Southwood Wines
When it comes to Pinot Noir, opposites attract. One grape, many uses. Low yield, high value. Minimal intervention, maximum terroir expression. So when friends from Northwood (Sydney) planted 0.5ha Pinot Noir in Tasmania's south-east, their vineyard name seemed a foregone conclusion.
Southwood sprang into life during the COVID-19 pandemic, with four clones of Pinot Noir selected by eight Pinot enthusiasts (listed below). The vineyard sits on a small farm on Woolleys Road in the tiny hamlet of Kellevie, around 30km from Sorell and just three kilometres from the East Coast.
Together with Bream Creek and Copping, the surrounding district in these parts has been known as the Ragged Tier since at least the 1860s. European settlers who cleared the forests that grew alongside the Carlton River established Upper Carlton – subsequently renamed Kellevie – in the 1870s.
The vineyard today occupies land that was once the site of the original Kellevie school. Its two acres were gifted by the benevolent master mariner, Captain Richard Copping. Built and opened in 1879, the school did double duty as the local church and Sunday school before being destroyed by fire in February 1895. It was the fourth fire in the district in four months and appears to have been the handiwork of a local arsonist.
Southwood's first single vineyard wine from its carefully, hand-tended rows is labelled 2024 Ragged Tier Pinot Noir. It's a celebration of the proud history of the circa-1900 mixed farm that soon occupied the 7ha site after the school was re-built at a new location.
Basalt/dolerite‑derived soils are the legacy of volcanic eruptions that began in this south-east corner of the State around 58 million years ago. Clay/loams offer good drainage and support moderate vine vigour. The growing season here is long and very cool. Pinot Noir ripening extends well into April, due to the moderating influences of nearby Marion Bay and the Tasman Sea beyond.
Harvest at Kellevie takes place around 2-3 weeks later than sites further north near Swansea and Apslawn. The resulting wines are made off-site under contract arrangements.
Early Southwood wine releases – Glenora Pinot Noir and White Kangaroo Pinot Noir – took in carefully selected parcels of fruit from other well-regarded vineyards in the south of the State. That allowed the juvenile plantings at Kellevie to continue their development and produce well-balanced yields.
The strategy worked brilliantly in 2023. Southwood Pinot Noirs from the 2022 vintage picked up silver and gold medals at the National Cool Climate Wine Show. The White Kangaroo gold medal winner scored 95 from the judging panel, equalling that of near neighbours Bream Creek, who showed their 2022 Reserve Pinot Noir.
Small scale. Great expectations.
Key details:
Tracy Taylor: owner/director
Ivan Colhoun: owner/director
Paul Lovell: owner/director
Craig Parsell: owner/director
Michael Pain: owner/director
Ian Warner: owner/director
Brent Knevett: owner/director
Brett Allender: owner/director
Vineyard/cellar door address:
88 Woolleys Road, Kellevie TAS 7176
No cellar door sales. Online sales via www.southwoodwines.com.au
Telephone:
+61 (0) 402 158 561
Email:
info@southwoodwines.com.au
Website:
www.southwoodwines.com.au
Tasmanian viticulture takes place within a diverse mix of soil types and microclimates.
Climate data* for sites on the East Coast highlight the wide range of growing conditions here. Consider: Saltwater River Wines (MJT 16.0°C; 859 GDD) and Sterling Heights (MJT 18.3°C; 1267 GDD).
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 Woolleys Road, 1995-2024:
- Total annual average rainfall: 739mm
- Growing season average rainfall (Oct 1-Apr 30): 420mm
- Average autumn rainfall: 175mm
- Mean January temperature: 16.4°C
- Growing degree-days: 898 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: 14
*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