Tasting Trail Tasmania is the ultimate gourmet getaway with fine wines, truffles, cheese, beer, whisky, seafood and honey on offer
Foodies across the land are salivating at the delicious Tasmanian produce on the menu for the TrailGraze 2024 weekend. TasWeekend samples some of the delights >>
Tasmania
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In the rich red soils of Tassie’s North West you can grow just about anything. It’s pretty much the salad bowl for not only the state but a good portion of the nation. Potatoes, carrots, onions, beans and brassicas all thrive and beef, lamb and dairy produce have been farmed there for generations.
That’s why it’s a little unusual to see grapes. Ghost Rock Wineswas established in 2001 by Colin and Cate Arnold near Port Sorell. The Arnolds pioneered viticulture in the area and now the vineyard covers 25ha over seven blocks.
The Arnold’s son Justin and his wife Alicia joined the business in 2015 and took on full ownership two years later.
Among the vines
It’s here we begin a three-day tour of the Tasting Trail – a self-drive string of food and drink experiences featuring more than 40 producers stretching from Hagley and Westbury in the North across to Smithton in the far North West.
The Ghost Rock winery is pretty much bang in the middle of the northern coast of Tassie at Port Sorell and a great starting point for a gastronomic tour of Tassie’s North West.
We arrive from Hobart for a late lunch where restaurant manager Brie Hourigan takes us through a five-wine tasting experience prior to settling down to eat at a table outside overlooking the vines and Bass Strait on a sparkling sunny day.
Ghost Rock has an impressive wine list with two sparklings, five pinot noirs, chardonnay, pinot gris, sauvignon blanc, riesling and pinot meunier all on offer.
Brie is knowledgeable about the wines pointing out the strengths and features of each drop. The pinots are the feature wines and the reds dominate production. The pinot gris is delicious (it always sells out), the Catherine sparkling is rich and classic with brioche notes and the La Filles Pinot is warm and smooth.
Lunch features locally sourced ingredients beautifully prepared and designed to share. As starters we opt for the aged Pyengana Cheddar arancini with date paste, apple salad and truffle pecorino and burrata – a melt in your mouth soft cheese paired with citrus, pomegranate molasses, puffed wild rice, olive seeds and house made Kindred spelt focaccia.
Mains are a Cape Grim Flat Iron steak, with king mushroom, romesco, burnt brussels sprouts and onion served with umami butter and Scottsdale Pork Belly Chicharron with maple, apple and kohlrabi slaw, elderberry reduction and crackling.
We include a side of fried potatoes with rosemary, garlic and preserved lemon salt and spiced fried cauliflower with prune paste, pickled currants and tahini.
Each of the meals is beautifully presented and taste as good as they look. The chef clearly knows how to make the most of such high-quality produce.
That night we stay at the palatial Vineyard House, which is literally next door to the restaurant. It features three double bedrooms, large open-plan living, kitchen and dining and floor-to-ceiling glass overlooking the gardens and vines.
The former home of Justin and Alicia has been beautifully restored and has recently become available as a top-class short-stay rental.
A nose for quality
We are a little late arriving at The Truffledore, a half-hour drive south of Devonport at Lower Barrington, but the greeting is still warm from Ina Ansmann and her truffle dog Cody.
The smithfield cross snoozes on a dog bed outside the front door as Ina runs us through the delights of the black perigord truffle. He is saving his energy for a special show to come.
It is interesting to hear the story of Ina’s conversion to the luxury fungi after she and partner Timothy Noonan took on the farm and business in 2019.
Ina admits that she was at first a little ambivalent about truffles but now her eyes sparkle as she educates us about the wonders and magic of the highly sought ingredient.
She explains how they form, how they vary and when they ripen.
Ina also talks about the tricks (and traps) of using them in dishes.
They are best used within five days of harvest, you don’t cook them but add them to a dish just before serving and you should never chuck them in the freezer to keep them fresh. Rather truffles should be freeze dried to preserve their aroma.
To illustrate the versatility of truffles she opens a jar of freeze dried truffle and asks us to identify the dominant scent. I’m surprised to smell curry while my wife says she is reminded of chocolate. Ina smiles as she explains this difference is not uncommon with about 150 flavour profiles in each truffle and differences between truffles.
It’s that amazing combination of scents which truffle dog Cody is highly attuned to as Ina demonstrates how she teaches her dogs (she has three) to hunt truffles.
