Since it was a public holiday on Monday, we decided to have a day out – time to mark off another couple of wineries visited. We drove up to Elijay, about 40 minutes West, and visited Engelheim and Chateau Meichtry. New attractive tasting rooms, passable wines (both have vineyards without a lot of age, so there was a certain amount of wine made using bought-in grapes). On the way home we visited Mountain Valley Farm – it has a shop selling a variety of local free-range meat, milk and the like.
It was my birthday on Wednesday (thanks for cards and greetings received), and we celebrated with a good home cooked dinner.
On Thursday, we were out doing some shopping and other appointments, and on the way back we dropped into Cavender Creek winery for a quick drink, and found our friends John and Julie there. One thing led to another and we found ourselves invited to diner with them on Friday. We brought a few contributions, and had a very enjoyable time.
We have had a mix of sunshine and showers all through May. Some torrential – this week there a very wet (2 and a half inches of rain) two days. What we have what there is of a garden is starting to look a little less drowned. After the vivid orange blossoms of the wild native azaleas, the mountain laurels have been spectacular this year. They are also a wild native shrub growing in a spindly manner up to 15 foot high and, at their best, are covered in masses of pale pink and white flowers. They are looking a little tired now after two weeks of display, with a drift of pinkish petals on the ground knocked down by the rain. Oh, well, there are wild rhododendrons in the wood looking like they are about to flower to keep the sequence going.
But spring is definitely here and we have picked our first vegetables – a few padron peppers. The tomato plants are starting to set fruit now. We planted five David Austin rose bushes (in spite of doomsters saying that they will never survive in this climate) – so far they are doing well and starting to bloom.