We enjoyed Denny's so much yesterday that yip we went back again today! The things we choose weren’t quite as fine as the day before but good none the less and we would need a full stomach for the activities for the day ahead, wine tasting!!

There is an island called Waiheke about 40 mins from the Auckland CBD that is simply known as the island of wine. Without going into all the details it simply has the perfect conditions required for growing all manner of grape types. We had booked on a tour that would take us to 3 vineyards and one olive grove. After a quick visit to a couple of city sites in the morning we headed to the ferry and across to the island.

We were met at the port in Waiheke by the tour company and were soon on our way to the first Vineyard, Stonyridge. Here we tasted a New Zealand Chardonnay, which as it turns out is much nicer than the horrible American and Aussie ones. Then it was a Malbec/Merlot which was really nice before a light lunch and a glass of Riesling. Next it was to an olive estate called Rangihoua where they have award winning oils, here we learned how they make the olive oil and got to taste some with breads. After a short drive to the other end of the Island we reached our second vineyard which is also a brewery, Wild on Waiheke. Here we tasted a Rose, then 3 beers and a cider. All were really good, especially the pale ale. Our last vineyard was Mudbrick where we tasted a Sauvignon Blanc, a rose, a Syrah then a Viognier.

All the tastings were very good and each vineyard was interesting. It sounds like a lot of wine, but as it was just tasting portions and you always got a snack, it wasn’t as much as it sounds! It was 1630 and time to catch the ferry back to CBD.

After we returned from the island we jumped on a different ferry which took us to a place called Devonport on the north shore, this is only a 12 minute journey but really feels a million miles away when you get there. We took a short walk along the waterfront before heading back to the main street and choosing a place to eat. We had a very enjoyable meal and had their full attention as we were the only customers! We found out near the end that they had only been open for a few months and their style was a bit different to what the area is used to so things could be slow at times, never the less it was lovely. We headed back to the ferry for the short trip before heading back to the hotel after another great day.