Orange F.O.O.D. Week 2011: Orange in the afternoon.

The streets of Orange were lined with spectacular autumn colours.

 

Orange boasts many gracious buildings, including the vast Canobolas Hotel, where we had lunch the next day.  The hotel is presumably named after Mt Canobolas, the local hill.

At 1,395 metres, Mt Canobolas is the highest mountain in the central west region of NSW.  The name comes from two Aboriginal words, “coona” and “booloo” meaning two headed beast, or conjoined twins.  (I looked that bit up after I came home.)

 

Borrodell Vineyard, on the slopes of Mt Canobolas.  It snows here in winter.

Here, there are also cherry trees, plum trees, heritage apples and 500 Black Perigord truffle-bearing oaks.  We’ll have to come back in truffle season.

 

Brangayne Vineyard is also established on the slopes of Mt Canobolas.  Brangayne was the name of the wise handmaiden (with magical powers) of the Irish princess Isolde, in Wagner’s  opera Tristan and Isolde. 

In the opera, Isolde is being escorted by Sir Tristan from Ireland to Cornwall to become the bride of King Mark.  Unfortunately, Tristan and Isolde fall in love with each other.  To sort out this inconvenient situation in the only way they see possible, they ask Brangayne to prepare for them a Drink of Death.  Instead, Brangayne gives them a love potion which fills them with “irresistible longing” for each other – to me, this doesn’t seem to have been a particularly helpful plan.

However, it did provide the name for Brangayne Vineyard, as being a place where magical potions are prepared.

The following pictures were taken at Brangayne Vineyard, featuring their stunning Golden Ash trees.

I didn’t find myself in need of any magic potion to become thoroughly bewitched.