Waiheke Island, New Zealand

Monday, February 20, 2017

This morning, we sailed from Auckland "all the way" to Waiheke Island. In reality, the journey was probably only about two hours!

Located one-half hour from Auckland by ferry, the “Wine Island” of Waiheke is far removed from Auckland’s bustling urban ambiance. Rolling hills, abundant sunshine and the sea breeze off the Hauraki Gulf combine to create ideal growing conditions for grapes and olive trees.

An abundance of wineries produce a range of intense varietals, from elegant syrahs and deeply colored cabernets to refreshing sauvignon blancs and viogniers. If wine is not your thing, hiking, biking, kayaking and miles of beachfront offer pleasing alternatives.

But today, wine was our thing – and lots of it. Some friends had taken the liberty of organizing a private tour that worked out wonderfully. Our guide, Jo, was capable enough – but nothing supurb.

As is the case with almost all guides, she explained some things about her hometown as we drove.

Waiheke Island is 36 mi.² and was originally settled by the Maori. It boasts 25 miles of beachfront, which is very popular among the people in Auckland. The island has a year-round population of 8,000 people, but in the summer it swells to over 40,000. Of the 8,000 people who live there throughout the year, 1500 of them mke the daily commute to Auckland on a 30-minute “fast ferry.” (Jo told us that the “big store” there is so small they have to limit the number of people who can go in at any one time.)

The island has no hospital and relies on a rescue helicopter to transport critically injured patients to the mainland. Many mainland residents have a holiday home, or batch, on the island. Temperatures are relatively stable with winter temperatures between five and 15°C, climbing to 15 to 30°C degrees during the summer months.

The waters around the island – as I think we will be seeing in many of the destinations we will be visiting over the next several weeks –are green and blue – turquoise.

As is the case with much of New Zealand, wine making is big here. There are 25 commercial vineyards, as well as 12 private ones. Like several of the other places we visited recently, they say that they specialize in Bordeaux blends. As much as they might think that to be the case, I do not share the opinion that their wines are consistent with wines found in Bordeaux.

Our first stop was the Stonyridge vineyard which was founded in 1982.

Surprisingly, it is only 15 acres and they turn out only 18,000 of their premium offering, Larose.

It is a blend of 50% cab sauv, 20% petit verdot, 12% malbec and 12% merlot.

At the end of the tasting, my friend bought a bottle of the Larose, thinking it was $65 a bottle. He certainly got sticker shock when they handed him the receipt for $4,680 - or $390 a bottle!

Because we are from The World, we were escorted to a special outdoor tasting area where we met with the chief winemaker, Marty, and the owner, Steven White, who has sailed on our ship before.

Our favorite wine was the Luna Negra, a 10% malbec beverage. When I commented that it tasted like a Tempranillo, the winemaker was impressed because it is aged in American oak, as is common with Tempranillos. He pointed out that not many people would have observed that. The wine is $105/bottle; we left a note for our sommelier, Marinella, who would be visiting the vineyard a few hours later, to buy a few cases for us on the ship.

Once we left Stonyridge, we had a long drive on an “un- tar-sealed” (gravel with potholes) road. To make it worse, it was windy and if we have been on it much longer, carsickness probably would have set in for the people in the back. As a result, we stopped a few times along the way to take photographs.

The beaches here are magnificent, with many little coves that appear inviting for paddle boarding or kayaking.

The next vineyard was Man O’War, the only vineyard we have ever seen located on a beach. At this vineyard, as was the case with the next vineyard as well, only French oak is used and the mere mention of American oak invites a sneer.

This vineyard was larger than the first, with a total of 150 acres of vines. Actually, all the land is owned by the Spencer family (who made their money in toilet paper) who own 12% of the entire island, or 4,500 acres. Most of the land has not been developed and needless to say, it is worth tens of millions of dollars.

The wines at Man O’ War were very interesting, and interesting is the right word. None of them fit into the normal basket of descriptions for the varietal.

The one we liked the best was called the Exiled Pinot Gris. It may have been the sweetest pinot gris we have ever tasted, but it was also somewhat complex, full of exploding apple on the introduction, and wood on the finish. The Dreadnaught was also an interesting red, in the Bordeaux style; we bought several bottles of each of those. (Unfortunately, although they had advance notice that we were going to be there– and there were only five of us–the service was not good and the woman behind the counter was totally overwhelmed.)

Our next and final vineyard of the day was Passage Rock, another small winery that cranks out only 85,000 bottles a year.

I very much enjoyed their pinot gris, so I bought half a case of that. They also make an interesting dessert wine of Cabernet Sauvignon, so I bought a bottle of that.

Finally, it was off to lunch at one of the best restaurants on the island, Te Whau, which featured spectacular views all the way across the Waitemata Harbour to Auckland. We feasted on oysters, fresh fish and lamb, and yes, a few more glasses of different varietals.

Finally, we headed back to the ship where we arrived shortly before 6:00 PM.

Unfortunately, after so much food, I was still committed to a dinner with friends in the White Room in Marina. But, as always, the food was magnificent and the experience divine.