Hi Everyone,

Just over a week ago we had a Sunday session in the open air behind our camp kitchen with Dave Garnham and Toby (from Darwin).  A cruisy afternoon, grapes were ripening slowly, we had a few ferments in, people still had time to enjoy some original live music, glass of wine and delicious food before life went completely mad.

At one point a kookaburra flew in to a branch of a magnificent eucalyptus tree behind our old shearing shed - he just sat and seemed to enjoy the music.  It made me smile.  

Today I spent the day destemming our Coonawarra Cabernet, we machine harvested this year as the crops were so low it just wasn't viable to hand harvest, as it turned out we would have struggled to get pickers.  It was a good compromise with a beautiful cool morning.  I sat gazing at our trees from the forklift - thinking how much I loved just 'making wine' - one benefit of being forced to close other facets of our business.  But the reality is that I have no idea what the financial impact will be - or when you can all return. I am a tragic optimist so began thinking of how I can share this place with you  - and how I can support the people that make life worth living - the artists, musicians and chefs.

This Thursday, Friday and Saturday we are going to try some 'on-line' gigs.  We want you to tune in to our Facebook feed for a live stream at 8pm on each of those nights with a bottle of Bellwether wine.  Try to buy some takeaway food from a restaurant forced to close their dining room and we will enjoy the beauty of Art.  They won't be long - we would rather you spend this quieter time cooking, playing cards, board games, gardening than being online too much - but for a moment let's celebrate creativity and how important it is to stop and admire the purity of observation and thought.

Our first gig is a special one from Headland, lead by our friend Murray Paterson (above) in collaboration with filmmaker Stephen Jones (below) featuring live music played to projected imagery of the Limestone Coast .  Murray first came to Bellwether with Tex Perkins, then returned with Headland for 'True Flowers from this Painted World'  (Stephen and Murray's creation).

Some of you may have attended those gigs, or maybe you love the Limestone Coast and would like to visit one day - let's call this 'lounge room tourism'.  Anyway, it's on us - so if you like it - buy some wine so we can pay the artists and keep some food on our plates!