Sorry for the radio silence. Been busy in the Yarra, and lately in Melbourne. The Yarra was fantastic - thanks to my generous hosts, Tony and Michelle Jordan (Domaine Chandon) I got to meet all the right people. Everyone was generous with their time, despite the fact that vintage was already in full swing, three weeks earlier than normal. The Yarra rocks. Lots of very good wines: it's a high quality destination for Chardonnay, Pinot and Shiraz Viognier (the new rage here). Cabernet also performs.

On Sunday morning I also had a bit of a treat: a balloon ride over the region. We started out at dawn and spent an exhilarating hour drifting a couple of thousand feet up over the Yarra, before touching down gently in a field behind Yering Station winery. Here are a couple of pictures taken before and during the flight.

After landing it was off to Melbourne, to hook up with Gregor Christie of ProCork. We spent the afternoon in the Mornington Peninsula, where after one winery visit we abandoned our plan to go to a Pinot tasting when we found that the beautiful Flinders Golf Course had a spare slot. Today we did a bit more work, heading off to the Pyrenees region. I'm now in Melbourne departure lounge waiting for my flight, the 0050 to Singapore.