We visit Waiheke Island with our friends the Barkers (Matt, Diana, and their family). We take a short 45-minute ferry ride from Auckland to the idyllic Waiheke island which is renowned for its vineyards nestled in beautiful settings. It is often called “The Island of Wine.”
There are over 130-hectares (or 321 acres) of grapes and new vineyards are being planted every year. The local winegrowers have mastered the unique maritime climate and ancient soil structures to produce red and white wines. The first vineyard was planted in 1978, a relatively young vineyard. Since its birth, Waiheke has made a name for its structured Chardonnay, fruity Merlot, elegant Bordeaux-style blends, and expressive Syrah – all noted as outstanding in their class.
With the Barkers we decide to visit three vineyards in our short 6-hour Waiheke Island Wine tour. Matt and I arrived on an earlier ferry and managed to squeeze in a short hike. Our plan is to drive to Man O’War Vineyard (purple arrow), then head back and stop at Cable Bay Vineyard (blue arrow) and our final stop is Mudbrick Vineyard (between blue and red). The ferry dock is where the red arrow is pointing.
We start off at the furthest vineyard called Man O’War Vineyard.
Man O’War Vineyard
This was my favorite vineyard by far. A more casual atmosphere right on the beach with loads of sitting areas, a DJ, first class wines (and beer), and food. Man O’War is located on the far eastern side of Waiheke Island making it the most difficult to get to, but it is so worth the drive.
This vineyard planted vines on numerous small individual sites across the volcanic hilltop and clay hillsides on their 4500-acre farm. The wine was my favorite as was the tasty “garage beer” for the “Matts”
Cable Bay Vineyard
Guests enjoy breathtaking sea views while sipping on award winning wines from Cable Bay Vineyard. But, unfortunately, we only had an hour to explore here so one glass of rose. The grounds are beautiful and they grow their own herbs, vegetables, and edible flowers for their restaurants and bars.
Mudbrick Vineyard
Located right next door to Cable Bay Vineyard on Waiheke island is Mudbrick Vineyard. It is world-renowned for it superb restaurants, award-winning wines and spectacular sea views. They claim to offer the perfect Waiheke experience with their beautiful accomodations, tours, and wine tastings. NY Times said “Mudbrick is a must see when visiting Auckland.” Which is kind of funny to me as Mudbrick is on Waiheke island a 45 minute ferry ride from Auckland.
Mudbrick offered a lovely wine tasting! Shockingly, I really enjoyed the sauvignon blanc over the rose.
A beautiful shot of Auckland from the Sky Tower and from the Ferry on the way to Waiheke Island. While on the ferry we swung by the Navy station which has the largest of NZ fleets of boats.
Our blog posts run 10-12 weeks behind actual live events. This blog post occurred toward the end of December 2023. In our last blog we replace our shattered Moonlight Hatch Frames.