Wining and Dining in the Hunter Valley

What do you get when you pack the entire equity research department of a major investment bank into a 5 star resort/winery and let them loose for a weekend of off-site strategic "planning". Well, the cynical among you (and let's face it, that's all of you reading this) might suggest you get a bullet-proof battle-tested plan for emptying a bar of beer in less time than it takes for a certain competitor to package up another toll road to the middle of nowhere... You also get more synergistic leveraging of core opportunities and blue-sky aspirations than an entire Dilbert strip.

But hey, free food, free booze, free cokes for those whose undertanding of the subtleties of a fine sauvignon blanc is summed up by the second half of the name - who's complaining? While the rest of the team let loose their inner Tiger on the fairways, the reigning champion of the North Shore Open shouldered his putter and posed with some fans.

Here the balcony at the Cypress Lakes resort is creaking under the combined mass of a couple of guests who spent a bit too long at the all-you-can-eat breakfast buffet... mmmmm... donuts... mmmm... bacon...

The resort is so big you have to call a bus to take you back to your room.


The lake boardering the carefully manicured greens offers the perfect final resting spot for errant golf balls.


Can't leave the region without at least making the pilgrimage to a couple wineries. Just take a slow deliberate sip, carefully swill the wine around for a moment, and then, after another moment of intense thought, utter something you vaguely recall Ian saying, e.g. "interesting... I love the hint of oak"...