Innholdsfortegnelse for Winter 2017 i Fleurieu Living Magazine

Key Personnel Petra de Mooy Working on FLM comes with many rewards and Petra still pinches herself every time she archives another great story. When not wrangling content, you can find her hanging out with Jason and their daughter, gardening, or perusing the farmers’ market. Jason Porter Jason has worked as a graphic designer and creative director both locally and overseas for over thirty years. When not in the office, he can usually be found in the garage tweaking some kind of rare high end audio component. Perscia Maung A lover of live music, Perscia has previously worked in arts and hospitality. These days she loves to walk her great dane and her cat on the beach. FLM has introduced her to many inspiring business owners – thankfully Adelaide Snake…

It’s five in the morning and the first light is slowly stretching over the vineyards of McLaren Vale. There is a rare moment of quiet as cellar hand Kisani Poole glances up and sees the first rays of dawn coating the winery in an ethereal glow. The energetic thirty-three year old has almost finished an epic vintage night shift. She must be exhausted but she speaks quickly, enthusiastically, using cellar hand lingo. ‘It started with crushing a sauvy (sauvignon blanc),’ she explains. ‘Then, we had to get that pressing, do the adds (additions), while at the same time pressing a couple of red opens (red fermenters), cleaning the crusher ready for the morning, helping my two legend casuals out when they need me, plus unloading fruit from tractors and filling…

See What I Have Done by Sarah Schmidt Published by Hachette ISBN 9780733636882 $32.99 Our fascination with violent crime seems to find its zenith with the particular brutality of axe murders, all the more so when the perpetrator may be a young woman. The unsolved Borden murders of the 1890s in Fall River, Massachusetts and the associated trial and acquittal of Lizzie Borden for the savage deaths of her father and stepmother has consistently enthralled writers and filmmakers. It was even memorialised in a macabre children’s rhyme: Lizzie Borden took an axe And gave her mother forty whacks. When she saw what she had done, She gave her father forty-one. Extending the ‘true crime’ genre exemplified by Hannah Kent’s Burial Rites, Sarah Schmidt’s gripping debut novel reimagines the murders and…

At one end of the garden older brother Harry is demonstrating a long bamboo stick with a tomato stuck on the end. He explains that he’s strength-testing the chickens’ beaks with this piece of apparatus: the explosion of tomato is proportionate to the strength of the beak. It becomes very clear that, apart from their egg-laying and garden weeding roles, these chickens are integral members of the family. The garden, in which this early physics lesson is playing out, is no ordinary backyard; it is the organic kitchen garden for the much acclaimed restaurant the Salopian Inn. The boys’ mother, Karena Armstrong, calls herself the Inn’s Managing Director of Culinary Delights. When she couldn’t find the heirloom varieties of vegetables she wanted for her ‘culinary delights’, she decided to grow…

Winter 2017 – our fifth anniversary issue. Once again, we are extremely proud of the stories portrayed in this issue – our fifth anniversary issue! And on behalf of our very small team, we would especially like to thank every one of our contributors. We have been so lucky to have met some amazing creatives while exploring all corners of the Fleurieu for content. We punch above our weight with every issue – and that all comes down to the diverse and interesting writers and photographers with whom we work. It means a terrific amount to us that we have become a galvanising force in the community. Here is what some of the best advocates have been kind enough to say about us: Fleurieu Living Magazine has provided a regional…

These majestic trees have soul and character of their own and form an important part of Willunga’s cultural landscape. The town’s name is believed by some to be derived from the Kaurna word Wiljaungga, meaning ‘a place of green trees’. Jo explains to me that the land holds significance for a variety of reasons. She says it’s a sacred place for local Aboriginal people. Its big trees and proximity to a perennial stream made it a favourite camping spot. This gorgeous, peaceful parcel of land also has colonial heritage. It was originally part of a family farm, which over time was sliced up and sold off. Adjacent is Willunga’s original court house and gaol and across the road is the town’s first post office. I wonder if it’s coincidental that…

