Grazing The Trail: One Weekend on Tasmania’s Tasting Trail
North West Tasmania’s Tasting Trail is a year-round food and drink self-drive adventure, taking you beyond the farmgate to taste, sip and discover some of the state’s most delicious produce.
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Encompassing more than 40 producers of cheese, chocolate, seafood, confectionery, wine, beer, spirits, cider and more, there’s plenty of ways to make the most of a weekend in Tasmania’s food bowl. This is just one of them, taking in some of the western and eastern-most stops on the trail. Base yourself at Ship Inn Stanley for a night to explore the far North West, then make Vineyard House your headquarters to discover Port Sorell’s food and wine scene.
DAY 1: FAR NORTH WEST
La Cántara Artisan Cheeses, Smithton
La Cántara founders Genaro and Rosslyn employ the help of a robotic milking system to harvest milk from their 29-hectare farm, and they’re regularly on hand to show you how it all works. Cheese tastings are also on offer - don’t miss the Cafe con Leche, a creamy Venezuelan-style cheese that’s been rubbed in ground Colombian coffee beans.
La Cántara Artisan Cheeses (image: Ness Vanderburgh)
Hursey Seafoods, Stanley
The current Hursey Seafoods site started out as a fish factory, takeaway shop and small café in 1987. These days, the Stanley strip stalwart is run by the original founder’s grandson, boasts a 100-seat upstairs restaurant, and is an iconic one-stop shop for takeaway fresh seafood. Their crayfish, dressed with a choice of garlic butter, mornay, chilli butter, saltbush butter (or au naturel for the purists), is iconic, but leave room for other just-caught treats like scallops, squid and abalone.
Hursey Seafoods (image: Ness Vanderburgh)
Alchymia Distillery, Table Cape
South Australian expats Sarah and Matt Packwood-Hollings packed up their corporate jobs in search of a seachange, and found it in North West Tasmania. After completing a distilling course and finding their new home in Table Cape, they opened Alcyhmia Distillery in a renovated 150-year-old shed. Join Matt on a small group tour to go behind-the-scenes of the distillery’s range of small-batch whisky, gin and vodka.
Alchymia Distillery (image: Ness Vanderburgh)
DAY 2: PORT SORELL AND SURROUNDS
Ghost Rock Wines, Port Sorell
Ghost Rock’s modern and vibrant cellar door and eatery is the product of generational expertise and passion. Originally opened as a hobby for Cate and Colin Arnold in 2001, the winery’s reins were passed on to their winemaker son Justin and his wife, Alicia Peardon, in 2017. These days, Ghost Rock offers three wine ranges, each with its own distinct personality. Line up the single vineyard Bonadale Pinot Noir with its Supernatural (the team’s licence to get imaginative) counterpart, and see why they’re two very different wines that are equally as easy to love.
Ghost Rock Wines (image: Jasper Da Seymour)
The Truffle Farm, Deloraine
The home of Australia’s first black truffle is a picturesque 45-minute drive south of Ghost Rock. The Truffle Farm shares a similarly familial story, now under the helm of second-generation truffle farmer Anna Terry. Meet the clever (and adorable) truffle dogs, join the hunt to dig up a truffle, and pick up a bottle of truffle oil to take home - your weekend scrambled eggs just went to a decadent new level.
The Truffle Farm (image: Jasper Da Seymour)
41° South Tasmania, Deloraine
This special part of the North West neighbourhood is also home to 41° South Tasmania, an inland salmon farm that naturally filters waste, avoiding negative environmental impact. The farm also grows ginseng, a super-root lauded for the magic it works on energy and immunity. Wander the property to feed the state’s happiest fish, and indulge in ginseng-spiced salmon rillettes spread on crusty sourdough.
41° South Tasmania (image: Jasper Da Seymour)
Little Green Men Brewing, Deloraine
Tie up two delicious days on the Tasting Trail by pulling up a stool next to the locals. Based in the historic British Hotel, Little Green Men Brewing produces traditional and contemporary small-batch beers, including a signature brew straight from the hand pump. Blow the froth off a uniquely Tasmanian IPA or find a new favourite with a tasting paddle of four varieties. A burger and schnitzel-heavy menu supports responsible drinking, with local produce proudly on its pedestal.
Little Green Men Brewing (image: Ness Vanderburgh)
If an inventory of your take-home eats and drinks after two days in Tasmania’s North West doesn’t include three blocks of artisan cheese, several jars of honey, three bottles of wine, two bottles of gin, a bottle of whisky, a carafe of truffle oil, and a souvenir T-shirt, you haven’t done the Tasting Trail right. While a tour of the North West must come to an end, the eating and drinking need not - pick up plenty of the best and take it home to enjoy with friends and family (or not).
For more information on the year-round Tasting Trail experience, which includes more than 40 North West Tasmanian producers, head to the Tasting Trail website.
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