A little bit of Italy in Pokolbin

24 July 2024 / story by Chris Cameron, Photo's by Rob Wilco

Sunday dawned bright and sunny, but a cold wind saw everyone rugged up well at Thornton McDonalds - who did a very good trade in coffee & hot chocolate. It was a great turnout and 25 members in 14 cars made their way through Morpeth and Woodville to enjoy the lovely rolling country roads between Bolwarra Heights and Greta. The cold wind seemed to have kept most people at home and we had the roads pretty much to ourselves, which was a real treat.

From Greta we followed the tourist route to Lovedale, passing the throng at Wandin Valley Estate competing in the annual Winery run, then taking the ‘Palmer’s Lane rollercoaster’ to our destination La Casalinga.

The Hunter Vineyards area has a great many cafe and restaurant offerings, with the majority being upmarket and expensive. La Casalinga is a real gem by comparison. A lovely Italian couple have turned a 40’ container into a kitchen and servery, adding a generous balcony with tables (and heaters) and wood-fired pizza ovens. There’s also an Italianate paved courtyard filled with roses and a lovely fountain. It’s a work in progress, with a small vineyard and an olive grove also part of the property. We started with morning tea and quickly decimated Grace’s home-made cake display, with her decadent vanilla slice coming out the favourite. Grace and Gino then went to work on preparing platters of pastas and wood-fired pizzas, both of which were hot, tasty and just the thing for a leisurely winter’s lunch. Clutching paper bags with take-home cakes, we gradually said our farewells and headed off in every different direction towards our respective homes.

A huge thank you to our hosts Grace & Gino, and to everyone who came along and made the day very enjoyable. Consensus amongst the group was to definitely come back again, but in late spring to enjoy a warm afternoon on their balcony.