Wineries

Morning started with a climb to the summit of Mt William, which while only a few hundred metres tall offers is said to offer magnificent views stretching from Portland in the north to Eddystone in the south. Typically, though, all we saw was cloud as the weather waved two fingers and sent us packing – it was to prove the first of several fruitless climbs!

Down, but by no means out, we nursed “William” back to Gladstone (making sure all doors were locked) and opted for the coastal scenic road to Bridport, a small seaside town. What a mistake! Another 40kms of gravel lay in wait. In fact, we’d never seen so much of the bloody stuff and just to compound our frustration there was no coast in sight! We’ll be having words with the guy who drew up our map!

While Bridport was no Gladstone that was as good as it got; just another Tassie town with nothing more than a pub and post office. As a rule of thumb, don’t make any assumptions whatsoever about Tassie towns offer; in most cases it’s sweet bugger all! No reason to stop so inland we went in search of some of Tasmania’s much hyped wineries. We did, however, stumble upon one great find on the way out of Bridport: the quaint Flying Teapot, a small family run café. Lining a short grass runway this café was established as a rest stop for recreational flyers, and given the buzz it seemed to be

very well received by passing pilots. The Tamar Valley wine region is quickly developing an international reputation as a producer of fine new world wines, emerging from the shadow of its mainland peers particularly South Australia’s Shiraz focused Barossa and McClaren Valleys. Our first true taste of what the state is capable of came at the wonderful Pipers Brook Vineyard where, unlike New Zealand, tastings are free and bountiful. Pipers – a pioneer of the plonk industry here having been established as far back as 1974 - has amassed many awards in recent years in the main for its Pinot Gris and Bruts. We were so impressed we stayed for a long lunch and couldn’t help but buy up a few bottles before departing.

Next up was the tiny Providence Vineyard. Here we sampled one Pinot Noir after another, only stopping when offered a glass of the resident Port for fear of running into the cops on the drive into Launceston. Such was the size of The Jansz Vineyard we got lost among the vines and never got to the winery to try some of Tasmania’s most prized sparkling whites. Others we passed included Jinglers Creek (Pinot Noir and Chardonnay), Josef Chomy (sparkling wine) and Sharmans (Cab Sav among many varietals) to name but a few. Another fabulous offering came from Bay of Fires Wines, which also produce the Hazards Ale, a 5.4% treat that soon had Kris hooked! Just as Tassie is producing some lip-smacking vinos the state is also home to some of Australia’s best craft brewers. A great example is Seven Sheds, which brews a fabulous Kentish Ale and super strong Belgium Trapas. Kris could go on and on for he was often referring to having died and gone to heaven – but just Google “Tasmanian brewers” and you’ll see for yourself.