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RECYCLING PLANT COMES TO BRIBIE

David Sweedman
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RECYCLING PLANT COMES TO BRIBIE

Recycling is certainly not a new term in today’s “throwaway” world. Many everyday items end up as landfill when much more can be done to use them in future production. As a society we have become used to separating our household rubbish in different coloured bins, hoping that the recyclable rubbish can find a new life, sometimes as an entirely different product.

  • Featured Image(above):(F to B) Amelia Hamilton from Ningi, Jules Williams from Bribie, Elisa Munro from Bribie and Paul Mullen the General Manager at Express Recycling.

The Bribie Islander offers a big welcome to the general manager Paul Mullen and his team at the recently opened Express Recycling at 21 Armitage Street, Bongaree (opposite the Bus Depot). Paul explained to our reporter that the company has had many years of experience in this industry in other states.

The staff are all locals and they aim to give top customer service and assistance with advice for future collections and to make the experience a pleasure to return again and recycle the next batch of containers. Every “single-use” beverage container from aluminium cans, beer bottles to flavoured milk and drink bottles (up to 3-litre size) attracts a 10c refund but wine bottles, straight spirit bottles and plain milk containers are not acceptable as yet.

  • Paul Mullen the General Manager at Express Recycling

Bottle caps will need to be removed but Express Recycling are happy to take them as they will be recycled too. Local businesses are also encouraged to bring their containers to support this locally owned and operated business. What a great way to earn some extra cash or top up the family budget.

Only 10 eligible items bring a $1 refund so start collecting them rather than throwing them away, $2.40 for every slab of empty beer bottles! Besides offering a cash refund for collecting, Express Recycling is playing a major part in helping our environment. So many bottles, cans and poppers are dumped by the roadside or left in our parks and on our beaches –help keep Australia cleaner and safer by recycling.

As we now have our recycling plant on Bribie Island it will service all nearby areas so begin collecting your single-use cans and bottles now and get paid for them on the spot in cash or into your bank account and support one of our local businesses.

“Let’s Keep It Local!”

TRADING HOURS Mon – Fri 8:00am – 4:30pm Saturday 9:00am – 2:00pm

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Bribie Island – Update On Beach Fire Access

David Sweedman
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Bribie Island – Update On Beach Fire Access

Ocean Beach will reopen to vehicles on Wednesday 28th August to just north of Mermaid Lagoon (3rd Lagoon).

The remaining section of the beach and the dune areas will remain closed until a safety inspection is undertaken and the area is deemed safe.

Please observe all signage, barriers, and directions from rangers and do not enter closed areas.

5000-pie giveaway to celebrate Beefy’s turning 22

David Sweedman
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5000-pie giveaway to celebrate Beefy’s turning 22

2019 marks 22 years in business for Sunshine Coast favourite, Beefy’s. The family-owned bakery couldn’t be more grateful for the customer support they’ve received during that time. That’s why they are celebrating their 22nd birthday with 22 days of presents for customers.
They’re kicking the party off on Thursday 22nd August by giving away 5000 pies across their nine stores!
“To claim their free Signature Steak Pie or Gluten-Free Signature Steak Pie, customers simply need to like Beefy’s on Facebook or Instagram to find out more, or be Beefy’s Rewards Club members,” says Beefy’s Mark Hobbs.
“The free pies will be available while stocks last or until 2:22 pm, whichever comes first.” Thursday will also mark the start of Beefy’s Scratch and Win. Every customer who visits and makes a
purchase during the 22 days of celebrations will receive a Scratch and Win card, and every card wins a prize to be redeemed with the next purchase.
“Beefy’s Scratch and Win is giving away free Family Pies, 5-Packs of Pies, Barista-Made Coffee, Lunch-Size Pies, Large Hot Chips, Loaded Pies, Sweets and more,” says Mark. “There’ll also be some surprise in-store deals offered too during our 22 days of celebrations.”
The first 100 Beefy’s Home Delivery customers to order during the celebrations will also receive a Beefy’s Scratch and Win with their order. Again, every Home Delivery Scratch and Win card wins, with the prizes including $10 and $20 off home delivery or a FREE 12-Pack of Pies.
“At the end of the 22 days, one lucky customer will walk away with the biggest present of all, 22 Weeks of Pies,” says Mark.
“To enter, customers simply need to sign up for free to Beefy’s Rewards Club. Current Beefy’s Rewards Club members are automatically entered.”
“The winner will receive a 5-Pack of Beefy’s Lunch-Size Pies, any flavour including Gluten-Free, every week for 22 weeks. That’s $874 value free!”
Now with nine locations in South East Queensland and employing 150 local people, the entire Beefy’s team couldn’t be prouder to be celebrating their 22nd birthday.
While a lot has changed since day one, one thing that’s remained is Beefy’s commitment to giving customers what they love.
“In the very early days, customers let us know they wanted bigger, beefier pies so that’s what we gave them,” says Mark, “and we haven’t stopped since!”
Beefy’s Pies aren’t just bigger and beefier, they are award-winning.
“We’ve been lucky enough to win some awards for our pies over the years – in fact, our awards tally is sitting at 87 and still counting and includes Australia’s Best Gluten-Free Pie.”
Beefy’s also received the honour recently of being awarded Best Meat Pie on the Sunshine Coast as voted by Sunshine Coast locals.
“We’re very grateful for all the awards, but it’s the ones where customers have voted that mean the most to us, as do the daily rewards and thanks we receive when customers visit our stores,” adds
Mark.
Customers were certainly very thankful when Beefy’s introduced Gluten Free Signature Steak Pies to their range in 2013. It was something Mark decided to do in response to his son Michael being diagnosed with Coeliac Disease and the growing requests that were being received from customers for pies that suited a gluten-free diet.
Sunshine Coast locals not only embraced the Beefy’s gluten free-range, as word got out pie lovers from around Australia wanted them too. In 2017, Beefy’s introduced Beefy’s Gluten-Free Home
Delivery, and now delivers their gluten-free range of pies and sausage rolls Australia wide.
So, as the extended Hobbs and Beefy’s families pause to celebrate Beefy’s 22nd birthday, they do it with great anticipation for what the future holds.

