Skywire

Skywire is a unique experience (the only ride of its type in the world) . You are strapped onto a high tech 4-chair carriage, which is launched 1.6km over and back, high above a native forest valley. You reach speeds of up to 100 kph (we hit mid 80's) on an endless cable, dropping 150 metres, similar in principle to an extreme high-speed ski lift.

First up was Nana & Poppa with Aidan & Abbey.

The destination is 1.6km across the valley to the other ridge.

We held off going for a couple of days waiting for a still day. It is Spring, but there is still a lot of snow around and anything more than a breeze can be quite chilly at altitude even before barreling down a wire at 100 clicks and getting the full wind chill.

We all had a blast. The kids got to go twice. Once with Nana and Poppa and once with Sam and I.

On the journey back down we stopped in the middle of the forest to experience some history.

There were a bunch of Maitai trees (both Male and Female) that are over 2000 years old.

The guide told a story that the tree is semi hollow and liquid gathers and ferments on the sap of the tree. The liquid is apparently quite fowl but is very alcoholic. The story goes that it was so alcoholic the bushmen were restricted from drinking it until Friday afternoon (which meant they couldn't fell the Maitai trees until Friday).

I can't find any references to this, but I like the story.

There is also a Maori Toki protecting the Maitai trees. Both Aidan and Abbey learnt how to do the Maori kiss.

After the trip Aidan & Abbey got to feed the lambs, eels and ducks. 

Aidan's lamb was very receptive.

Abbey's wasn't too keen on feeding time. 

The eels were very hungry.

But the ducks were fighting them off to get the bread.

A top afternoon enjoyed by the whole family.

The NZ Beer Scene

We've been here for three weeks so definitely time for a post about the NZ Beer scene from a home/commercial brewers ex-pat perspective.

First up the mainstream bottle shops are crap. Let me re-phrase that. AVOID MAINSTREAM BOTTLESHOPS. They are the exact transposition of the majority of Australian pubs. Ruled by the two mainstream brewers.

Right got that off my chest, how is the craft beer scene ??

Obviously a LOT has changed in the last 15 years since I left. On the plus the rise of the small local breweries. Being based in Nelson for our Rugby World Cup sojourn you would expect the immediate proximities of so many craft breweries should provide a huge wealth of beer offerings to inspire and excite my taste buds.
Likewise our many trips already to Wellington for rugby games and side trips to all the latest craft beer bars should have uncovered a wealth of new flavors to tantalise my taste buds.

The reality is that NZ is still a very small market, and the majority of pubs are still frequented by the older drinker locked into the beer(s) they have always drunk. Craft beer drinkers or even worse the craft beer traveller/hunter/brewer/ticker/researcher like myself are in the minority and at the mercy of the craft brewers trying to make ends meet. They appear to be still trying to brew that gateway beer that is enough to differentiate themselves from the BIG 2 but not offend and still be able to charge a small premium.
For the most part this means that the brick & mortar brewers, each are producing the standard lager, amber, dark and a seasonal. 

In terms of an entire lineup of beers, the definite stand-outs in are Epic, Tuatara, Yeastie Boys (and I hope to find more on upcoming laps of the Nth and Sth Islands). There are also breweries for beer I've tasted only one or two of their lineups that I'm keen to further explore.

Having real world experience of selling beer targeted at craft beer aficionados I intimately understand the the problem of being able to sell certain volumes of beer in order to break even. However this is my beer journey/research trip and I'm still looking to be wowed and inspired.

So enough of the preface, what have I found that has tweaked my senses and got me excited ?

DISCLAIMER: this does not cover the MANY beers that I've previously had the opportunity to imbibe in, in Australia (eg. all the beers at the @localtaphouseDL / @localtaphouseSK Kiwi SpecTAPular (many of which have already inspired or exited me) or via niche bottle shops in Brisbane, Sydney & Melbourne, & Oz craft beer venues/festivals).

