour cherry beer it was time to call “last orders” on a very enjoyable day and jump in the bus for the ride back to Sydney.
So my verdict?  An excellent, reasonably priced day out, visiting the Hunter Valley in air conditioned comfort, with a friendly tour guide who obviously knows his beans when it comes to wines.
What are you waiting for?  Salud!

Secret Margaret River – What You Won’t Want to Miss

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The Margaret River region, whilst famous for its wine, and rightly so, has something for everyone. Whether you are coming to escape the hustle and bustle of the city and want a quiet retreat. If you have come to celebrate a big occasion and want to taste some of the highest quality wines in the world. If spending time in the ocean is your thing. Or just hiking in the bush. One thing is for sure, Margaret River, and the surrounds, have you covered.

Start the day well

And what better way to set yourself up for your day, than an invigorating early morning walk along the oceanfront. Take off your shoes and feel the sand beneath your feet. Pause, listen to the seagulls squawking, circling above, and marvel at the ease with which the early surfers navigate the huge swell.

Whilst surfers have the sea to themselves, my priorities are a little different. No day starts without coffee, right? The best coffee in Margaret River right now is being pumped out by the Commonage Coffee Company (http://www.commonagecoffeeco.com.au/). On your way to the beach, take your reusable coffee cup and pick up one of the best brews you are sure to have on the west coast.

Suitably caffeinated, drive the short distance to the quaint bakery, Yallingup Gugelhupf, and pick up a small treat, still warm from the oven. I personally recommend the pain au chocolat. You won’t be disappointed.

Breakfast

The early start, the long walk along the beach, your mind will now be turning to thoughts of breakfast, and definitely more coffee.

Fast becoming a firm favourite, and not just for their excellent bacon benedict. Or the chilled vibe. Although both are a factor in always drawing us back. The great service, together with the strong, quality coffee ensure that a visit to the Sea Garden Café is always top of any itinerary in Margaret River. 

All the breakfast classics are here, together with a few asian influenced dishes. Judging by the number I saw leaving the kitchen, the Nasi Goreng is a hit with the locals.

White Elephant café – Gnarabup

In town for more than one day? Of course you are. On your second morning, head along the coast to Gnarabup and have an equally impressive breakfast, with an even better view, at the unmissable White Elephant café. With possibly the best beachside location in the world, the “Ele” is always packed to the rafters with locals filling up after their early morning swim in the ocean, whatever time of year. 

Wines and Vines

Breakfast done, and enough coffee to start your engine for the day, it is time to explore what Margaret River is most famous for. The premium wine that is produced from the 5,000 plus hectares under vine. Predominantly boutique, that are in excess of 200 wineries, enough to keep even the most enthusiastic oenophile busy for a long time.

Jarvis Estate

Greeted on arrival by AJ, the friendly family dog, Jarvis Estate (https://jarvisestate.com.au/)  is a great example of one of Margaret River’s boutique vineyards. Thankfully, we arrived just as a large tour bus from the popular “Wine for Dudes” company was leaving. This meant we had the cellar door to ourselves, and AJ.

We were guided through a full tasting, of some rather excellent wines, and I even got to try a tawny, straight from the barrel. These are the kind of experiences that you don’t get from some of the larger, more commercial wineries.

Whether you prefer the classic Cabernet, famous in the region, or if white is your go to drink, there is sure to be something in the range that you will want to take home with you. If you would rather not go home, there are even a few unpowered camp sites available.

Rosily wines

Moving on to Wilyabrup, next on the list is Rosily vineyard (https://www.rosily.com.au/Rosily-Wines). Named after a French count, who was exploring the area of Western Australia in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, Rosily maintains its French influence through the use of the fleur-de-lys on the label, and the French style in the wine making. 

Enjoy an outstanding Sauvignon Blanc, but just don’t compare it to those produced over the Tasman in New Zealand. There was a friendly feeling of “them and us” when the subject was raised.

At Rosily, all the fruit is produced onsite and hand harvested, with the vineyard certified organic. The result is a full range of excellent wines that will make a welcome addition to your wine cellar.

Time for lunch

All this wine tasting has left you feeling as though you need some sustenance. And Margaret River has you covered. The options are almost endless. As I sat down to sip my Filius Chardonnay, from Vasse Felix, I decided that Meelup Farmhouse (https://www.meelupfarmhouse.com.au/) was certainly the right choice.

Meelup Farmhouse

Located at the top of the Margaret River region, a stone’s throw from Meelup Beach, the Farmhouse feels like an oasis. Large picnic areas to while away a long afternoon, and a restaurant that feels relaxed, and refined at the same time. I can highly recommend the chargrilled Fremantle octopus and the Goldband snapper fillet. And I am told the chilli prawn spaghetti was delicious.