It’s Good Friday, half an hour before sunset. We’re flying low enough to see couples and families walk below, jetties are alive as fishing lines are cast, dogs chase balls and kids try to outrun the breaking waves. We track further along the coast and suddenly we’re isolated, barely a sign of humanity. Only one kilometre ago, the beaches were teeming with life; now I struggle to spot a soul. If you live along the Mid Coast, you’re familiar with the almost nightly autumnal display of colour, as the sun blasts the cliffs with raking light. As we pass over Myponga Beach, the show starts in earnest with breathtaking shadow play over the hills and valleys. We pass the cliffs of Sellicks Hill where the lighting event reaches its crescendo.…

The image of a picturesque, whimsy wedding does not usually go hand-inhand with a working farm. But Reid and Georgie were able to weave beauty, grace and personal touches into every aspect of their wedding, which was held at Georgie’s family farm ‘Ella Matta’ on Kangaroo Island. To infuse the ceremony with so much charm took weeks of preparations. Once the couple had chosen the location – on top of a hill in a paddock close to the house – they needed an entranceway. They chose a building material close to hand, stacking hay rolls fifty metres high to create the perfect entrance. As the guests made their way through, the view of the altar and the beautiful property opened up before them. It was the detail that made the…

Sarah Taylor and Mark Laurie met when they stepped into a lift together at university. While they agree it wasn’t the most romantic setting, it turned out to be a fitting precursor to a life shared creating joyful abundance from small spaces. Soon after the couple married, Mark took up surfing and the newlyweds embarked on regular weekend trips to Middleton, where Mark surfed while Sarah walked or read. However, after more than a few rainy weekends, Sarah found herself struggling to foster much ‘joyful abundance’ whilst confined to the car. So Mark and Sarah invested in a slightly larger ‘small space’; an old asbestos shack in Middleton, where they could base themselves on weekends. When work took Mark and Sarah to Papua New Guinea, they bought another small space…

Ros is the owner and operator of Red Poles, a popular and successful business, comprising a restaurant, cellar door, art gallery and a bed and breakfast located on McMurtrie Road in the heart of McLaren Vale. In 2005 the formally trained mixed media artist, began looking for a place to start an art business. ‘You know, somewhere you could take art classes and have coffee and a piece of cake,’ she explains. Full of enthusiasm for her new venture, Ros approached a local real estate agent, who suggested she might like to have a look at a property being used to store wine, that had once operated as a cafe and cellar door. The property turned out to be one of the locations her art group had visited on painting…

Once the couple purchased the block, the challenge was to do justice to such a unique and fragile parcel of land. Robyn and Barry were determined to build a house that would ‘tread lightly’ both environmentally and aesthetically and so they began commissioning a house that would ‘think outside the square’. A city neighbour recommended impressive architect Max Pritchard, of KI Southern Ocean Lodge fame. After looking at his designs, they were sure they could not afford him. But, never one to hang back, Robyn asked him anyway. They got the list of practicalities out of the way – a house that was small and easy to care for, two studios that could double as guest bedrooms; a music room for Barry’s two bands to practice in; parking for two…

Five thousand cars pass through Coonalpyn on the Dukes Highway every day, but few have felt the need to stop. Until now. Images of five local children beautifully rendered by artist Guido van Helten on the thirty-metre high Viterra silos, make it difficult for drivers not to slow their vehicles. Indeed, since March this year, one in three of those whizzing cars not only stops, but spills its phone-wielding, food consuming occupants out to goggle at the huge, eye-popping images. This of course occasions thousands of social media posts and feel-good news stories locally and internationally, which in turn generate more visits. But this is just a small part of a much larger story. After many years of decline, exacerbated by drought, Coonalpyn was in dire need of a facelift…

Sellicks Beach was a site for motorcycle racing for nearly a hundred years, until the last official race was held there over three decades ago. The recent recreation of the historic race drew vintage bike lovers and motorsport enthusiasts en masse.…

The second annual Fleurieu Fringe blasted off in style at Port Noarlunga’s Sauerbier House. A solid lineup of performers over five weekends was complemented by fabulous local food and wine. The colourful, vibrant and creative energies of Kylea Hartley and Tanya Gurney (organisers) were acknowledged with an award for one of the best events of the Fleurieu Fringe.…