Hobart wineries and wine tours

From Hobart it is easy to make a relaxed day trip to some of Tasmania’s best wineries and vineyards, whether you decide to head down south to the Huon Valley, up to the Coal River Valley or west to the Derwent Valley. Glaetzer-Dixon Family Winemakers in Hobart has been named the Best Tasting Experience in Southern Tasmania for the second year in a row by Gourmet Traveller Wine and is a great starting point for a wine tour, self-guided or hosted. 

Below are our picks for some of the lesser-known wine tasting experiences that should not be missed in Southern Tasmania. These wineries/vineyards are very small and don’t have the staff to maintain a seven-day cellar door operation, but it is well worth booking ahead for a visit, as the wines they produce are exceptional. 

Wine tour operators including Drink Tasmania and Ageing Barrel are happy to tailor an outing to suit you, so let them know if you would like to visit some of the smaller guys and they will arrange the bookings for you.

HUON VALLEY

The coastal drive from Hobart to Cygnet is one of the most picturesque in Australia and the scenery easily justifies the slightly longer drive time compared with the inland route.

The first winery/vineyard on your itinerary should be Mewstone Wines, home to the Mewstone and Hughes & Hughes labels, in the tiny town of Flowerpot. Mewstone was named Australia’s Best New Winery in the 2019 Halliday Wine Companion. Book a tasting online.

Stick with the Channel Highway as it winds its way south along the D’Entrecasteaux Channel and then up along the Huon River to Cygnet, allowing about 35 minutes to get from Mewstone to our next winery recommendation, Sailor Seeks Horse, which is open on weekends and other times by appointment. While Glaetzer-Dixon was the first Tasmanian winery to win the coveted Jimmy Watson Memorial Trophy, Gilli and Paul Lipscombe from Sailor Seeks Horse followed suit a few years later, taking out Australia’s biggest wine prize for a pinot noir they made for nearby Home Hill. The Sailor Seeks Horse cellar door is in the beautiful Port Cygnet Cannery, which is open Thursday to Sunday (book ahead).

This time head back to Hobart the quick way, via Huonville, and stop in at Kate Hill Wines. Kate makes her stellar riesling and pinot noir in a 19th century apple cool store and packing shed, which she and her husband Charles have converted into a winery.

DERWENT VALLEY and hobart

If you are heading west from Hobart to the Derwent Valley for Stefano Lubiana’s wonderful biodynamic wines or lunch at Derwent Estate or the Agrarian Kitchen, we also recommend contacting a few of the smaller operators nearby to arrange a tasting. We promise you will not be disappointed.

First on the list (and closest to Hobart) is Michael O’Brien, who grows his grapes at Granton and makes his Domaine Dawnelle wines in nearby Goodwood. Further into the Derwent Valley is Meadowbank Wines, a family-run farm and vineyard, which is open by appointment. The wines and scenery are well worth the trip up the winding dirt driveway, which is about an hour from Hobart.

Make a full day of it by checking out the incredible waterfalls and walks at Mt Field National Park and make sure you stop by the Bush Inn at New Norfolk on your return journey. Do not be put off by the crusty exterior or the frosty reception from the gents in the front bar, the staff are lovely and the back deck overlooking the River Derwent is an unbeatable place for a beer.

Back in Hobart, call into Glaetzer-Dixon Family Winemakers for a tasting session with winemaker Nick Glaetzer. Allow at least 30 minutes for Nick to run through the wines and, depending on the time of year, you may get treated to a behind the scenes winery tour. Although it is the busiest time of year, Nick welcomes customers during vintage when they can see the winemaking process first hand. Email Nick to book in for a tasting, or book online.

You can often catch winemaker Greer Carland with her Quiet Mutiny wines at Hobart’s Farm Gate market on Sunday mornings (keep an eye on her events page) and she is always happy to discuss private tastings.

Continue the theme into the evening with a tour through Hobart’s best (and tiniest) wine bars, including Willing Bros. Wine Merchants (an excellent wine list and delicious bistro food), Sonny (a focus on natural wines and great bar snacks), La Sardina Loca (house-made spritzers, a well-honed wine list and perfect share plates), Institut Polaire (great food and wines by owner/winemaker Nav Singh and others) and Drinks Co. (a brilliant little bottleshop/tasting bar and the home base for owner/winemaker James Broinowski’s Small Island Wines).

If pubs are more your style head to The Whaler in Salamanca, Tom McHugo’s or The Crescent in North Hobart. At these pubs it is worth asking about the extended wine list, particularly at the Crescent where you will find vintage gems such as a 1992 bottle of Barossa Valley Estate E&E Black Pepper Shiraz and 1993 Eileen Hardy Shiraz.

coal river valley

Well-known Coal River wineries Pooley and Frogmore Creek are definitely worth a visit, but once again we recommend seeking out some of the smaller operators in the region.

Brinktop Wines at Penna is open on Fridays, when you can buy directly from owner/growers Gill Christian and Todd Goebel. At Tea Tree, Jens Volkmann has an impressive distillery set-up at his Charles Reuben Estate winery, where he produces excellent spirits including schnapps and poire williams-style brandy. Call ahead.

Legendary winemaker and straight-talking farmer Robert Drew does not bother with such things as a website and he can be a hard man to track down. Rob opens his winery tasting room up once a year for the Open Vineyards Weekend and those who try his wines tend to become lifelong devotees. You could try the landline (03 6268 1528) or send his son George, who is following in his dad’s footsteps with his own Third Child label, a message via Facebook.

Check out the latest Wine Trails Guide for more winery suggestions and send us an email if you would like recommendations for the East Coast or Northern Tasmania.