Helly’s Celebrities of the 20th Century – Arnold Schwartzenegger

David Sweedman
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Helly’s Celebrities of the 20th Century – Arnold Schwartzenegger

Tags: Arnold Schwartzenegger. Famous people. Actors. Celebrities.

Boy Arnie’s Vision:

Stay Hungry ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER

Who would have ever thought that an unhappy little boy, born in 1947 in Thal, the tiniest of villages in the Austrian Steiermark, would become an international icon with a life more interesting than even he himself could have dreamt of? But that is Arnie Schwarzenegger all the way!

And why unhappy? Well, his father, a policeman, noncommissioned army officer and member of the Nazi Party, (unlike Arnie, a lifelong member of “Friends of Israel”) displays a strong and blatant favouritism for Arnie’s older brother Meinhard, because of an unfounded suspicion that Arnie is not his biological child. But Arnie loves Meinhard and looks up to him for everything, yet does not attend his funeral, when Meinhard is killed in a car accident in 1971, as he cannot bear to see his father.

The father would never listen to or understand young Arnie, lavishing him with corporal punishment for the slightest thing. But at 14 Arnie wins the battle with his father of taking up bodybuilding instead of soccer. Besides, I so sympathize with Arnie’s regimented parental upbringing, as I too, also Austrian born and close to Arnie’s age, suffered the identical problems, all of which makes you strive for the impossible and by persisting you do achieve it.

My favorite song ‘CLIMB EVERY MOUNTAIN’ beautifully portrayed in ‘THE SOUND OF MUSIC,’ summarizes it perfectly and has been my life-long motto. Arnie is already a savvy, self-made millionaire before even starting his first major movie to be released in 1982, ‘CONAN THE BARBARIAN.’ But the name of his first film ‘STAY HUNGRY’ last year (1976), means more than just a movie title to Arnie. Stay hungry is his motto for the rest of his life, hungry to achieve, hungry to be the best at everything he touches, hungry to win, hungry for accolade, fame and fortune and accomplished friends in every walk of life. It is something very Austrian.

Arnold Schwartzenegger. Famous people. Actors. Celebrities.

  • Arnold Schwartzenegger in the movie “Conan”

My father too always encouraged me to find friends who were smarter and more intelligent than I, so I would learn from them. But with his innate ability to succeed, Arnie does not have to learn too much. From his bodybuilding career and winning the Mr. Universe, Mr. World, Mr. International, and Mr. Olympia contests many times and, having been the youngest man ever at 20 to do so, he never spends his winnings. Instead, he invests them in an apartment building, world-wide real estate, privately controlled companies, stocks, bonds, sporting events, business ventures and even achieves a business degree from the Los Angeles U.C.L.A.

