Before the journey could begin there were plans to be made and some serious research.... Where were the best brewpubs, brewery bars and best eateries in the Land of the Long White Cloud?

Would two weeks be enough to scour the land for fresh mussels, oysters and 'fush n chups'?

We got down to serious business and decided to fly into the Christchurch on the South Island and rent a cheap car and then leave the car in Auckland in the North Island to avoid returning over the same ground.

Just as we were warned, 2 weeks wasn't enough. We whiled away way too much time in the magnificent South and didn't really leave ourselves enough time in the North Island.

Lucky it's a very cheap trip to go back, so we'll do it again next year and see those parts of the North that we missed.

To really enjoy your NZ visit........... STEP 1 - get this booklet

it's from SOBA [Society of Beer Associates NZ]

This is the way to find the real craftbrewers of NZ and all the locations of the Free Houses... they're the little pubs with no ties to the big breweries which have a stranglehold on most beer outlets.

Then plan your trip around their suggestions and keep a look out for Beer Festivals.

The biggie is MARCHFEST and yes.... it's held in April [gotta love a Kiwi]

The beers [and music] they were presenting in 2010...

 

Now back to Bluedog's travels......... Grab a beer, sit back and relax and follow the Bluedog's journey from Christchurch, down the East Coast, around the Southern Scenic Highway to Invercargill, then to the tourist hotspots of Milford Sound and Queenstown.

Enjoy the brewery tour of Monteith's in Greymouth and our visit to the Hop co-op in Nelson, hmmmm Hops.... the smell was wonderful and although we couldn't photograph the process they did let us put our hands [and noses] into bales of oily rich fresh hops............ arhhhh heaven will be like this.

We wanted to share the great times with others who appreciate quality craft beers. Hope you enjoy the journey.

Futuristic alarm system

Tram has commentary and conductors

House on the Avon River

You can Punt on the manmade river Avon

Freezing cold at over 3000ft

Hassle Free guide/driver Terry points out places of interest

Alpinejet partner up with Hassle Free to add to a great day out

We took this pic from the jetboat and later crossed over this bridge on the Tranz Scenic train

Just a short hop, flying Jetstar out of Brisbane it was only about 3.5 hours... barely time to watch an inflight movie we arrived late at night and headed for the strangest hotel we've ever seen.

It's called the Hotel SO, don't pass this one up. It's a futuristic hotel right in the heart of the city and pretty good rates too for inner city. One block to Cathedral square and the Twisted Hop and Dux de Lux brewbars.

City Tram ride is cute.. it's only 2.5km around the city with commentary. You buy a 24 hour ticket and get off and on as you please.

Good food alert ! Do you shy away from Tramcar Restaurants? Well don't. We're going to bore you with how good the food is in New Zealand and this goes for the Tramcar dinner as well.

And here's another piece of advice, pay up front for the "Cathedral Dinner" which is five courses AND all your drinks..... and they do not scrimp on the beer! It's good quality NZ & imported beer (and wines).

We watched another party who took the cheaper dinner option... ordering more beer and wine and then they got their bill............ yes, you know that feeling @ $8 a beer x 4 people x 3 hours..... Ouch!

So pay the extra up front - $125NZ per person for the best, fresh [chef on board] meal, great steak, superb salmon, everything was above expectation and the beers flow freely and cheerfully from the staff.

p.s. the Tram doesn't go anywhere... about 8 loops of the city circuit... but who cares, it's pretty and sociable and a pleasant way to spend an evening.

Here come the obligatory shots of Christchurch so you can see it's a wild blend of modern city and quaint old stuff.

The classic old centrepiece of Cathedral Square now with ultramodern sculptures and vendors everywhere.

It was time to get out of town and take a full day adventure tour.

We highly recommend Hassle Free Tours - they run a brilliant outfit with different tours to suit your interest and budget. They do city tours, Lord of the Ring's tours - We took the Alpine Safari tour which combines crazy Four-Wheel driving in these mountains........

