Wine Country

Our Thursday plans were originally to take a dolphin and bird watching eco cruise through Queen Charlotte Sound in the afternoon. That was cancelled due to high winds. Maybe we can go on it today.

We started the day with a very nice breakfast from our hosts and then went to the Knights of the Sky museum of WW1 airplanes and dioramas. The museum was opened late last year and is very well done. Lots of emphasis on the Red Baron.

Blenheim is in Marlborough, the heart of NZ's wine country. After a stop at the local chocolatier to stock up on truffles & chocolate covered shortbread we spent the afternoon trolling wineries and tasting rooms. We sampled 3-4 white wines per winery, I think. Can't remember how many wineries we went to. Lost count after the 3rd or so. The sauvignon blancs, rieslings and pinot gris were remarkably different between the different wineries. Unfortunately only one the wineries we went to sells in the states, and it was on the bottom of the totem pole in quality.

The sun started coming out in the afternoon showing off the stunning countryside. Lavender in bloom, vineyards stretching in front of you with a nice snow capped Alp in the background, maybe a pasture of sheep off to the side.

We had a very nice dinner at a place called Bacchus, recommended by our hosts. Another bottle of sauvignon blanc accompanied our meal.