8 Wired
- Sauvin Saison ( yes this is avail in Oz but I held off knowing I was coming to NZ and visiting the source )
- Superconductor ( whilst not poured in the best condition at the venue I had it at the aroma, body and flavor were all fantastic

Golden Ticket Brewing
- Emperor Strikes Black ( wow from the first mouthful. Downed two pints in the first sitting and hop to get more this weekend )

Croucher Brewing
- Mothers Milk Stout ( has been a goto beer at a couple of venues and hasn't disappointed each time )

Mussel Inn

- Dark Horse ( a dark horse been indeed. Not overly out there in any respect, just a really really well made enjoyable beer )

- Freckled Frog ( a Feijoa Cider. I'm not a big fan of cider but really enjoyed this one. A great balance of all the right flavours).

For a list of what has been sampled so far just checkout my Untappd timeline here.

My tips are:
1. If you want to get great craft beer in NZ don't go to a major chain bottle-shop !!
2. Find a specialist bottle-shop that understands what craft beer really is.
3. Check out your local supermarket. Some are good & some are awesome. In Nelson/Richmond Fresh Choice does an awesome job of supporting the local craft brewers by selling their beers in both FYO (fill your own) style eg. Rigger, Goon as well as bottled product.
a: for instance today I found Epic Hop Zombie, Yeastie Boys Rex Attitude & Duncan Founders latest seasonal at a small metro style Fresh Choice
b: they also had instore wine tasting using those cool closed system win sampling machines.

4. Checkout BeerTourist. It will give you the real quick headsup on where to be.

Go USA

Tomorrow night Nelson is hosting USA in their match against Italy.
Whilst Nelson has adopted Italy as their second team, Richmond (a satellite city of Nelson) has adopted USA.
Today Richmond started a couple of days of activities to make USA feel welcome and get some local support bind them. It all kicked off with a parade (all American style) down the main street.

Cheer leaders (from the local rugby union team) closely followed by some bikers.

A customary old style police car complete with siren

and even a mix of old army gear.

Following the parade were the welcomes from the local mayor, USA team manager, USA Ambassador to NZ etc.

Aidan and I escaped to take a few photos

whilst Abbey was happy some some of the freebies 

A spot of shopping and Aidan got a welcome addition to his wardrobe for tomorrow nights game.

We're all looking forward to the Italy vs USA game tomorrow night and the tailgate party in Richmond prior to the game (complete with local wineries and breweries ;-)  ).

Taste Nelson

Taste Nelson is a festival that encapsulates everything that is fantastic about Nelson: food, wine, beer, seafood, fresh produce, culinary delights, arts, crafts and local performing talent.

And with the greatest concentration of breweries in NZ there was a great selection to choose from whilst letting the kids enjoy the rides.

It was a beautiful day and Sam and I were just off the plane back from Wellington after a big night at the rugby with Australia beating USA 67-5.

Taste Nelson is held in the historic Founders Heritage Park.

At Founders Heritage Park you can experience life as it was in Nelson in the 1880s to 1930s. Set in character streets with shops as they were it is a trek back in time.

We enjoyed some great NZ scallops, Maori bread, fish, hot dogs and of course beer.
Breweries that were at Taste Nelson were;

• McCashins/Stoke Brewery 
• Bays Brewery 
• Moutere Inn 
• The Mussel Inn 
• Lighthouse Brewery 
• Duncan Founders Brewery 

I sampled beers from all but the Lighthouse Brewery. 5 hours is just not enough time ;-) The did have a great way of serving directly from their brewery wagon though (see below).

Whilst most of the beers were pretty mainstream the Feijoa Cider from Mussel Inn was very enjoyable.

With a Ferris Wheel, mini Hot Rod rides, face painting, jumping castle the kids had a blast.

Rugby 1870's Style

Today in Nelson as part of the Rugby World Cup celebrations there was a re-enactment of the first game of rugby played in NZ (the first recognised game of rugby played in New Zealand took place on Saturday, May 14, 1870 between a Nelson College side and the Nelson Football Club) at the same location (The Botanics).

The re-enactment started with a gathering of both teams at the Cathedral Steps at the top of Trafalgar Street and a haka from 1200 boys from Nelson Boys School.

A short walk to The Botanics and the game was on.

Nelson Boys and Nelson Rugby Club were both decked out in traditional uniforms. A traditional shaped ball was used for the most part the original rules played. Even the posts were manuka sticks.

