Derwent Valley

The Derwent Valley follows the river northwest of Hobart through New Norfolk, Bushy Park and Ouse to the cool hop country around Bushy Park. Wine production here is smaller than in the neighbouring Coal River, but estates at Molesworth, Granton and Plenty produce elegant cool-climate Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, with some of the state’s most distinctive Riesling. The region is better known for its whisky and cider: Lawrenny at Ouse, Sullivans Cove at Cambridge’s edge, and cidermakers drawing on the valley’s heirloom apple orchards. The drive along the Lyell Highway passes hop fields, oast houses and the mill-town architecture of New Norfolk — a reminder that the Derwent Valley was Australia’s original hop-growing heartland, and that a significant share of Tasmanian beer still starts with its hops.