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Team South Burnett
Going Back To Adelaide In 2005
-
 28th April 2004: Whoever said
that the years seem to go faster as you get older was spot on! Today I received
an official invitation for Team South Burnett to compete in the 2005 Lifestyle
Channel Australian Regional Culinary Competition at Adelaide's Tasting
Australia Festival. It only seems like yesterday - though it was actually
6 months ago - that the South Burnett joined the ranks of Australia's regional
elite when its team of local chefs competed against dozens of other chefs
from Barossa, the Yarra Valley, the Hunter Valley and Margaret River in the
nation's undisputed top culinary competition. And because the team impressed
the judges and organisers in 2003, our region has received a placing in the
prestigious 2005 food and wine competition. I'm very happy to announce that
award-winning Kingaroy chef Steve Gudzinski and myself (as Team Captain)
have taken up the invitation and we'll be returning to South Australia in
October next year to represent our region again - and hopefully, come back
with gold! We gained quite a lot of valuable experience from last year's
competition and we're now strategising our attack plan to take advantage
of all the things we learned. As you might expect, the team will be approaching
local organisations for sponsoring partnerships to help with the considerable
costs involved in competing at a major national event of this calibre. But
I think that the value of sending the chefs to Tasting Australia has been
realised by the local community and raising the funds shouldn't be a problem.
Anybody interested in sponsoring the Team South Burnett project should contact
me on (07) 4160-4428 or
via email.
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Pumpkin Wine To Be
Launched At 2004 Pumpkin Festival
-
 25th April 2004: Amazing but true: you can make wine from
just about any fruit - and pumpkin is technically a fruit.
So when the organisers of the Goomeri Pumpkin Festival recently approached
Barambah Ridge Winery
to produce what must be a culinary first anywhere in the world - South Burnett
pumpkin wine - they agreed. The new wine will be making its debut at the
annual Goomeri Pumpkin Festival Dinner Dance held on Saturday 29th
May 2004 (the night immediately before the Festival). A limited supply
of five hundred 375ml bottles will then be sold exclusively through Barambah
Ridge's stand at the Festival the next day. Winemaker Stuart Pierce
tells me that the beverage was made from 100 kg of locally-grown Queensland
Blue Pumpkins. "It's a great novelty item and if it sells well we might consider
making it a permanent product for Goomeri", he said. The wine only took a
few weeks to produce and is described as having sweet, fruity characteristics
with a hint of honey and - no surprise! - it apparently tastes a lot like
pumpkin. My own opinion is that this wine would make a natural accompaniment
to winter desserts such as a warm bread and butter pudding with a sprinkle
of fresh nutmeg. If you're interested in acquiring a bottle or two for your
own cellar, though, I'd recommend you get to the Festival early: I'm sure
this novelty product will sell-out like hot cakes! You can obtain more
information about this year's Festival by contacting David on (07) 4168-4209,
Geoff on (07) 4168-1925 or by looking over
the Festival's web site.
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South Burnett Cuisine...
The Hottest Show On TV!
-
 22nd April 2004:
If you've been anywhere near a television lately you could be forgiven for
thinking that the South Burnett is bigger than reality TV. Back on March
17th I broke the news that our region would be featuring in a 4-part On
The Land TV special; and over the last two weekends the South Burnett
has also enjoyed a two-episode feature on the Seven Network's
Queensland Weekender.
The first leg of the show took viewers through the South Burnett Gourmet
Food and Wine Trail from Blackbutt north to Kingaroy. Presenter Taryn Onofaro
began her journey at
Cherry Creek Retreat
B&B in Blackbutt before moving on to Rick's Place at Yarraman
for morning tea. Then she picked up some peanuts from Nanango's Peanut
Wagon as she made her way to the
Copper Country in Nanango
for a quick wine tasting, before stopping off at
Stuart Range in Kingaroy
for another wine tasting and a demonstration of feta cheese making with
award-winning farmhouse cheesemakers Kingaroy Cheese. In the second
part of the series - which screened last Saturday 17th April - Sally Jenyns
followed the trail from Kingaroy to Kilkivan. Sally started off at John and
Karyn Bjelke-Petersen's
Bethany Cottages with
a serve of Lady Flo's famous pumpkin scones, before travelling on to
Captain's Paddock Vineyard
at Booie Range. Then she dropped by the 'Lil Ol' Church Restaurant
at Wooroolin and
Up
Country at Wondai before lunching at Goomeri's Pumpkin Pie
and spending the night at Bruce and Rae Hurley's
Left Bank B&B and
Restaurant in Kilkivan. Both of these programs have audiences in
the millions and publicity like this is invaluable for our tourism, wine
and hospitality industries. Little wonder that the Easter break produced
record visitor numbers at all our Tourist Information Centres!
