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A stop to consult the only map we had (one significantly lacking in detail) suggested we were possibly on the right road, and the decision to turn off that road when we did was based on the fact that we knew the winery was located around Mount Alford and this road was headed in that direction.

Given the fact that Queensland wineries are making significant efforts to attract the passing tourist trade, I've found the lack of clear sign-posting along the highways and byways fairly baffling. 

Travelling around Stanthorpe the next day there were plenty of indications that turning off here would take you to one or more wineries but no indication which wineries were located along that particular road.

It took a while before a fairly distinctive lavender-hued sign indicated a further turnoff (in fact it was the first sign we'd sighted since Boonah) and we'd gone a bit further when a winery appeared on the left hand side of a T-junction. We were about to turn in there when I noted another distinctive sign suggesting our intended destination lay further on.

But the drive was pleasant, and when we turned into the car park at Kooroomba the view across the valley to the west suggested photo opportunities so Madam was happy, and as she headed towards the scenic lookout Hughesy went to investigate the winery.

From the outside the place was a fair bit bigger than I'd expected, and once inside it was obvious that we were looking at a pretty substantial operation. 

A conversation with the dapper gentleman around my vintage who was manning the tasting room suggested we may well have found a venue for lunch, and I wandered back outside to advise Madam of this unexpected and quite welcome development.

The original itinerary had suggested lunch would probably be somewhere in Warwick but a substantial detour to escape a slow truck had brought us to a classy-looking establishment just before lunchtime, and Madam could see significant photo opportunities on the other side of the building, so, with the decision made I set about having a taste.

The range is small, but everything I sampled (and I tasted everything except the Shiraz, where the previous vintage had sold out and the next one needed a little more time before it's let loose on the market) was a wine you could spend a good while sniffing before the liquid hit the taste buds.

And with a small range and an enthusiastic photographer loose elsewhere on the premises, there's a definite advantage in sampling wines that encourage you to spend some time exercising different senses.

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© Ian Hughes 2017