A Tale of Two Chippies (apologies to Charles Dickens)

"IT WAS the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness.... " Indeed. A hot summer evening.. a Sunday that had seen some weather change from grey and blustery to warm sunshine. What better than a walk down to the Waterfront for a bite and a drink or two? The Viaduct was teeming with people, locals, tourists, all wanting a bit of sun and sea-breeze. The more popular watering holes were already crowded with revellers who looked like they had been there enjoying themselves for a while. Flushed faces (or was it sun?), laughter, music. Lively guitar music emanated from O Hagen's Irish Pub which was bursting at its seams with a very happy crowd. As it looked like we could not get in, we decided on a neighbouring drink spot from which we could hear the music. Sky Sport Bar and Grill had been advertised on local TV as having an amazing range of beers on tap and the sister F&B Outlet of the famous Foodstore restaurant just round the corner. Menu looked decent, usual suspects for a Sports Bar and decent prices too.  Can't be too bad, might even be good.

SkySport Bar and Grill Beer Menu Part 1

Sat ourselves down, took a while to look over the extensive list of beers on tap and I ordered an Epic Armageddon IPA, and Foodie Friend (FF) had a Renaissance Perfection Pale Ale. Beers came quickly, nice and crisp and cold. The way they should be. The Epic IPA was wonderfully hoppy, flowery and bursting with zingy flavour in the mouth. Refreshing, thirst quenching. Made a mental note to look for it in local supermarket. Foodie friend's Perfection Pale Ale was good too. but paled (sorry) in comparison to mine. Was supposed to have toffee notes.. it was sort of caramel-ly, but mine was a better summer drink.

Thirst quenched, we decided on food. That was when trouble started. Sorry, we have run out of beef, lamb and pork. (This was 6pm) Hmm.. that's bad planning on the part of the management. It wasn't even dinner time yet. Never mind, I chose fish and chips ($19.00) and friend chose 3 sliders from the limited chicken or fish selection. Food took about 30min to arrive - which was rather long as there weren't many people eating. Most were still making the most of Happy Hour, amassing un-drunk pints on the table before 7pm. My fish and chips arrived in a newspaper cone, kitsch but acceptable presentation. The portion size was amazing. Amazingly small. I could count the number of chips, which turned out to be just barely cooked, dense and neither crunchy on the outside nor fluffy on the inside. The beer battered fish (what fish ?) tasted fishy and the batter was soggy. And it was smaller than an iPhone. The Worst.

SkySports Fish & Chips

Underwhelmed. FF's sliders - why are they called sliders? Some reference to baseball I'm sure. Sliders are like mini burgers with meat / veg / whatever in between and meant to be a tasty little morsel.

SkySports Sliders

Well, the sliders that we had, the buns - were stale, we could have played baseball with them. The chicken was ordinary as was the piece of beer battered fish. Hmm.. wait a minute, did they serve the portion of fish meant for the slider on my plate of fish and chips? Sad. Quickly ate up, paid and went out into the fresh air to enjoy the lively music from O Hagen's.

Still hungry as we drove home, we decided to stop by The Chip Shop at the Royal Oak Roundabout. This multi-award winning chip shop is consistently good and has been a favourite for many years.
Always busy, and when we arrived the wait was 20min, but that was fine. We strolled to Pak and Save to get us a pint or 2. 1 scoop of award winning chips, a breaded Tarakihi and (horrors!) a fried Mars Bar. All for $10. Cheerful efficient service. Walking back to the car with warm pack of fish and chips - and later enjoying it at home - affirmed our conviction that good food, cheerful service in unpretentious environs beats fancy stuff hands down. The portion of chips was generous, crunchy on the outside and fluffy within, they did not become soggy even after an hour of slow eating. The fish was fresh, with a delicious breadcrumb coating. The Best.

The Chip Shop's Fish & Chips

Fried Mars bar (we wont repeat that again soon) deliciously sinful.

So, as I said, it was the best (of fish & chips) and the worst (fish & chips).

New Zealand - First trip here

Wow! I am finally going to New Zealand. Always wanted to visit this country and here I am!

8 Oct - Flew on Singapore Airlines that departed from Terminal 3. Flight from Singapore to Auckland took about 9 hours. Was surprised to see pork and beef being served on the airline... and it was surprisingly tasty. Arrived in Auckland around 11.00pm. Where is the shuttle that is suppose to bring me to Centra? Stayed at Centra, the airport hotel, because my flight to Wellington was leaving tomorrow afternoon. Didn't want to travel all the way to Auckland city just for one night.

When I arrived at Centra, the wind and rain picked up intensity. Phew, arrived at the hotel just in time. Centra is a simple, no-frills airport hotel. Clean and basic. It is fine for a night's rest.

Rows and rows of Gewurztraminer grape vines

9 Oct - Oh dear, flight is in the afternoon and I do not have to be in the airport until 2.00pm. What to do? Oh, why not visit a vineyard? I have tried Villa Maria wines in Singapore. Would be interesting to visit the vineyard that produces such good wines. The Villa Maria Estate is 5 minutes' drive from the hotel. The porter said it would cost about NZD5 by taxi but when I arrived at the estate, the taxi driver charged NZD17 (as expensive as the bottle of Gewurztraminer I bought)! Did he just con me? Well, he had no qualms about giving me a receipt. Maybe surcharge for advanced booking?

White wine fermenting in steel tank kept cold by liquid nitrogen

Villa Maria conducts daily tours that show the wine making process for NZD5/person. Some of the places are cold. So, do wear a jacket to keep warm.

Red wine stored in oak barrels from France

Our tour guide told us the size of this family-owned estate is about 10 hectares and the grape variety planted here is Gewurztraminer. George Fistonich, the owner of Villa Maria, owns other vineyards around New Zealand but this one in Auckland is the headquarters.

Info about this estate

What does one do after understanding the wine process? Taste the wine! Visitors have several wine tasting option. I opted for the premium wine tasting that cost NZD20 for 6 tastings of different collections.

Tasting 6 different types of wine

Pinot Noir Reserve, Syrah/Voignier Cellar Collection, Merlot/Cabernet Sauvignon Private Bin

My notes (an amateur wine enthusiast):
Pinot Noir Reserve: Earthy - early morning smell of the forest, woody
Syrah/Voignier Cellar Collection: Mild spiciness balanced with earthy tone
Merlot/Cabernet Sauvignon: Medium bodied with a hint of raspberries

Sauvignon Blanc Reserve, Pinot Gris Private Bin, Gewurztraminer Cellar Collection

Sauvignon Blanc Reserve: Very ripe strawberries on the nose, fruity on the palate - strawberries, peach
Pinot Gris Private Bin: Balance, a good mixture of fruity (ripe red apples) and earthy tones
Gewurztraminer Cellar Collection: Floral - elderflower

After tasting some wine and buying a bottle of Cellar Collection Gewurztraminer, I took a slow stroll back to the hotel, which took less than 1/2 hour.