A beaker full of the warm south
Jun. 4th, 2012 10:41 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
shewhomustBy the Friday of our week in Cornwall, we had ticked all the items on GirlBear's must-do list: walked the coastal path in both directions, visited the Lost Gardens of Heligan, taken a boat trip to Fowey. We had a number of possible excursions in mind, but none in which the attractiveness of the attraction quite outweighed the length of the drive. ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
durham_rambler wanted to fit in a visit to a vineyard, and there was a small one very near where we were staying, but since no-one had a better plan, we decided instead to head for the Camel Valley - and at the last minute, looking at the map, I said that in that case, we might as well go to Lostwithiel, on the basis that the name sounded like something out of Tolkien, and there was a promising-looking castle. As itineraries go, it couldn't have been less planned, more thrown together at the last minute, or more satisfactory.
Restormel Castle - another magical, musical name - is a gem, a perfect ring of stone on a green hill, and we had it nearly to ourselves (there were never more than three cars in the car park, and one of them was ours and another was the custodian's). Once there must have been an outer bailey and a clutter of buildings stretching down the gentle slope towards the entrance, but all that survives is the circular keep. We made a circuit outside the walls, then another inside the shell of stone, which contains the internal walls but does not touch them: the masonry, despite its solidity, is not keyed in. Finally, some of us climbed the wooden staircase and made a third circuit of the battlements, with views out to the lush green countryside and in to the castle tucked neatly into itself like the spokes of a wheel.
We didn't have long in Lostwithiel, and it seemed to be undergoing improvements: my main impressions were of scaffolding and haste. There were pretty shops, and tempting cafés, and I hid in the former and bought birthday cards while the rest of ther party decided which of the latter was to provide our lunch, and we made a slight detour to admire the old bridge - and then we were off to the Camel Valley.
The Camel Valley Winery is a very polished operation. I'm sure its wines are wonderful - they win prizes - but they are outside my price range, so I was very happy to pay for a guided tour (which included a glass of wine at the end). We were shown round by one of the winemakers, who shepherded a large group of visitors with patience and aplomb: she managed to leave me feeling I'd learned something new without overwhelming the first-timers with technical detail. The tour ended on a sunny patio overlooking the vines, drinking a glass of something fizzy: I chose the sparkling red because I like sparkling red in general, and this was made from a grape variety I'd never heard of before (Rondo) - and it was cool and refreshing and full of dark fruit (they say 'brambly hedgerow flavours', but I was thinking cherries and elderberries).
We didn't stay to explore the Arthurian connections of the Camel valley; we went home and raised a glass of the Wine Society's Celebration fizz (which is a crémant de Loire) to holidays and birthdays and many more of both.
durham_rambler wanted to fit in a visit to a vineyard, and there was a small one very near where we were staying, but since no-one had a better plan, we decided instead to head for the Camel Valley - and at the last minute, looking at the map, I said that in that case, we might as well go to Lostwithiel, on the basis that the name sounded like something out of Tolkien, and there was a promising-looking castle. As itineraries go, it couldn't have been less planned, more thrown together at the last minute, or more satisfactory.Restormel Castle - another magical, musical name - is a gem, a perfect ring of stone on a green hill, and we had it nearly to ourselves (there were never more than three cars in the car park, and one of them was ours and another was the custodian's). Once there must have been an outer bailey and a clutter of buildings stretching down the gentle slope towards the entrance, but all that survives is the circular keep. We made a circuit outside the walls, then another inside the shell of stone, which contains the internal walls but does not touch them: the masonry, despite its solidity, is not keyed in. Finally, some of us climbed the wooden staircase and made a third circuit of the battlements, with views out to the lush green countryside and in to the castle tucked neatly into itself like the spokes of a wheel.
We didn't have long in Lostwithiel, and it seemed to be undergoing improvements: my main impressions were of scaffolding and haste. There were pretty shops, and tempting cafés, and I hid in the former and bought birthday cards while the rest of ther party decided which of the latter was to provide our lunch, and we made a slight detour to admire the old bridge - and then we were off to the Camel Valley.
The Camel Valley Winery is a very polished operation. I'm sure its wines are wonderful - they win prizes - but they are outside my price range, so I was very happy to pay for a guided tour (which included a glass of wine at the end). We were shown round by one of the winemakers, who shepherded a large group of visitors with patience and aplomb: she managed to leave me feeling I'd learned something new without overwhelming the first-timers with technical detail. The tour ended on a sunny patio overlooking the vines, drinking a glass of something fizzy: I chose the sparkling red because I like sparkling red in general, and this was made from a grape variety I'd never heard of before (Rondo) - and it was cool and refreshing and full of dark fruit (they say 'brambly hedgerow flavours', but I was thinking cherries and elderberries).
We didn't stay to explore the Arthurian connections of the Camel valley; we went home and raised a glass of the Wine Society's Celebration fizz (which is a crémant de Loire) to holidays and birthdays and many more of both.
