Martinborough Wine Trail Tour / NZ$120
The Wairarapa region is located in the south east corner of the North Island. Martinborough is one of the townships of Wairarapa. I joined the wine tour, which was run by Moonhop tours. Unfortunatly, it was a rainy day. During my stay in Wellington, I really suffered from poor weather. My overriding memory of Wellington would be the wind and the rain!
right:
Cute(?) frog on the dash. I heard that the owner of the company, Moonhop Tours, loved frogs! But this doll was more like an alien than a frog....

The driver was a kiwi, Chas, and the guide was Japanese , Naomi. We drove to Martinborough region from Wellington City in the rain. It was about one and a half hours of winding roads. I nearly got car sickness before I got drunk on wine!
center:
View on the way to Martinborough. The Martinborough region is one of the fastest growing wine regions on the North Island.
right:
She is Naomi, today's tour guide!

The Martinborough Wine Center
First of all, we went to the Martinborough Wine Center and we got a good vineyard map. There are about 27 vineyards there. According to the map, it seemed like most vineyards were within walking distance of the town center.
right:
There were lots of different wines in the Martinborough Wine Center. I think that you can buy most of the region's wines under one roof here!

Pappers Martinborough Hotel
Is located on the opposite side of the street. It looked just like an ordinary hotel. But I heard that the interior of the building was quite luxurious. I want to stay in such a gorgeous hotel....

Tirohana Estate
The first winery. It was located on the Puruatanga Road in the region of Martinborough. The white building with the country view looked wonderful! I prefer white wine to red wine, however this area is renowned for its pinot noir, a red grape used mainly in winemaking for red wine. All of the red wines in the winery had a mild and fruity flavor, but they were a bit dry and astringent for me....

I saw a strange vehicle on the way to the next winery in the rain. It seemed like a vehicle specially made for wine casks. I had never seen it before. It is so like New Zealand!

Winslow Wines
Is a family-owned winery and relatively-new. They handpicked grapes and made their wines in the traditional way. She gave me a taste. She was very kind and I didn't have to pay for a taste!!