In Martinborough
After catching up with some mates in Wellington (where we ate at the awesome Speight’s Ale House in Petone, highly recommended especially if you love your beers and ribs like I do), we’ve embarked on the first day proper of our NZ North Island odyssey as we make our way from the bottom of the North Island up to Auckland for the APPT Auckland event at Sky City at the end of the week.
While the fog and light drizzle were great for atmospherics as we went over the hill between Wellington and Martinborough, it was fairly pants for the view. Any hopes that the weather would have improved once we got to the Wairarapa were dashed but none the less, the region still looked as beautiful as I remembered from the last time we were here two years ago.
After geteting to Jaq’s Bar too late to check out too much of the Sunday country market (but in time for a drink), we wandered over to the biodynamic Vyfiends (pictured above) for lunch which was a tomato and bean soup for Marie and a duck terrine for me. Both were delicious.
Then we checked into our accommodation near the Square, Pinot Villas before wandering into town to buy supplies as well as check out Vintner’s Choice – a movie about the local winemakers that was really interesting. Bonus: included in the price of your $25 ticket was a fight of six Martinborough wines – cha ching!
We tried to get a booking at The French Bistro which won favour with NZ food and wine tome Cuisine for best regional casual dining restaurant but alas, it was closed for the night. Instead, we made a booking at Est wine bar on the opposite side of the square for an enjoyable evening from the comfort of couches by the fireplace. If only the tiramisu hadn’t run out!
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