We woke to another day in paradise….
Across the lake is the Rippon winery. We can see the vineyards from our kitchen window. Today, we decided to visit the Cellar and taste their wine. We wanted to earn it, so we walked half-way around Lake Wanaka and then climbed the hill past the vines to the tasting room.
The views of Lake Wanaka were lovely. When we arrived (just a wee bit hot and sweaty from our climb), we were the only visitors. Hazel (from Hershey, Pennsylvania) greeted us and she and Jim bonded over Delaware – Hazel is a graduate of University of Delaware.
The Rippon story is a lovely one. The land has been in the family for over 100 years. Use of it for growing grapes began in 1975, before that it was used to run sheep and cattle. But the schist rich soil and the proximity to the lake makes it ideal for grapes. Rippon’s flagship wine is Pinot Noir, but we tasted 5 wines -Osteiner, Rose, Pinot Noir, Riesling, and Gewurztraminer. We enjoyed them all, and the conversation with Hazel.
Osteiner is a new wine for us. Osteiner is a German grape variety created from a 1928 crossing of Riesling and Sylvaner. It was not officially recognized by the German authorities until 1984, and in the 21st Century only a few Osteiner vineyards are left in Germany. According to wine experts, despite the grape variety’s European heritage, the most notable Osteiner wine today is made by Rippon Vineyards. “The wine displays grapefruit flavors with good sugars and acidity and is described as a well-balanced white wine for summer”.
We bought a bottle of Osteiner, Rose and Pinot Noir. Rather than have us lug them down the hill and around the lake, Hazel offered to drop them off on her way home. She may be from Pennsylvania, but she’s a kiwi at heart!
We trekked back down the hill and around the lake, stopping at the Thursday Farmer’s Market to buy our vegetables for dinner.
We earned our wine and dinner tonight – 12 km, a million steps. All good.
