My son now lives in Brisbane. We will visit him in April. We will spend about 4 days there, then to Tasmania for 4-5 days, and finish near Melbourne for 4 days. Looking for recommendations of sights to see and wineries to visit in Tasmania and Ybarra valley. My son and his wife love to hike as well
It depends on where you are going to be in Tasmania. I’ll fess up and say I’ve only spent a few days in Tasmania and that was around Hobart so hopefully somebody will chime in on the other stuff. I have at least tried a lot of the wines. In April you should be around harvest too.
Tassie is pretty cool climate so don’t expect much red apart from pinot.
If you are near Launceston up near the North East -
House of Arras/ Bay of Fires - part of the Accolade wine group but House of Arras are the best Sparkling wines in the country. Bay of Fires pinot is often nice and the rest of the range is decent.
If sparkling wine is your thing then Jansz and Clover Hill are also in that region.
Josef Chromy would be on my list too. I’m partial to some of his Rieslings in particular.
Cradle Mountain in the North and slightly west is a pretty usual hiking spot. Spectacular views but it can be subject to weather.
For Hobart -
Wines
- Stefano Lubiana, Pooley, Bream Creek
There are some very good whiskeys in Tasmania - not cheap but good. Lark Distillery has a bar in Hobart that has many of them. They do a really nice Gin and tonic there too from the forty Spotted gin.
If you are interested in sour styles of beer and you are around when it is open , the Two Metre Tall make some interesting beers and ciders if you happen to be around when the farm bar is open
Hobart is a lovely town.
MONA gallery is the top tourist attraction there. It’s challenging, interesting and often polarizing. I was there in September and I’d go back in a flash. There is also a winery cellar door there (Moorilla wines) and a Brewery (Moo Brew beer). Take the Ferry from the Harbour.
Mt Wellington gives you a nice view over Hobart.
When I was there I had a quick look at Bruny Island. Some pretty nice beaches there and there is a cheese maker on the island. There isn’t a lot of settlement, but if you get away from the places that have people you’d probably see wallabies around (the local pub also had wallaby lasagna on the menu).
I’m sure others will have opinions on the Yarra valley but I might chime in on that later. I’ll put in a plug for the Mornington Peninsula too - thats where I grew up so I know it pretty well.
Hi Stewart
I’m a little out of touch with Melbourne, but will put a big shout out for their botanical gardens, a wonderfully peaceful place, say hi to the turtles from me.
For a somewhat different dining experience in Melbourne, the Victorian tram car restaurant is fun, cross-crossing the city as you eat a multi-course meal.
For Yarra Valley, not the greatest wines, but a place that we still remember fondly is Kings of Kangaroo Ground. Run by a guy called Ken King, he was appalled that they were going to close the local post office, so he took it on inside his own little winery, preserving the focal point of the community. Spending an hour in this environment shows just how important the post office is to the community, and how he’s made it even stronger. The wines are ok, though I hope he has a little air-con in the tasting area now. Pretty impressive though for someone who emerged from the Amateur winemaking scene.
Thanks Paul. I had read about a number of those places. We are planning on visiting Hobart and Lancaston area. I had heard the Tamar ridge had many excellent wineries. Also hope to get over east to go to Devil’s corner and Freycinet.
I would love to get your input on areas to visit near Melbourne and where to head for wineries.
Melbourne is pretty much ringed by wine regions - Mornington Peninsula, Yarra Valley, Sunbury, Macedon and Geelong/Bellarine Peninsula. With the exception of Sunbury which is a little warmer (and the smallest of the regions), most are known for Pinot and Chardonay. Yarra has some outstanding cabernet and you’ll find a lot of other varieties in all the regions as well. We are talking not much more than an hour to drive to any of them. Slightly further out beyond Sunbury and Macedon is Heathcote if shiraz is what you are after.
Some of the really top wineries don’t have cellar doors - places like Mount Mary in the Yarra, Bindi in Macedon or By Farr/ Farr rising in Geelong spring to mind. There are some you could book appointments with. Some places only open on weekends, or on certain weekends in the month, but there are a lot that are open every day so you’d have no trouble finding quality wine on any given day (except perhaps Good Friday if you are around then or Anzac day - April 25th, although that is probably a little easier these days). There are some excellent restaurants attached to some wineries, particularly in Mornington or the Yarra Valley.
Off the top of my head and trying to pick ones that are regularly open here’s a short list. Yarra and Mornington have plenty more options that I could have easily listed
Yarra Valley - Yarra Yering, Oakridge, Giant Steps, Dominique Portet, Yering Station, Coldstream Hills, Mac Forbes
Mornington Peninsula, - Paringa Estate, Port Philp Estate/ Kooyong, Moorooduc Estate , Ten minutes By Tractor, Yabbie Lake, Quealy, Eldridge Estate, Yabby lake.
Macedon - Curly Flat, Cobaw Ridge, Hanging Rock
Geelong - Lethbridge, Clyde Park
We leave in three weeks. We will spend 2 days, one day in Swansea and then 2 days at Cradle mountain. We will then fly to Melbourne and spend two days there and two days in Ybarra valley