Red, red wine of Clare Valley could be chilled-out cure for red-faced Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers

Brendan Rodgers may need to get away from it all if Liverpool duly blow their title tilt. I have the perfect place for a close-season escape for Brendan.  Chilled out in the Clare Valley.  For me it certainly was in more respects than one last weekend. Take note, Brendan… This week winter had come early to the north of the city of Adelaide and the plunging temperature was seemingly a major talking point for inhabitants and tourists alike on our weekend escape. As a native of constantly-cold Lancashire it didn’t seem a mind-altering event. But then again… The cold snap had hit the hoteliers early, so there was indeed a crisis for me. A lack of Coopers stout.  My favourite winter tipple in the southern hemisphere. The bar people had not been expecting such  a dip in living conditions. All the more fun for me.  Real red wine weather.  And thankfully Clare provided a sporting top-up on Sunday. It was all about the reserves of the Crows and Port doing battle in the SANFL Showdown.  “Tex” Walker assumed Hollywood status as my lady Gabs and I strolled along the main drag on Sunday afternoon.  Never mind the potential telly distractions of the AFL or the imminent craziness of the English Premier League title race, the locals in Clare only had eyes for the main sporting show in town.  More than 5,000 people made the Clare Stadium the centre of attention. And well done. It was a worthy spectacle to behold as various generations – from pram dwellers to pensioners – strolled along for the first bounce with the variance in club colours not seeming to provoke any animosity. We satisfied our hunger for the occasion with great scran in the Clare Hotel. But outside, sport was on the menu. Always great to see.  I did not want to intrude as I try to follow Norwood in the SANFL.  We made our way back to base in Auburn via several wineries.  The clichéd friendliness of country people does come into play in the Clare Valley.  And it is no cliche at all. The chatter from mine hosts in the Kilikanoon Wines and O’Leary Walker Wines made it hard to leave those respective establishments. The Shut the Gate pit-stop was also a worthy venue.  Paulett Wines and Pikes Polish Hill are others pencilled in for a “must do” note.  I’m not an advertising agency, I just found the friendliness so genuine. I will talk to anybody so long as they are not up themselves. And the folk of the Clare Valley are the real thing. Gabs took a gamble by booking us into Mellers of Auburn. It proved a great move. Rosemary Howe is smiles all round as the perfect host. It’s only a mere stroll “next door”  to the Rising Sun,  with Ken and Paula dispensing the  beverages.  It certainly got chocka as the fans piled in after the Crows-Port stouch down the valley.  Not exactly akin to Rosies Bar after a Newcastle United visit of days of yore or thawing out with a pint of bitter in the General Havelock after a midwinter Ewood experience, but a post-sporting  occasion all the same. As an “old school” follower of sports I can claim no fear of “screen addiction” so I blocked out all need to find out the Rovers result. Eventually I succumbed and gave the legendary John Pittard a bell. It turned out to be Rovers 4 Wigan 3. No play-offs for us but the perfect postscript to a laidback, wine-fuelled, off-the-dial sporting weekend. This is where my advice for Brendan Rodgers comes in again. He can flee free from the media madness to recharge his batteries. Plenty of reds for a Red, Brendan. Think about it.  You might need it…