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JANUARY 2015 || ISSUE #95

Hunter Distillery Hunter DistilleryTHAT’S THE SPIRIT!

Animatronic marvelsAnimatronic marvelsMEGA BUGS!

THE

ISSUE

THE

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THESummer

For hot Summer daysFor hot Summer dayCOOL FOODS

THB January 2015 Cover.ai 1 15/12/2014 10:06:41 AM

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F O R Y O U R D I A R Y jan

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UNTIL 26TH JANUARY | CHRISTMAS LIGHTS SPECTACULAR | Hunter Valley Gardens Every year Hunter Valley Gardens bring thousands of families together to celebrate the magic of Christmas at the Christmas Lights Spectacular. Open every night with over 1.5 million Christmas lights on show throughout designated areas of Hunter Valley Gardens. Special guest Santa Claus, live entertainment and food and beverages available for purchase on site. There’ll also be Santa photos (for kids of all sizes) taken by a professional photographer. Special night rates apply. This is an event the whole family will enjoy (closed Christmas Day). For more informa�on visit www.hvg.com.au

3RD—26TH JANUARY | MEGA BUGS | Hunter Valley Gardens | This month we welcome the BIGGEST display of animatronic bugs in Australia! Featuring Spider-saurus and a towering 8 metre Praying Man�s, plus many more mega creatures from the underworld! See the amazing scorpion, wasp, grasshopper, ants and beetles, ladybird, giant snail, bees and bu�er�ies, cen�pede, cicada, dragon�ies and caterpillars. Discover mega creatures from the underworld as you explore the gardens! For �ckets visit www.hvg.com.au

10TH—31ST JANUARY | AFC Asian Cup| Hunter Stadium plus exhibi�on matches at Cessnock| The 16 best Football teams in Asia will meet in Sydney and Newcastle in January 2015 to compete for the AFC Asian Cup, the most sought-a�er trophy in Asian football. Be part of the biggest football tournament to take place in Australia as the region's dynamos ba�le it out. This is your chance to see world-class football right here in Australia. With �cket prices from $5 for kids and $40 for families, it's an a�ordable op�on for all football fans and a real highlight of the school holidays over summer. For more informa�on visit www.afcasiancup.com/host-ci�es/en/newcastle

SUNDAY 25TH JANUARY | GARLIC & CHILLI FESTIVAL| Kevin Sobels Wines| If you’re looking for a day of spice, heat, sweetness or mild nu�ness or if you just love garlic and chilli then circle Sunday, 25th January 2015 in your diary for our �rst-ever Hunter Valley Garlic and Chilli Fes�val. The grounds of Kevin Sobel Wines will come alive with the fragrant essence of these two culinary stars as three local fresh garlic growers – Pokolbin Purple; Moore Wollombi Garlic and Macquariedale Organic Farm – join other local producers of garlic and chilli value-added products for the inaugural Hunter Valley Garlic and Chilli Fes�val. For more informa�on visit handmadeinthehuntermarkets.com.au

MONDAY 26TH JANUARY| WOLLOMBI AUSTRALIA DAY MARKETS | Wollombi Sales Yards | Visit Wollombi Markets on Australia Day for this great market of over 100 stalls, including local produce and cra�s, plants, clothes, tools, bric-a-brac and much more. For more informa�on visit www.wollombimarkets.com

MONDAY 26TH JANUARY| AUSTRALIA DAY CELEBRATIONS | Civic Green Singleton| Celebrate Australia Day 2015 in Singleton with markets and entertainment on the Civic Centre Green. Come down to the Civic Centre from 8.30am for the Australia Day Ci�zenship Ceremony and get your obligatory Aussie barbecue breakfast. Get up close and personal with some of Australia’s favourite (and most dangerous) rep�les, with a special visit from Hunter Valley Zoo. There will be a variety of market stalls and food stalls opera�ng throughout the a�ernoon, these will include cra� and jewellery stalls, clothing and a variety of other interes�ng wares. Food stalls will o�er a delicious choice of healthy food op�ons. For more informa�on visit www.singleton.nsw.gov.au

