CAMPGROUND: Marfells Beach Dept of Conservation Campground. Showers with cold water. Clean toilets. No other amenities. Gorgeous location on the beach. $8/night. 4 stars
LOCATION: South of Marlborough area, on northeast coast of South Island, New Zealand
WEATHER: Beautiful. Highs in 70s
We left Picton and headed inland to the famous Marlborough wine area. It is like Napa Valley was perhaps 25 years ago. Only a few restaurants and inns. Gorgeous wineries. Not snobbish at all. Most of the tastings are free. Renting and riding bikes along the wine trail is a popular thing to do here. We followed several bicyclists.
This area is most known for its Sauvignon Blanc, but also has tasty Pinot Nois, Pinot Gris, sparkling wines, and some other light reds.
We tried to get lunch at a couple of wineries, but they were booked with tour groups from the cruise ship. So, we went to a small winery and ordered an antipasto platter. It really hit the spot!
All the wineries are close together. We went to several. Their fall is March-April, so they will be harvesting soon.
Most of the wineries we visited are small with names we didn't recognize. Our last stop was Brancott Estates, which exports worldwide. It is a huge operation. The tasting room overlooks a valley full of vineyards.
We finally had to call it a day.....
DINNER: Since we just have a few more days here, I'm trying to use up leftovers. We bought way too much minced lamb the other day, so I used more of that in a lentil soup, with onions and garlic.
No comments:
Post a Comment