She places a piece of truffle into one of three identical containers and mixes them up. Cody then points to the correct one and lies down to receive a treat. We are easily won over by his shaggy charms. His soft brown eyes look up hopefully as he points and his sweeping tail wags show he enjoys his work.
At first he never misses – but he’s obviously done these tricks before and he gets a little bored. To spice things up he begins to toss the containers around and to point randomly. It’s comical and just as entertaining. His final trick is to go and find two small pieces of truffle we hide in the cafe. He tears around and easily finds one piece but is a little stumped by the other. There are lots of extra truffle smells in the cafe but he persists and gets his reward.
Visitors to the Truffledore in winter can book to be part of a Saturday truffle hunt and see the dogs in action for real sniffing out the pungent fungi among the farm’s 600 trees. In the warmer months there are three-course tastings on weekends, lounge room lectures or you can drop into the cafe for a bite to eat.
“We create experiences around food,” says Ina.
It has certainly been a memorable experience for us as we leave the farm far better educated about truffles and just a little bit smitten by the friendly scruff who put on a show.
Seaside beers
As we work our way up the North West Coast, lunch beckons, and we pull into the picturesque town of Penguin.
Penguin Beer Co is a popular lunch spot and we sit outside in the sunshine overlooking the beach for a meal of burgers.
Of course sampling one of the locally brewed beers is essential and I opt for the Royal Penguin Chocolate Ale. The beer is cold and excellent and pairs nicely with the tasty food as we lap up the scenery of this bustling gem and keep our eyes peeled for any whales cruising past in Bass Strait.
It’s a wonder there are not more venues like this in Penguin but it took the vision of Scott Seymour and his wife Tara to bring to life about three years ago.
The Bendigo couple moved to the state in 2020 after falling in love with Australia’s little heart-shaped island on holidays. The pair worked in the health and aged care industries and shortly after moving Covid struck, putting their new jobs in Tassie on hold.
That’s when they stumbled on a rundown old building on a prime location and with a bit of imagination, and input from a group of North West investors, built the tap house and diner with an emphasis on a family friendly atmosphere.
“We really wanted to create a community space where everyone felt really welcome. We are really big on families and having dogs on the deck and that sort of thing,” Scott said.
The venue features family events and live music and the menu offers plenty of options including vegetarian and vegan options.
Entrepreneurial spirit
The owners of Alchymia Distillery at Table Cape Sarah and Matt Packwood-Hollings didn’t exactly stumble on their location so much as meticulously hunt it down. After leaving the corporate world in South Australia in 2016 to pursue a passion for distilling it took four years and two laps of Tasmania before they came across a 150-year-old shed on a 4.85ha property just off the Bass Highway at Table Cape. There they have restored the shed and small home before opening in January 2022.
Matt’s passion for his craft is evident as he gives us a tour through the distillery – a shiny copper system of tanks, pipes and stills which produce an array of different spirits.
The experiences on offer include gin and whisky tastings, distillery tours as well as whisky and gin making.
Sarah takes us through some of the handcrafted drops on offer – gins, vodka, coffee liqueur and even some limoncello made from a 30kg bag of lemons donated by a local. The love, quality and care that has gone into the distilling shines through in each of the drinks.
The couple’s real passion is whisky and their first two batches were made in South Australia in 2017 and can be sampled and purchased in their tasting room. Other batches are still maturing on site.
Historic digs
We settle in for the night at the Ship Inn at Stanley – beautifully restored heritage accommodation in the heart of one of Tasmania’s prettiest towns. History is evident in every framed photo, antique piece of furniture and creaking floorboard of the charming boutique hotel with a perfect mix of old and new.
A shared dining room, once the billiard hall features comfortable lounges where guests can enjoy complimentary muscat and quietly read a book amid the wood-lined elegance of a bygone era. At one end of the building is an open-air section of garden including trickling waterfall, beckoning guests to go outside. A walk up to the back of the property is rewarded with a stunningly landscaped oasis built into the side of the sleep block at the foothills of the Nut. There are trails leading off up the slope with private nooks with bench seats to sit and contemplate the spectacular views of Bass Strait.
A fresh breakfast is included with Brook Farm roasted macadamia muesli together with Rhu Bru rhubarb compote and diced apples with fresh Tamar Valley yoghurt. This comes with freshly baked sourdough bread, butter and jams.
Fresh from the sea
What the Hursey family doesn’t know about the waters and fishing off the coast of Stanley probably isn’t worth knowing. James Hursey Sr and wife Valerie arrived at Stanley in 1974 and subsequent generations have been fishing in the area ever since. The couple established Hursey Seafoods restaurant and takeaway in 1987 offering the freshest quality seafood straight off the boat.