WEDNESDAY 28TH JANUARY | KENNY ROGERS FAREWELL DOWN UNDER TOUR | Newcastle Entertainment Centre | Grammy Award-winning country superstar and contemporary music icon, Kenny Rogers returns in January and February for his �nal performances ever in Australia, on the Farewell Down Under Tour.This year, Kenny has earned a Grammy Award nomina�on and CMA Award nomina�on, along with long-�me friend and collaborator Dolly Parton, for their duet, “You Can’t Make Old Friends,” which is the �tle track of Rogers’ current cri�cally acclaimed 32nd studio album. The magical Kenny & Dolly reunion was only their 3rd �me in the studio together since their Real Love hit in 1985. For more informa�on and �cket sales visit www.nec.net.au

Thanks to Brent Legge� of

Flashme Photography for our deliciously thirst-quenching Summer cover.

Shot at Hunter Beer Co.

JANUARY 2015 | 3 thb

EDITORS f r o m t h e

HIGHLIGHTS MEGA BUGS | Animatronic Marvels | Do your kids love all things creepy crawly? These school holidays Hunter Valley Gardens will be home to Australia’s largest animatronics bug display.

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THAT’S THE SPIRIT! | It’s long been renowned for its world class wines and it’s fast earning a reputa�on for award-winning cra� ales. But did you know the Hunter is also home to another top-ra�ng �pple?

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HERE’S CHEERS | Celebra�ng the Hunters Bou�que Beers| A�er one too many rounds served up with schooners of factory-line formula�ons, an increasing numbers of Aussie beer drinkers are looking for something more.

FOOD TRENDS 2015 | 2014 was all about quonoa, kale and the rise of ‘clean ea�ng’. But �mes are changing and there’s a whole new range of food trends that are slowly emerging and are predicted to make a splash in 2015. ...

22 INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION |For Hunter Wines | The success of these two wines con�rms the Hunter Valley's reputa�on as one of the world's great Shiraz-growing regions ...

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HUNTER BLACKBOARD MAP | A popular addi�on to each and every issue. Use it to �nd your way around Wine Country...

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Welcome to our 95th issue and the �rst issue of the Hunter Blackboard magazine for 2015. On behalf of the team at WCP Media, we would like to wish all our readers the very best for this new year. May it also be a year of �ne wine, fabulous dining and loads of fun �lled ac�vi�es - much like the contents of the Hunter Blackboard magazine!

Summer is now well and truly upon us and as always, Hunter Valley Gardens swing into ac�on with fun outdoor ac�vi�es for the kids. This month they are hos�ng the biggest display of animatronic bugs in Australia - featuring an 8m high praying man�s, a spider-saurus and many more similar mega creatures from the bug world. Of course the Christmas Lights Spectacular con�nues un�l the 26th of January as well - so you can enjoy two events for the price of one!

This months ''Summer Issue'' of the Hunter Blackboard is full of the things we like to do most of at this �me of the year and that is celebrate, eat great food and drink superb wines.

If upscale comfort foods, gluten free and veggies galore was the big thing in 2014 then �nd out what the next big food trends are for 2015 on page 22 of this issue. You can be sure we will all eat be�er for them! Also, �nd out also what the cool foods are for a red hot summer in this issue and

what restaurants are serving them up on their menus.

This issue also celebrates two top rated �pples as well as the people behind the businesses that make it all possible. Read about the outstanding achievements of our very own Hunter Dis�llery on page 16 and the success of one of Australia's smallest cra� beer breweries - the Hunter Beer Co. on page 11. A trip to both venues for a tas�ng this Summer is a must!

At this �me of the year more champagne, wine and beer is consumed than at any other �me of the year and while you may s�ll hear the thrilling ''pop'' of the Champagne cork, have you no�ced that the more subtle ''pop'' of the wine cork is missing? Are you one to miss the romance of the wine cork stopper? Find out what happened to the cork on page 29.

Finally don't miss out on some great events happening this month with the Garlic and Chilli Fes�val at Kevin Sobels Wines on 25th January and the tradi�onal Wollombi Australia Day Markets on Monday 26th January.

January is also the start of vintage in Hunter Valley and despite the December storms, the 2015 vintage looks set to be a good one!

Have a wonderful year everybody!

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