A night for Harcourt + Gilles🌿

★ A night for Harcourt + Gilles ★

The night the Harcourt Cool Stores burned, winemaker Gilles Lapalus lost all his equipment and most of his stock. Bottles that had been ageing for decades were gone in hours.

The news landed hard at The Albion, where Gilles’ wine has long been poured and celebrated. He’s a close friend of owners Marcus and Iam, and a longtime supplier.

On Valentine’s Day, The Albion will do what it’s known for: bring people together and make a bit of magic.

The pub is hosting Share the Love, a fundraising dinner, auction and night of entertainment. Fifty per cent of funds raised will be donated to the Harcourt Progress Relief Fund. The remaining fifty per cent will go towards getting Gilles back in action.

“We called it Share the Love because the response from the community has been incredible,” Marcus says.

“It felt right, especially on Valentine’s Day.”

The night will be co-hosted by local poet Adam Ford and writer-comedian Andrew Maj. Guests will be treated to a buffet dinner, live music, DJs and an auction showcasing local talent as deep as a Chewton mineshaft.

The auction lineup includes paintings, ceramics, photographs, furniture and wine, including a rare Pet Nat made by Gilles.

“We’d just received a delivery days before the fire,” Marcus explains. “It’s become a very rare bottle. Honestly, it’s worth coming just for that.”

(Amy and I are most fond of Pet Nat, incidentally.)

Other highlights include furniture from Nicholas Dattner & Co, artworks by Michael Wolf, Melissa O’Rourke and Adam Ford, and a collection of portraits created earlier in the day at Portrait Painting for a Laugh.

Running from 4pm — 5pm and available as an opt-in when booking the evening event, Portrait Painting for a Laugh invites participants to paint their partner or a friend in just sixty minutes, followed by a big reveal.

Marcus and Iam have done it before and know exactly how much chaos the reveal can deliver. The portraits, exhibited alongside photographs of their subjects, will be auctioned on the night.

The fundraiser is personal for Marcus and Iam. They moved to Castlemaine from Melbourne eight years ago and live off-grid near the Chewton Bushlands. For years, they drove past The Albion as it sat, empty and unsold, until curiosity and a creative itch took over.

“We were semi-retired,” Marcus laughs.

“But we screwed that up when we bought The Albion.”

Since then, the pub has become an extension of their home.

“We indulge in very personal hospitality,” Marcus says.

“It’s a welcoming space. People come here because they don’t always feel comfortable elsewhere. You’ll see an eclectic mix of people standing at the bar together who might never normally cross paths.”

That sense of refuge got real on January 9th.

The pair had arrived home jet-lagged from a holiday, aware of the catastrophic fire danger. Within minutes of lying down to rest, VicEmergency alerts began pinging.

They enacted their fire plan, grabbed the dog and essentials, turned on the sprinklers around their house, loaded a generator and headed straight to The Albion.

“We decided to spend the night there and let friends and neighbours know it was a safer space if they needed it,” Marcus says.

With the power out, The Albion was dim and hot, running only on a generator to keep the fridges alive. The guest chef couldn’t cook.

People arrived anyway, regulars, diners who hadn’t seen the cancellation message, friends checking in. There were drinks, pretzels and a fragile calm until news from Harcourt worsened.

“The moment that’s stayed with me most was seeing the look on Gilles’ face when he heard the Cool Stores were being destroyed,” Marcus says.

In the days that followed, the community response was massive. Share the Love grew out of that momentum.

“We already had this idea for a painting-your-partner event — just creative fun,” Marcus says.

“Then we thought, let’s turn it into a fundraiser. It just grew. The Dattner family came on early, donating furniture, and others followed with art and contributions.”

The goal is to support both the Harcourt Progress Association and to help Gilles return to doing what he loves.

Marcus first met him at a Chewton Bushlands Christmas party, swapping drinks and stories about botanicals before being handed a bottle of Gilles’ Maidenii vermouth.

“It was delicious,” Marcus says.

“From that quirky meeting, we became friends. His wine matters to us — and to the bar.”

Beyond fundraising, Marcus hopes the night speaks to something bigger.

“Grassroots help moves fast,” he says.

“Faster than organisations, faster than government. That’s what we love about living here. People take responsibility for each other.”

And if you’re unsure whether to come?

“It’ll be a lot of fun,” Marcus says.

“You can contribute, maybe take home some great art or furniture. It’s not a huge event — if you don’t love big crowds, this one’s for you.”

