Taralga and Winery Tours Taralga is a fascinating village to explore. Let us enhance your experience of this historic pioneering area with a special tour. We are pleased to arrange guided tours for groups (and coaches) by appointment. Your tour might include: • a walking tour of the village and its historic buildings • inspection of the winery • wine tasting at our Cellar Door • lunch at Honeysuckle Cottage • a tour of the Cushendall Glenarm vineyard high on the range of the Great Divide. For more information, please see below or Contact Us for a booking or quote for your group.

History of Honeysuckle Cottage Named for the honeysuckle that clambers around the edge of the verandah, this slab cottage was the residence for the village bakery from the turn of the 20th century century until around 1950. The bread ovens are still in place in the old stone bakehouse where the roof timbers are made from saplings. It is said that one old identity always demanded the first loaf out of the oven. Apparently it was "always the sweetest". In the early days the bread was taken by horse and cart to outlying districts, setting off in a different direction each day. One day it would be to Wombeyan Caves, the next to Golspie, another to Bannaby etc. In the war and subsequent depression years when paper was hard to come by, the bread was transported in pillowcases to keep the dust off. Some of the senior members of our community can remember coming into the bread shop and ringing the cow bell on the counter for attention. The baker would then appear from the back to serve. The first baker was Mr Reeson who was also apparently a keen photographer. He was followed by a succession of bakers through the years, until in 1946 the business was bought from Mr Colfax by Mr Miller (a great name for a baker you would have to agree!) Today this historic building houses country tearooms. Lunch in the courtyard or on the verandah, or indoors by the fire in winter is a great way to begin or end your tour. Large groups of diners can be catered for in the winery.

History of the Church and Cushendall Vineyard The old church is the Miskelly residence and the area behind it 'Cushendall" - their first vineyard where Paul experimented with Pinot Noir. Originally St Mary's Presbyterian Church, first church in the village (1860) and erected by the parishioners on land donated by Edward Macarthur it was officially opened in the spring of 1861. Up until the building of this church, the local Presbyterian community had met at Mr Donald Ross's residence, the first service being conducted in 1845. The church was deconsecrated in 1953 after the congregation moved to a larger one in the village. The original church was by then too small and later deteriorated into a state of considerable disrepair. In 1988 the Miskellys purchased the building and renovated it as a private home. The winery's trademark is a church on a grapeleaf - which reflects the first small vineyard behind, which was named 'Cushendall'. (There was never any graveyard here, the only town graveyard being 5km west of town.)

Origins of the vineyard. "Why the interest in grapes and wine? Before coming to the village, both Paul and Glenda had been members of a singing group called the Georgian Singers, then based in the Sutherland Shire in Sydney (and still going strong). One of the group's members was by then a partner in Brokenwood wines in the Hunter Valley and an Associate Wine Judge under the tutelage of Len Evans. Partners in wineries invariably bring friends along on weekends to help with the work, and so we found ourselves becoming more and more involved, first with bottling, labelling, then vintage work, etc, etc. We became infected with the grape, if that's a way to put it. The decade of the 1980's was the period when people were still experimenting with the idea of cool-climate grapegrowing and winemaking in Australia. It was known that cool climate growing of berries, apples, grapes etc produce wonderful flavours. The question was not whether our place was "cool-climate", rather whether it was too cold for grapegrowing. A local family had planted Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes around 1982 in the village in a relatively frost free site (in pursuit of the Burgundian ideal), and we were aware of another (Canberra district) vineyard that was at the same altitude as Taralga and planted to the same varieties. The question was whether our plot would ripen grapes and what varieties to use. Our experimentation over the years has proved that the high country of Taralga can produce high quality grapes and premium cool climate wines in this district. Taralga, like the Cote d'Or - which is Burgundy - is also a rather unexceptional range of low hills running in a north-south direction. Unlike the Cote, it is much, much longer, so has a huge potential for the production of all sorts of different styles of wines (which is only one of many different types of horticulture from which to choose). Cushendall was chosen as our brand name as it is the name of a similarly sized village in County Antrim nearest the Glens where Paul's nearest-related Irish relatives still reside. Cushendall proved to produce good pinot noir grapes - but at high maintenance, as it is in a valley - water spraying is required in the colder months to protect the fruit. People in this district are also trialing lavender, berries, olives and truffles." - Paul Miskelly

The Glenarm Vineyard In his quest for more ideal conditions for growing cool climate grapes Paul purchased a property several kilometres east of Taralga, higher in the ranges. Here he could replicate some of the traditional conditions of European cool climate vineyards. The 'Glenarm' Vineyard is also named after the same district in Ireland. Like many other property names in the Taralga district, their names reflect their Scottish or Irish heritage. Vines here, amongst Australian bush, slope downhill and are picked by hand in the traditional manner. This vineyard is planted to Pinot Noir, Chenin Blanc, Gamay (the grape of Beaujolais) and Riesling and produces typical high quality wines of the type. The vineyard and surrounding areas offer spectacular views over the ranges and nearby country.

Cushendall Winery In 2004 a new winery building was completed behind Honeysuckle Cottage. Wines are crushed by hand in the 'basket method', carefully fermented, stored and bottled. The new winery allows increased production, and offers the opportunity to produce wines for other cool climate vineyards. Cushendall also derives some of its grapes from the cool climate area of Tumbarumba for some vintages. A visit to the winery allows you to see how a small traditional boutique winery operates. Sales are available from our cellar door in Honeysuckle Cottage. The Miskelly Family The Miskelly family first came to the Taralga district in the 1860's from County Antrim in Northern Ireland. They were peasant dairy farmers working for the local Earl on the Deer Park farms in the Glens of Antrim. They came under the Assisted Immigration Scheme, with which the British government replaced convict transportation. Subsequent migration within Australia and the fact that most of the male offspring who stayed were bachelors meant that the name died out in the district by 1967. Paul Miskelly and wife Glenda returned the name to the district in the late 1980's with the purchase in 1988 of a dilapidated old stone church on 2 acres of land in Taralga village originally intended to be used as a weekender. This was acquired with a view to its becoming a retirement project but, as often happens, it took on a life of its own much earlier than initially expected.

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