A tourist at home

I have been playing tourist in New Zealand for the last few weeks while my parents have been here from Canada, hence the sparceness of blog posts, but it's been really interesting seeing this place from a tourist perspective again. Whilst I work for New Zealand's biggest company, the biggest industry in New Zealand is still tourism and it has been a while since I've been exposed to that side of the country.  Winning the Rugby has been an added bonus (nail biting as the final was!) and even all the Ozzies we saw on the way seemed to be in good spirits, despite not making it through to the finals.  Our tourist adventures really only covered Rotorua and Taupo and the greater Auckland area, but that was just right this time around.   

I haven't been to Rotorua since the last time I had overseas visitors, and it's as smelly and fascinating as ever.  The first taste of NZ hospitality was at the Book a Bach place we stayed at called Eagle Retreat.  It was amazing!  Hardly a Bach and if you are ever in Rotorua, and there is a group of you, this needs to be at the top of your list.  It was really modern, well appointed, had a stunning view right up the hill from the thermal area, and get this, she baked a carrot cake for my Sister's birthday!  Now that's kiwi hospitality.  Check out the link if you're ever in the smelly capital. 

http://www.bookabach.co.nz/baches-and-holiday-homes/view/13292/locale/rotorua-township 

Here's what kiwi hospitality looks like:



My favourite thermal area is still Orakei Korako, which is 1/2 way (or maybe a bit more) to Taupo, down a back road, and well enough off the beaten track to still feel a little more authentic, and it is truly spectacular.  A small ferry ride over the lake and you are in thermal wonderland.  The toilet signs were being upgraded but the owner assured us the 'guysers' and 'galsers' signs we remember from about 15 years ago were going back up shortly!

We had a great time in 'Rotavegas' and you can't go wrong as far as showcasing NZ, though I was a bit surprised at the food prices which are more expensive than Auckland.  Mind you, the facilities at our 'bach' were so good we didn't really eat out much anyways and plenty of card playing took place!

As for Auckland, these are my favourite places to take people from out of town:

Takapuna Beach Cafe with a nice walk on the beach afterwards.

The gannet colony out at Muriwai Beach

Here's a great sign we saw at the Matakana markets.  We also went out to goat island reserve but the heavens opened for a decent shower, so we went for lunch at the Sawmill Cafe in Leigh for lunch instead!  It was just heaving and good as I remember from the last time I was there.    

Sky tower for lunch is always a hit,

and my favourite place to hang out, with or without tourists, is North Head on the shore.  It's such a great place to watch the world go by and also makes me appreciate Auckland for all its splendor. 

Well, my parents are now safely back in Canada and I am going to get back to life as usual, but it really has been neat to see this place from a different perspective.  I've been in NZ for about half my life (no, I am not going to reveal how long that is!) so it is my home, but like every place, you get used to it and every once in a while it is worth stepping back and having a look at it from an outsiders perspective.  I am looking forward to summer in Auckland even more so - it's a great place to be.

Eating in the Cloud

Rugby World Cup fever is alive and well in New Zealand and the country is taking the opportunity to showcase itself to the world. The volume of people in the Auckland central city rugby fan zone downtown is noticeable. (School holidays are also on at the moment, so the queues are something the average kiwi is surely not used to!) 

My parents are currently visiting from Canada, and I thought what better place than the fanzone at this point in time for overseas guests, so we decided to head down to the Cloud on Auckland's Queen's wharf for Lunch.  I was suitably impressed and can recommend it's worth heading down there before it wraps up. Actually, you don't need overseas guests to justify a visit - it's really good!

The cloud is packed full of Kiwiana and a showcase of New Zealand's innovations - everything from a mate of mine's Power by Proxi technology, linkless chainmetal (who would have thought this hadn't been done before?), Manuka Honey's many medical applications, and of course the million and one Beef and Lamb facts and claims we can make as a nation.

What we really enjoyed though was 'Taste at the Cloud' which is a showcase of some great New Zealand food and wine. Basically, there are four food zones with tapa size tastes of NZ classics, and each tapa is matched to a wine or beverage.  There is a Rural Zone, a Winery/Orchard Zone, an Urban Zone, and a Seaside Zone, each serving diffent types of tapa sized dishes. 

