Marlborough Part 1

We fly from Wellington to Marlborough. The picture is of dreaded propeller. Carol so hates prop and/or small aircraft. Fortunately, it is a beautiful day for flying.

We pass Moa Brewery around lunchtime. CJ finds an interesting quad and the hoped for source of food is a food truck.

The vines in Marlborough are bizarre. They are pruned and squared off. We eventually discover that since this area is the Sauvignon Blanc capital of the world and most of the acreage is planted in it and that few people live here or can get here for harvest, this is the way the vines get pruned for machine harvesting.

The recommended Thai restaurant is not very good. Some locals put us on to Fidelio, a wine bar. It is located in part of the train station.

On our first day we plan no wineries. We have a drive. We will make a clockwise tour from Blenheim to Havelock to Picton and return.

Havelock is a small town on one of the fiords.

We take a direct road between Havelock and Picton, well, almost a road. It appears the road is subject to landslides and quite often we are subject to one way traffic controls.

We eventually arrive at a pull over just above Picton.

We order clams for lunch. They are huge, weird looking, and tough. Having a choice of a dozen or more restaurants, we appear to have chosen poorly. The best part of lunch is the restroom fixture.

On the return we pass by Huia, a winery recommended at a wine bar the previous evening. A personable lady gives us recommendations for additional visits.

Our random selection for dinner is much better. Good oysters (two orders), dumplings and beef. We find an amazing local Alberino from Nautilus Winery which becomes our first stop the next day. A Bladen tasting with the son, Blair is much fun. Their Australian distributor is located in Adelaide.

This evening we have dinner reservations at THE place in the area. We hope the food is as good as the grounds.

Our waitress is marvelous even if she hails from the infamous Wuhan in China. The food is every good as advertised. The pictures loaded backwards. How good was the desert. It was finger licking good.

Our first two winery selections are closed the next day. The first one never open on Sunday and Monday. The second closed for harvest. We have only two more on our list. Gibson Bridge is a true mom and pop. We are fortunate. Their harvest is finished or they would be out in the fields picking or making wine. 

Their wines are very good, similar but different from those of Bladen. We place an order to be delivered when the weather gets cool.

The final stop is at a highly touted Hans Herzog. We had heard they are a bit full of their selves. They are. It is our most disappointing visit both from the quality of the wines and the service. They pick what they serve you. You do not get to select what you wished to sample.

We have a quick dinner at a local German beer hall. We have afternoon and evening sessions with the two other couples at the B&B. It is enjoyable.