New Zealand Wine and Beer Stop, Wild on Waiheke

Posted on May 22, 2016 by melsmosaic

As part of the wine tour we also got to enjoy some brew. We stopped at Wild on Waiheke, which has the Waiheke Island Brewery and also the winery. We primarily had the beer at this one but also had a sip of vino.

For the wine we had a sip of their Sauvignon Blanc. A nice traditional one that you get from NZ.

For the brews we had quite the spread. We enjoyed a taste of all of them while hearing the history of the brewery and all about the brewing process.

-Baroona Original, 4.7% ABV. Based on the German Kolsch style, the use of famous NZ grown Saaz B (Motueka) hops gives this beer its distinctive grapefruit peel aroma. Baroona is brewed from 90% pilsner malt and 10% malted wheat and is top fermented. — nice and cris,p just like it should be.

-Whard Rf. Wheat Beer, 4.5% ABV. Based on the Bavarian Hefe-Weizen style, brewed from a 50/50 blend of Pilsner malted wheat, very lightly hopped with Pacific Hallertau and fermented with authentic Bavarian yeast. Like many classic wheat beers this product is unfiltered and has the authentic clove and banana aromas. — definitely had the banana, not good for me. I like having banana flavor from the fruit or in some tasty bread.

-Matiatia Malt Beer, 7.2% ABV. Based on the new American Imperial Pale Ale style, this beer’s high ABV makes it perfect as an after dinner beer or nightcap. The palate is rich and full with notes of toffee and chocolate, balanced with generous additions of NZ grown chocolate, balanced with generous additions of NZ grown Cascande hops for a lingering resinous finish — heavy, couldn’t take more than a sips. Could taste what they said and definitely wouldn’t want it as a ‘main’ beer.

-Apple Cider, 5.5% — Brewed on site alongside the beers and make from Hawkes Bay Granny Smith apple juice and fermented with their top fermented ale yeast culture. The cider starts fermentation at a high gravity and is then cooled down once it reaches 5.5% ABV. This rapid halt to the fermentation leaves plenty of residual apple flavour and just the right level of sweetness. The aroma and flavour are both full of fresh apple notes and a lingering finish. — pretty good! And the sweetness is not overbearing.

-Hauraki Gulf Ginger Beer — non-alchohol. ‘Nuf said.

Another great place to check out.

Olive Oil Tasting, New Zealand

Posted on May 20, 2016 by melsmosaic

As part of our tour on Waiheke Island, we got to visit an olive grove to learn about the olive industry in New Zealand. The place we checked out was Rangihoua Estate, which has been around since the late ’90s.

We learned about the entire olive oil making process from picking the olives through processing them to putting the final product in a bottle.

After that we got to sample! Some of the oils were very nice, some, for my taste were ok. Overall, great experience learning about everything and adding to the wine tour day.

New Zealand Winery #1, Stonyridge Vineyard

Posted on May 20, 2016 by melsmosaic

When in New Zealand, one must visit wineries! Right outside out Auckland is a little island, Waiheke, that has plenty of wineries to visit. We found a wine tour, Taste of Waiheke, to take part in that took you to wineries, an olive oil tasting and a brewery. Great!

After leaving the ferry we got on a nice bus and sauntered our way to winery #1, Stonyridge Vineyard. Very nice castle-like look. This winery is “dedicated to producing the finest Cabernet blends in the world (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, and Petit Verdot) using traditional winemaking.”

Upon arrival we stood just outside the vineyard, right near some olive trees, and learned about the history while enjoying some of their delectable Airfield, a mid-price Bordeaux-style red.

After that were served an amazing lunch! They whipped up this great nicoise-like salad for me vs. a quiche because of my lactose intolerance. This was awesome. Enjoyed that with some very nice Sauvignon Blanc.

Beirut, Auckland, NZ

Posted on May 12, 2016 by melsmosaic

Another night, another restaurant. Asked for another suggestion from the concierge and this time because of what we were looking for, the restaurant suggestion was Beirut, which is contemporary middle-eastern food.

After pouring over the menu, we opted to split several small dishes and opted for:

Za’attar: kale, thyme, coriander, sumac, goat’s cheese

Fattoush: watermelon, beetroot, cucumber, orange blossom, parsley

Bubba: burnt eggplant, black sujuk, toasted sesame, black cabbage

Skate: fermented apple water, bees wax, pine oil, onion ash, batarekh, white radish

All were amazing. The bubba just melted in your mouth. The radish wasn’t my favorite in the fish dish (skate) but the rest of it was great. Love this kind of food!

Fuga Japanese Brasserie, Auckland, NZ

Posted on May 9, 2016 by melsmosaic

On the second night in Auckland, opted to go for some Japanese fare. Found a place right around the corner from the hotel, Fuga Japanese Brasserie, that wasn’t busy. It was also pretty hidden/subtle. When we walked in, we were definitely in the minority, which likely meant it was not common for tourists to check this place out. Makes it all the better.

The table opted for some sake and Japanese brew.

Went for some pretty basic food options that night. Some nice soup (it was cold out that day), fresh salad, sashimi and nigiri.

Pretty good, though the fish didn’t have any outstanding flavor. The service was a bit slow, but very nice. Good choice overall.

Depot Eatery, Auckland, NZ

Posted on May 9, 2016 by melsmosaic

First night in Auckland, received a suggestion from the concierge to not walk more than 100 feet outside front door of the hotel to this place called Depot Eatery for dinner They don’t take reservations so you just either get there early or wait patiently in line.