With their Alpine Jet boat ride buddies so you get a 1hour jet boat on the Waimak [full name is Waimakariri Canyon]. What we liked most about the Boat ride was, yes there were the usual 360 degree spins but Greg the driver also stopped and told us about the geology of the canyon and river and allowed time for photographs. The boats are smaller than some of the more touristy rivers in NZ which made it a better trip for us.

See what the force of nature can do. Did you know that they get over 800 earthquakes A YEAR! The mountains are still young and absorb most of the shocks. But this folding is evidence of an earthquake a long while back.

Hassle Free's Alpine Safari Tour finishes the day by dropping you at Arthur's Pass in the Alps. We boarded the Tranz Scenic railway for a journey back to Christchurch. The rail journey is one of the worlds top scenic railways and gives a whole other perspective rattling along high in the mountains and passing over skinny little bridges. Note, their is a buffet car [and cheap beer] on train.

Terry, our Hassle Free driver met us at the Christchurch station and dropped us back at the hotel.... Why? Because some fool put the new train station so far out of town... oh and when they built it... they only put enough platform for the engine & one carriage! All the rest of the cars end up on the gravel so it's a mighty step down and a long walk up to the station......

The Public Service at it's best... and some fool gave it a prize as a winning train station... ... pity it's not functional.

The Dux Menu

Now down to the important bit, Beer in Christchurch.

First stop, the Dux de Lux, just jump off the Tram at the Art Gallery and it's on the next corner.

Quaint old english style building, beautiful courtyard setting with artwork all around but the beers....

Sorry, could barely finish them. They print a specky beer menu but I suspect it would taste better than the beers. Nasty, harsh hopping - that's our summation. Sort of when you Hop just for the sake of it. Nothing pleasing to our palate and dull bar staff who could barely be stuffed to serve us - big on reputation unfortunately didn't deliver the matching beer experience.

Next visit was to the Twisted Hop in Poplar Lane. This laneway in the city is full of bars and restaurants.

It was St Patrick's day, the place was jumping ......... tried a tasting tray of six beers

This time we ordered their 6 beer tasting tray to get a better feel for their beers...... can you spell disappointing? The Golding Bitter which claimed "aromas of spicy pine & blackcurrant" was so fruity as to be sickly. As with their Challenger... total grapefruit... what happened to "slight overtones of grapefruit".

Once again we walked away saying, harsh use of hops. Hops to blow your head off - what happened to flavour and subtlety?

Perhaps this is what people think craft beers should be, so overpowering with non-beer flavours so the drinker brags about strong flavours.... Their Sauvin Pilsner was the best of the bunch... only one without "fruit"..... We'll keep searching as we head South, somebody must be making beer with body and drinkable flavours.

We picked up our rental car.... and have nothing but good things to say about NZRentacar. Yes the cars are cheaper, secondhand, but they're good Japanese vehicles with a few scratches on the outside and instead of paying the big companies over $100 a day we paid $37 NZ ($30AUD) for their small car - Don't be tempted by their sub compact cars - yes you'll save a couple of bucks but go one size up....

Ours was a Mazda Familia- a model we don't get here in Oz, it coped well with the hills we were about to traverse. Enough power to overtake campervans and little sub-compact cars that struggle on the mountain roads. Highly recommend Simon at the Christchurch NZRentacar office. Honest bloke and he took photos of the car to protect us as we were leaving it in the North. (NT Rentacar seem to be privately owned franchise offices who work in together really well)

And here's another driving around NZ tip... pick up these free books from any Information centre. They are printed for each regions and give so much information. By reading as we went we could pick and choose our points of interest and we were led us to some amazing places we would have otherwise missed. AA is your friend in NZ and they offer the accommodation guides as well.

We went French in Akaroa & found a town [and Pub] not to be missed - OMARU

Quaint cottages snuggled into the hillside

People recommended that we visit this small french village of Akaroa and it was our first introduction to the anomaly that is NZ.... it may say 70km to your destination but leave at lot of time to get there. Most NZ maps come with times between towns, as well as distance to allow for the constantly winding roads through the rugged landscape.

Hilltop cafe sits above Akaroa - a must stop to get this view

It could almost be a painting but it's a real photo

Akaroa itself has quaint cottages and good restaurants and there's a cheese factory on the way called Barry's - worth a visit too.