• Book your ticket to Share the Love

• Bid on Share The Love auction items

• Reach out to the Albion to donate an item for the auction

❀ Not My Problem ❀

High energy punk + full-throttle queerness? This looks funnnnnn.

Hetslayer are unleashing their debut album at the Diggers Store in Campbells Creek on Saturday.

It's an all-ages, alcohol-free gig. Come one, come all!

♡˖ Events ˖♡

• 🎵 DJ Luqman + Frieda & Fynn, Maldon Pool, Fri, 30 Jan, 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM *Trailer stage, free concert!

• 🎵 Atongo Zimba, Northern Arts Hotel, Fri, 30 Jan, 7:30 PM *West African beats

• 💃 Salsa Class and Social, Wesley Hill Hall, Fri, 30 Jan, 7:30 PM *No experience or partner needed

• 🎵 Fire Relief Gig, Shedshaker, Jan 30, 8:00 PM *Fernie Nicoll Single Launch + Kelsie Rimmer, Tom Candy Cox & Sean McConnell

• 🎵 Sanfona, Maurocco Bar, Sat, 31 Jan, 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM *Gypsy jazz, jam with the band from 2:00 PM

• 🎵 Hetslayer Album Launch, The Diggers Store, Sat, 31 Jan, 5:00 PM *Hetslayer, Claire Spooner & Super Tart Band performing

• 📽️ The Cost of Growth, Northern Arts Hotel, Sat, 31 Jan, 7:30 PM *Free, but please book, docco + Q&A

• 🎵 The Talking Heads Experience, Theatre Royal, Sat, 31 Jan, 7:30 PM

• 🧘 Yoga for Harcourt, Love Tribe Yoga, Sun, 1 Feb, 10:30 AM & 1:30 PM Slow Flow, 3:00 PM Restore *Funds going to the HPA

• 🍷 Summer Sunday Sessions, Harcourt Valley Vineyards, Sun, 1 Feb, 11:00 AM - 5:00 PM *Lawn games + Mexican street food

• 🎵 Pip Avent’s Mouldy Jazz, Theatre Royal, Sun, 1 Feb, 4:00 PM *Garden bar show

• 🎵 Hachiku, The Bridge, Sun, 1 Feb, 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM *Indie dream pop!

• 🎵 Dear Dolly, Shedshaker, Sun, 1 Feb, 5:00 PM *Castlemaine’s newest supergroup with Jesse, Kirby and Shobie

• Barefoot Bowls, Castlemaine Bowls Club, Sun, 1 Feb, 5:30 PM *$10/head, bar will be open

• 🧘‍♀️ Chant for Harcourt, Love Tribe Yoga, Sun, 1 Feb, 6:00 PM - 7:30 PM *Castlemaine Kirtan benefit, sing and breathe together

• 👶🏽Banksia Buds Intergenerational Playgroup, Old Castlemaine Gaol, Fri, 6 Feb, 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM *New venue party + cake!

• 🎤 PubSing for Harcourt, Shedshaker, Fri, 6 Feb, 7:30 PM - 10:30 PM *sing Throw Your Arms Around Me, all proceeds to Harcourt fire relief

• 🎵 Dallas Crane, The Bridge, Fri, 6 Feb, 8:30 PM *Stompin’ pub rock

• 🎨 Art Exhibition Opening, Brodie Ellis & Alvin Darcy collab, Castlemaine Art Museum, Sat, 7 Feb, 2:00PM - 4:00PM

• 🍎 Home is where the Harcourt is, tattoo fundraiser and raffle, Forest Creek Tattoo, Sun, 8 Feb, 9:00 AM - 9:00 PM

• 🎵 Table Records x Garden Seat DJ, Table Records, Fri, 13 Feb, Table Records *events on all weekend

• 🎵 Harcourt Bushfire Benefit, Old Castlemaine Gaol, Sat, 14 Feb, 12:00 PM *Kids Activities, Food vans, Art Auction, Wildlife display

• 🎵 Skyscraper Stan and the Comission Flats, The Bridge, Sat, 14 Feb, 2:30 PM - 4:30 PM *Beer garden show

• 🖼️ Share the Love, The Albion, Sat, 14 Feb, 6:00 PM *Dinner, auction, live music fundraiser for Harcourt & Gilles Lapalus

𖥔 TALK TO MOI PLOISE 𖥔

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