I first meet the 30-year-old prolific goal setter for a most unusual luncheon in the most exclusive French restaurant in London’s Piccadilly. After my urgent veterinary consultation at Regents Park Zoo that morning, there is no time to take my tiny Squirrel Monkey, Kya, and her baby back home to Middlesex. I can’t leave her in my soft-top 280SL Mercedes, as the risk of someone stealing this precious little creature with even just a pocket knife through the roof is far too great.

I feel embarrassed, but turn up with Kya on my arm, asking the maitre d’ of the restaurant, if they might have a storage room where she could stay while Schwarzenegger and I have lunch. But instead, Kya is served delicious food on a silver platter under our table. “I didn’t get any more satisfaction out of competing and winning by 1975,” Arnie’s gruff voice is quite distinctive as he explains. “Bodybuilding was a stepping stone, a means to an end, and as I finished my competitive years, I was using it more and more as a vehicle. It helped me a lot in business and in other areas, because if you have a ‘name,’ you do much better.

You can get loans from the bank for business. Subconsciously people are just impressed with size and winners.” At this point, Arnie forgets his food in his earnestness to touch on a subject very interesting to him. “Through all the different civilizations it’s been proved that the presentation of the body is always very important. Whatever it was, Hercules, the Greek statues or the Roman soldiers, they were all muscular. Look at the way Michelangelo painted his male figures and the way Rodin sculpted muscular ones. It was always a presentation of power.”

You don’t necessarily agree with every word Arnie says, to appreciate that he has studied his subject and thought about it at length. And you’d be made of asbestos not to succumb to the boyish charm that robs the words of pomposity and keeps them just the right side of the comic. Looking across the restaurant table I find Arnie slimmer and slighter than expected, and apart from the biceps that thrust outwards against his sleeves, he is not bulging in any unusual places. Only the excessive ratio of his shoulders to his waist, two to one, gives away that this man does not make his living sitting behind an office desk.

“I have been really fascinated by the people I have met in the last few years,” he continues in a wondering tone, “people I would otherwise have had no chance to meet, like political leaders, Presidents, Prime Ministers, the Kennedy’s. The Kennedy family invited me to Hyannisport and Rose Kennedy gave me two copies of her book, inscribed in German, one for me and one for my mother.”

If occasionally Arnie gives the impression of having approached his dream-come-true position with just a shade of too much calculation he will mitigate it by revealing the side of himself that is still as breathless and starstruck as a school-boy, his nose pressed against the windowpane.

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History – Bribie Island Transport 1950s

David Sweedman
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History – Bribie Island Transport 1950s

Tags: History. Brisbane. Bribie Island. Queensland. Moreton Bay. Australian

For 40 years after the Jetty was constructed at Bongaree in 1912, everything and everyone coming to and from Bribie Island were by ship. After WW2 in 1947, an intermittent barge service started operating from Toorbul Point (now Sandstone Point) when motor cars became popular, despite the long rough bumpy dirt road trip from Caboolture. For 40 years all goods, food, materials, fuel, water, and equipment were brought over by steamship from Brisbane and unloaded at the Jetty.

  • Featured image(above): Koopa leaving Bribie

In the early 1950s, the Tug Co. sold the declining Steamship KOOPA to a private Bribie syndicate who attempted to maintain the service. It did not last very long and was soon abandoned, as the future of road transport took hold. In mid-1951, the Government called tenders for a new Goods Transport service to operate between Brisbane and Bribie Island.

History. Brisbane. Bribie Island. Queensland. Moreton Bay. Australian-1

  • MARQUARDT Transport trucks on barge crossing to Bribie 1952

SHIP to ROAD TRANSPORT

Stan and Alma Marquardt ran a small trucking operation at Mondure in Wondai Shire. They decided to submit a tender and in July 1951 traveled down to visit Bribie Island and speak with residents and businesses, measure distances, estimate volumes and evaluate the prospect of business success.

Initial reactions from Bribie merchants were mixed, as they had relied on twice-weekly steamship deliveries for a long time. Stan Marquardt decided to submit a tender based on current railway charges, which were 2 pounds 10 shillings ($5) per ton and 2 shillings and 6 pence (25 cents) per parcel.

His first customers were likely to the few Bribie Shops (Vines, Campbell’s, Brennan, Winston, Renton) Milk vendor (Christoferson) Hotel (Dudley) Pies (Young) Butcher (Camp) and Baker (Kling). It was several months before being advised by the Government that he had won the Tender, and Marquardt was then required to commence the service immediately in March 1952.