Now a fleet of seven of the vessels – known for their distinct red hulls – supply their restaurant and commercial customers with rock lobster, giant crab, striped trumpeter, gummy shark, flathead and other reef fish. Lobster live in sea tanks below the restaurant ensuring year-round supply.
The award-winning restaurant has recently had a makeover and offers top-quality meals in the fine-dining atmosphere overlooking the Stanley foreshore.
We dine there two nights in a row, enjoying an amazing wild-caught seafood platter for two one night and a generous crayfish cocktail – large chunks of lobster on a bed of lettuce with seafood sauce and lemon – as well as grilled striped trumpeter the next. Matched with fine Tasmanian wines, the meals were top-class.
Happy cows
At La Cantara Dairy down the road at Smithton the next day, I can’t take my eyes off the happy, relaxed cows wandering in for milking.
We are on one of the tours of the dairy (there are three a day and two a day on weekends) with Genaro Velasquez who, with wife Rosselyn, took over the Duck River Meadows Dairy in 2019 – a 75-80 cow operation on 29ha on the edge of town.
There are no stressed animals on this farm. Cattle are not rounded up by motorbikes and barking muster dogs for their twice-a-day milking. Instead everything is quiet and slow paced. A dozen or so cows patiently wait in line for two milking stations. The reason for the bovine bonhomie is that La Cantara is one of a few robotic dairies operating in Tasmania. Each cow has a sensor around its neck which allows it to meander up to the dairy for a food reward. If it’s their time to be milked, they are allowed in where laser sensors carefully wash and gently attach suction cups the teats to for milking.
Data on each animal tells how much milk can be expected, how far through their breeding cycle they are and such things as temperature and heart rate. If anything is amiss an alert is sent through to an app on Genaro’s phone and he can attend to the animal.
A robotic wet vacuum cleaner keeps the dairy area clean and it’s clear each of the cows is healthy and content. There is even an automatic scratching brush they can activate as they exit the dairy.
Genaro tells his remarkable story of moving from Venezuela in 2009 (where he and Rosselyn were both qualified vets) to working in the dairy industry in Victoria and NSW before relocating to Tasmania in 2016.
They identified an opportunity to produce artisan cheeses drawing on inspiration from their homeland in South America as well as European varieties.
Genaro explains that relaxed cows make for high-quality, high-volume milk which leads to great cheese.
We taste blue, brie and hard cheese as well as Venezuelan Queso Blanco and Queso de Mano. They have catchy names like fluffy cow (brie-style), the blue cow (blue vein) and smokey cow (paprika and pepper rubbed) as well as a coffee rubbed variety Cafe con Leche.
The flavours are delicious and interesting. It’s clear Genaro and his staff know what they are doing.
Inside the hive
On our way back to Hobart we swing by Blue Hills Honey, at Mawbanna – a short 15-minute detour off the Bass Highway at Black River just outside of Stanley.
A cafe and gift shop offers plenty of honey themed treats but it’s the virtual reality experience which makes it special. We are ushered into a theatrette and don a VR headset where we are given a bee’s-eye tour of the Blue Hills operation – famed for producing leatherwood honey for the past 65 years.
We sit and can see and listen from inside a hive as the honey is collected and loaded on to a truck. The 4D experience allows you to turn your head to watch everything going on around, above and below you together with the buzzing of your sister and brother bees.
It’s a fascinating insight into the world of beekeeping and honey production.
Out in the gift shop you can sample the different varieties and watch through windows at the factory as the honey is processed and packaged for sale.
Make a note
What:TrailGraze 2024 runs from Friday April 19 to Sunday April 21 (during the school holidays) and features businesses on the Tasting Trail with a number of producers offering free and ticketed events over the weekend. For details and bookings visit trailgraze.com
Stay: The Vineyard House at Ghost Rock Wines offers 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom accommodation which sleeps 6. Rates start from $725 per night for up to 6 people (minimum 2 night bookings).
The Ship Inn at Stanley offers luxury boutique hotel accommodation. Rates range from $385/night for a two-person suite to $770/night for a four-person apartment.
Drive:Drive Car Hire Tasmania offers a range of vehicles from electric, hybrid, petrol vehicles including hatches, sedans, people movers, convertibles and sports cars. Makes include Teslar, MG, Hyundai, Toyota, Nissan, Kia and Holden.
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