Martinborough Wine Tour

With the time difference, Monday was a Sunday in the States, so we went on an all-day wine tour in Martinborough. After some train technical difficulties which involved us being moved to another train and then taken off the train and bused to the station, we ended up arriving an hour and a half late. Oh well.

We booked through Martinborough Wine Tours and I highly recommend them. Our driver was Simon, and he was very passionate about wine and the area. Our first stop was Poppies, which ended up being the highlight winery of the trip.

The woman pouring our tasting was a hoot, and we had our favorite wine of the day there, the Pinot Gris. It was sweet, but immediately dry upon swallowing, no sweet aftertaste whatsoever.

We had lunch outside, surrounded by their beautiful, picturesque vineyard. Bright blue skies. Fluffy clouds. Mountains. It was a glorious day.

And the food was fab. A plate of all sorts of delicious things. And a glass of that Pinot Gris, of course.

The other wineries we did tastings at were all great, too. We just had an exceptional experience at Poppies, and spent the most time there because of lunch.

Palliser - Sound like a racehorse name. Our favorite wine was their Chardonnay.

Ata Rangi - Favorite was the Celebre, which was a blend.

Schubert - Man doing the tasting was very nice and chatty. We liked the Syrah and sweet desert wine.

Te Kairanga - We liked the Runholder Pinot Noir the best. The man serving was reserved at first, but then we started talking movies and TV, and he opened right up. He'd just started watching TRUE DETECTIVE Season 2 and we apologized. Poor guy.

Delicious food. Beautiful Wine. Fabulous Day.