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Steve's New Job At
Explorers
-
 19th April 2004: Hospitality
is one of the most mobile of all industries, so it didn't surprise me to
hear this week that award-winning chef Steve Gudzinski has just made
another major move forward in his career. Steve has just accepted the role
as head chef at the recently refurbished Explorers Restaurant in
Kingaroy's
Burke and Wills Motor Inn
(see story 17th February 2004). Owners Sue Maloney and Ben
Kaal told me they think the appointment of Steve will help build on the
restaurant's well-established reputation as one of the South Burnett's best.
"We think Explorers will offer him a lot of challenges and adventures," Sue
said. "Adding Steve to our team is one more step in our master plan to continue
providing quality service to our in-house guests, locals and tourists alike".
Recently I took my wife and children Explorers for dinner on a Thursday night
and the place was packed to the rafters - the atmosphere was warm, inviting
and very lively. Steve's new winter menu is expected to make its debut early
next month and I can't wait to return and try it out. If you want to do the
same thing, you can make a dinner booking by calling the Burke and Wills
on (07) 4162-2933. Photo above: Steve Gudzinski, two-time winner
of the PCA South Burnett Culinary Competition and now head chef at Explorers
Restaurant.
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South Burnett Hampers
Now Available Online
-
 16th April 2004: I've been writing about South Burnett food
and wine since December 2002 and - frankly - I'm amazed at how far the audience
for this web site spreads. I'm also delighted to let my regular readers know
that a new online service from Rae and Bruce Hurley at The
Left Bank in Kilkivan is going to make at least some people's lives a
little easier from now on. Last year Rae and Bruce began putting together
an extension to their Cafe and B&B business called
South Burnett Hampers.
It's taken more than a year to get it fully operational but they now stock
a wonderful range of South Burnett food and lavender products along with
sweet and dry wines from every one of the South Burnett's wineries. And today
they took their business into the space age by launching a web site that
showcases all their stock and lets you order directly through
the Net. As anyone who's visited The Left Bank knows, Rae and Bruce are fanatics
about food (Rae took a prize in the Regional Culinary Cook-Off a few years
ago for her
Beef Claw At The Bank
recipe which appears on this site; and both played key roles in creating
the South Burnett's "Taste The Magic" regional cook book last year).
So it's not really surprising they're now retailing the South Burnett's finest
wine and food products as well. You can purchase South Burnett Hampers products
in person at The Left Bank or simply use their new web site to get products
shipped to you wherever you live.
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South Burnett Wine
Industry Hires Full-Time Marketing Consultant
-
 13th April 2004: Last month I mentioned that the South
Burnett Wine Industry Association was looking at pulling out all the
stops on its marketing this year (see story March 8th). The development
of a new regional logo - in conjunction with the South Burnett Tourism and
Local Government Associations - was a vital first step. And today the SBWIA
embarked on the next step in the process by hiring Alison Shaw from
SmartWine as their full-time
marketing and PR consultant (see picture at right). Alison operates
a boutique PR consultancy that specialises in the wine industry and she's
done terrific work for the Gold Coast hinterland wineries and the Sunshine
Coast hinterland wineries over the last few years. But when her contract
came up for renewal recently and the Sunshine Coast fumbled the ball, the
SBWIA stepped in and snapped her up on the spot for a 12 month trial
run. Over the coming year 15 of our regional wineries will be dipping their
hands into their pockets every month to pay Alison's annual fee. In return,
she'll be producing a mountain of materials to assist our region market itself
smarter and better, filling in many of the blanks that currently exist in
the South Burnett's wine tourism promotional mix. If Alison remains true
to form - and I'm sure she will - you can also expect to see quite a lot
of media coverage about South Burnett wineries start appearing in the mainstream
press in the next 12 months too. Her work is certainly going to help advance
the South Burnett further along the road to becoming Queensland's Hunter
Valley. And that - I think, anyway - is our region's ultimate destiny.
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The South Burnett's
New Regional Logo Explained
-
 10th April 2004: After 9 months of hard work and input
by close to 150 different people, the South Burnett's new regional
logo was officially launched at last month's
Wine & Food In The Park Festival
- and predictably, it hasn't pleased everybody (I doubt any logo
ever could!). But what's surprised me most is that the common objection from
those who don't like it is that "it doesn't represent our region".
I think this indicates a failure to properly communicate what the logo is
really all about. And if so, we're in good company! Years ago the Commonwealth
Bank received exactly the same type of reception when it first unveiled its
own logo. Many people said it was "awful" until it was explained to them
that the yellow and black box we're now all so familiar with isn't a sao
biscuit dipped in vegemite - it's a highly stylised Southern Cross. Well,
exactly the same thing applies to our own logo. So I thought I'd break from
my usual area of coverage to explain it. The swirl at the top represents
the sun. The red strip below it represents one of our region's most
striking features: our red soils (and yes, I know they're not universal,
but they're certainly something most visitors clearly recall). And the green
strip below that represents the region's most common feature: our green
fields. That's easy to see when it's explained, isn't it? But here's
where the logo gets really clever: apart from the sun, the
swirl at the top also symbolises many of the most popular
activities in our region. This could include dipping a line in either
of our two Great Lakes; the swirl of wine in a glass or on top of a cappuccino;
the winding trails of our back roads; or the flow of air through the trees
in the Bunyas. So far from not representing our region, I think our logo
genuinely captures the essence of what we're really all about. It
does so in a striking, memorable, contemporary way that's unlikely to date
for decades. And like any good logo, it's done it in the fewest number
of brush strokes imaginable and it works just as well in monochrome as it
does in full colour. I really love it. A lot of other people do as well.
