Baileys of Glenrowan: 1870s Club
Knowing the place was on the market tipped me over the edge when the invitation to join the Baileys of Glenrowan 1870 Club arrived in the mail, or, more accurately, that knowledge combined with long-held affection for the winery and its products, though they’re not too thick on the ground in my part of the world.
From the earliest days of Hughesy’s interest in Australian wine there have been a couple of items that it took me quite a few years to cross off the must do/taste/visit list. One was Lake’s Folly, which got crossed off fairly early on in the tasting department, thanks to the Lighthouse Keeper’s Daughter, and was finally visited in late 2005 on our visit to the Hunter. And I’ve got the photo to prove it...
It took me years to catch up with Tahbilk Marsanne, but further along the Hume Highway Hughesy’s first vineyard visits took place way back in January 1980 when a mate and I made our way around Rutherglen and ended the tasting tour at Baileys.
The pursuit of Rutherglen muscat was the main item on that agenda. On the way down I’d had the chance to sample the Baileys HJT Liqueur Muscat while staying with the late Mr Dave in Brisbane. The terms of my stay at Terry and Lyn’s place in suburban Glenhuntly involved their keeping me fed and providing somewhere to sleep while, in return, I would look after the grog supply for the couple of weeks I was down there. If that seems over-generous I should point out that a crosstown trip to a liquor barn provided twenty-five litres of perfectly drinkable white wine for $30. We narrowed the selection down to two wines, and when I asked about the availability of the other wine, I was informed that it was available by the bottle for around $7 a throw!
I didn’t restrict myself to the bargain basement, however, and invested in a bottle of the HJT Liqueur Muscat to sample before we headed up to the North-East for a taste. After all, we were in search of the Great Australian Muscat, and we needed a benchmark.
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