Between Melbourne and Adelaide I have four days of structered wine tasting including a bonus at the Adelaide Wine Institute where I tasted, among others, a Penfold's Grange Reserve Shiraz 2003. A snip at AU$800 a bottle. But it is not often you get to taste a wine of this quality.

All of the vineyards visited had their own character. At Adelaide the Barossa Valley to the north has a German heritage, to the south McLaren Vale an Italian influence. And so within a few miles you can experience great differences. It is harvest time so the plus is getting to see the wine made; the minus is that there are no discussions with the wine makers as they are all working flat out. But the people in the tasting rooms had great knowledge.

We included some organic vegetable growers and a chocolate factory. Just to fill the day up. At the chocolate factory there several Lamborghinis parked.  Seeming this is a favourite place to race them...