But if you're not one of them yet, I hope this explanation might help change
your view.
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Kingaroy Cheese Takes
Gold At Royal Easter Show
-
 7th
April 2004: Last week I wrote a story about Kingaroy Cheese winning
three prestigious endorsements from the White Hat Chefs Association for their
products (see story 29th March). But today I've found that I have
to put them back in the news yet again. Why? Because they've just
picked up a Gold medal and two Silver medals at Sydney's Royal Easter
Show: probably the largest and most hotly-contested agricultural show
in the nation. Kingaroy Cheese took gold for their Kingaroy Crème
Fraiche and silvers for their Kingaroy Double Cream and Kingaroy Marinated
Feta (two of these were also White Hat Chefs picks). The latest wins bring
the firm's tally to 17 gold and silver medals - quite impressive for a company
not quite two years old - and I think they underscore just how good much
of the South Burnett's dairy produce really is. Cheesemaker Chris Ganzer
said he was "over the moon" about the latest win and floored by the positive
reaction the cheeses drew from the judges. If you want to try them yourself,
they're available in Kingaroy from the
Stuart Range Winery's
cellar door. You can also obtain then through
Simon Johnson stores in
Sydney and Spoons stores in Brisbane.
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Grape To Glass Tours
A Big Winner For Barambah Ridge
-
 4th April 2004:
Back in December last year I broke the news that the Barambah Ridge
Winery at Redgate were going to start running Grape To Glass tours
on Sundays. The tours are a fun weekend activity where visitors take a guided
stroll though the vineyards and the Ridge's winery to improve their knowledge
about how wines are produced; then learn the subtle art of wine-tasting;
and then have lunch and party on to their heart's content at Barambah Ridge's
Shakin Steakhouse. Well, four months down the road I'm very pleased to report
that these tours have become such a success with tourists and locals alike
that the Ridge not only intend to make them a permanent fixture but
they're also going to be running a number of other innovative
activities at their vineyards too. On Mothers Day (Sunday 9th May 2004),
the Ridge will be staging a special Mothers Day Lunch which will include
guided Harley Davidson rides around the wine-making areas of Moffatdale for
a small additional fee - and an experience, I'll wager, that no Mum would
ever forget! And on the first Sunday of each month (beginning Sunday 2nd
May) the Ridge will also be offering Visual Arts In The Vineyards
in conjunction will well-known local artist Gary Eyre: a combination
of an arts class and a good old-fashioned knees-up that I'm sure will appeal
to a whole new group of people. You can find out more details about all these
events on
South Burnett Online's Daily
Calendar and on
Barambah Ridge's web site.
Bored on a Sunday? No need to be any more! Photo above: Members
of the Noosa Beach Classic Car Club enjoying a Grape To Glass tour at Barambah
Ridge in mid-March this year.
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I Feel Sheepish -
Runnymede Scores Top Gongs Too!
-
 1st
April 2004: It may be April Fools Day but I have to confess that the
biggest fool in the South Burnett right now is probably me. In my last story
I outlined how Kingaroy Cheese and Proteco Oils both won accolades from the
Les Toques Blanches Association last week. But in my excitement I
completely forgot to mention that Garry Monaghan's excellent Runnymede
Sheep Dairy also took out three gongs in the same event: one for
every entry they submitted. Runnymede have been operating for several years
on their farm 30km due east of Kingaroy but only went into full commercial
cheese and yoghurt production about 18 months ago. So their feat in taking
three White Hat Chef awards from three entries (for their sheep milk
yoghurt; their sheep milk feta and their marinated sheep milk
feta) is particularly praiseworthy. If you've never tried Runnymede's
products before, you can obtain their yoghurt in the South Burnett at Keith
Strain's Pharmacy in Nanango and Blooms the Chemist in Kingaroy. You can
also obtain their fetta (along with some of the other cheeses they produce)
at Kingaroy's IGA Supermarket and at Cheese World in Goomeri. Runnymede's
products are also distributed at a number of outlets in Brisbane but you'll
need to conact them directly to find out their current distribution list,
which is expanding all the time. You can do this by phoning them on (07)
4163-1879 or
via email. PS:
You can view a complete list of all the 2004 Les Toques Blanches Association
Queensland winners on the Department of State Development's web site
by clicking
here.
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