Queenstown & Wanaka - New Zealand's South Island - page 474

( 0800 328 897; www.cycledevine.co.nz ; adult/child $155/95; Oct-May) Cruise on a retro bicycle
around Gibbston. Tours include three different wineries and a picnic lunch beside the me-
andering Kawarau River.

GIBBSTON WINERIES & WALKS

Gung-ho visitors to Queenstown might be happiest dangling off a giant rubber band, but as they're plunging to-
wards the Kawarau River, they might not realise they're in the heart of Gibbston, one of Central Otago's main
wine subregions, accounting for around 20% of plantings.
Almost opposite the Kawarau Bridge, a precipitous 2km gravel road leads to Chard Farm MAP ( 03-442
6110; www.chardfarm.co.nz ; Chard Rd; 11am-5pm), the most picturesque of the Gibbston wineries. A fur-
ther 800m along the Gibbston Hwy (SH6) is Gibbston Valley Wines MAP ( www.gibbstonvalleynz.com ; tast-
ings $5-12; 10am-5pm), a large complex with a 'cheesery' and a restaurant. Tours of the impressive wine
cave leave on the hour from 10am to 4pm ($15 including tastings).
A further 3km along SH6, Peregrine MAP ( 03-442 4000; www.peregrinewines.co.nz ; 10am-5pm) is
one of Gibbston's top wineries, producing excellent sauvignon blanc, pinot gris, riesling and, of course, pinot
noir. Also impressive is the winery's architecture - a bunkerlike building with a roof reminiscent of a falcon's
wing in flight.
Although it's just outside Gibbston (and most of its grapes are grown near Cromwell), the best of all the winer-
ies in the Queenstown region is Amisfield ( 03-442 0556; www.amisfield.co.nz ; 10 Lake Hayes Rd; dishes
$18-34; tasting 10am-6pm, restaurant 11am-3pm & 5.30-8pm), by the shores of Lake Hayes. When you se-
lect your five wines for tasting ($8, refundable on purchase), make sure you try some of its internationally ac-
claimed pinot noir. The highly regarded bistro serves dishes designed to be shared with a few friends on the sunny
deck. In the evenings the 'Trust the Chef' menu comes into play (per person $60), where Amisfield's canny chefs
magic up tasty diversions based on whatever is in season.
The Gibbston River Trail is a scenic walking and mountain-biking track that follows the Kawarau River from
the Kawarau Bridge to Peregrine winery (one to two hours, 5km). From Peregrine, walkers (but not cyclists) can
continue on the Wentworth Bridge Loop (one hour, 2.7km), which crosses over old mining works on timber and
steel bridges.
While you're in the area, be sure to call into the impossibly rustic Gibbston Tavern MAP
( www.gibbstontavern.co.nz ; 8 Coal Pit Rd), just off the highway past Peregrine. Ask to try the tavern's own
Moonshine Wines, as you won't find them anywhere else.
Ask at the Queenstown i-SITE or DOC centre for maps and information about touring.

Milford Sound
Day trips from Queenstown to Milford Sound via Te Anau take 12 to 13 hours, including
a two-hour cruise on the sound. Bus-cruise-flight options are also available, as is pick-up
from the Routeburn Track finish line. To save on travel time and cost, consider visiting
Milford from Te Anau ( Click here ) .

BBQ Bus

TOUR