Breweries

Wine is what Margaret River became famous for, but hot on the shoulders is craft beer. With new breweries seemingly popping up all the time, you are spoilt for choice. Located at the top of the region, in Naturaliste, is Eagle Bay Brewing Company. A micro brewery situated on a working family farm that has been going for over 60 years.

The best way to sample the beers is to get yourself a tasting flight. Six of the tap beers, lined up in order of heaviness, saving the nut brown ale to finish on.

Cowaramup Brewery

Situated down in Cowaramup, in a rural location on North Treeton Road, Cowaramup Brewing Company is a delight. Open every day, from 11am to 6pm, serving a range of quality handcrafted ales and lagers.

Again, the flight is the way to go. Getting to taste each of the Cowaramup Pilsener, Hefeweizen, Lightsign Summer Ale, Special Pale Ale, India Pale Ale and Cowaramup Chocolate Porter, leaves you wondering which one you will try a pint of. Just as long as you are not the “skipper”, and that someone else is in charge of the car keys.

Something for Everyone

The Margaret River region really has something for everyone. Now that the borders to West Australia have been relaxed this beautiful area, of natural beauty, and world class food and wine, should be top of your 2021 bucket list.

With so much still to explore, we have already booked a return visit for January. See you there?

Explore Wine With Fran

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Do you know your Chablis from your Chardonnay?

Do you know your Chardonnay from your Chablis? Your Sauvignon Blanc from your Sancerre? (these are trick questions, which we will get to later.”) Well, follow on with me as I go on a journey of discovery, deep into the world of wine.

My aim is to simplify things and make wine a little more accessible for you. It can be daunting, sitting in a restaurant and you are passed a wine list that looks thicker than a Harry Potter book. And the sommelier stands over you like she owns the world. Where do you start?

Start here, exploring wine with Fran.

Drinking Burgundy in Dijon

The home of wine

Whether you agree that Georgia (the country, not the US state) is the spiritual home of wine, and whether you called your Shiraz, Syrah, I am here for you.

Starting out as a passionate lover of wine, my interest has deepened over the years and now I am embarking on Level 2 of the WSET (Wine & Spirit Education Trust). A globally recognised qualification in the wine world.

This journey may have been started with my sister as an early catalyst, presenting me with birthday gifts of a wine decanter and the voluminous “World Atlas of Wine” by Jancis Robinson and Hugh Johnson. This led to a membership with the Sunday Times wine club, my entry point into a selection of wine not available in my local Tesco superstore. At least not then. Things may well have changed in the intervening 20 years.

Wine tasting across the world

In those two decades I have been fortunate enough to visit cellar doors and taste some of the world’s best wine from across the globe. Day tripping in the Casablanca Valley in Chile. Cycling around the Malbec laden vineyards of Mendoza, Argentina. Sipping Pinot Noir in Sonoma, a neighbour to the world famous Napa Valley. In recent years I had the great opportunity to travel across the centre of the wine world. 

Wine tasting in Casablanca, Chile
Casablanca, Chile

Just whisper it so we don’t upset our Italian friends. France. Travelling through regions such as Champagne, Burgundy, and Bordeaux had us tasting some of the wines that sing across your palate. 

Sipping champagne in Epernay
Sipping champagne in Champagne

Margaret River wine region

Closer to home, Australia has been where I have done most wine tasting. Having the Margaret River wine region on our doorstep is something that wine buffs can only dream of. A relatively recent member of the wine fraternity, the vines in this region only date back to the late 1960s. And in this short space of time Margaret River wine makers are making their mark on the wine world. Until you have tried a Chardonnay from Vasse Felix, have you even ever had Chardonnay? And the Cabernet Sauvignon? Full bodied, balanced tannins, and a long finish. Writing this has me heading to the butchers for a t-bone steak.

Wines from Vasse Felix
Vasse Felix’s finest drops

Live long, drink wine

However, this blog is about wine, not food. Not that you can ever separate the two. Food and wine have gone together since time immemorial. And, research from the Blue Zones, where people regularly live to over 100 years, suggests that part of that longevity is related to the diet which includes a daily glass of wine.

That is something I can drink to.

Short explainer

* Chablis is Chardonnay. Sancerre is Sauvignon Blanc.

Wine production is often defined as New World and Old World. France is a country that sits in the Old World and the wine labelling is based on location, not the grape variety. Hence their Chardonnay that is grown in the village of Chablis is named as such. Same as the sauvignon blanc wines that are produced in the village of Sancerre.

To avoid a lot of the confusion, and partly a marketing ploy, New World producers, which include Australia, label wines with the name of the grape on front.