We had to retrace our steps a little to join the South road which follows the East Coast.

Our standard practice is to drive through a town, find the pubs and nearest motel. It's an old habit and one we repeated day after day.... it doesn't pay to have to walk too far after sampling the local brews.

We liked Omaru the minute we drove in... so adopt plan 1. Find motel - ask owner for best pubs... follow local advice. We liked The Last Post and the staff sent us off to the pub they like to drink at!... and it's not what you expect.

Go to the old Victorian part of town, the historical Wharf precinct complete with folks who dress up in period costume and take you on historical walks. Look for an old colonial building that looks like a bank... See name above... it's the Criterion Hotel and it's where the best beer and locals can be found.

As with most NZ pubs they will offer you a small 'taster' of any beer you express an interest in. They keep a good cellar and know their stuff too. There's accommodation as well but it might not be the best place to stay unless you're part of the party downstairs. We read a review later which said "Mine Host had a good party night before, with his friends!!!" and " Bar is frequented by locals who 'like a good drink'!!!!!! hahaha pretty harsh stuff.... unless you're part of the party like we were.

So that's our tip... don't go there to "observe" or wait for it all to happen. It's one of those places that you'd better be open and talk to the locals... they're a tough bunch and hard workers but they know how to play and will con you out of a beer or two. We partied hard and by the end of the night someone had a guitar and we're singing sentimental old songs - squabbling about Aussies, Kiwi's and Yanks and having a grand old time.

It was time to move on... We had penguins to see

Dunedin and the Otago Peninsular

DUNEDIN

Classic architecture abounds

Baldwin St, Steepest street in the world?

Light on Taiaroa Head

Dunedin is apparently more scottish than Scotland.... it's known as a Scarfies town because of the University students all being rather British apparently.

We couldn't get a room in the whole city.... there was Rugby and a Bicycle ride on but that didn't deter us from spending the day.

We ventured out to the Royal Albatross Centre. At $40 per person it's a bit steep but I know that it would have seemed worthwhile if we'd seen an adult Albatross come in to feed their chicks. Your ticket buys a guided tour of an audio/video display and being taken up onto Taiaroa Point where the Albatross colony breeds. It's windswept and desolate but the chicks snuggle into the grass and wait for mum and dad to come back with food..... sometimes they wait 3 days! So if you go and you're lucky enough to catch sight of the adult it would be wonderful.

Either way, think of your $40 as going to preserve and protect these magnificent creatures. The rangers tag them and catch vermin like rats which threaten the nests (it's a securely fenced sanctuary and you can't wander up there without a guide). They had 107 adults fly in for the season and 17 pairs made nests and laid their single egg. These chicks born around December will not fly off until following September, they just sit and grow and then waddle about trying out their wings.

If you don't know the story of the life of an Albatross - do yourself a favour and go find out. You will be truly amazed at what mother nature has in store for these magnificent birds.

3-4 month old chick weighing about 10-12kg! It sits on the windblown grass headland waiting to be fed

To get to the Sanctuary you leave Dunedin and travel along the shore of Dunedin Harbour out onto the Otago Peninsular. It is a simply stunning drive so go and have a look even if you just wander around the old Taiaroa Head fort and lighthouse.

Along the way you pass Larnach Castle, built in 1871 and a nice stop off. You can tour the magnificent gardens and grab a coffee or tour the castle as well which is a privately owned family home. There is accommodation in the fancy rooms of the 'Lodge" or budget rooms in the converted stables.

The castle sits atop the peninsular and has spectacular views of the Dunedin Harbour on one side and the Pacific Ocean on the other - you can climb up a spiral staircase to the roof for the views.

The Catlins

Enough of Albatross and Castles it was time to go where very few tourists venture and certainly where most Kiwi's have never been. It's a tour of the Catlins - the southern most coastline of the South Island. You can pick up maps of the Southern Scenic Route.

Highlights for us were;

A bracing walk up to Nugget Point lighthouse

The sweeping coastlines found at the end of short spur roads.

