Wine tasting in Blenheim

More Photos from today!

This afternoon I went wine tasting with my mom and sister, guided by an extremely nice man named Jonathan. We got a chance to visit Cloudy Bay, Wither Hills and Gibson Bridge. The region is known for their Sauvignon Blanc's (not my favorite) because their environment leads to a much fruitier outcome than the average and often-bland varietal. Although the red wines (mostly Pinot Noirs) were not quite as good as California or Virginia (the pinnacle of enological achievement), the whites were surprisingly tasty and we even found a rosé that we all enjoyed.

Lunch at Wither Hills was awesome, 3 courses alongside a wine tasting. As our first real meal since we left LAX it was just about the best thing I have eaten in ages. Speaking of eating, we also stopped by a boutique chocolatier in the middle of nowhere and got some amazing Macadamia Toffee crunch. Since tomorrow is a road trip day (gotta love a nice Christmas Day cross-country road trip), our guide also helped us brave a local supermarket for a picnic of sandwiches, snacks and wine so we don't starve on the way with everything closed.

Well we're off now to a local pizzeria/beer garden owned by a German immigrant for dinner. My dad managed to make it here after being stuck in Sydney and barely squeezing into a flight on standby in Wellington, so we're finally one big happy family on target with our itinerary. It hasn't gone to plan per se, but it's been a great experience so far and I have no doubt it will continue to get better.