Our base for exploring the Barossa is Almond Hill B&B, in the village of Angaston. Easy to find on the outskirts of the town, we drive up the hill surrounded by flowering lavendar and rosemary, and pull in to park by a rhinoceros (iron) and the donkeys (two real ones), an alpaca and two sheep with week old lambs completes the menagarie.
The house overlooks the vineyards and town, and feels like it was born of the earth. Which it was – owner Sandra Broman built it herself of earth brick, and mud rendered walls. It is a work of art and magic – that looks like it could just as easily be in France or Italy, with its rustic furniture and fittings.
Sandra shows us to our home for the stay – a fully canopied bed, a huge range of DVDs and music, freshly made bread, free range eggs, bacon, fruit and chocolate, a bottle of wine and more little surprises during the stay – like the freshly baked carrot cake.
The house has been hand crafted and this shows in a dozen ways – from Sandra’s art on the walls, the pressed tin shutters or the pottager garden out the window.
Sandra’s book “Built like a Woman” is on the shelves and we are soon absorbed into the story of the building of this beautiful space – from the practical of how to hammer a nail, to the relational of how to build a house with another person, to the visionary of ….. A builder myself, I marvel at the attention to detail in the house and the hospitality.
We have had our gorgeous two nights stay and we are getting to leave (a very civilized midday check out) when Sandra drops over and offers us another night’s stay. We cannot resist – who could, this is a magnificent place to stay and explore the Barossa. It’s a wintry day, but we have the best time exploring, and come home to find Sandra has kept the fire stoked in our room – what a treat.
I cannot recommend Almond Hill B&B enough – if you are in South Australia come here. The guest book attests to the stories of excellent stays and we add our own words of thanks to the story before we leave.
Beautiful photos