Petrified forest at Curio Bay

This is a 170million year old forest that was flooded with silica laden volcanic mud... the trees sucked up the silica and were turned to stone in a couple of months. These tree trunks are only visible at low tide.

Tiny villages, art galleries and lookouts abound around the Catlins and the road swings you back around to the major Southern aluminium smelting city of Invercargill.

Trees show evidence of the windblown South

Single lane bridges with traffic lights are common

Homer Tunnel 1270m long. Elevation 945m, unlined granite walls

Lake Wakatipu with The Remarkables in background

The town hugs the lakeshore and boating activities abound

Everything for tourists with $$$$

It was time to head North and check out the more touristy places. If you're so inclined this is the gateway into the Fiordland where bush walkers really get off the beaten track for weeks at a time.

The Moose Bar in Te-Anau

If you're more into comfort, drive from Te Anau into Milford sound, over the southern Alps, it's worth the drive for the spectacular scenery. It's a dead end - so you turn around at Milford and drive back out again. There are boat rides on the Sound and tour ships come in from the open sea as well.

Into the Southern Alps

Through the Homer Tunnel

And down into Milford Sound... these are some shots on an overcast day at low tide but it's still a spectacular sight.

On to Queenstown.

The drive in is amazing as you run alongside The Remarkables range and follow Lake Wakatipu. The town is a tourist trap but with international flights it suits some people to fly in and get their adrenaline fix, jumping off and over things!

If you're not so physical it's pretty much a one night stand. There's a funny irish pub with great food and fantastic bar staff... Called Pog Mahones... once inside you'll see it's real name is Pog MoThoin... which means "Kiss my Ass".... not one to be missed.

Pog Mo Thoin - Queenstown

Glaciers and the West Coast

Sadly the weather closed in and grounded the choppers. Even guided tours stopped on the ice due to heavy rain and instability

Take the Brewery Tour

Our trip was in late March and we were lucky that the weather wasn't too bad. It would rain some nights but give us clear days for driving.... except for our trip to the Glacier country... It rained heavilly the night before and the glacier valleys were very unstable. New rope lines went up to keep people back and all helicopter flights were grounded.

We had planned to do the heli-hike which is a helicopter trip up onto the Franz Josef Glacier and a hike into the ice caves. The weather forecast looked bad for the next few days so the best we got were some photos from the terminal moraine.

This photo is just all shades of grey even the river

We were now on the West coast where rainforests grow down to the sea. Not a lot of tourists go this way but the sight of the debris coast and the Tasman Sea at Hokitika were breathtaking.

Debris is thrown up by the ocean and travellers stop and build it into shapes... this goes on for miles and the ad hoc sculptures are beautiful

Australia is somewhere out there.......

Ok what does the West Coast have that's a must see? ...... Monteith's Brewery in Greymouth

The Brewery tour is about $15 and well worth it. They only have a staff of 6 - 2 of whom are brewers. On bottling day all the staff plus a few casuals come in and run the operation. This brewery is now owned by the big DB consortium and they tried to close this small West coast operation. The nation rebelled and boycotted all DB products! Within days the brewery was reopened. They now make the Monteith's Original there as well as the new Crushed Apple Cider which was the best commercial cider in NZ.

The brewers cleaning heat exchanger plates.. .they'd been at it since 2am. Happy bunch of people who get to take home their mistakes.

They open ferment in large stainless vessels........ the coils inside allow them to adjust temperatures as required

And the best part of a brewery tour is the sampling at the bar !

Onward to NELSON ... to pick up our Hops

What can we say about the thrill of standing in a cool room filled with HOPS!

The co-op is New Zealand Hops Limited and they pack and process for about 19 hop farmers in the area.

Doreen was kind enough to take us on a tour but it was closing time and the machinery wasn't in operation but she did open the cool room so we could delight in the sight.

She also let us snarfle in some bales of fresh hop flowers.

We picked up our supplies of hops, enough to last a year and repacked the car. Time to move on.

Not before a quick visit to the Golden Bear brewing company just down the road from the Hop company.

We spent the night in Nelson and went in search of the best bar in town - as recommended by everyone at the hop factory.

