Tag Archives: tasmania

Wining around Hobart Tasmania

Tasmania has perfect climate for growing grapes and making wines with mild summers and long autumn days.  Tasmania features elegant cool climate wines including pinot noir, riesling, chardonnay, sauvignon blanc, cabernet sauvignon, pinot gris, gewurztraminer and sparkling wines in both the Northern and Southern growing regions.

There are 3 main clusters of vineyards in the Southern growing region which encompasses the Hobart area:

  • The Freycinet Peninsula northeast of Hobart
  • Around Hobart including the Coal Valley and Derwent River
  • South of Hobart around the Huon Valley and the d’Entrecasteaux Channel

Exhibit at MONA

We visited Freycinet Peninsula previously, so for this trip we focused on Coal Valley and Derwent River.  Basically no matter which direction you drive from Hobart (as long as you don’t drive into the ocean) you will quickly reach a vineyard.  We were hosting a cruise group on the Celebrity Solstice which sailed originally from Auckland, New Zealand and we only had a 1 day stop in Hobart.   We’d been on the ship for about 1 week at this point, so did double duty on the day – taste wines and get some laundry done.  So off the ship we went, grabbed an Uber to the car rental, dropped off some laundry, made a very quick trip to MONA ( see our previous blogs on MONA here and here ) and then off to taste some excellent Tasmanian wines.

First stop was Derwent Estates Wines, located right along the River Derwent which is seen in the background of the tasting room below and which we’re sure you’ll agree is fantastically charming.  Several of these wines made it home to the states with us – where we recently opened the Calcaire Pinot Noir which is particularly stunning and by itself makes the entire trip to Hobart well worth it!

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Derwent tasting room

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Wineglass to Wine Glass

When we were last in Tasmania we had the wonderful opportunity to take a Wineglass to Wine glass trek.

From the Freycinet Lodge we walk up the Hazard Mountains to the Wineglass bay lookout.  Here we took in spectacular views of the Freycinet Peninsula and the Tasman Sea.  Then we descended down into the bay, tracked across the isthmus to Hazards Beach and then partook in a rather sumptuous meal of local cheeses, fresh seafood , Tasmanian beef and quail, and just a few glasses of Tasmanian wine and beer.

Our trek begins

Our trek begins

The trekkers are ready!  Including our “celebrity” pal (no longer) bachelor Jason Mesnick

Tasman foliage

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Wineglass Bay

Here is a view of Wineglass bay from the lookout

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Beautiful view from the beach at Wineglass bay

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Artistic sand shot!

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After we leave the bay to cross the isthmus, we meet a Jill Wallaby with a Joey in the pouch – awesome!

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We’ve been spotted!

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Hazard beach now in sight on the other side of the isthmus.

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Now leaving Hazards Beach and heading towards our feast.

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“the facilities”

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Our personal chef hard at work, also a nice selection of local beer to help us recover from the walk.

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Our dining room!

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What more appropriate start than a bottle of Hazards Ale from Wineglass Bay Brewing!

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Fresh seafood starter

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Working on the Tasmanian beef

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Yum

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View from our dining room

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Cheeses to finish with

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Go find the boat to go home.

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Just a bit rough so we need to use the dinghy

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Feathered friends bidding us adieu.

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We made it – Freycinet Lodge back in sight.

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Wine, Devils & Luxury

Despite the stuffy head and congestion (yep, that time of year), we’ve spent a little bit of time this weekend freshening up the website.  It may only be the cold medication talking but we do think we’ve come up with some interesting stuff.

This is it!  You can barely see the "open" signA whole new section is under development detailing some of the many wineries we’ve traveled to around the globe.  While only a small handful are listed now, stay tuned, there is much more to come.  You can browse all of them here.  Of course you also don’t want to miss our recent blog on “The Greatest Winery You Never Heard Of”.

08-Mona Tasmania 11-1-2011 5-41-48 PMOne of the most fascinating wineries we’ve seen anywhere in the world is actually a museum.  If you enjoy world-class museums and world-class wine, then MONA needs to be on your list of places to go.  Located in Tasmania, MONA is a worthwhile destination even if you have to spend all day/night on a coach fare plane seat to get there.  Bring us back a bottle of any of the Moorilla series if you do go.  Oh and don’t forget the Moo Brew.

Coles Bay Tasmania

Well as long as you’ve made the trip to Tasmania, why not treat yourself to a stay at the Saffire Freycinet Resort overlooking pristine Coles Bay.  It’s a long journey and you deserve just a bit of pampering.  With architecture that fully connects the resort to its surroundings and  so much to see, do and experience you may never want to leave.

 

Of course no trip to Tasmania would be complete without seeing some devils.  Endangered in the wild, one of the best places to see them is at the Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary.  It is not a zoo, but a rehabilitation center for wild animals.

Oh and lest we forget, we do know just the perfect boutique travel agency that can help you put the whole amazing journey together.