History. Brisbane. Bribie Island. Queensland. Moreton Bay. Australian-1

  • First Transport Truck 1952 – Brisbane to Bribie Island via Toorbul Point

MARQUARDT TRANSPORT

They sold their house and business in Mondure, and with Alma pregnant with their second daughter, rented a house on Bribie for 12 shillings and 6 pence a week ($1.25) and moved here. They kept their 5-ton truck, which required suitable signage to comply with requirements. They had it painted and launched the “Brisbane to Bribie Island via Toorbul Point” goods transport service.

This was a big step for the whole family with just 50 Pounds in the Bank, a toddler, and a pregnant wife and starting a new business from scratch. The first truck road service was on 10 March 1952 with a drum of Tallow from the Butcher and 200 loaves of bread from the Baker. The new service had been initially approved for three days a week, and with no phone, unreliable barge service, dreadful road surfaces, and hygiene controls that were hard to enforce.

History. Brisbane. Bribie Island. Queensland. Moreton Bay. Australian-1

  • Marquardt family 1954

History. Brisbane. Bribie Island. Queensland. Moreton Bay. Australian-1

  • Mullet Fish Catch

BUSINESS GREW QUICKLY

Businesses and shops on Bribie soon recognised the benefits of more frequent and timely deliveries both to and from Brisbane markets, and this contributed to the termination of the Steamship Koopa service within a few months. Marquardt Transport had the sole rights to service Bribie from Brisbane and it was soon carrying soft drinks and ice cream in dry ice containers, small and large Parcels, Furniture, Beer and Groceries.

Within months, the service was extended to every day on demand, and the workload, paperwork, and communications soon became too demanding and complex to operate from Bribie. The Marquardt family bought a house in Zillmere where they continued to live for the next 43 years.

A second truck was required as the variety of goods grew to include Meat, Milk, Fuel, Fruit, Vegetables and even huge loads of fresh Mullet from the beach fishermen. There were also many large loads of Bottles and Cans, which remarkably survived the noisy bumpy road trips and the empties on return. Reversing fully laden trucks on to the rocking barge in rough weather provided many exciting moments.

SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS SOLD

The business was a big success but the workload was hard and demanding on a family with two small children and growing health problems. Stan Marquardt had done very well, working hard to establish and build a business from nothing. As far back as 1953, the Government had even started talking about building a bridge to Bribie, which offered even greater opportunities.

They decided to sell their successful Transport business to Braithwaite and the family took a long and well-deserved holiday. Of course, it was 12 years later in 1963 before a Bribie Bridge would be constructed.

History. Brisbane. Bribie Island. Queensland. Moreton Bay. Australian-1

  • Marquardt Park proud family 2002

PIONEER BUSINESS RECOGNISED

In 2002, to mark the 50th anniversary of Marquardt starting the new road transport business, Caboolture Shire Council dedicated a new Park in his honour.  Marquardt Park in Alamanda Drive, facing Azalea Drive, Bongaree, was the scene of a proud family unveiling ceremony in March 2002 and a tribute article appeared in the local newspaper.

History. Brisbane. Bribie Island. Queensland. Moreton Bay. Australian-1

  • Marquardt Park News Article 2002

A great many pioneer business residents made significant contributions to the establishment of new business and service ventures on the island over the years. Some are remembered and recognised with Streets and Parks bearing their names. Others are unfortunately long forgotten. Stan Marquardt documented his family story some years before he died at the age of 89 in 2010.

He died almost 50 years after he established the first Bribie Truck Transport business, but it is appropriate to remind residents and readers of this important step in the development of the island in the years when large steamships were replaced with small barges and road transport. MBRC has now replaced the original park sign with a new one, but residents and visitors rarely see this quiet area.

History. Brisbane. Bribie Island. Queensland. Moreton Bay. Australian-1

  • Marquardt Park Sign

History. Brisbane. Bribie Island. Queensland. Moreton Bay. Australian-1

  • Stan Marquardt died in 2010

For those who do see it, there is nothing to indicate the story behind the naming of the park. Unfortunately, that is also the case for most other “named” parks on the island. I think it is a pity that the Council does not see fit to put just a few words on Park signs to make the names meaningful. I am pleased to pay tribute to the Marquardt family with this article.

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Gloss Magazine Bribie Islander 17th Edition August 16th 2019 Issue 94

The Editor Cherrie Wilson
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Gloss Magazine Bribie Islander 17th Edition August 16th 2019 Issue 94

Get all your community news and information. Bribie Islands only community gloss magazine NOW EVERY TWO WEEKS! – Articles on boating, camping, fishing, life, drama, travel destinations, sports and what to see and do on Bribie Island. Covering charities, organisations, places, children’s activities, arts and crafts, tourist destinations, heritage parks, technology, science, music, gardening, and much more.

