Now that the light is changing and the days are drawing out, spring's warmer weather offers plenty of opportunity to move out of doors for a place in the sun and a good glass of wine. It's a time of year ideally suited to vineyard visits and a little self-indulgence.

Overstory CEO Paul McArdle has been looking forward to it. This past week saw Premier of Tasmania Jeremy Rockcliff officially open the company's Small Wonder Cellar Door & Restaurant in the Tamar Valley.

It's located at Kayena, 35 minutes' drive north of the Launceston CBD.

The Auburn Road property operated as Goaty Hill Wines until its purchase by Singapore-based couple Angus Davidson and Tracy Wong-Davidson in May 2020.

Thursday's launch event represents a significant career milestone for the former wine buyer, wine educator and senior sales/marketing executive. McArdle took on his leadership role with Small Wonder's parent company back in 2018. He'd hardly had time to unpack his briefcase before Overstory began negotiations to purchase an established vineyard in Margaret River.

Subsequently renamed Wayfinder, the Western Australian venture was planted to vines by its original ownership in the mid-1990s. Today, it's a thriving 100ha tourism and hospitality destination that is part working farm, part native bushland, and part wine production facility and vineyard cellar door.

The 37ha vineyard successfully completed conversion to Australian Certified Organic in 2022. It's since become a centrepiece in Overstory's broad-based, regenerative approach to land management. The recently constructed Wayfinder off-grid winery at Dunsborough gained ACO organic certification in January 2026.

"Although we are small, we want to minimise our impact on the planet," McArdle explained to the 50 or so invited guests who attended Small Wonder's official opening.

"Our conviction is to manage our land, our vines, and our business responsibly. We want to leave the land in a better state than we found it, so that we leave a legacy for future generations."

According to the company CEO (pictured below), Overstory set its sights on the Tamar Valley not long after its Western Australian acquisition had been signed, sealed and delivered.

"It started with the owners having a deep fascination for cool-climate varieties and wines," he added.

"It was very much due to Angus and Tracy wanting to grow Pinot Noir and sparkling wine. When Small Wonder – then Goaty Hill – first came onto the market, we popped down to Tasmania to take a look. It was very rare for properties of this size to come onto the market in Tasmania. Angus and Tracy became very interested in it. We purchased the property in 2000.

"In 2024, we were lucky to have an opportunity to grow our presence, and we purchased Marengo Vineyard in the Coal River Valley. We were looking for two footprints in Tasmania at two different locations."

The Auburn Road vineyard initially spanned 20ha. It was subsequently expanded by another 4.3ha in 2023. Goaty Hill founders Markus Maislinger, Kristine Grant and Tony and Natasha Nieuwhof first planted the vineyard in 1998.

Nestled within native bushland on the western ridge of the Tamar Valley, the east-facing property is subject to the cooling influences of winds from the Bass Strait and the nearby river estuary. These moderate large temperature fluctuations, reduce frost risk and create ideal growing conditions for varietal expression and wines with natural, cool-climate elegance.

The usual industry suspects are planted there – Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir.

The former Marengo Vineyard – now called Oriele – enjoys long daylight hours over summer. It experiences a cool but more continental climate than the company's Auburn Vineyard on the West Tamar. The site on Marengo Road outside Richmond is also markedly drier and less humid than Small Wonder's home base.

The 24ha development was established between 2017 and 2019 by family-owned Tertini Wines, located in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales.

Predominantly planted to Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, there are also small parcels of Pinot Gris, Riesling, Viognier and Shiraz.

Committed to achieving and maintaining certified organic status across all of its properties, McArdle notes that the Auburn Road site achieved its goal in the shortest possible time. Oriele is now well into its conversion phase and is expected to fall into line with Australian Certified Organic's exacting requirements in 2027.

Viticultural management of both Tasmanian sites is being overseen by renowned South Australian consultant Dr Dylan Griggs. The industry high-flyer gained his PhD in 2017 after an extensive study of the effects of grapevine age across a sample of old Shiraz vineyards in the Barossa Valley.

He was named Viticulturist of the Year 2026 by the Halliday Wine Companion.

"Farming organically – promoting soil health and encouraging biodiversity on our properties – creates a greater connection between the vines and the terroir, ultimately resulting in more expressive wines," McArdle says.

Small Wonder's state-of-the-art winery was completed ahead of the 2024 vintage. It, too, boasts certified organic status.

In accordance with the company's philosophy of reducing its environmental impacts on the planet, Wayfinder and Small Wonder wines are packaged in lightweight glass bottles.

Singapore firm Kerry Hill Architects collaborated with Launceston's award-winning creative consultancy Edwards + Simpson to complete the venue design.

It features four distinct spaces – the vineyard cellar door; a private function room named The Wine Library; an outdoor area ('The Garden') and a seasonal, hyper-local restaurant led by Michelin-trained head chef Konstantin Putkin.

His food reflects the man behind the apron – relaxed and generous.

"It's just like dining at your family home," Putkin says.

"We're focused on exceptional produce, prepared simply and thoughtfully, with dishes that encourage people to gather around the table, share food and enjoy the experience together.

"For me, the greatest pleasure is showcasing Tasmania's extraordinary produce and the people behind it. We've built strong relationships with dedicated local growers, farmers and producers, and their ingredients really shape the way we cook and what we put on the plate for our guests."

All that will seem almost incidental to visitors arriving at this industry showpiece. If you've never been close to a Tasmanian vineyard and winery – let alone enjoyed its hospitality – Small Wonder is the place to start.

Its visual appeal – and valley views – are stunning. 

The building is clad in locally sourced and hand-cut bluestone to blend into the natural environment. Textured plaster, acres of dappled glass and quartzine stone benchtops within are complemented by skilled joinery and curated artwork from local Tasmanian artists.

The latter includes work from renowned Tamar Valley printmaker Dallas Richardson. Long since retired from a pioneering role in the Tasmanian wine industry, she and husband Dr Richard Richardson established Delamere Vineyard at Pipers Brook in 1983. The property is now owned by celebrated winemaking couple Shane Holloway and Fran Austin.

According to McArdle, the Kayena development was created as a space that fosters creativity, education, and community, enabling the company to host tours and events while offering a unique, functional space that blends modernity with nature.

Landscaped gardens are scheduled to host live music performances each Saturday and Sunday afternoon.

McArdle may well have been inclined to bask in the new facility's reflected glory, but the thoughtful and self-effacing CEO is quick to give credit where it's due. Foremost – and rightly so – comes the leap of faith made by Overstory's proud owners (pictured below).

"When you look at drawings that the architects create – along with their renders – it's never quite as real as it is in real life," McArdle notes.

"When I look at this venue, I feel this is bedded into this land... and to me, looking at the stonework and where it is sitting, it is about understated elegance, which is very much a part of what Angus and Tracy intended."

This is an outstanding new addition to the Tasmanian wine scene. Of that there is no doubt.

"I couldn't be prouder of the fact that you've actually chosen this wonderful part of the world to create something so beautiful and so authentic," observed Premier Jeremy Rockliff in opening Overstory's Small Wonder Cellar Door & Restaurant.

"It will be of enormous interest to locals, to those in the other States, as well as those from across the globe when they come here.

"They'll experience something that they will not have experienced anywhere else in the world."

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PROJECT CONTRIBUTORS

Edwards & Simpson

Kerry Hill Architects

Lange Design

Langley Real Estate

Anstie Construction

Summit Project Management

The Artling

NG Landscaping

Last page update: 21 September 2026