Where to join Maggie Beer for a weekend of food and fun

Calling all fans of artisan food producer and cook Maggie Beer.

The kitchen veteran will host a weekend of gathering, cooking and feasting in the Barossa Valley later this month.

From May 22-24, guests at luxury The Louise retreat will share farmers market visits, cooking and hands-on food experiences with executive chef Sam Cooper and Beer in the region she calls home, while the Maggie Beer Foundation.

Maggie Beer’s Table for All will place her flavour-first philosophy at the centre of the experience, from a hosted welcome dinner at Appellation to a full day at the Maggie Beer Farm Shop and Eatery.

Guests will visit the Barossa Farmers Market, enjoy cooking demonstrations and shared lunches, and spend unhurried time in conversation with Beer, hearing stories from her early Pheasant Farm days to her current work as an advocate for better food in aged care.

‘We’re very proud to partner with Maggie Beer for the Table for All weekend, which brings together everything we love about the Barossa Valley: fabulous seasonal produce, generous hospitality and the simple joy of sitting around a table with like-minded fellow guests," says The Louise general manager Hannah McCormick.

"To be able to share this special weekend in the Barossa, and support our charity of choice, The Maggie Beer Foundation - helping fund vital work in improving food and dining in aged care through education and training - is incredibly meaningful for our team and our guests."

The experience can be extended with an optional cocktail masterclass at Barossa Gin Lab, created by Maggie’s daughter Elli Beer.

For more info check out thelouise.com.au.

Get ready for Alan Joyce in his own words

 

Love him or hate him, former Qantas chief Alan Joyce knows how to command attention. 

Now Joyce is preparing to release his autobiography: Riding The Jetstream in August. 

"Some exciting news I've been waiting a long time to share," Joyce announced on LinkedIn.

"For the past year, I've been working on a book - a memoir of my life and career. Today I can finally tell you it's real and that you can pre-order it.

"When I sat down to research and write it, I had two motivations.

"The first was to set the record straight on what actually happened during my career: the Global Financial Crisis, the grounding of the Qantas fleet in 2011, the industrial battles, the unrelenting public scrutiny, and the period that brought global travel to a standstill: COVID-19. So much was written and said in real time. I wanted to tell it as it actually unfolded, in the room, under pressure, with every decision carrying enormous consequences for tens of thousands of people.

"The second reason was more personal. I wanted to encourage young leaders to learn from my successes and my failures,  because I think that's where the real lessons sit. I grew up in a working-class home in Dublin, the son of a cleaner and a factory worker, and I found my way out through numbers: mathematics, then management science, and eventually into the complex and volatile world of aviation. Aer Lingus. Ansett. Founding Jetstar. And then, at 42, being appointed CEO of Qantas. The path from there to here was never a straight line, and it certainly wasn't easy.

"This book is also about resilience, what it actually feels like to lead through a crisis when there is no playbook. It's about leadership under genuine pressure, the kind that doesn't relent. And as one of the few openly gay CEOs in corporate Australia, it's also about what it took to use that platform for something bigger than the bottom line, including the campaign for marriage equality.

"During nearly three decades in aviation leadership, I had the privilege of working with some of the giants of the industry. And as CEO of Qantas, I worked alongside some extraordinary people whose advice, courage and commitment I will always cherish. This story belongs to them too."

Details here: https://publishing.hardiegrant.com/en-au/books/alan-joyce-by-alan-joyce/9781761452277

When wine goes Vivid in Sydney CBD

Sydney's winter Vivid Festival is best known for its spectacular light shows but there is also a major wine and food element to the celebrations.

The Wine Bar at The International is being billed as "the CBD's ultimate urban cellar door" over the June long weekend.

Presented by Mike Bennie, P&V Wine+Liquor Merchants and The Wine Bar's food & beverage director Alex Kirkwood and award-winning sommelier Jacqueline Turner, the one-day event brings together more than 30 winemakers and importers from across the state.

With more than 100 wines on pour in the heart of Martin Place, Cult & Classic on June 6 is all about discovering the diversity, energy and personality of contemporary NSW wine from across the state without leaving the city.

 
Expect cult producers, emerging labels, established icons, great music, immersive light installations and a festival-like atmosphere.

To keep the party going, Hey Rosey from Orange - an acclaimed regional wine bar awarded one Chef’s Hat in the 2026 Good Food Guide - will join forces with The Wine Bar’s head chef Gabriel Del Conti for a one-day-only menu of snacks and dishes not to be missed.

Carrying through from afternoon into late evening, wine lovers can then enjoy a rooftop afterparty at Panorama Bar, featuring immersive light installations and live DJs.