A scum/maul consisting of the majority of the 18 members of each team happened quite often.

One handed throw into the lineouts (and uncontested as we know them).

There was even a streaker (in his onesy) that got arrested and put in the gallows.

It was a top entertaining event. Below is from the programme that details some of the original rules that would have been played in 1870.

Tonight we are off to some modern rugby with Italy vs Russia.

Birds & Bird Houses

Last year when we were in NZ and in the Marlborough Sounds Abbey wanted to make a birdhouse. However we'd run out of time, so Poppa promised to build one when we returned this year.
12 months on and Abbey hadn't forgotten about building a birdhouse and she had been reminding Poppa about it prior to us coming over for the Rugby World Cup.

Poppa had built a couple of bird houses to attract some of the native birds.

The native birds around the Malbourough Sounds are really beautiful. Our favourites are Tui's and Native Pigeons.

 

With some help from Poppa Abbey build a third birdhouse. Abbey decided the birdhouse needed the following features, water bowl, feed bowl & windows. Of course it also needed a good paint job.

An afternoon of construction and Abbey's birdhouse was complete and mounted to the garden shed. The wait is on for the native birds to find it and start using it.

Fishing

Aidan and Abbey have been super excited about coming down to Nana & Poppa's bach (that is holiday house for you non-kiwi's) in order to go fishing.
Unfortunately though, the motor on Poppa's boat has given up after many many many years of exceptional service.
All was not lost though as a friendly neighbour took us out scalloping.

After a delayed start (due to engine steering probs on the neighbours boat) we were off to get our quota of fresh super Nelson scallops (50 per person). After 4 drags we had our quota.

Yummy scallops for dinner. Sam marinated them in brandy, vodka and a few herbs and spices and I cooked them on skewers on the bbq. Some battered fish from a previous trip and we had a delicious dinner.

Today the kids tried their hand at fishing off the wharf with Nana and Poppa. They had a lot of fun, but didn't catch anything.

Tomorrow they head out in the boat fishing. Fingers crossed they catch some fish.

Marlborough Sounds, French Pass & Vice's

We are currently based in the middle of the outer Marlborough Sounds (Okiwi Bay).
Okiwi Bay is located within "Croisilles Harbour" (Whangarae), and was named after French explorer Dumont D'Urville's uncle the Abbot of Croisilles in 1827.
D'Urville also passed through and named "French Pass" (Te Aumiti) which is approximately an hours drive from Okiwi Bay.

My father grew up at French Pass, and I've spend a lot of time down here over the years. The French Pass village sits opposite D'Urville Island and the turbulent piece of water known as the French Pass Passage. Here the water races through on each tide at up to eight knots creating whirlpools, eddies and currents, a truly awesome passage feared and respected by mariners.

Once navigated by Maori in canoes it proved more difficult for Dumont D'Urville. In 1827 he spent several days investigating the passage before venturing through it. He described the sea as a seething sheet where great precaution needed to be taken. On his journey through he clipped the reef twice before ‘floating majestically into Admiralty Bay.

Today the weather wasn't predictable enough to take the kids out fishing, so we ventured over to Blenheim to visit a couple of passions of Sam and myself. Champagne (obviously Sparkling Wine here) and Beer.
We visited the two premier Sparkling Wine vineyards of Brancott Estate and No1 Family Estate. Both provided tastings (Brancott though not of the sparklings) and resulted in the obligatory purchases. A bonus was the kids wine region themed playground at Brancott that kept the kids amused whilst we imbibed.

I visited Soren at 8 Wired Brewing for a catchup and quick speccy at the brewery while they were busy filtering a beer, bottling another and getting ready for brewday tomorrow. 8 Wired is utilising some excess space from the mother brewery (Renaissance Brewing). With a fresh batch of HopWired onboard it was time for the sweet tooth's onobard to be appeased.

Makana Chocolate to the rescue. A couple of great samples tasted, a viewing of Xmas chocolates in production and more obligatory purchases completed I wanted one more stop; Moa Brewing.

However unlike their website suggested they were closed. A phone call to officially confirm and it was off the list for today. Fortunately we will be back through here again before we leave, hopefully when they promise to be open.