The hands down favourite was the Lamb on Garlic Mash with a green olive and mint tepenade at the Urban Zone.  The Kingfish Ceviche was a good second and the Venison with Kumera Chips at the Rural Zone was also way up there.  The best wine match was the Te Awa Hawke's Bay 09 Cabernet Merlot with the Venison.  We had 4 different dishes each and that was plently for lunch. 

It is times like this when I really appreciate New Zealand.  It is a proud nation, always punches above its weight and probably explains why we are passionately and rightfully angry with the captain and crew of the MV Rena which grounded on the Astrolabe reef last week.  All credit to the 4200 volunteers who are helping with the clean up at the moment.  It's a beautiful part of the world - we got married on the beach which is now full of oil and debris. It is well worth preserving and protecting for the future and who knows? Kiwi's are likely to come up with leading technology or innovation they can take to the world to make sure this doesn't happen again.   Go brand New Zealand.

Lab Night at Pinot Plus

Today's post comes to you from Jo Pitts on the first anniversary of Lab Night.  

On the first Monday of every month we catch up with like minded wine and food lovers, bring some interesting wines, eat some great food, and talk about everything and anything - a 'good life' winning formula if ever there was one! 

It's always an awesome time and its fantastic to see that Lab Night has caught on - I'm sure there will be many more anniversaries to come.  Thanks to our great friends Jo and Elle for starting this up and John Ingle at 'Pinot Plus' whose venue has become synonymous with this event.

I'll hand it over to Jo.....
_______________

Firstly - An explanation
Lab Night is an idea that my wife Elle and I transplanted from Miami.  When we moved to Miami, and knew very few people (and nowhere near as much about wine), Elle discovered the Miami Lab Night.  It was a wonderfully eclectic and interesting collection of people who loved food and wine, who met monthly to discuss the world in general, drink some great wine, all in pleasant surroundings. 

The formula was simple.  Bring a bottle of wine (or two), pay a flat fee to the restaurant for your three course meal, find a seat, share your wine with your table mates, and enjoy the evening.

We wanted to transplant the idea to New Zealand, but thought we'd wait until we felt that we had enough great friends, and friends of friends to be able to successfully get it up and running here.

Right on a year ago, we did just that - and Lab Night has been a great success ever since, with the first Monday of every month becoming a fairly regular fixture on many peoples calendars.

Secondly - Lab Night's first birthday

October was the first birthday of Lab Night, and was another great success.  Thanks to all those who turned up on an absolutely foul Auckland evening

Being a birthday, there was a fair bit of bubbles flowing!  One of the things I love about Lab Night are the curious little moments of serendipity.  There were two types of bubbles, a Yellowglen cremant, and a Gustav Lorentz Cremant d'Alsace rose.  Now cremant simply means bubbles not made in Champagne, but to have two (from opposite ends of the world) both labelled as such was great - and both were delicious! 

The food was, as always, spectacular.  The team at Pinot Plus in Takapuna served up lovely entrees of Chicken Dumplings and fried Shrimp, and the choice of mains was either a lovely lamb chop, or spicy pork shoulder on mash. I had the Lamb, and it was perfectly cooked - and I had nothing but good reports on the pork.  Dessert was a sticky date pudding.  Oh my!  It was heavenly.  Fortunately, Elle was full by dessert so I got to have two portions.  I've said it before, and will doubtless say it again - how they turn out such amazing food (and in such short order) from the tiny kitchen really beggars belief.

There were many many wine highlights (after the delicious bubbles), but here are a few:

