Valley of the Giants Wines & Olives

I have to admit that both Mr. Spittoon and myself enjoyed the Valley of the Giants Wines more so than the treetop walk. Sorry folks but we simply are just more into wine drinking than trees. No offence to all the tree-lovers out there…

When I heard there was a Valley of the Giants winery, I was half expecting it to be at the end of the walk as a reward for making it to the end. When actually it’s about a 10 minute drive from the treetop walk (and it is down a dirt road for your information). Don’t get me wrong the walk was very cool, and it is definitely a must do for any Great Southern trip (and make sure you get to the wines as well!).
As we were driving down the dirt road to our next wine stop, there were plenty of super creative signs guiding us along the way. We were both salivating by the time we arrived, I mean it had been at least a good hour since our last winery stop at Old Kent River Wines.

The cellar door was a modern dressed up shed with a sign outside telling us to honk our horn or go over to the house to get service (we noticed this was quite typical in the region as most of the owners lived on the property and were juggling their normal day-to-day lives alongside selling wine – living the dream!). The property has brilliant views over the Walpole Wilderness National Park.

We ended up heading over to the house where we met Andreas Bachmann who sells organic olives and wines with his wife Irene. Originally from Switzerland the couple simply love their Aussie life. I loved driving up the driveway past all the olive trees and it was interesting to find out that they make 3 different types of organic olive oil from their 1500 olive trees; a Frantoio, Manzanillo and Nevadillo Blanco.
Upon entering the beautifully light cellar door, Andy provided us with tastings of his various natural and infused olives (such as garlic, chilli, rosemary, mustard seed and I see they even do a cinnamon one – unfortunately they didn’t have these for tasting when we visited) alongside some delicious tapenade and of course we enjoyed a lovely and I must say, well deserved tasting of the wines.

My pick from the wine list which included a; Cabernet Sauvingon, Cab Rose and a Semillon/Sauvignon Blanc was the latter! On this trip, I couldn’t get enough of the Great Southern Semillon, I typically prefer it by itself but this blend was absolutely delicious!

Here is my tasting note:

This 2012 Sem/Sauv blend is a very pale yellow on the eye with aromas of spiced pear, capsicum, lime and fresh-cut grass. On the palate it’s got such a lovely mouthfeel, it covers the whole mouth yet is fresh and light. Definitely mineral notes and citrus acidity which I associate with the Sauv in the blend on the palate. Overall a smooth and rounded finish and I must say I just love the label. They actually have a full painting in the cellar door of the image on the label, stunning! Plus the Swiss couple who own the label make some darn good olives and tapenade. Everything is organic, including this tipple!

Alongside the above we couldn’t leave without buying some of the organic and preservative free tapenade! A lovely little stop off after the walk, I would highly recommend adding it to your day out at the Valley of the Giants! For more Great Southern posts click here.

Address: 145 Vigus Road, Denmark 6333
Phone: (08) 9840 8258
Wines: Organic Cabernet Sauvingon, Cab Rose and a Semillon/Sauvignon Blanc
Wine tasting cost: Free! (+ also for the olives and goodies!)
Food available: Only small tastings of olives and oils
Child friendly: No playground or anything but a large grassy area outside cellar door.
Website: organicolivesandwines.com.au