LOCATION
Just 15 minutes' drive from Hobart's CBD, Meadowbank Estate lies at the gateway to the beautiful Coal River Valley, which holds Tasmania's highest concentration of vineyards and cellar doors.
PROFILED BY DE GROOTS MEDIA
Surrounded by vines, at the entrance to Tasmania’s most highly acclaimed wine region the Coal River Valley, Meadowbank is a wonderfully inviting, double-storied architectural statement in itself. Unpretentious in its decor, it features rough-sawn timbers (Oregon beams that came as ballast in the apple ships returning from the Californian gold rushes over a century ago), a wall of huge glass folding-doors giving to the vineyard, and lofted gallery spaces. One such space has been transformed by celebrated local artist Tom Samek into a permanent art installation on the floor, telling the “Flawed (sic) History of Tasmanian Wine” since 1823, in a magical and whimsical jigsaw of timber mosaics and nonsense verse.
And the food, as they say, is well worth the detour – any detour. It’s an aesthetically felicitous blending of the modern and rural rustic, with chef Simon West presenting artfully composed dishes such as a tartlet of local mussels and baby leeks; poached figs with blue cheese and prosciutto; braised haunch of rabbit in cider cream; pink breast of duck on white bean puree; and a sensational soft-centred chocolate pudding. Fresh seasonal ingredients, clean flavours and uncluttered presentation are the keynotes to his excellent cooking. Combined with the vineyard’s exceptional wines, Meadowbank sits among the few at the very top of Tasmania’s city or country dining.
Graeme Phillips, March 2006
DETAILS
Wine has been produced under the Meadowbank label for 25 years, from fruit grown in our Derwent Valley vineyards, but this site (down a 7km gravel driveway in the middle of nowhere) was not welcoming to visitors and wine tasters. In July 2000 Meadowbank became accessible to virtually everyone, by the establishment of a second vineyard, restaurant, cellar door and function centre in the Coal River Valley.
Here, Meadowbank combines the best of Tasmania's lifestyle attributes - the freshest and finest local produce, elegant cool climate wines, a seasonal program of artistic, musical and gastronomic events, and spectacular sweeping views across the vineyard and the valley.
With a menu consisting entirely of entree-sized dishes which change almost daily, chef Simon West really does make the most of each season's offerings, and with 9 wines in the Meadowbank range, there is a wine to go with each dish.
A la carte lunches are available from noon until 3pm daily and fresh coffee, snacks and wine tastings are available throughout the day from 10am to 5pm. There is a huge flagstone terrace, which makes the most of the stunning view, with plenty of shade for outdoor dining.
Function Facilities
Meadowbank Estate offers some of the state's best function facilities. There is a private meeting room which seats up to 24 people, board room style; a cellar for group wine tastings; and the Barrel Room for daytime or evening functions. So whether it's for a wedding, meeting, cocktail party or corporate lunch or dinner, there is an appropriate space for functions of all styles and sizes.
The Meadowbank approach to functions reflects that of the restaurant - to bring each and every customer the highest quality fresh produce we can. The standard of function food at Meadowbank is second to none in Tasmania.
