Today we toured the wineries of Hunter Valley - known as "The Hunter." It was a 2-hour drive due north from Sydney. We had an extremely articulate and entertaining tour guide, a British transplant named Mike. He provided an outstanding history of Australia, starting with the whole convict deal, and was very knowledgable about wines and wineries worldwide. Our tourmates included 4 Brits, 2 other New Yorkers, couples from Russia, Sweden, Norway, and New Zealand, and a flamboyantly gay gentleman from Switzerland. Nice group. Of course Mike was fond of ethnic humor, and none of us were spared. As far as his American jokes, it's safe to say you would not have appreciated Mike's humor if you voted Red in the last election. The W jokes got the biggest laughs of all. (The Russians didn't laugh once.) Here is a shot of the hillside near McWilliam Vineyards, our 1st wine tasting stop of the day. They are the makers of Mount Pleasant wines. We sent a few bottles home!