You won't find any vineyards on the West Coast of the South Island, because it's one of the world's wettest spots. But it's the perfect place to hunt for great vintage wines.

Tucked away for 20 years on back shelves in the abundance of old pubs you'll find along the coast, you can bet there are real bargains to be found.

Pay the fish a compliment

	Whitebait is a delicacy of the West Coast.
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Alternative tipples

The locals, known as Coasters, love a decent tipple and make a selection of excellent beers.

In March every year, thousands gather in Hokitika for the West Coast's most famous culinary event - the Wildfoods Festival. It was started by a local woman who found locals queuing outside her door to sip her home brew of West Coast gorse flower wine!

A large part of New Zealand is still covered in rugged and beautiful native forest.
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Boulder-hopping

I have a great memory of walking the Heaphy Track, over the mountains from Nelson to the West Coast. After boulder-hopping along the coast, we celebrated finishing the track by drinking a half-bottle of Hawke's Bay red.