We were fortunately there on a weeknight so it wasn’t too crazy but still had to wait. Once we got a seat, we got to sit at the bar, which makes it more fun. While looking over the menu of course it was necessary to grab a drink. There was wine on tap. Awesome! Always love trying that stuff. It was perfect.

Then, they bring you white bean hummus and pita bread to nibble on while picking food.

While looking over the menu we asked for suggestions from the bartender. It was the kingfish. Ok, sold. The description was Kingfish belly w/ eggplant kasundi, lime & toasts. We chose that and Brussels sprouts — ‘not your mothers’ w/ ‘Otello’s’ pancetta & walnut crumbs.

There was nothing left on either of these plates. Amazing food. So glad this restaurant was recommended and can totally see why it has a wait.

Random Wines from AUS and NZ

Posted on May 3, 2016 by melsmosaic

So many great local wines at your fingertips when in Australia and New Zealand. Of course many of them aren’t available in the US. Some of them we sampled included:

Devil’s Corner Pinot Noir, Tasmania — some nice fruit

Scrubby Rise Sauvignon, Semillion, Viognier, Australia (Adelaide) – pretty light

Priory Ridge Pinot Noir, St. Helens, Tasmania – ooo, nice. Some pepper on it

Nautilus Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough – pretty traditional sauv blanc

Brancroft Estate Brut Cuvee, New Zealand – some nice crisp bubbles

Gibbston Valley Pinot Gris, Otago – much tropical fruit

Millton Viognier, New Zealand – smooth

Pegasus Bay Riesling, Canterbury, New Zealand – very nice dry riesling!

Amisfield Sauvignon Blanc, Otago – lots of flavors going on

Explorer Pinot Noir, Central Otago – drier than expected, earthy

Terra Sancta, Mysterious Diggings Pinot Noir, Bannockburn, Central Otago – nice pinot

Mojo Shiraz, Barossa Valley – berries

South Island Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough – really good for an basic bottle

RedBank, The Long Paddock, Shiraz, Victoria – good happy hour wine

Kuru Kuru Pinot Noir, Central Otago – chocolate, some spice

Stefani Estate Shiraz, Heathcote — delicious!

Corbans Pinot Gris, Gisborne, New Zealand – a bit too Chardonnay-like

Mt. Difficulty Sauvignon Blanc, Bannockburn, New Zealand — grassy

Coyote Grill, Queenstown, NZ

Posted on April 28, 2016 by melsmosaic

Next place to check in a NZ town if of course a Mexican restaurant, right? After getting back fairly late from a tour it was close to the hotel and looked pretty good, so why not? So we checked out Coyote Grill.

One of two mandatory orders was right (and done right away) – chips & guac. The other that wasn’t (margarita) was simply replaced with sangria.

The guac had a perfect texture and spice to it.

Two appetizers were ordered after that for dinner.

Prawns (that’s what they call shrimp) Veracruz– sautéed with mild guajillo chili and slow cooked garlic

Duck Tostada – shredded roast duck served on a crispy corn tortilla with salsa

The shrimp had a nice kick to them and whatever seasoning they used on the duck was amazing. And for appetizers, these were big dishes. Perfect end to a long day.

Smiths Craft Beer House, Queenstown, NZ

Posted on April 28, 2016 by melsmosaic

Another spot visited in Queenstown was the Smith Craft Beer House.

You can pretty much deduce what they have based on the name. And you can order a sampler of whatever you like. Based on their large selection, the bartender chose several for the table based on our taste. The six that came to the table were:

From left to right:

Garage Prospect, Teas & Tea, Spicy Brown Ale, 6.2% — very dark

Horse Box, Vigilante, IPA, 5.8% — tasted a bit like tea

Horse Box, Storm Hopper, APA, 5.7% — crisp and not too hoppy

Beer Barrons, Lady Danger, Red Ale, 6.5% — red definitely describes it

Wigram Tornado, IPA, 6.6% — bit of fruit, not much else, slightly bitter

Tuatora/Coucher, Summer Gold Golden Ale, 4.5% — light, totally an ale

For lunch we ordered a pizza, half with cheese half without. The crust on this thing was amazing. So light and fluffy! One of the best pizzas I’ve had. Great stuff.

Fishbone Bar & Grill, Queenstown, NZ

Posted on April 28, 2016 by melsmosaic

New town, new country, of course new exploration. The hotel where we stayed recommended a great seafood restaurant for the first night in Queenstown; Fishbone Bar & Grill. Of course, you have just a bit of water around you when you’re in New Zealand so there is likely to be some decent seafood.

And to kick off the meal in the new country we started with some vino, of course. We opted for some Rockface Pinot Gris from Waipara, NZ. Pretty dry, which is why we picked it to pair with upcoming seafood.

For dinner we decided to go with 3 appetizers. They were good sized as we saw them going to other tables, which is why we went this route.

Seared Tasman Sea scallops with tomato and fennel ragout, shaved fennel, orange and fresh fennel pollen

Sesame-crusted west coast Albacore tuna sashimi with Daikon, cucumber and bok choy, black garlic mayonnaise

Salt & chili arrowhead squid with radicchio, endive, orange, and squid ink mayonnaise.

I don’t think you could find a piece of food left on these plate. The tuna was perfect crusted in sesame seeds and the perfect size, the squid had been cooked to perfection and was the perfect texture and those scallops, oh those scallops. This place needs to open a location in DC.