Advertisement
Published: October 16th 2011
Edit Blog Post
Seven Hills Celllars
What an amazing place... No Comments on the blog ! fantastic, Trish and I do not have to respond , more time to sit on the beach...anyway ..back to the blog !
After a great free camp at Tarlee, we headed further north on the Barrier Hwy passing through the town of Riverton where the local community have preserved many of the significant old heritage buildings.
Next was Saddleworth, settled and named after "Saddleworth Lodge" in Yorkshire by pastoralist James Masters. This town, like many others, also enjoyed the copper mining boom.
We then headed across to the Clare Valley 'proper' via Auburn. It was initially named Tatehams Waterhole in 1849 after the towns first settler, William of Tateham, who reputedly lived in a dugout on the north side of the river. Maybe all this living in holes in the ground and hollow trees explains something about SA ????!!! (tongue in cheek!). Auburn is the southern start of the Riesling trail stretching 35 Klms to Clare and beyond.
On the way to Clare we stopped at Seven Hills Cellars, the oldest winery in the Clare Valley. Established by Austrian Jesuits in 1851 who fled Europe to escape political and religious oppression,
Seven Hills Celllars
Alter Wine ...I don't think so ! it is the only remaining Jesuit winery in Australia. Originally set up to produce alter wine, Seven Hills is now recognised for its premium table wines The historic winery and cellar door, St Aloysius Church, the College building, and the surrounding vineyards gave us an opportunity to taste some great wines and gain an understanding of Seven Hills religious and historic significance. This would have to be a must do on anyone's visit to the Clare Valley, we found it fascinating and incredible.
After this amazing experience it was coffee time and so we headed into town to Clare. Settled in 1840 it was named after the early pioneers Irish home town, Clare. A major focal centre for the area, Clare has all the services you would expect, but after many of the historic towns of the Barossa we felt it lacked style, old buildings etc...not sure what we mean, but.....still a great place with every facility. Great coffee at the Wild Saffron gourmet food store.
We now headed across to one of our favourite SA towns to see if what we recalled it as was still valid..Burra...and it was and is, what a great town ! Burra
is one of a kind, geographically it is a large settlement spread along a valley and surrounded by low hills. Given the size of the town, it is incredible how little has changed the 'village heart', the five townships, the five pubs, the miners cottages,and of course the monster mine , it is all still here. On the discovery of copper in 1885 2 groups nicknamed the nobs and the snobs vied for ownership and miners flocked from all parts of the world, which created distinct communities, Hampton (English), Aberdeen (Scottish), Redruth (Cornish) and Llywchwr (Welsh). After the mine closed and the town then became known as Burra, today servicing a flourishing Agricultural area. It looks great, with restored buildings and chique shops. The Saltbush fashion label was started here and has a strong presence and is a must for the girls. We really like this Mid North town and this visit did not change our opinions...
We then headed west across to the Main North Rd and then south to Yackamundoorie (Yacka), for the night. Small town with a big name and a brilliant campsite...do not miss it if you are in the area
Advertisement
Tot: 0.045s; Tpl: 0.013s; cc: 10; qc: 26; dbt: 0.0243s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 2;
; mem: 1mb
Matty
non-member comment
The coffee outings don\'t seem to have slowed down since Neil\'s departure and I have a feeling that you two enjoyed all the coffee stops as much as he did! I\'ve just Googled Seven Hills winery and it does look amazing, I can\'t believe that it is still a Jesuit winery and still has so much influence and impact on the community around Clare Valley. What an amazing story. Burra sounds like a great little town and it sounds like you guys really liked it but I can\'t find Yackamundoorie on Google Maps, where are you guys? You\'ve gone off the map!