Wine, Whales and Water: Part I

Once we left artsy confines of Nelson, we were on our own for a bit with no hotel booked for the two nights between Nelson and Christchurch. We headed east over the northern vestiges of the Southern Alps mountain range and down into the broad, fertile flatlands of the Wairau River valley and the heart of the Marlborough wine region.

From NZ Developed

We hired bikes from our hostel in Blenheim and headed out of town (against the wind) to Renwick, a small town surrounded by wineries on all sides. We started at the world’s first carbon-neutral winery at Groves Mill and sampled some of their award-winning Riesling, which surprised us both by being one of our favorites of the day.

From NZ Developed

We enjoyed an excellent vineyard lunch at Wairau River Winery before making our way to the best stop of the day at Vavasour, where we bought two bottles. Then it was a race against time; most wineries are only open until 430 or 5 and we got a bit of a late start, thanks in no small part to the wind in our face on the ride there. We missed a couple of spots, but ended with a great private tasting back in Blenheim, just a few blocks down from the hostel.

From NZ Developed

Back at the hostel, we watch the sunset on the back porch overlooking the river and chatted with the many international travelers staying there. Dutch, French, German, English English and American English could all be heard on the deck over grilling lamb and sausages. We met some excellent travelers from Denmark and shared stories from the road and back home. It was really interesting to hear what people from other countries think about the US, especially our politics. It's humbling how much attention is paid to happenings in the States and how limited my knowledge is of other places and systems. We stayed out quite late, enjoying the unique view of the southern sky and constellations, and more of that fabulous Marlborough wine. All in all, a terrific experience.

After a full day and night of drinking wine, we were off to a slower start the next day on our way to Kaikoura, a small town on the eastern shore. We rolled into town just in time to catch our whale watching tour and what a show!

[to be continued....]