• 2004 Cloudy Bay Gewurztraminer.  Despite its (or perhaps because of) age, it showed beautifully.  The gingery spicy notes had become more prominent, with the turkish delight/floral characters still there, but more muted than in a younger gewurz.  It was particularly sophisticated, delicious, and a great way to start the drinks at our table. 
• 2009 Au Bon Climat Chardonnay.  ABC is one of the great Californian labels, and this didn't disappoint.  Lovely sweet breadie notes, with a leanish french style giving a great structure to the wine.  Moreish, but without being cloying
• 2007 Rust en Vrede Shiraz.  Wow - I had to do some research on this one.  Rust En Vrede is located in Stellenbosch (about 40k east of capetown) and is a producer of iconic South African wines.  This particular bottle certainly delivered on its promise.  It was dark and powerful, with lovely chocolate notes on the palate. 
• Cote Rotie  La Landonne.  Wow - more research!  I enjoyed this wine immensely, and now I know why.  La Landonne is one of the premier vineyards in Cote Rotie region.  This Syrah was delightfully floral on both the nose and palate, with a few spicy notes (white pepper, and a hint of 'pizza herbs') to balance it out.  I'm not sure of the vintage (my camera didn't pick it up), but it was divine!
• 1992 Te Mata Awatea.  This was a gift to Elle and I from a friend, and my were we ever lucky!  This wine was structured, elegant, and powerful.  It had notes of cassis and plums, with the oak and very very fine silky tannns keeping things in check.  If you didn't know it was 19 years old, you wouldn't have known!  There was no giveaways.  The colour was still vibrant, with no hint of mustiness about the flavour.
• 2009 Stafford Lane Montepulciano.  This was a wine that confused the heck out of everyone when quizzed on it. Almost no one could guess the grape, the region, or producer.  Absolutely delicious, and well worth trying if you get the chance.

I could rave on and on about the wines, but you'd start to get bored I'm sure!  As you can see, there was a stunning line up of wines - and so many embodied the spirit of Lab Night in either their variety, geography, or vintage.

Thirdly - Next Month
Yes - of course, we'll be doing this all again next month!  The formula will remain the same, but the price is going to change slightly.  As always, it will be held at Pinot Plus in Takapuna, at 7pm.  The price will be $49 for a three course meal from November onwards.  Bring an interesting bottle, and enjoy yourself.

The date for the next Lab Night is the first Monday in November which is the 7th.  Seating is limited, so get those RSVPs in ASAP to jo at bigroom dot co dot nz.

Yours in Oenophilia
Jo Pitts

Blister Sisters, Teed St Larder and Conching

A few years ago, 5 of us formed the original 'Blister Sisters' to walk the Auckland half marathon. We walked, we trained, we schemed, and we completed the marathon and had a great time.  It always, without fail, involved long brunches with great conversations about almost anything.

There is still a quorum of us who get together when the mood strikes for a proper walk (we have to do something to balance the good life afterall!).  Coach Cath maps out our route and it always either ends at a cafe or as is the case this week, a cafe 1/2 way along the route. 

This time it's 'Teed St Larder' at 7 Teed St in Newmarket, Auckland, after we traverse the duck pond and lovers lane in the Auckland Domain. 

'Teed St Larder' is a cool urban food store which is a recent addition to Auckland. It has a great vibe with lots of inviting cabinet food including some pretty good looking Ruebens (and I know a Rueben from a Rueben), lots of fresh pastry, and a decent brunch menu. Then, from the corner of my eye I spotted the 'Hot Chocolate' Valrohna 75%.  Holy cow (or soy bean in my case) - this had my name written all over it.  I love Valrohna chocolate and recently I read an article that described what makes it so much better (and why we pay so much more for some chocolates than others). 

Apparently, the following is required for good chocolate:

1. A quality blend of cocoa beans
2. The liberal addition of extra cocoa butter.
3. A long conching process.

Conching?

I had only recently heard of 'conching' and I found it quite interesting.  Apparently Conching is to chocolate what aging is to wine.  (that got my attention!)

The technique of conching was developed by Rodolphe Lindt in Switzerland in the late 19th century. Conching entails rolling and smearing molten chocolate while subjecting it to a stream of warm air. This blends the ingredients, releases unwanted volatile components and reduced the moisture content. Before the invention of conching, chocolate was grainy and bitter and largely just used in drinks.

The length of the conching process determines the final smoothness and quality of the chocolate, and how fine the cocoa and sugar particles are. High-quality chocolate is conched for about 72 hours, lesser grades about four to six hours.

You guessed it, Valrhona is at the top end of the scale. 

Well, that was only one of topics we discussed on the day.  It's amazing how much you can cover in a couple of hours and as per usual there was lots of interesting news to catch up on and philosophical questions to debate. 

Conversational food for the soul, well conched chocolate and a good brunch - surely that's what it's all about.

Until next time,

E