Listening to the Wine Blast Podcast – by Indi Noon
I had just spent one thrilling month volunteering in a safari park in Zimbabwe. I arrived home electrified by everything I had experienced and absolutely exhausted. It was about midnight by the time we pulled into the driveway. Despite the long journey and the jet lag, dad was giving a geology tour early the next […]
A visit to our barrel cooperage
My brother’s visit to our barrel supplier in France by Indi Noon Back in September, while I was picking grapes in the Alsatian mountains, my brother was working a vintage of his own. Harper had landed a cellar-hand job for the harvest season at Chateau Pontet-Canet in Pauillac, Bordeaux. Before leaving Australia, Harper had accompanied […]
Indi in Sicily
An excerpt from Indi’s travel diary It went something like this: I squeezed my way onto the midday bus from Catina Airport to Palermo, hit shuffle on the “Best Italian Hits Of All Time” playlist, and napped most of the 2-hour journey, the early morning flight taking its toll on me. Little did I know […]
A good read
A great new guide book by Jane Lopes & Jonathan Ross – How to Drink Australian. Harper Noon. Now I’m not just saying this because dad is included in the book! I took this book with me to Western Australia when I went to work the harvest, to give me some recommendations of wineries to […]
Highlights of our NZ holiday
(Photo above – a view to the lake, Queenstown.) Highlights of our 2025 family trip to New Zealand by Indi Noon. As Harper and I have now entered what I call “Chapter 2” of our lives, “Chapter 1” being our schooling years, mustering all four family members under one roof has become a little bit […]
A harvest in Alsace, by Indi Noon
Photo: (Harvest festival in the village of Barr 2024) August 2024, Location: Brisbane Airport. Destination: Paris. I remember arriving at Brisbane International Terminal four hours early that morning. The check-in gates weren’t even open so I perched myself on a bench outside the departing gate for a while and recall being riddled with excitement, uncertainty, […]
Our favourite way to roast chicken
Brined Chicken Thank you to the Weisbrodt family for sharing this recipe. 6% Brine (300g of salt in 5L water) 1.5 to 2kg Chicken 1 lemon 1 bunch of thyme 60g unsalted butter & extra for rubbing into the skin 30mL dry white wine or rosé Method Remove trussing from chicken and place in a clean container/pot. […]
Sexism, racism, the Big C, Dementia
The World Health Organisation and all the public health authorities have been slowly reducing the ‘safe drinking guidelines’ for years. It’s a global conspiracy…not an actual conspiracy but an unspoken risk-aversion state of mind which pervades all public health thinking. Their approach is “If there’s any chance of harm, we’d better warn people”. Okay but […]
Delicious entrée to serve with a glass of Rosé – Prawns in Pernod
This is one of our favourite entrée dishes to serve with our rosé: Prawns in Pernod sauce 1kg fresh green prawns, peeled 20g finely chopped white of spring onion About 100g butter ¾ cup of cream 2 tablespoons Pernod Salt and pepper ¾ cup dry white wine or Rosé 1 cup of fish stock Serves […]
A harvest job advert with a very frank description!
When Harper was searching for harvest jobs in the Napa Valley, he came across some job descriptions which surprised us! Here’s an excerpt from one “…this position requires working in a fast-paced, physically demanding environment, under conditions of physical and mental fatigue, while maintaining clarity, focus, and a positive attitude. Applicants must be willing to […]