Rush to Urban Wine Walk

For a small, quality-driven industry that accounts for little more than one percent of all Australian wine by volume, Tasmania is big on accessibility. Drop by many of our cellar doors and the chances are the hands that pour your Chardonnay or Pinot Noir also grew the grapes and made the wines as well.

For that reason alone, tasting rooms and urban cellar doors should be frequent destinations if you'd like to increase your understanding of Tasmanian wine.

But what if you find all that sipping and spitting too remote from home or just too intimidating?

The good news is that Launceston and Hobart both play host once again to the Urban Wine Walk next month. 

Urban Wine Walks take place on Saturday 2 May (Launceston) and Saturday 9 May (Hobart).

Eight participating Tasmanian wine producers are teaming up with eight participating Launceston CBD venues to host this popular and very casual tasting extravaganza on Saturday 2 May.

Hobart sees that number limited to seven participating city venues on Saturday 9 May, with 6 Tasmanian wine producers featured, along with small batch, lo-fi Victorian producer Decent Wines making up the numbers.

Don't just highlight the dates on your calendar.

Tickets are selling fast. Be prepared to add your name to a wait list at some locations.

Put simply, this is little more than a well-conceived, self-guided pub crawl. Participants can pick and choose where they'd like to begin and end their tasting adventures, not to mention deciding on how they'll share the day with friends and family along the way.

There's little need for sipping and spitting.

Event organisers have included participating venues that are within walking distance of each other. Each destination has its own unique set of sample wines, courtesy of their partner vineyard or winery.

The four-hour event (from 12 noon until 4:00pm) can comprise more than 20 tastings. A maximum of three wines can be sampled at each venue. 

The ticket cost is $75 plus booking fee. 

Payment includes a $10 food voucher to use at your chosen starting location, as well as a $25 voucher to spend on any six-pack of wine you decide to order on the day from participating producers.

Tickets can be purchased online via www.humanitix.com or by searching 'Urban Wine Walk.'

Before heading to their chosen starting venue, Urban Wine Walkers need to swing by each city's official registration point between 11am and 1pm to collect their wristband, tasting glass, and vouchers.

In Launceston on May 2, that's Reggie (63 Brisbane St, Launceston).

Hobart's official registration point on May 9 is Post Street Social (11/13 Franklin Wharf, Salamanca).

Each afternoon's busy schedule begins with a tasty snack at your chosen starting location, to pique appetites and taste buds before undertaking this choose-your-own wine adventure.

Experience has shown it to be a winning formula for success. It's been 10 years since event organisers Neighbourhood Events Co mapped out their first Urban Wine Walk. Perth hosted Australia's inaugural Urban Wine Walk back in November 2016.

Urban Wine Walks have been held all around the country ever since. In 2019, the New Zealand cities of Auckland and Wellington joined the fray, with Christchurch being added in 2021.

Ticket prices have hardly changed over that period. Five years ago – back in 2021 – Urban Wine Walk tickets in Tasmania cost $75. In 2026, they're $79.

The list of participating venues and wineries next month highlights the fact that this is no ho-hum tasting event. Many consumers of Tasmanian wine will be familiar with the likes of Moorilla, Haddow + Dineen and Small Wonder. But the majority of wines being poured each day will come from lesser-known, often highly innovative small batch producers.

Some participating wineries will have enjoyed significant recent wine show success and media acclaim.

Quiet Mutiny, for example, won the Trophy for Best Shiraz at the 2026 Tasmanian Wine Show with their highly-acclaimed Venus Rising Syrah. Small Wonder took out the Best Rosé Trophy at the same event with their 2025 release, in addition to winning gold with their 2021 Blanc de Noirs.

Others are more likely to travel under the radar, due to limited production and little or no involvement in events such as the annual Tasmanian Wine Show.

Take a look at the pairings.

Participating Venues and Wine Producers in Launceston on 2 May:

• 1808 Lounge Bar Ft. Broad Arrow
• Dill Pickle Club Ft. Sonnen Wines
• Nomy Bar & Kitchen Ft. Mapleton Vineyard
• Northern Public House Ft. Small Wonder
• Reggie Ft. Rush Wines
• Saint John Craft Beer Bar Ft. L'Appel Wines
• The Royal Oak Hotel Ft. Beautiful Isle Wines
• Tres Restaurant Ft. Russell and Suitor

Participating Venues and Wine Producers in Hobart on 9 May:

• Franklin Wharf Ft. Quiet Mutiny
• Manky Sally's Ft. Moorilla
• Post Street Social Ft. Decent Wines (Victorian ring-in)
• Preachers Ft. L'appel Wines
• Suzie Luck's Canteen & Cocktail Bar Ft. Atom Wines
• Telegraph Hotel Ft. Haddow + Dineen
• Waterman's Hotel Ft. Sonnen Wines

Getting out and about and enjoying Tasmania's cool-climate wines ranks high on the list of attractions that visitors to the State like to do while they're here.

Around 286,000 visitors spent time at a Tasmanian winery during the 12 months ending December 2025. Tasmanian visitor data collected by Tourism Tasmania indicate 41 percent of them came as part of a travel party described as 'couple, no kids.'

You won't find kids on any of next month's wine destinations. The Urban Wine Walk is strictly for those 18 years and over.

STOP PRESS: If you happen to be in Brisbane on Saturday 27 June, seven Tasmanian producers will be in 'the River City' for a special Queensland edition of the Urban Wine Walk.

The rules of the game operate the same way in Brisvegas.

Here are the pairings for Brisbane on 27 June:

• Babylon Ft. Russell & Suitor
• Milquetoast Ft. Small Island Wines
• Port Office Hotel Ft. Devils Corner
• The Gresham Ft. Peco Wines
• The Terrace at Naldham House Ft. Invercarron Wines
• Tillerman Ft. Common Wine
• Walter's Steakhouse & Wine Bar Ft. Haddow + Dineen

Brisbane's official registration point on June 27 is the Port Office Hotel (40 Edward St, Brisbane).

Last page update: 20 April 2026