R. D'Meure Wines
The story of Rory Duggan's R. D'Meure wines is a fascinating one, weaving together threads of family, place and winemaking innovation. It begins with Dirk Meure, Duggan's uncle. Born to Dutch parents who moved to the Channel region south of Hobart in 1950, Meure became a Sydney-based criminologist and inspiring law academic.
His stellar career took him to Europe, where he developed a love of Burgundy.
When Meure moved into retirement in 2000, he left Sydney and took up winemaking at a tiny vineyard he purchased back on home turf.
Meure's 1ha plot overlooking the D'Entrecasteaux Channel had been planted in 1991 by another quiet achiever, Leigh Gawith. Despite having won three trophies with his Wattley Creek wines at the 1988 Royal Hobart Wine Show, Gawith had sold his St Patrick's Vineyard at Pipers Brook to industry pioneer Dr Andrew Pirie the following year.
He'd then headed south to start afresh.
Gawith believed the basalt-and-dolerite-derived duplex soils at Flowerpot were better suited to the low-yielding, cool-climate varieties he wanted to grow. They included Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Merlot and Pinot Noir.
A decade later, Meure devoted three years to learning the ropes as a vigneron on the site.
In 2004, he set about managing his property according to biodynamic principles. The small volumes of D'Meure wines he crafted were lo-fi and attention-grabbing. Just like the vineyard's founder.
Gawith's Wattley Creek had even won the coveted James Halliday Chairman's Trophy – for Most Interesting Wine Styles – at the 1991 Tasmanian Wine Show,
When Rory Duggan moved to Tasmania in the Twenty-Teens, he came to know and love his uncle's wines. Love and respect for the land followed. So too did Duggan's passion for natural wines.
Meure retired for a second time in 2015. Duggan, meanwhile, continued his involvement in the industry, working with certified biodynamic winemaker Steve Lubiana.
Opportunity to manage Antipodes Vineyard in the Coal River Valley then provided Duggan with the chance to spread his own wings and make Wines by Rory. Adopting many of Meure's guiding principles – and blending them with his own evolving philosophy – Duggan produced wines with complexity and character. Right from the get-go in 2016.
Uncle and nephew soon became mutual admirers of each other's wines.
In 2020, Meure was given the opportunity to buy back the Fleurtys Lane site he had had sold five years earlier. Thus was born R. D'Meure, a winemaking collaboration spanning two generations that continues to the present day. Duggan maintains active stewardship of the 35-year-old Flowerpot vineyard.
Wines bearing the Estate label – namely Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir – are sourced from the old vines on Fleurtys Lane. Other R. D'Meure wines are variously sourced from carefully selected sites, including Antipodes and Pressing Matters (both in the Coal River Valley). Products include a skin contact Riesling.
The latter provided small-batch winemaking with a rare yardstick. Just 45 dozen bottles were produced.
Halliday might well be impressed.
Key details:
Rory Duggan: owner/vigneron
Dirk Meure: mentor and co-founder
Vineyard/cellar door address:
16 Fleurtys Lane, Flowerpot, TAS 7163
Telephone:
TBA
Email:
rjdug01@gmail.com
Website:
www.rdmeure.com.au
Tasmanian viticulture takes place within a diverse mix of soil types and microclimates.
Climate data* for sites in the Huon Valley/D'Entrecasteaux Channel highlight the wide diversity of growing conditions here. Nandroya, Two Bud Spur (both MJT 14.8°C; 622 GDD) and Bruny Island Premium Wines (MJT 15.4°C; 747 GDD) appear to be the coolest sites south of Hobart.
Tinderbox Vineyard (MJT 17.3°C; 1088 GDD) and Trial Bay Estate (MJT 17.1°C; 1044 GDD) are the warmest.
Vineyard sites on the Australian mainland are far warmer than those in Tasmania.
South Australia's Piccadilly Valley* (MJT 20.4°C; 1730 GDD) and Macedon Ranges* (MJT 19.9°C; 1365 GDD) in Victoria are regarded as the coolest GIs in their respective States.
Climate data* for Flowerpot 1995-2024:
- Total annual average rainfall: 830mm
- Growing season average rainfall (Oct 1-Apr 30): 426mm
- Average autumn rainfall: 188mm
- Mean January temperature: 16.4°C
- Growing degree-days: 927 GDD
- Average no of hot days (35°C or more) per year: 0
- Average no of cold days (minimum 4°C or less) Sept 1-April 30: 11
*Source: My Climate View, utilising past data from the Bureau of Meteorology and the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts. Funded by the Australian Government.
Last page update: January 2026