Trial Bay Estate
Is it possible to run a small Tasmanian vineyard when you've been office-bound for all your working life? Saskia Jahn and Nick Kayes believed they could. When the couple first saw their 1.2ha of Pinot Noir, it was early 2019, and they were keen to swap the big city rat-race for a place they could keep their horses.
Anything else would be a bonus.
The couple had built successful careers in corporate and professional roles in Melbourne. But long-held ambitions to live closer to the land drew them south to Tasmania, and finally to Kettering in the D'Entrecasteaux Channel. Kayes in particular was keen to re-establish his connections to growing stuff, having undergone training in horticulture many years earlier.
At Trial Bay Estate, the couple found an established vineyard on a manageable scale. They also found its vendors – the Hosking/Fitzgerald family – willing to pass on their years of hard-earned knowledge of the site. And the practical skills they needed to manage it.
The vineyard was first planted in 1997 by Tasmanian wine industry veteran, Bruce Gilham. A decade earlier – in 1985 – the former Clare Valley winemaker and his wife Jane had established their D'Entrecasteaux Vineyard at Gardners Bay.
The self-described 'uppity peasant' had lived and worked vintages in France. That included the Savoie, an alpine region where the freshness of its mountain air matched the freshness of its wines. Gilham's experiences there provided an ideal grounding in cool-climate site selection in southern Tasmania.
In 2007, a second block of Pinot Noir was planted by the vineyard's following owners, Roger and Sue Bastone. The mining engineer and art teacher/creative consultant devoted more than a decade to refining the viticulture required by the site and its distinctive terroir. Subsequent owners – the Hoskings and Fitzgeralds – maintained a 'steady-as-she-goes' course for the four years that passed prior to Jahn and Kayes adding their chapter to this cool-climate wine odyssey.
The vineyard sits on ancient dolerite and sandstone geology, with shallow, well-drained soils over fractured rock.
These growing conditions – that provide Trial Bay Estate with the balance and vibrancy that define its single vineyard wines – once underpinned the district's bustling apple industry. The neighbouring Trial Bay Orchards is one of only a handful that still remains.
Six years on, the Kettering site has seen Kayes develop intensive management practices that are becoming increasingly more aligned with sustainable organic viticulture. Much has already been achieved in developing the healthy living soil needed to nourish the vineyard's small volumes of premium Pinot Noir.
Harvest typically takes place here in early/mid April, with cooler seasons like 2020 extending into May.
Fruit is hand-sorted in the vineyard then transported to Kate Hill Wines for vinification at Huonville, some 40km away.
Rat-race run.
Key details:
- Saskia Jahn: owner/operator
- Nick Kayes: owner/operator
- Kate Hill: contract winemaker, Kate Hill Wines
Vineyard/cellar door address:
3096 Channel Hwy, Kettering TAS 7155
Telephone:
+61 (0) 423 070 871
Email:
nick@trialbayestate.com.au
Website:
www.trialbayestate.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. Consider: Bruny Island Premium Wines (MJT 15.4°C; 747 GDD) and Tinderbox Vineyard (MJT 17.3°C; 1088 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 Channel Highway 1995-2024:
- Total annual average rainfall: 729mm
- Growing season average rainfall (Oct 1-Apr 30): 380mm
- Average autumn rainfall: 165mm
- Mean January temperature: 17.1°C
- Growing degree-days: 1044 GDD
- Average no of hot days (35°C or more) per year: 1
- Average no of cold days (minimum 4°C or less) Sept 1-April 30: 9
*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