Download the digital edition here.

Bribie Island Wildlife – BRONZE – CUCKOOS

David Sweedman
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Bribie Island Wildlife – BRONZE – CUCKOOS

Tags: Wildlife. Native. Birds. Cuckoo. Australian. Queensland. Bribie Island. Moreton Bay

Bronze-Cuckoos are the smallest of the Cuckoo species in Australia. They have iridescent bronze-green plumage and are barred on their underparts. Their calls are similar. All are parasitic and lay their eggs in other bird’s nests and expect the host birds to raise their chicks. There are four species of Bronze- Cuckoos in Australia.

Featured Image(above): Little Bronze-Cuckoo

Shining, Little, and Horsfield’s Bronze-Cuckoos have all been recorded on Bribie Island with the Little and Horsfield’s being very rare visitors. Shining Bronze-Cuckoos (Chrysococcyx lucidus) is the species most likely to be seen on Bribie Island as they are fairly common in the woodlands and eucalyptus forests.

They are small birds, just 17-18 cm in length with iridescent green plumage on their backs and heads and with black almost complete bars across their throat, chest, and tail. Their call from a perch is a high-pitched whistle which sounds a little like someone whistling a dog. Usually, they are reasonably quiet birds but become quite vocal during the breeding season. They are not easy to spot as they are small and are mostly in the mid to upper branches of the trees in rainforests, eucalyptus forests, and woodlands. Some are migratory while others prefer to stay in the same area.

From our area, some of the Shining Bronze-Cuckoos migrate to PNG. In Australia, they are found in the east and southern parts and in the south of Western Australia. They are also found in NZ and some Pacific Islands. Insects and caterpillars are their main food which they take from leaves and from the ground.

They sit on a perch waiting for their prey to appear. Hairy caterpillars are on the menu and the sharp spines are caught up in the soft lining of their stomachs. These eventually are spat out. August to January is usually the breeding time in our area. Being parasitic the females usually select domed host nests belonging to Thornbills, Gerygones, Scrubwrens and some other small species.

Wildlife. Native. Birds. Cuckoo. Australian. Queensland. Bribie Island. Moreton Bay

Shining Bronze-Cuckoo

One egg is laid in each nest and up to 16 greenish-brown eggs may be laid in one season. Even though Cuckoo eggs are slightly different the host birds don’t seem to notice in the darkness of the domed nests. Eggs are incubated by the host birds. When the baby Cuckoos hatch, they get rid of any chicks or eggs which are in the nest. Host parents are left with just one baby bird to raise. Young Cuckoos leave the nests and are ready to fly after about 18- 22 days. Shining Bronze-Cuckoos are sometimes called Golden Bronze Cuckoos and are similar to other Bronze-Cuckoo species.

They were first recorded in NSW in 1801. Little Bronze-Cuckoos (Chrysococcyx minutillus) are very rarely seen on Bribie Island but there has been the odd sighting mostly in October. Being only 15-16 cm in length and weighing 17 g Little Bronze-Cuckoos are the world’s smallest Bronze-Cuckoos. They are bronze-green on wings and head, with broken black bars on neck, underparts, and tail. Their eyes are red which makes them easy to distinguish from the other Bronze-Cuckoos if you can get close enough to see them. Their call is a descending whistling trill.

Open forests, mangroves, rainforest edges, and melaleuca swamps are the habitats which they most prefer. In Australia, they are found in a strip from around Broome along the northern coastline to northern NSW. Other countries where they are found are Indonesia, Malaysia, and PNG. Insects and their larva are their preferred food which is mostly hunted from a perch and taken from foliage and on the ground. Insects are often caught on the wing. Breeding is usually from September to February.

Little Bronze-Cuckoos are parasitic and lay one brown, small egg in each of their preferred host bird’s nests. They use the nests of Gerygones and other small birds that build domed nests. The main threats to Bronze-Cuckoos are cats, loss of habitat and flying into windows.

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https://thebribieislander.com.au/community/wildlife/bribie-island-wildlife-yellow-tailed-black-cockatoo/

https://thebribieislander.com.au/community/wildlife/australian-pelican-pelecanus-conspicillatus/

THE DUNNY DOOR

David Sweedman
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THE DUNNY DOOR

Generally speaking, I am not one for collecting material washed up on the beach. I left that to my husband who could not wander along the strand without bringing home a selection of hooks, lines, and sinkers, along with a variety of other objects that “might come in useful.” However, when I saw a whole timber door washed up on the beach in front of us, I knew that all those lifestyle programmes that I had watched over the years, we’re about to pay off. With great excitement, and much huffing and puffing, I dragged my booty home, expecting the husband to be equally delighted. Not so.

