An un-Australian Australia Day

So the plan was to meet at the Temple Walkabout for a few Aussie beverages to celebrate Australia Day. For the record, I'm really not a fan of the Walkabout - it is either only attractive to yahoos or brings out the yahoo in people who go there. But we didn't have any other plans, so on a cold, rainy London Sunday (particularly un-Australian weather!), we made our way to Temple only to find that the people we were supposed to meet weren't there. But I did enjoy my TED (Toohey's Extra Dry - we do have good lager in Australia (except for Fosters, which no Australian in Australia would ever drink. Do they even sell it there?)).

So as the Australia Day plans were aborted, we decided to seek alternative entertainments. Only the previous day, I had been reading about Gordon's Wine Bar - apparently the oldest wine bar in London (established in 1890) and a London institution, but one I hadn't heard of. I was not entirely sure where it was, but recalled it being somewhere in the neighbourhood of Temple/Charing Cross. We did finally happen across it and very tentatively entered a more than slightly dodgy looking doorway just next to Charing Cross station. If I hadn't read about it, I certainly would never have gone in! But through the tiny doorway and down the steep and narrow staircase were the underground caves of Gordon's Wine Bar. Awesome! The focus is on sherrys and ports in barrels, but they also have quite a good wine list (an Indian Cab Sav anyone?). By sheer luck, we managed to get a table in the candlelit cave (it was very dark, so unfortunately, the photos are quite dark) and started with a glass of Concha y Toro Cab Sav from Chile and a Hazy View South African Pinotage. Both were quite similar and perhaps less gutsy than anticipated. Gordons also has an impressive cheese selection and for a reasonable 7.60 we got a beautifully ripe Camembert and a stinky washed rind Irish cheese (not sure what it was called), along with half a baguette and some pickles. The cheeses were exactly the right temperature and the whole experience was very rustic and authentic feeling! Not wanting to leave so soon, we also enjoyed a glass of Bordeaux (just gutsy enough) and a Fat Bastard Bourgogne (very mild even for a Pinot, despite the name!).

The whole experience was fantastic - I will definitely be going back and would take anyone who came to visit London. It was probably the least Australian, but most 'London' thing we could have done on Australia Day in London.