This is a special one to write for me. You see, I grew up a Christchurch (Ōtautahi) lad, first living in Corsair Bay before moving to Lyttelton, with my parents finally settling in North Canterbury after I had flown the coop. I love the place, and you’ll love it too.
For this particular vinous mission, we’ll base ourselves in Christchurch and make forays up to Waipara/North Canterbury over a couple of days. The drive is just under an hour, and this gives us plenty of options for dining out in the evenings and sampling all that Christchurch has to offer.
Of course, if you did want to stay out of the city in the beautiful North Canterbury hills, there are plenty of options. My favourites are the Black Estate B&B or the PurePod up the hill above the vineyards of Greystone Wines. In Christchurch, there are a multitude of options, such as The Eve Apartment, The Muse Hotel, Drifter or The Mayfair.
Day one
Day one sees us catch breakfast in town and we’ve lots of options. My personal favourites are Blue Moon Bakehouse, Vivace Espresso, Prima Roastery, Ozone and C4 for all things caffeine-related, and Grizzly Baked Goods, Bohemian Bakery or Bellbird in the Riverside market for pastries and on-the-road snacks.
Time to nose the car northwards on the SH1 travelling through Amberley to Waipara and heading left onto the SH7 through the Weka Pass, turning left onto Princes Road just after the Star & Garter Hotel in Waikari and finally turning left into Pyramid Valley Road to visit Pyramid Valley Wines. You’ll have to make an appointment before arriving, but it is so worth the extra effort.
It’s a very special site, this one. I remember sitting on the ridgetop with original owner Mike Weersing, drinking a bottle of Beaujolais, and listening to him explain the scarps and dips of the land and excitedly tell me of plans for the vineyards.
Mike and Claudia Elze Weersing were visionaries, and through wonderful farming and intuitive winemaking, created some of the most compelling wines in New Zealand for 20 years. Today Steve Smith MW and Brian Sheth have taken over the reins with winemaker Huw Kinch, and I’ve got to say, the estate is in good hands.
The wines are superb; transparent manifestations of site and season, each reflecting the aspect and limestone and clay soils from which they are harvested. The Botanical Collections tasting experience is $100 per person and includes a deep dive into the history of the estate plus a tour of the estate and vineyard.
After Pyramid Valley, there are a couple of other appointment-only bookings to consider. One is tea and scones with my mum and dad at their property 4 kms down the road (bookings through me… kidding, Mum!) and the other is the epic Bell Hill on Old Weka Pass Road, just a five-minute drive away.
Marcel Giesen and Sherwyn Veldhuizen produce some of the most profound chardonnay and pinot noir in New Zealand. It’s an incredible site with its close-planted vines on hillsides rich with marine-based limestone and calcareous clays. The attention to detail in both the vineyard and the wines is out of this world and it is one of my favourite places (run by two of my favourite people) in the region. It can be tough to get an appointment, but it is well worth the effort, and if you see a bottle of Bell Hill in a retail store while in the country, grab it before somebody else does.
We’ll head back through the Weka Pass towards Waipara now. If you have time up your sleeves and feel like stretching your legs, go for a wander down the village walkway in Waikari. About halfway along you’ll see a stye over the fence and a track heading up the hill. If you follow the track, you’ll arrive at a cave that contains some Maōri rock art that dates back between 600 to 1000 years. The round-trip will take about 1.5 hrs (4.5 kms) and the site is known as the Weka Pass Historic Reserve.
Arriving back at the SH1, we’ll turn right, heading back towards Amberley, travelling for five minutes before turning left at the sign for Pegasus Bay Wines. The Donaldson family are pioneers of the region with Ivan and Christine establishing Pegasus Bay in the mid ’80s. Today the beautiful estate is entirely family-owned and operated.
Pegasus Bay is one of New Zealand’s most iconic estates with unwavering quality across the entire range from the Main Divide and Vergence wines through to the stunning Pegasus Bay Reserve wines. It is a must-visit cellar door in the region. We’ll take advantage of the Pegasus Bay mini-deli to put together a delicious lunch here too, enjoying it in the sunshine of the gardens, before we make the 10-minute drive to The Bone Line next to the Waipara River on Ram Paddock Road. It’s a cool little site this one; further inland and set on old river terraces and limestone gravels; the wines show a lovely clarity and tension with deliciousness across the range.
We’ll head back the way we came now, sliding into Georges Road Wines (again, make sure to book!) to try winemaker Kirk Bray’s cracking wines – especially the Pinot Gris and Reserve Syrah – and a visit to the lovely Terrace Edge to sample the great range of wine and olive oils before heading back to Christchurch.
There are so many options for dinner tonight. My personal favourites are Gatherings, Mapu in Lyttelton (super tiny, so book way ahead), Kinji for Japanese, or Londo or Lillies for natty wines and small plates.
Day two
Follow the familiar trail up the SH1 back to North Canterbury towards Torlesse Wines on the edge of Waipara township. Sample their excellent range of wines and welcoming cellar door before heading north to Waipara Springs to take advantage of a wine flight tasting, the highlights being the supple Riesling and excellent Lagrein and Reserve Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.
We’ll head a bit further north now to visit two more of my favourite North Cantabrians, Nicholas Brown and Pen Naish at Black Estate. They craft stunning certified organic and biodynamic wines from their three vineyard sites, Home, Damsteep and Netherwood. Everything here is on point – farming, wines, food and hospitality. There are a range of tasting experiences to choose from and the wines are some of North Canterbury’s finest.
We’ll take lunch here too, settling into a wonderful menu from chef Olly Le Maitre and his team. The offerings lean heavily on local produce, and the restaurant has been awarded Two Hats from the Cuisine Good Food Guide every year since 2019. It’s the perfect place for a lazy lunch.
We’ll begin our journey back to Christchurch now with one final visit just 2.5 km down the road at Greystone Wines. Make sure you book in for a tasting in advance and you will be treated to a superb range of wines including stunning Riesling, Pinot Gris and Chardonnay plus Syrah and Pinot Noir – all organic, award-winning and downright delicious.
A visit to Greystone is a fine way to conclude a couple of days in this beautiful slice of New Zealand. If you have a little more time there is so much more to offer, such as visits to Kings Truffles, cycling the Waipara Valley Vineyard Trail, driving to Gore Bay and taking some photos of those classic Kiwi ‘bachs’, fly-fishing on the Hurunui and of course, much more Kiwi wine and food!
Waipara and North Canterbury’s proximity to Christchurch has a strong appeal indeed, just perfect for a city base with all its creature comforts and dining options while making daily forays into the vineyards for tasting and relaxed lunching. Sounds perfect and who knows, if you hang around a little longer, we might bump into each other, be it stream-side or at a cellar door. I’d like that.
This article first appeared in issue #81 of Halliday magazine. To receive the magazine, unlock digital access to over 185,000 tasting notes, and more, become a member now.