I think he realised that this represented work for him. Still, he had to admit that I had supplied the inspiration and all that was required of him was a little perspiration. The top and bottom of the door were sawn off, which removed most of the dry rot. A little sanding and some puttying were followed by a generous splash of mission brown paint, and the tabletop was ready. Some wooden trestles, on which to rest our masterpiece, completed the rustic look.

The table was set up at the bottom of the yard, overlooking the ocean. Our garden bench, also painted in fashionable mission brown, provided seating. It is to this little bit of Heaven that we would retreat in the late afternoon. A bottle of Merlot and two glasses, and all was right in our world. Here we could catch up on each other’s day and relax before dinner. From our vantage point over the Bay, we frequently saw dolphins chasing baitfish.

It is hard to say which was the more beautiful, the graceful movements of the dolphins or the silver ripple of the baitfish in their anxiety to escape finishing up as someone else’s last supper. The birds too began thinking of retiring for the night, with just time for one last snack, before roosting. The lorikeets indulged in noisy squabbling for the best position to spend the night, whilst the pelicans and ducks flew in formation back to the nearby lagoon that was their resting place for the evening.

Gradually, the sunset and the sky turned to a rosy hue. We would just have time to admire our beautiful surroundings when the mosquitos and sand-flies began to arrive, and it was time to retreat to the house. We have no idea as to where our door came from, whether it really did once have as prosaic a purpose as we imagined, but whatever its past, we trusted it appreciated its romantic present.

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https://thebribieislander.com.au/travel/the-long-way-round-to-bribie/queensland-travel-destinations-coolum/

The Bribie WINELANDER

David Sweedman
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The Bribie WINELANDER

The merry go round of the judging of wines around Australia has begun with the Royal Queensland Wine Show and it was a $15 Shiraz from Deep Woods Estate near Yallingup in Western Australia that took out the trophy and gold medal for Best Shiraz/Cabernet blend with its 2017 ‘Ebony’ Cabernet Shiraz. The wine scored 95 points out of a possible 100 and also won a gold medal with The Deep Woods Estate 2017 Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot which also scored 95 points which retails for around $35 per bottle.

Deep Woods Estate is a part of the Fogarty Wine Group, a Western Australian family-controlled wine group which also owns Evans and Tate in Margaret River and The Millbrook Winery in the Perth Hills, which if you are visiting Perth is well worth the 40 minute drive, it is a fabulous winery and restaurant overlooking a lake. Evans and Tate took out the gold medal for the Redbrook Reserve Chardonnay along with the Evans and Tate 2016 and 2017 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Millbrook Wines won gold medals for the 2018 Single Vineyard Chardonnay which will be released in September.

The show wasn’t without controversy this year though as no Queensland wine was awarded many gold medals with winemaker and show medal sponsor Angelo Puglisi blaming the prohibiting costs of entry fees for wines to the show being the major reason. The entry fees range from $110 to $130 for each wine entered plus 6 bottles of each wine as well which is ridiculous as with the advent of Stelvin caps having made most wines pretty well taint free there is no need for more than two bottles of each, which used to be the norm, obviously the extra bottles are going somewhere else!

wine wineries white redIf you have for example 6 wines to submit the cost would be at least $660 plus three dozen samples which for a small producer will come at too high a cost, it is about time the RNA took a good look at themselves if they want the wine industry to develop in Queensland. Ironically the wine that was judged to be the grand champion trophy this year was the Giant Steps Nocton Vineyard 2018 Pinot Noir from Victoria’s Yarra Valley from fruit sourced from Tasmania which was made by winemaker Steve Flamstead a Queenslander! Other trophy winners were Pewsey Vale ‘The Contours’ Riesling, McGuigan Bin 9000 Semillon 2013, Miles from Nowhere 2019 Sauvignon Blanc, Capel Vale Black Label 2018 Chardonnay, Jacobs Creek 2019 Classic Pinot Grigio, Nepenthe Winemakers Select 2018 Gewurztraminer, Brown Bros Patricia 2015 Noble Riesling.

The Jacobs Creek Classic Reserve Classic Reserve Pinot Grigio currently sells at Dan Murphy’s for $8.50 a bottle in a six-pack. The Italians are once again trying to get the term ‘Prosecco’ off the labels of Australian wines comparing its use to that of Champagne. Prosecco is currently enjoying a massive boom probably at the expense of Champagne and other sparkling wine styles with the Australian grape crush surging 42% this year with the Prosecco grape crush volume increasing by an average of 50% each year since 2015.