Time to try Chardonnay, again

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How well do you know your Chardonnay?

When we last spoke, I was sharing that I have embarked on my WSET (Wine & Spirits Education Trust) Level 2 qualification. And that I am sharing my journey here, with you. Since civilisation began, wine has played an important role. Wine is history. Wine is story. Here is a little bit of my story.

The chapter we are writing today concerns the grape, Chardonnay. Yes, whilst it is named after a small village in France, Chardonnay is also the name of the grape. And, for those of you paying attention in the previous blog, you will remember that when produced in an “Old World” wine region, such as France, the name of the grape doesn’t go on the label.  Yes, I know, it can get very confusing.

The style of glass in important when drinking Chardonnay

Chardonnay in the 1990s

Which brings me to my introduction to Chardonnay. Kind of. Unlike here in Australia, the supermarkets in the UK sell wine as well as groceries. Here in Australia you have to find a bottle shop. The equivalent of an off licence in the UK. The convenience of being able to pick up a bottle of plonk with my peanuts was a wonder to behold when I started shopping and roaming the shelves of my local Tesco.

Being the late 80s and early 90s, supermarkets in the UK were flooded with wine from the land down under. And, to a little travelled (at the time I had seldom left the UK) Yorkshireman, the wines of Australia were very exotic. Labels with drawings of koalas, kangaroos, and boomerangs. Thankfully, over the years, wine producers have become a lot more inventive and a lot more discerning. These labels promised sunshine in a bottle. A slice of Bondi Beach right at home in Brighouse.

This was where my palate was introduced to Chardonnay. Wine that was almost yellow in the bottle. Overpowering flavours of oak. High acidity, not very well balanced by the fruit. Wine that even now, at a distance of over 30 years still makes me shiver. Maybe I had been put off from Chardonnay for life.

The Chardonnay Renaissance

Or maybe not. In the intervening years wine producers have realised that wine punters can have quite discerning palates. And after decades of wine drinkers declaring themselves as ABC, anything but chardonnay, they are being lured back to expressions of the grape that are sublime. Exquisite. Heavenly.

I am one such person. Being lucky enough to have one of the world’s best wine regions on our doorstep certainly helps. Margaret River produces only a small amount of Australia’s wine, and yet the quality is amongst the highest. If not the very best. And it was Margaret River that reignited my love for Chardonnay.

Margaret River Chardonnay

Gone are the yellow colours. Child like drawings of Australian cliches have left the labels. Long forgotten are the overpowering oak aromas, most probably obtained through the cheaper method of using oak chips, rather than the very expensive French oak barrels that are used today. Now, the wines are smooth. Elegant. Sophisticated. Think you don’t like Chardonnay? Then try one from wineries such as Vasse Felix, Cullen, and Xanadu. You may be converted.

Chardonnay at Vasse Felix

You are not convinced? The oak flavours have ruined Chardonnay for life, for you? OK, I hear you. Bear with me. When you say you don’t like Chardonnay, I suspect it is the buttery flavours, caused by malolactic fermentation, and the oak, as talked about earlier. The secondary and tertiary flavours that are a result of a wine making choice by the wine maker. For a specific style of wine she is wanting to produce.

Chardonnay from France

Which means that the wine maker can equally make a choice to produce a Chardonnay wine without these additional processes. For example, Chablis, from the French village of the same name, produces mostly unoaked Chardonnay. The expression in a Chablis is a lot fresher. Dry and mineral on the palate. Refreshing. Not as one dimensional as an Italian Pinot Grigio, and not as complex as Chardonnay from Mersault in Burgundy, which uses oak barrels and lees contact for that secondary aroma of bread.

What I hope is becoming clear is that Chardonnay is a very versatile grape. Wine regions across the world fall between the 30 and 50 degree latitude, both north and south of the equator. Within that we have cool, moderate, and warm climates. Chardonnay grows well in all of them. With wine that bridges the scale from light bodied all the way to full bodied, with varying levels of acidity, I am convinced that there is a Chardonnay to suit you. 

It is not a time to be monogamous

Whether you like your wines aged, producing notes of hazelnut and mushroom. Or whether you like your Chardonnay young and fresh, displaying hints of apples and pears, this is a wine I encourage you to try. And don’t be monogamous. Shop around. Whether you are in your local Tesco, or in your neighbourhood Dan Murphy’s, see what is on offer.

Good examples can be found from Napa Valley in California. France has Chablis and Mersault, some of the world’s best Chardonnay. And there is Margaret River. Which I would suggest you try first. Just don’t tell the French. And if all else fails, stick to something that the Chardonnay grape does very well. Drink Champagne.

Chardonnay, just one of the grapes that produces this magic

Salut, and until the next time. Live well, drink well.