It's called the Free House and as the name suggests, it's free of all ties to breweries selling great beers from smaller brewers. A great place to visit.

If you're thinking it looks like a church... you'd be right. They converted a church into a brew pub - what a fitting thing to do, should be more of it.

Inside the FreeHouse is a little weird but the funky taps and constantly changing beer menu board are a delight.

The food arrangements at the free house will impress you too. They display all the menu's from nearby restaurants and take-aways. You choose what take out you'd like - they make the call and have it delivered to you at the pub.

They even provide some cutlery if you need it.... now that's good sense. Don't waste your resources on kitchen staff.... put your efforts into beer and let the good food places around town get a slice of the action.

Everyone is happy including the patrons who can end up with a table full of Pizza, Thai and Indian if they so desire.

From Nelson to Picton... via Havelock - Mussel capital

The Mussel Pot

A drive on an incredibly twisting road... in blinding rain... will takes you via Havelock and that's where you find the real green lip NZ mussels, fresh off the boats.

They call the Mussel Pot a true Havelock icon - sometimes the journey is so worthwhile !

 

Ferry ride to the North Island & Wellington

The smaller of the two Ferry Companies

Some of the many lights in the harbour into Wellington

Parliament building

We decided to try the newer/smaller Bluebridge ferry company.

The price wasn't much different from the Inter-Islander company - maybe saved a few dollars (2 people and a small sedan $250NZ) but the 8am time-slot suited us and we had no need of all the super duper amenities that the other company offered.

It's a bracing couple of hours and sitting out on the rear deck watching the south island disappear and winding our way through the Sounds - such a lovely sight.

Nearing Wellington a huge wind farm becomes evident on a barren headland

Architecture or sculpture? An overpass bridge in Wellington

 

Quick trip through the North Island

Take a moment to check the signage

What you don't expect to find in Taupo. A DC3 in main street

 

Driving Highway 1, The Desert highway beside 3 volcanoes of the Tongariro National Park shrouded in cloud

Next morning was clear and a photo opportunity looking back from Taupo to the 3 volcanoes

The town of Taupo sits at the top of Lake Taupo and is memorable to us for two reasons. Firstly there is a complete McDonald Douglas DC3 in the playground of the McDonalds! Secondly we had the BEST steak ever eaten anywhere in the world.

Now that's quite a statement we know but our motel host said, go to the On Tap Steak House on Tuwharetoa St... and damn he was right. The price for a Rib on the Bone was only $38NZ, was huge and cooked to perfection. The beef quality was great but the chef knows his stuff too.

Before dinner and waiting for the On Tap to open we had a couple of drinks at The Shed. Just a a couple of doors away and it's a rocking pub. Great bar staff too with girls who love a laugh.

 

The Shed, Taupo

Orakei Korako & craters of the Moon

A lost paradise, don't miss it

On to Rotorua and the best place in town to eat!

We were headed next to Rotorua as everyone says you mustn't miss the thermal stuff but we were sidetracked by some locals who said they knew of something better.

There were two places, first just a little way outside of Taupo is the Craters of the Moon. It wasn't there a few years ago but suddenly appeared when the power station tapped into the hot artesian waters. The whole area went beserk and is now a mass of steam vents and bubbling pockets.

There's an excellent walk around the area and only a couple of dollars to get in. It's manned by volunteers who want the public to come and see, that's why it's so cheap. Well worth the mini detour on the road north.

Hissing steam vents and bubbling mud craters at Craters of the Moon

Ok so you thought the craters were impressive - well trust the locals again and go to Orakei Korako cave and themal park. It's a detour of about 15km off the road between Taupo and Rotorua but is the most magnificent, undeveloped (non-commercial) place to visit.

You arrive at a pristine lake and take a little boat ride to the other side and just wander at leisure around the 2.5km tracks. When you're ready just come back to the dock and ring the bell for the boat to come and get you.

It is breathtaking and photos just can't do it justice. This is a must see. Do it quietly by yourselves and you'll feel that you're in prehistoric place and time.

When you've had enough just ring the bell for the little ferry

We dragged ourselves away from Orakei Korako and finally made Rotorua.

