Previous article is here ▶ Sozo New Zealand #2
After leaving the town of Napier, I headed south on State Highway 2 for three hours to Wairarapa , the southernmost area of the North Island.
After passing through a series of repeated scenes from the train window - pastures with grazing sheep and bridges over streams - neatly planted rows of grape vines come into view.
It's not the sort of vast expanse of vineyards that we saw in Hawke's Bay; each vineyard has a small plot.
That's right.
We arrived in Martinborough , an area dotted with small wineries.
This is the place in New Zealand that is said to have the climate most similar to that of Burgundy in France.
The specialty of Burgundy is Pinot Noir , an artistic red wine that will make you feel like you're in heaven when you drink it.
Martinborough is also a region famous for its high quality Pinots, and is arguably the younger brother of Burgundy.
Just seeing the name Martinborough on the label gets my heart racing. Yes, I am a huge Pinot lover.
Martinborough Pinot has really made my heart flutter in Japan. What kind of fields does it come from, and in what winery does it transform into that enchanting liquid?
Let's burn this image into our memory.
But before that, we had to fill our stomachs. Martinborough is a small rural town, so if you're looking for a restaurant, it's best to go to nearby Masterton.
I looked it up on TripAdvisor and a restaurant called The Farriers looked good.
The wood-fired pizza seems to be popular, as does the lamb spare ribs coated with dukkah, a Middle Eastern spice.
At Bokumo, the chef also creates his own original dukkah to accompany meat dishes. You might be able to get a sense of how this restaurant does it.
For accommodation, you can save a little and stay in a motel.
In New Zealand, motels are popular, where you can park your car next to the accommodation. They also have a kitchen, so you can cook simple meals.
Before that, I stop by the supermarket to buy some wine to drink tonight (preferably from the winery I'll be visiting tomorrow), and some bread, salad, and bacon for the next morning.
This supermarket is great because there are about two rows of shelves lined with wine.
There are plenty of fruits that are only found in New Zealand, like Kiwano , and popular local chocolates, like Whittaker's, so time flies by.
Ok, let's buy some souvenirs to take back to Japan here.
Tomorrow we will finally head to the place where some of New Zealand's best Pinot Noir is produced.
Our destinations are Atarangi, Palliser Estate, and Dry River. I wonder what kind of fields and winemaking facilities they have. I'm looking forward to it!
(The photos are from my previous trip. The rest is all imagination.)
