Cycling and Walking - With Wine

When I called in at the Nor'Wester Cafe in Amberley recently, I was quick to pounce on information about the proposed Hurunui Cycling and Walking Trail, a vision for a network of trailes for pedestrians and cyclists, covering the Hurunui District. Friends of the Trail is a group that has been set up to promote the trail within the local community and to people passionate about cycling and walking. They've all been working madly to have the first stage of the trail - The Waipara Trail - open in 2010. The whole project has been reliant on fundraising for development, promotion and trail maintenance and a key part of that, has centred on sales of 'Waipara Trail' wine. Both Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir are available - this lot at Nor'Wester cafe. It's been a huge collaborative effort by locals and the trails look to be a great asset to the rural communities they pass through. The first stage of the Waipara Trail will, happily, pass through local wineries and assorted scenic and historic sites. As funds allow, this trail will be extended and linked to others in the greater Hurunui District, all the way up to Waiau and Hanmer Springs. www.visithurunui.co.nz www.hurunuitrails.co.nz

Highway Highlight -The Perfect Stop

The giant Phoenix palm outside the yellow ochre, 1928 bungalow beside State Highway 1 in Amberley, North Canterbury, is famous. Not so much for being a giant Phoenix palm, as being an easily recognised marker for the much-awarded Nor'Wester Cafe. Back when owners Tim and Trish Coleman first opened its doors in 1997, the Nor'Wester was something of a sensation. It was one of the first decent cafes in the Amberley-Waipara area and predictably, it took off.

I called in there for breakfast with friends on a recent trip north, to Hanmer Springs. Located just 25 minutes or so north of Christchurch on the main highway, it's perfectly placed for the first stop and if you strike a fine morning, there's nothing nicer than a warm, alfresco breakfast among the lavender and agapathus. Like just about every other restaurant and cafe I've ever set foot in, up and down the country, they make a big deal out of using fresh, local ingredients but I'm prepared to forgive them the cliche because in this case it's true - and it tastes like it. Their brunch meals are beautifully presented and tasty with it. See for yourself above. We pigged out on Smoked salmon, caper berries, preserved lemon, cream cheese, rocket and toasted whole-grain cabatta (top); and Eggs Benedict with spinach (lower image). The Nor'Wester is open every day and from start to finish the menu is filled with temptations. Parmesan dumplings, prawn cutlets, sticky pork belly with soba noodles and coconut and pomegranate panna cotta with pineapple marmalade are so far removed from the old home's former life as the town's medical centre, it's almost laughable. Some in our party that day, are regulars at the Nor'Wester and so enamoured are they of its chocolate desserts, that we were all talked into trying one - for breakfast. I can think of worse fates. And I will be back to show you the photographic proof that a chocolate dessert at the Nor'Wester is a thing well remembered. www.norwestercafe.co.nz

Winning Waipara Wines

Fantastic food and wine, passionate people and great landscapes are all the encouragement I need to head up to North Canterbury. Just 45 minutes north of Christchurch and you’re right in the heart of Waipara Wine Region - one of the fastest growing wine areas in New Zealand. There are over eighty vineyards in the region now covering over 1,500 hectares - all flourishing in a pretty valley of rolling green slopes and marching vines, backed by the gentle slope of the Teviotdale Hills.

On a recent jaunt north, we stopped for lunch and wine tasting at The Mud House Winery & Cafe. This gigantic winery, just off the main highway, sprang to life several years ago when a wealthy American decided to create the largest winery in the region. It’s under new ownership now and has recently been remodeled to create a much more pleasing interior and garden dining area – just the place to while away a hot, sunny afternoon before returning to the city.

The Mud House has a diverse selection of award-winning wines, bottled as Mud House and Waipara Hills, using grapes from their three regional vineyards in Marlborough, Waipara and Central Otago. The Waipara Hills vineyard covers 550 hectares and spreads out from the enormous winery complex like a rumpled green tablecloth.

To my mind, no wine tasting is complete without food and at The Mud House you can indulge in everything from thick, delicious seafood chowder to salads and generous platters filled with a selection of meats, cheeses, pickles, dips, crackers and fresh breads. One of their menu highlights though are the Wild Pies. They’ve taken the meat from wild Canterbury venison, boar, mountain thar and wild goats and created flavour-filled stews incorporating their wines and topped with golden pastry; and there’s a Kaikoura monkfish version for seafood lovers.

Wine appreciation tours at The Mud House run daily from 11am to 3pm. They include an inspection of the winery, wine tasting and a walk through the vines. This in turn includes an introduction to the Greening Waipara project, which aims to build biodiversity back into the wine experience throughout the region. The project ultimately aims to re-plant native trees particular to the region and to encourage environmentally-friendly practices to reduce reliance on herbicides and pesticides. Wetlands, swales, shelter belts, stream and pond edges and vineyard borders are all receiving ‘an ecological makeover.’