You must check out this cafe, the Fat Dog.

We don't want to spoil it for you but it's worth the wait for a seat

Waihi to Auckland

Auckland on an isthmus

Great slogan

What's peculiar about this photo from the Northern Steamship Brewbar?

We were beginning to run out of town and still had so much we wanted to see.

We headed north to the Coromandels and stopped off at Waihi to see this enormous open cut gold mine right in the centre of town

It's run by Newmont Mining and is slated to close in a few years. They also have an underground gold mine nearby.

Must keep heading North - next stop Auckland.

First we travelled straight through Auckland so we could sample the beers at the Hallertau Brew Bar on the Coatesville Riverhead Highway.

They number their beers rather than name them hence the 1,2,3 & 4.

They Call this sampler a 'Paddle'

One for the Road? Customers were picking up this kit for a party. Neat set up, 2 kegs of best handmade beer, the gas bottle and an esky for ice to cool the beer lines.

Now finally back to Auckland. The sleasy city but we mean that in a nice way.

Where to get a good steak in Auckland? The Angus Steak House

It's hard to find, tucked in an alley but well worth the effort

Select your own steak and take it to the chef, then help yourself to salad

And the best HAMBURGER in Auckland?

The WHITE LADY, a food caravan that's been open for over 22151 nights - 60years!

Auckland is a combination of old, some gothic and brilliant new steel and glass buildings but then you come across quaint secluded alleys.

Every tourist must go and see the skytower. You can pay money to walk around the outer ledge.... wearing overalls and harness or you can just jump off. It's only a 192m fall!

We opted for the more dignified Luncheon high up in the revolving restaurant - with the occassional interuption as someone fell past the window.

Now you'll agree that most tourist restaurants like this are a bit dismal. The one is Sydney is just a joke, the food's a disgrace but Auckland is outstanding.

The food was just the freshest and best combination of flavours we've had in years. Well done Auckland.

Views from the top of Sky Tower

 

Auckland has a working harbour right in the CBD, the fence is a work of art

 

OK, Now about beer

We'd researched the Brew on Quay and had to visit the heritage building & sample the beers

The much acclaimed Northern Steamship Brewbar had only 'commercial' beers on tap . We enjoyed their Hop rocker Pilsner and the Sassy Red Best Bitter.

It's a fun pub to visit and browse around... there's some truely weird artwork and bric-a-brac, including this sign over the urinal ! For those who don't speak Latin ...

Sign over the Urinal - "What is natural cannot be bad"

 

One more brew pub on our list - The Shakespeare Hotel and Brewery

At first glance the Shakespeare isn't much to look at, a little old and tired looking.

But looks can be deceiving and we partied bigtime with staff and guests alike. Once again, if you're prepared to settle in and be civilized... all manner of good things can happen to you.... we went back 3 times and each time was better than the last. Thanks Genevieve & Gary

In an area behind the bar you can see the brewery gear and the master brewer works a few days a week keeping the beers up to the menu. It's on the corner of Albert and Wyndham Streets and they have budget accommodation as well.

Quaint font dispensing house brewed beers and the beer menu

The Beautiful Genevieve at Shakespeare

What else to do in Auckland?

Take the day ferry to Devonport... we had time to kill and needed to stay out of the Shakespeare until at least lunchtime so we took the ferry over and took a mini bus tour. Spent a pleasant few hours touring the expensive real estate and historical places.

What else?

Auckland seems to be the place for all budgets. You can do it on a shoestring or shop at the luxury stores on Queen Street.

Bicycles are really catered for.... you can hire them everywhere and there are self serve & vending machines for bicycle repairs.... Perhaps we should have been peddling around to soak up some of the great New Zealand beers we'd been taking in?

And if you're up for it.... why not pedal about? Not for us... we're tired and it's time to go home.

 

Where would we visit again?

We'd definitely visit Auckland again, it's a bit more like the underbelly of NZ but so rich and down to earth. Christchurch has to be seen but it has nothing to hold you a second time. Wellington, yes... must allow time to see the beer-life that we missed out on.

We'll be going back.

We'll rent another small car and take time to tour the North Island.

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