Eglantine Vineyard

Today I visited the Eglantine Vineyard in Costock (which is
south of Nottingham), for a guided tour of the vineyard and a
tasting of several of their home-produced wines. I was with
the wine-tasting group of the U3A -- a group of merry men and
women, who are headed by a wine master (or should I say wine
mistress), Kath Oakley.

It’s been a fabulous sunny day here in the East Midlands –
the kind of warmth and quality of light I’ve enjoyed during a
visit to the French Riviera about 10 years ago – the sort of
bright golden light you get on a warm summer’s evening there –
absolutely gorgeous.

Most of us caught the Number 99 bus from the Broadmarsh Centre
to the top of Bunny Hill, and set off for a mile’s walk down
Ash Lane, passing by some posh country properties (modest-
sized detached homes, each set in 2-3 acres of well-tended
gardens). The tour and wine-tasting were done by the owner
and his wife, in the company of a really cute tabby kitten,
who/which followed us around.

The dry white wine was too dry for me, a bit like elderflower
wine, though it was obviously of good quality. We also sampled
some mead, some cherry wine and an amazing dessert wine, called
ice wine, which I’ve never tasted before – one of those once
in a lifetime experiences for me, as I don’t think I’ll be
buying some (at £15 for a half sized bottle). I don’t usually
like pudding wines, but this one was exceptionally good, with
a concentrated grape flavour.

I came away with yet more photos and a bottle of mead, which
will be a house-warming present for one of our daughters ...
she's moving house within Nottingham soon.

I'll end on three photos I took in the sculpture room at
Chatsworth. The one of the sunbather is remarkably realistic -
I went up to it initially to see if she/it was breathing
(half-wondering if I was being spied on by Candid Camera).
The aero-engine was made by students at Rolls Royce in Derby.