Producers predict a catastrophic effect on the industry if the name is removed and which may have contributed to the decline of Australian fortified wines when terms such as ‘Port’ and ‘Sherry’ were removed as we discussed in the last issue of ‘The Bribie Islander’. The Italian undersecretary of state for economic development Michele Geraci expects Australia to give up the name as part of the latest round of EU trade negotiations and expected he was prepared to look at a ‘sunset clause’ for anxious winemakers which would probably be for around 4 years to allow for Australian winemakers to adapt or adjust but this could jeopardise a market that could be worth $200 million within four years.

wine winery white red australia queenslandThe European Commission tried to register Prosecco as a geographic indicator or GI in Australia in 2013 meaning it was confined to a region in Italy in the same way as Champagne and they changed the grape name from Prosecco to Glera in 2009 but the bid failed as Australia argued it was a generic variety like Chardonnay, however I don’t think we have heard the end of the argument and with the strength of the EU behind them I feel it is only a matter of time before the Italians get their way. As a matter of interest Feta cheese and several other food products are also being targeted in the same way.

This week I opened a 2012 Wynn’s Black Label Cabernet Sauvignon from Coonawarra and as usual, the wine lived up to expectations. The wine which has aromas of blackcurrants was supported by a smooth full-bodied palate and was an absolute delight. Also, two wines from Angove, the first a Long Row 2018 Pinot Grigio which was a pleasant dry white with citrus aromas and flavours of apples and the other being a full-bodied red from McLaren Vale a 2018 Family Crest Grenache Shiraz Mourvedre which had aromas of spice and berries, two very good wines. Cheers, Philip Arlidge [email protected]

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https://thebribieislander.com.au/food/the-bribie-winelander/bribie-winelander-may-2019/

BEAUTY VS BURGLARY

David Sweedman
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BEAUTY VS BURGLARY

Familiar old sayings such as “good as gold, cheaper than chips” have long been around in the Aussie vernacular but “beauty vs burglary” is not normally as common as maybe it should. The past 23 years living on our beautiful island, 14 of which have been on the waterfront, has shown the writer both the beauty and the beast of burglary by uncaring individuals who often cause havoc in the lives of the innocents.

Whether on water or not we all need to be watchful both day and night, but particularly in the dark hours when our homes are more vulnerable. The police have always done their best to round up these offenders, and having “Neighbourhood Watch” in our area is a bonus. It is up to the residents either singularly or in community groups to help us.

Bribie and its nearby areas like Beachmere, Toorbul and Donnybrook and the homes in Ningi and beyond need to look seriously at their security making sure that their homes are securely locked is a good start. Lighting is the best security available. Almost all waterfront properties have lighting available on their pontoons or waterfront gardens but very few take advantage of the effects that lights have on would-be intruders and the beauty that the lights create.

Locals have told me that electricity is too expensive or lights are just not necessary until they suffer the trauma of a break-in or even an assault. Many have lost their cars and household valuables and some have been hospitalised. Many homes have auto day/night switches fitted on their pontoon lights and others have beautiful rock garden and wall lights. The present low voltage high output and cost-efficient globes have a long life.

These globes help keep electricity prices down and security up. Solar security lights are also very effective. Irrespective of where we live thieves could be watching – double check your locks and turn on your lights. The writer has seen evidence of the trauma foisted on innocent residents by break-ins and everyone should be watchful.

Many locals are retired and enjoying the quieter life whilst others have young families…. our area has a wonderful smorgasbord of newly arrived and longstanding residents who need protection. Pontoons and front gardens often hold a multitude of toys – tinnies, kayaks, canoes, and jet skis, bikes and toys are left lying outside to be easily scooped up on the road front by quick-thinking opportunists.

We are so fortunate to live in such beautiful areas so we need to do our best to be safe, happy and secure. Let us help ourselves and aid the police with their overstretched workload.

A good slogan could be, “lights on and lock up for security.”

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https://thebribieislander.com.au/news/local-news-and-articles/school-watch-look-listen-report/

BRIBIE BOWLS CLUB BOTTLE CAP CAMPAIGN

David Sweedman
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BRIBIE BOWLS CLUB BOTTLE CAP CAMPAIGN

Bottle caps are fully recyclable. Unfortunately, as reported on ABC’s ‘War on Waste’, they aren’t being recycled. They get sent to landfill, they fall through machinery, and in worst-case scenarios, if attached to a bottle, they can explode and force expensive repacking issues. This overlooked waste product is almost entirely made from HDPE 2 (High-Density Polyethylene).