Wineries confirmed include: Brokenwood, Tyrrells, Vinden, Margan, Mount Pleasant, De Iuliis, M+J Becker, Sabi Wabi, Usher Tinkler, Charteris Wines, Thomas Wines, Colmar Estate, ChaLou, Mortimers, Canobolas, Mount Majura, Nick Spencer and Gilbert Wines. 

For more info see https://www.vividsydney.com/event/food/cult-classic-a-nsw-food-wine-party

Meanwhile, at its new waterfront home in Barangaroo Reserve, Vivid Fire Kitchen takes shape as one of the centrepieces of Vivid Sydney 2026 with an expanded program that brings together more than 45 culinary voices and marks the arrival of two new focal points, The Vivid Fire Pit and the Food for Thought stage.

Running every night of Vivid Sydney from May22  to June 13, 6–11pm and free to enter, Vivid Fire Kitchen is a vibrant, casual dining hub inspired by the great Aussie backyard. It will feature open-fire cooking demonstrations, talks, tastings and live music. 

On ya bike! Otago extends its cycling trails

Otago is New Zealand's capital of adventure tourism, from hiking and biking to bungee jumping.

Now Otago is strengthening its position as one of New Zealand's premier cycle tourism destinations, with its interconnected trail network set to expand beyond 500 kilometres.

Key to this growth is the opening of the Kawarau Gorge Trail this spring.

It marks another step toward creating a seamless network linking Queenstown through Central Otago and onward to Dunedin.

Stretching 32 kilometres, the Kawarau Gorge Trail will connect Gibbston to Bannockburn along the Kawarau River corridor.

Built on the opposite side of the river from the highway, the grade 2-3 trail offers a moderately challenging ride through striking landscapes. Riders will traverse remote terrain, navigate rock bluffs, through areas once inhabited by gold miners on a journey between renowned wine sub-regions.

Importantly, the trail will link two of New Zealand's Great Rides, the Queenstown Trail with the Lake Dunstan Trail.

At the same time, local tourism authorities report work is underway on the final 13km section of the Roxburgh Gorge Trail between Doctors Point and Shingle Creek, with completion anticipated in summer 2026-27.

Currently accessible only by boat, this section has long been a missing link in the network. Once completed, riders will have the choice to experience this remote and spectacular landscape entirely by bike.

With more than 500 kilometres of connected trails, Otago offers a variety of experiences - from short half-day rides to multi-day journeys.

Supporting this network is a well-established ecosystem of experienced local operators providing bike hire, transfers, luggage services, accommodation, and tailored itinerary planning.

See https://www.centralotagonz.com
  

Meet a hotel offering packages designed for seniors

 

People are travelling much older and further than further than they used to, often into their 70s and 80s. 

The Fullerton Hotel Sydney is catering for that market by introducing special room packages designed  exclusively for senior guests aged 60 and above. 

The packages "offer a blend of comfort, indulgence, and warmth" and are available through December 27 (tough luck if you want to celebrate New Year by kicking up your heels). 

The Golden Years Experience is designed for "a relaxed and rewarding city stay" with 15% off the hotel's best available rate for all club rooms and suites, The Fullerton Club Lounge access for two, a welcome amenity and $100 dining credit to use across food and beverage outlets, early check-in and late check-out at 1pm. For reservations or more info see Golden Years Experience | Hotel Offers at The Fullerton Hotel Sydney

Seniors Winter Warmer includes best available rate on all room categories, a signature 32-layered chocolate cake with two hot beverages of the guests' choosing, and buffet breakfast for two at The Place. See Seniors Winter Warmer | Hotel Offers at The Fullerton Hotel Sydney

Some will see these offers as kind, others (particularly The Golden Years deal, as patronising. You decide. 

Victorian wine pioneer dies at age 86

Victorian wine pioneer Graeme Leith, co-founder of Passing Clouds, died this week at the age of 86.

His death was anmounced on the winery Facebook page. 

Leith, co-founder and winemaker until 2007, will be celebrated at Passing Clouds Winery in Musk, outside Daylesford, on May 15 at 3pm.

Former electrician and polymath Leith and his partner Sue Mackinnon hand-planted Passing Clouds at Kingower, outside Bendigo, in the early 70s. 

It proved a problematic site, and he and his son Cameron later transferred the whole operation to cool-climate Musk, in the Macedon Ranges.

The Passing Clouds website says: "In the early sixties he worked his way around Europe, finally tasting some superb wine in Italy, and the dye was cast.

"In semi-retirement Graeme finally put pen to paper and began documenting all his stories. In 2015 “Passing Clouds A Winemaker’s Journey” was published.

Leith retired to the Musk vineyard. He was a nice man.  

Passing Clouds is now operated by Cameron Leith and his wife Marion and family and is currently up for sale.   

Image: Passing Clouds, Facebook