On the route back into the Sounds we stopped at Havelock to visit Eyes on Nature. A really neat representation of fish and birds in their surroundings recreated by a taxidermist using fiberglass. The attention to detail in the models is amazing. Everything from penguins to sharks, eels, crayfish, bats and kiwis.

Tomorrow weather pending we fish.

Nelson, Wellington & Beer

Nelson is the craft beer capital of New Zealand. The Beer Tourist website clearly shows this.
Have only been here a couple of days and just started to scratch the surface, but have already been to the following or sampled beer from;

• Sprig & Fern
• McCashin's 
• Totara Brewing Co
• Mussel Inn
• Golden Bear
• Abbey Restaurant Cafe & Garden Bar
• Squires Pub and Cafe

and in Wellington with a little time to kill before and after the South Africa vs Wales game;

• LBQ (Little Beer Quarter)
• Tap Haus
• Fork & Brewer (opened last week)
• Hashigo Zake

I can honestly say that New Zealand has an awesome beer scene.

Tomorrow we're off to Blenheim and I'll be visiting 8 Wired & Renaissance Brewing, Moa and plan lunch at Ye Olde Malthouse Restaurant.

And of course all this is research. I've already got a couple of ideas on the go for some new Doctor's Orders beers for 2012.

Sculptures and Transport

Te Mania wines in Richmond, Nelson has built the World's biggest grapevine rugby ball to celebrate the World Cup in New Zealand. The ball measures a whopping 6 metres round and 4 metres tall.

We visited the sculpture exhibition on Thursday.

There were a wide range of sculptures by different artists. Our favourite was the rugby ball and this bird.




Yesterday we also visited the Italia Club. The Italian Rugby Team has been based in Nelson prior to the start of the tournament and will be back here in a week.

A lot of Nelson is supporting Italy as their second team. There are Italian flags everywhere.
The Italian club yesterday had a display of Ferrari's and Italian motorcycles.
The Ferrari's were older classics, but very well kept and maintained.

My favourite however was a 1952 Ducati Cruiser.
I never new such a thing existed, but then I've only been into Ducati motorcycles from the late 80's.

Only 2000 were built between 1952-1954 and the one on display was found on a deceased estate in NZ and lovingly restored. It is believed to be one of only a handful left, and the only one in the Southern Hemisphere.

Styled by Ghia, the Cruiser was Ducati’s first scooter, and the first Italian scooter to be fitted with an automatic transmission. The 54-kilo machine was even fitted with electric start. The Cruiser’s 175cc single-cylinder engine was initially tuned to make 12bhp.

For 24 years we've been trying to get our hands on 'Web Ellis'

Just under 12 hours until kickoff in the 2011 Rugby World Cup and the entire country of NZ is all consumed with the tournament.

Whilst we have only been in the country for a couple of days it is fantastic to see the enthusiasm and support for the tournament and not just for the All Blacks but also the other countries represented in the quest for the cup.

NZ residents have been encouraged to support a secondary team and from what we've seen especially in Nelson this has been successfully taken on-board.

The Italian Rugby Team is based in Nelson for a lot of the tournament and the number of Italian flags and side events is just awesome.

A radio station this morning release a parody Weird Al Yankovic style of Smokie - Living Next Door to Alice; For 24 years we've been trying to get our hands on 'Web Ellis' .

Give it a listen, it sums up NZ's quest for the prized cup nicely.

Logistics & Lift-off

When you're in your mid-twenties you can eat what you want and drink what you want and still fit into your 34" trousers.

You can also with realitive ease drop everything and hit the road for a couple of months.

The last time Sam and I did that we were two individuals in our mid-twenties and the destination was Western Europe.

Move forward 15yrs and the logistics of travelling for a couple of months with two children takes considerably more planning than simply having some funds a ticket to a distination and a packed suitcase.

However the reality is finally upon us. The required planning and logistics have been completed and holiday mode has been engaged.

Touch down in NZ with the first alcoholic beverages already consumed and kickoff for the 2011 Rugby World Cup, a little over 48 hours away.

Cheers, bro. Sweet as.