In the morning we went to the farmer’s market which was very good indeed, the best we’ve seen in this country by far. It had a very rural air to it, being held in the A&P ground with a fiddle player but the produce was very good and our haul included delicacies such as pine nuts, pink oyster mushrooms and labneh. We had some excellent prawn empanadas for breakfast, followed by a superb waffle with a little mound of whipped cream and lightly macerated plums.
On our return the Winemaker staggered out of his shed following a long morning of beekeeping demanded an early lunch. We went to his vineyard’s restaurant to have a very adequate slow cooked lamb (for me), followed by shared desserts of which I think my creme brulee with lightly cooked cherries was the winner, followed (unusually) by the affogato. Since the children were all otherwise engaged (one gone to paint toddlers’ faces at a event, a paid gig, and the other catching fish with a friend and the latter’s burly policeman father in the sounds) we came via a chocolatiere which gives copious free samples. The Gentleman Friend, who is a great chocolate afficionado, picked up a little pack of macadamia and toffee milk chocolate – an usual choice for him in every regard, but it was very tasty and I am generally suspicious of chocolate bars from such places.
When we got back to the house the Winemaker asked if I wanted to take a look at the hives and of course I most certainly did. We donned our bee suits and entered the bee zone where he opened the hives and showed me the various parts. He is a scientist by training and an artist by inclination, and clearly an excellent teacher, so it was extremely interesting, just the sort of thing I enjoy. I was particularly interested by the propolis, which is of course worth its weight in gold but is basically a sort of mixed plant resin combined with wax, amber coloured but streaked green and red (in this case). Very mouldable and with a lovely spicy resiny honey smell. I then watched him centrifuge the honey out, extract the excess beeswax and scrape off the propolis.
Meanwhile, back in Pakistan, there is some illness which has me worried and on edge. Well, not much to be done and if it turns out I have to withdraw from all my planned travelling, there it is.