Tasmania’s unique, cool, maritime climate and mix of soils makes it an ideal location for world-class sparkling and still wines using Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Riesling. As climate change starts to make its presence felt on mainland Australia so large-scale operations such as Penfolds and Hill-Smith Family Estates are also buying up land and sourcing grapes to follow freshness. Geoffrey Dean spent a week there and visited 17 wineries, looking at the island through the lens of an Australian wine expert and as a wine tourist.
It is hard not to be seduced by Tasmania as a wine region after driving around it for a week. In that time, I covered 1400 kilometres and visited 17 wineries as well as one whisky distillery. That isn’t even half the number of wineries on the island, while there are several distilleries. The quality of ‘Tassie’ wines, and indeed that of its whisky, continues to reach new heights of excellence, with world-class examples of sparkling wines, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Riesling seemingly around every corner of Australia’s most picture-perfect state.
For the wine tourist, it is nothing short of heaven. For, apart from its wines, you can savour great cuisine, spectacular hiking or cycling, stunning national parks, historic villages and a number of delightful wine estates to stay at. For anyone wanting a round of golf, there is the lure of Australia’s number one links course, Barnbougle, on the north coast.
Another top quality boutique producer is Stargazer, whose newly opened cellar door has dramatic 180-degree views down towards Tea Tree and the pretty village of Richmond beyond. Talented New Zealander Samantha Connew, who also makes the wines at the Pressing Matters winery, fashions a much-lauded range of Riesling, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir that is imported by Enotria. She also buys in Shiraz from the Brinktop winery that constitutes 75% of an alluring 2024 label (25% Pinot) that is named ‘Kura' after the Maori word for ‘scarlet.’