If you want to explore the wider Waipara Wine Region, you’ll find a good itinerary here and you can also pick up the excellent North Canterbury Food & Wine Trail brochure at information centres. www.mudhousewineryandcafe.co.nz

Wine Retreat

Dry Paddocks, Waipara, North Canterbury. Nov 2008. Ajr

Dry Paddocks settles into its tanned Waipara landscape 45 minutes north of Christchurch as if it was always meant to be there. The surrounding paddocks may be sunburnt and thirsty but Dry Paddocks itself is a self-contained oasis of comfort and style. Open the doors and you walk in to a cool two-bedroom retreat with the best of everything at your fingertips. Best of all, it’s just a short drive from the heart of the Waipara Wine Region – a picturesque 15-kilometre-long valley that has undergone a total transformation over the last twenty years. Once dry farmland, it now boasts 80 vineyards and an estimated 1,200 hectares of grapes, making it New Zealand’s fourth largest wine region. Uncork a bottle of the local Pinot Noir and fall into one of Dry Paddock’s balcony chairs under the rush-covered pergola, or beside the pool and you won’t want to leave. www.drypaddocks.co.nz www.waiparawine.co.nz

Limestone Country

North Canterbury Landscapes. Dec. 2008. Ajr

I had a wee bit of an adventure today – exploring the limestone country inland from Waipara and Waikari. I’d gone up to Hawarden, one and a half hours north-west of Christchurch for an interview and I decided to come home ‘the back way.’ This took me through beautiful, undulating farmland and on a grey, drizzly day everything was veiled in a fine mist that made everything seem even more remote. I say ‘remote’ because the trip took me well off the beaten track and after more than 30 kilometres of lonely, rutted, winding gravel roads, with not a human in sight, I began to wonder if I would ever see civilisation again. That’s always the danger of ‘back roads’ of course; but I was rewarded with some lovely atmospheric shots and the discovery of some fantastic limestone outcrops that I will return to another time – in fine weather perhaps.

Opera at Claremont

Claremont Country estate. May 2008. Ajr

It was a perfect North Canterbury day to laze about under gigantic trees at Claremont Country Estate listening to Dame Malvina Major singing from some of her favourite operas. Factor in unbelievable quantities of tender barbecued meats, espresso, Waipara Valley wines, delectable sweet treats and a gigantic auction and you have the perfect fundraiser. All this in aid of local rider, Annabel Wigley, shortlisted for the New Zealand Olympic equestrian team. www.claremont-estate.com

Vineyard Autumn

Autumn 2007, Queenstown. Ajr

In the mood of our everlasting autumn, here's a quick glimpse at the vines at GVW - Gibbston Valley Wines, one of the most visited wineries in Australasia, near Queenstown. It's pinot noir, chardonnay, sauvignon blanc and Riesling are all award winners. They also have a fabulous wine cave that was blasted out of the rocky cliffs behind the winery. www.gvwines.com

Autumn Vineyards

Waipara Wine Region, North Canterbury, NZ. 2007. Ajr

It may be cold here now but it's still pretty. Take this colourful scene for instance - the Waipara Wine Region, forty minutes north of Christchurch, where over 80 vineyards are casting a golden-red glow across the beautiful rolling landscape.

Winning Wines

One of the world's foremost seafood chefs, Rick Stein of television's French Odyssey fame is a big fan of Mud House Wines 2007 Mud House Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc - so much so he's added this New Zealand 'treasure' to the wine list of his Michelin-recognised Cornish restaurant empire that includes The Seafood Restaurant, St Petroc's Bistro and Rick Stein's Cafe. Mud House Wines received honours for three varietals at the 2007 Air New Zealand Wine Awards and is also enjoying an international 'glow' after having a wine selected by the Master Sommelier for service aboard Delta Airlines, one of the world's largest carriers. Just another of many coups for New Zealand's fine wines! www.mudhouse.co.nz

A Nose that Knows

Ilja Gort, the Dutch owner of Chateau de la Garde in Bordeaux, producer of Tulipe Wines has a nose worth knowing. He claims it can distinguish millions of different scents and is essential to guaranteeing the quality of his wines. He has thus had it insured by Lloyd’s of London for 5 million Euros (US$8million). Lloyd’s also insures the taste buds of restaurateur, Egon Ronay and the guitar-playing fingers of Rolling Stone, Keith Richards.

Meet The People - 2

More in the series Meet The People - Ordinary and Extraordinary New Zealanders doing interesting things...........Dom Maxwell is part of a group of dynamic, forward-thinking, young winemakers now working in New Zealand’s fourth largest wine region, the Waipara Valley, an hour north of Christchurch. Dom, 31, is winemaker for Greystone Wines, who planted their first vines in 2003, produced their first commercial release of Pinot Noir and Riesling in 2006 and have already won major awards. The vineyard has also planted 2,500 native plants on their picturesque hillside environment to help maintain healthy soils and grapes. It’s a beautiful spot as you can see and Dom’s favourite place is the Greystone Top Block on a clear day, where he can look out across the valley and the vine-covered rolling downs. Who needs the city with ‘an office view’ like this? http://www.greystonewines.co.nz/