Bzzzzz’d

We spent the day tasting wine a several different wineries Chris and Kerrie recommended: Clearview, Craggy Range, Sileni, and Ngatarawa. They were all great! With the exception of Craggy Range, they all had a low-key feel to them. And everyone was very knowledgeable and friendly. Greg and I just faked our knowledge of wine and kept drinking whatever they poured in our glasses. By the end of the day, I (Cheryl) was pretty buzzed. Greg was a good designated driver and stopped before we got to the last winery.

We started a Clearview, which had a rustic feel and was right next to the ocean. From there we headed over to Craggy Range. The grounds were really impressive and beautiful. It reminded us of some of the wineries in Napa. The tasting room felt a bit more formal as well. We had lunch at the restaurant, and the food was yummy. After lunch, we went to the top of Te Mata, which provided excellent 360 degree views of the region. We were able to see all the way to Mt Ruanganui, a snow-covered volcano near Lake Tuapo. Our next stop was Seleni Winery, which had a modern look to it with interesting sculptures in the garden area. By this point in the day, I was having trouble remembering which wine was which, and was debating if we should head back to our B&B before dinner. But the guy at Seleni recommended one other winery that we really should check out. Okay, hold a gun to my head. So, our last winery for the day was Ngatarawa, which used to be race horse stable.

To cap of a relaxing day of wine tasting, we had dinner at the historic Mission Estate Winery. Mission is the first winery in New Zealand and was founded by some missionaries who were sent to New Zealand. The setting was really nice; the wine was excellent; the service was top-notch; the food was tasty.