Toasting the Coast

Small batch wines, big sky views, and more fresh produce and local seafood than you can poke a stick at. That's been the Great Eastern Wine Week recipe for success over recent years, and if all goes to plan, this October's four-day cavalcade of events on Tasmania's East Coast should be bigger, brighter and better than ever.

Highlight the dates now in your diary or digital calendar. The 2026 Great Eastern Wine Week takes places from 22-25 October.

This year's carefully curated events are being held across 18 different vineyard sites. They span almost 175km from north to south. Some take place on a casual, free-of-charge, drop-in-whenever-you-like basis. Others are ticketed events that require bookings with payment.

Weather-wise, mid-October should be a great time to visit. The Bureau of Meteorology's long-range forecast is for spring rainfall to be below average. Above average temperatures are very likely right across Tasmania, both during the day and overnight.

Every Great Eastern Wine Week is different and 2026 will be no exception. There are four new producers and/or cellar door locations (Obsessionist, Rivulet Wines, Rooster & Robin, and Treehouse Vineyard), with each one offering something interesting to pour.

Simply sniffing and spitting may be enough to satisfy visitors happy to cruise their way through the day. For everyone else, there are some genuinely dynamic and immersive experiences to enjoy:

• Try your hand at foraging and flower arranging with Miss Austwick at Gala Estate.

• Ditch the Domino's and discover your latent talents in a hands-on masterclass in the art of making the perfect wood-fired pizza. (Devil's Corner).

• Dress for the fashions on the field at Mayfield Estate's Chardonnay Cup. But watch out. Owner Bruce Dunbabin just might try pulling the wool over your eyes.

• Meet the new owners of Rooster & Robin and take part in some regenerative viticulture by planting a tree on their Elmsroe Vineyard.

The Great Eastern Wine Week officially kicks off with a 2026 Launch Party at Devil's Corner on Thursday 22nd October. Bookings are essential. Tickets cost $25 per person.

The evening event (5pm-9pm) takes place at Apslawn, set against the spectacular backdrops of the Devil's Corner vineyard and nearby Moulting Lagoon (pictured below).

The lagoon is a large Wetland of International Importance, nominated under the Ramsar Convention in November 1982. It's a breeding ground for various waterfowl and wetland birds, and plays a valuable role in providing a safe haven for migratory birds. Rare and significant wetland flora and fauna make this part of the East Coast an area of outstanding natural beauty. 

The Launch Party is all about celebrating the people, the wine, the landforms and the seascapes that make the East Coast so special. Guests will be encouraged to settle in for a few hours to enjoy their wine of choice, with live music played throughout the evening.

Delectable foods from the Devil's Corner kitchen will be on hand for purchase.

Bus transport is available for ticket holders, with routes, times and further information yet to follow.

Other evening events include: 

• The Butcher's Feast at Craigie Knowe Vineyard (Saturday 24 October, 5:00-9:00. Tickets $115pp).

• United by Obsession at Twamley Farm (Saturday 24 October, 6pm onwards. Tickets $325pp).

• The Slow Table at Topeka (Saturday 24 October, 6pm-9pm. Tickets $110pp).

• Pizza Masterclass at Devil's Corner (Friday 23 October, 6pm-9pm. Tickets $110pp).

The Great Eastern Wine Week has come a long way from its humble beginnings. It first sprang to life back in 2015, when Freycinet Vineyard's Claudio Radenti and Hobart wine retailer Tim Goddard hosted a wine-matched dinner for 12 guests at Coles Bay's Freycinet Lodge.

Strong community and industry support soon made the Great Eastern Wine Weekend a permanent fixture on the region's calendar of events.

In 2021, the Great Eastern Wine Weekend became the Great Eastern Wine Week. It now receives grant funding from the Australian Government under the Recovery for Regional Tourism program administered by Austrade.

Each year's schedule of events is organised by the East Coast Wine Trail Association, a voluntary local committee committed to working collaboratively with its partners to ensure continuing festive success.

The four-day 'week' typically draws around 3,000 patrons to its celebration of the region's laidback lifestyle and world-class produce and wines.

Tourism in Tasmania took a big hit at the start of the decade, no thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. The situation has improved dramatically in more recent times.

Tasmanian Visitor Survey figures for the year ending March 2026 show almost 446,000 visitors arrived in the State, an increase of 5.5 percent on the previous year.

Around 300,000 of those visitors found their way to cellar doors. Some 347,000 visitors spent time with local food producers.

One third of Tasmania's visitors – 32 percent actually – were drawn to the East Coast, where they collectively spent $1.8 billion.

Tourism supports just over 50,000 jobs in Tasmania. That 15.6 per cent share of the workforce is the highest proportion of any Australian State.

Tasmania's cool-climate wine industry is doing its share of the heavy-lifting.

Vines were first planted on the East Coast in the 1830s and 1840s. The small number of vineyards that operated there soon faded into obscurity as poor labour and market prospects added massive challenges to the very rudimentary viticulture being practised in the harsh, rugged coastal environments.

Today's cool-climate wine industry on the East Coast was pioneered by former Hobart dentist John Austwick (Craigie Knowe Vineyard) and one-time abalone diver Geoff Bull (Freycinet Vineyard) at the end of the 1970s and early 1980s.

Austwick's first vintage – 1983 – produced just 11 bottles of Cabernet Sauvignon. The 1984 vintage received lavish praise from renowned Australian wine author/critic, Robin Bradley.

After a slow start, the number of wine producers and vineyard cellar doors on the East Coast has continued to grow each year.

It's now become the State's third-largest wine-producing area, with an average production of close to 150,000 cases of wine a year.

During the late and very challenging 2026 wine grape harvest, East Coast vineyards accounted for almost 18 percent of the total volume picked.

The region is renowned for producing trophy-winning wines across a diverse range of styles, varieties and price segments:

• The House of Arras sources significant volumes of fruit from its growers on the East Coast, with the internationally acclaimed Arras brand being Australia's flagship traditional method sparkling. 
• Freycinet Vineyard's Radenti is also an outstanding brand ambassador, with the 2017 Vintage Rosé winning the Trophy for Best Sparkling at the prestigious Melbourne Royal Wine Awards in September 2025.
• Freycinet's 2025 Riesling and 2025 Wineglass Bay Sauvignon Blanc both won trophies at January's 2026 Tasmanian Wine Show.
• Devil's Corner Pinot Noir is Australia's biggest-selling Pinot Noir brand, by volume and value.
• In addition to trophy-winning Pinot Noir, the East Coast is also capable of producing show-stopping Syrah (Shiraz) in both still and sparkling wine styles. Take a bow, Gala Estate.
• This Great Eastern Wine Week will also provide visitors with opportunities to hear (and taste) how Milton Vineyard have fared with their explorations of the Spanish red variety, Tempranillo.

Some 18 vineyards and cellar doors currently participate in the East Coast Wine Trail Association:

• Boomer Creek Vineyard
• Craigie Knowe Vineyard
• Darlington Vineyard
• Devil's Corner
• Freycinet Vineyard
• Gala Estate
• Hurly Burly Wines
• Kelvedon Estate
• Maclean Bay Wines
• Mayfield Estate
• Milton Vineyard
• Obsessionist
• Priory Ridge Wines

Click HERE to download your copy of the 2026 Great Eastern Wine Week Program.

Last page update: 2 September 2026