Just a quick click of my heels and a rather tedious and soul destroying flight later, I am far from the tropical heat of Malaysia and back in the cloud of a cold, damp Melbourne winter...and I must say, I am thoroughly enjoying it. Despite the fact that I have joined my fellow Melburnians in loudly decrying the wet conditions and sniffling at the cold mornings and exclaiming that life in the city is barely tolerable at this time of year, I am quietly enraptured by it all. It is expected, even mandatory to complain about Melbourne weather if one lives here, but I firmly believe that, like me, its "well-weathered" residents enjoy using the excuse of winter, to hucker down in one of the many warm and convivial bars that line its lanes and inhabit its beachside locations.
As cosseting and enveloping as a wet, winter's day can be for me, I am equally charmed to enjoy one of those days when Melbourne's winter sky sparkles and is crystal clear and the warm light favours all who venture outside. Today is one such day and I have taken the opportunity to luncheon in the sun at an old haunt of mine in the beach-side suburb of St Kilda. In keeping with the clarity of the winter sun and the remarkable quality of light, I have chosen the wonderfully floral, herbal and lightly spiced Bay of Fires Pinot Noir 2009 from Tasmania. A bright, vividly ripened drop, it would be difficult to find a more suitable accompaniment to a beautiful winter's days in Melbourne.
Home...just in time for pointy tree day. It seems many journeys since I last graced the streets of Melbourne but what a comfort it is to see familiar sights and familiar faces, albeit for what will probably turn out to be a short visit. Of course, the Christmas period is the talk of the town at this time of the year and Melbourne, similar to the rest of the "Christian" world, celebrates Christmas like...a famine is about to wreak untold havoc on its fearful inhabitants after a blizzard of unexperienced proportions forces the interment of all inhabitants, preventing them from accessing supplies for the duration. In other words, we buy up all we can refrigerate and all we can possibly cook...usually enough to last until all participants start to resemble a well fed Strasbourg goose and indeed, start to feel more than a little liverish! And in case you confuse us with a people who buy provisions to accommodate the climate (often stifling hot at this time of the year), we roast and bake and stuff all that we can we can just in case of that blizzard and famine to follow.
Over indulgence aside, it is nice to be home and it is nice to reacquaint myself with the lanes and arcades of Melbourne. Unlike any other city in Australia, Melbourne has embraced lane-way life and has done it very well. To celebrate my homecoming and the festive season, I have found a pleasant spot to enjoy a wonderfully refreshing Bay of Fires - Tigress Sparkling Pinot Noir Chardonnay from the The Pipers River region of Tasmania. Distinctly Tasmanian, Tigress is a cool climate sparkling of lingering complexity that I will be enjoying right across the pointy tree period. Bon Noel all.