After considerable experimentation Envision Hands have successfully taken this plastic and extruded it to create functioning filament for 3D printers. Once they have the filament, they 3D print all the components that make up prosthetic hands and support people in need of these aids. The Bribie Island Bowls Club considers this to be such an innovative mission and has recently signed up to become a collection point for Vision Hands.

“We are in the perfect position to help,” said Kerry Muller, Treasurer, “If we can save the environment and aid in helping this amazing charity, then it’s an easy solution to become a collection point.” The Bribie Island Bowls Club is asking all the locals to get behind the campaign. Simply keep all your bottle caps such as water bottle, milk bottle, soft drink bottle lids, and caps and drop them into the collection container set up in the Reception area of the Club.

The Bribie Bowls Club will then ensure they are sent to Envision Hands located in Victoria. Any children/people within Australia who believe would benefit from the support of a mobility aid, please contact [email protected]

GOING OUT ON A HIGH

David Sweedman
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GOING OUT ON A HIGH

After seven years of hosting the New Year’s Eve markets and fireworks in Brennan Park, the BIDCA (Bribie Island District Community Appeal) team are ready to hand over the event to any organisation that would like to take it on.

BIDCA President Sharon Parsons has announced that she and husband Gary believe the event would benefit from a fresh approach. ‘Gary and I have been the main organisers of the New Year’s Eve Markets and we believe that it is time to hand over the reins,’ said Sharon. ‘We have enjoyed being able to provide such great entertainment for locals and visitors and with the last one being such a wonderful success with an estimated 25,000 people attending on the day, we will go out on a high,’ she added.

Sharon remarked that anyone who would like to organise the event is welcome to contact her for information on what is required. ‘As an established event, it will be relatively easy for another organisation to step in and take over.

We will offer them as much advice as we can,’ she said. As an organisation which is consistently active within the local community, BIDCA has been responsible for assisting many worthy causes with funding gained through the operation of a monthly market at Brennan Park on the third Sunday of each month. Anyone who would like to contact Sharon can call 0409 583 928.

Craig’s Artist of the Month talk 9th August

David Sweedman
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Craig’s Artist of the Month talk 9th August

A MOUNTAIN AND HIS CAMERA

Our favourite 6ft 5in ‘mountain’ is back with us as Artist of the Month for August, right on time for the Matthew Flinders Art Prize in the gallery. And that, as many readers will know, is significant because Craig Rohse took out first in the art prize last year. His winning portrait of trio Three Wise Veterans has subsequently been sold, reprinted and sold several times since then.

Featured Image(above): Paratroopers jumping out of C-130 Hercules

Craig tells me he is doing something different for this exhibition, away from military life. So the mind boggles wondering what the wall at Bribie Island Community Arts Centre will reveal. Whatever he produces, it is sure to reflect Craig’s award and grant-winning status as a becoming well-known, emerging photographer – his latest achievement in May being exactly that: recognition as one of the Top 20 of Australasia’s Top Emerging Photographers 2019 in the Portrait category. Among those awards was a Highly Commended for his entry in 2018 Napier Waller Art Prize.

Now permanently hanging in the Australian War Memorial, the photo, aptly titled Transition, is a self-portrait taking a critical view of four stages from defence to civilian life. For after serving in both the German and Australian Armies as a paratrooper, deployed in the Solomon Islands, East Timor and Afghanistan, Craig hung up his uniform as a result of the injury. Thereafter followed for him a period of uncertainty with a loss of identity and purpose. However, Craig Rohse admirably rediscovered himself when he completed a Diploma of Visual Arts in photography at TAFE Tasmania in 2016.

From then he has gone from strength to strength, opening his Little Gallery and with his wife, Vanessa, the Zesty Lemon Cafe, both in Deception Bay. And most of us know about Craig’s successful and ongoing efforts to bring Defence Force Veteran artists together to exhibit at the gallery in April this year and into the future. To quote Mervyn Napier Waller, the young man for whom the first national military art prize is named and who lost his arm fighting at Bullecourt, France in WWI, then took up drawing with his left hand during convalescence:

“An artist draws with his head, not his hands.” Craig Rohse is one of his ilk: an artist who makes pictures with his head – seen through a lens and captured by a camera! Craig’s Artist of the Month talk followed by morning tea will be held on Friday 9 August at the Arts Centre, just one day before our art prize finishes. Bookings for catering purposes can be made by ringing 3408 9288.

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