5 Of The Best Wine And Beverage Pairings For Your Adventure

Hamish McMaster, Owner & Founder of Water By Nature explains some of his favourite beverages to accompany a certain trip, depending on where you are travelling.

 There is nothing quite as satisfying as a ‘perfect’ drink at the end of a day of adventure. It gives us the chance to unwind, relax and recount the tales and laughs of the day. Thankfully, our guides are not only river experts — they’re sommeliers, bartenders and baristas. When it comes to pairing the perfect drink with the perfect view, you’re in the care of world-class experts! Here are a few of our favourites:

1. Ice Cold Gin & Tonics Beside Moemba Falls, Zambia. At the conclusion of one of our best days on the Zambezi, immediately after Upper Moemba, comes one of the best camps on the Zambezi. As you decide where to pitch your tent (or just sleep under the stars) your guides scoot over to one of our favourite places on the planet and set up a stunning drinks table overlooking the spectacular and unrunnable Grade VI, Moemba Falls. Just sit, relax and watch mesmerized as the water just keeps tumbling past you. Many people feel that at low water flows (when we raft the Zambezi) Moemba Falls is even more spectacular than Victoria Falls. And the best part? The only way here is by raft!
   

   The perfect bar at Moemba Falls

2. Wairau Valley Sauvignon Blanc On The Beach in Kaikoura, New Zealand. At the end of a fun filled day that starts with a ferry crossing from the North to South Islands, this day of our New Zealand Multi-Active Adventure sees us stop off at one of Marlborough’s Premier Vineyards, Wairau Valley, for lunch. Marlborough is New Zealand’s top wine growing region, with its high sunshine hours, low rainfalls and free draining soils gives rise to more than 20,000 hectares (100,000 acres) of fabulous wine. As we drive down the coast from Blenheim, we arrive in the coastal town of Kaikoura, framed with spectacular mountains and the Pacific Ocean. On the menu? Fish and chips from the second-best shop in New Zealand complete with Sauvignon Blanc! On the menu tomorrow? Swimming with dolphins or whale watching!
   

   Cheers!

3. Pisco Sours Beside Hyside For Your Life on the Rio Cotahuasi, Peru. The argument continues as to WHO actually invented one of the tastiest cocktails ever invented. Chile or Peru. For our purposes on the Rio Cotahuasi, we’ll go with Peru. This yummy drink consists of Pisco (the base liquor), freshly squeezed lime juice (by your guides), egg white, a simple syrop, ice (yes we take this too) and Angostura bitters. This is all put in a blender (yes, we take a hand powered blender on our trips too) and is ready for you to drink beside one of the best rapids on the Cotahuasi, Hyside For Your Life. The Cotahuasi also has a famed wine growing region called Velinga, which we pass on our way to the river.
4. Chilean Reds and Argentinean Malbecs Overlooking the Rio Futaleufu in Chile. It is hard to go past Chile or Argentina for spectacular red wines. Their Cabernet is often said to rival those from Napa — but we think it has an edge when you sip it from deep inside Patagonia overlooking the spectacular Futaleufu River. Or, from the porch of your cabana basking in a Chilean summer. Or, from the hot tub at base camp. There are a lot of ways to pair amazing wine and amazing views. If beer is your tipple, there are plenty of local cerveza to choose from.
   

   Service with a smile

5. Enjoying An Ice Cold Beer In The Sahara, Morocco. Let’s face it: from The Salmon River in Idaho to the jungles of Papua New Guinea, when you’re on a beach beside a river and a guide passes you an ice cold beer out of the cooler, life seems to be as good as it can get. The Sahara desert that we travel to as part of our Deserts & Rivers adventure is no exception. The largest ‘hot’ desert in the world, it’s not a bad place to sit atop one of the dunes and sample a Casablanca beer. Afterward, we’ll ride back to our luxury desert lodgings by camel (who haven’t drunk any beers, thankfully).

So, take in the Tamur with a tipple of single malt whiskey or spread your gaze across the Greek Islands with a fabulous filter coffee. We’ll take care of it for you. It’s only a single moment on any of our incredible adventures, but every moment should be incredible when you’re traveling the world to experience some of the greatest water that nature can give you.