AFTER generations of grazing the lands on Tasmania’s East Coast, Bruce and Jo from Mayfield Farm have diversified their portfolio to take advantage of the booming East Coast tourism.
Bruce Dunbabin is a fifth-generation grazier, his family taking up the trade in the 1830s in Marion Bay before they made their way north to Mayfield Farm in 1969. Jo Oliver’s family have been in Tasmania even longer, her roots stretching back at least seven generations to convict transport. Together they manage around 10,000 Merino sheep spread across 2200ha just south of Swansea, their wool being used for fine clothing in some of the world’s most luxurious brands. But their newest endeavour has combined a passion for horticulture with a diversification of their on-farm operations and minimisation of their risks. This is their vineyard, Mayfield Estate.
On either side of the Tasman Highway are nine hectares of vines growing pinot gris and noir, shiraz and chardonnay. This has recently been joined by their new cellar door, which opened in June this year. “The vines coming were a direct result of the drought across 2007, 2008 and 2009. “I got down to 2000 sheep and was spending a lot of money on feed for those and it got me thinking that I just had to do something different.”
Bruce said the ‘temperature moderating’ that their coastline location gave them attracted winemakers to their area, their property was perfect for chardonnay and pinot noir. “Our original plan was five hectares, two-and-a-half of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. “We’ve now increased that to nine, increasing the size of our original lots and adding in a hectare of pinot gris and of shiraz.”
“It was a second string to our bow here, we knew we could grow reasonable grapes on this coast because of the temperature stability and the lack of frosts through the growing season.”
In their early years of growing, Bruce and Jo are treating their vines delicately, harvesting between six to eight tonnes per hectare. “We try not to crop heavily,” Bruce said. “The theory we work with is each tree has one trunk. That plant can only take so much goodness from the soil. “We’ll keep the quality by not having larger crops from the plants.” With the cellar door now open and the Mayfield Estate wines beginning to hit the market, the brand is already beginning its internal diversification. This is with Jo’s gin line.
Developed in Launceston our bow here, we knew we could grow reasonable grapes on this coast because of the temperature stability and the lack of frosts through the growing season.” In their early years of growing, Bruce and Jo are treating their vines delicately, harvesting between six to eight tonnes per hectare. “We try not to crop heavily,” Bruce said. “The theory we work with is each tree has one trunk. That plant can only take so much goodness from the soil. “We’ll keep the quality by not having larger crops from the plants.” With the cellar door now open and the Mayfield Estate wines beginning to hit the market, the brand is already beginning its internal diversification. This is with Jo’s gin line. Developed in Launceston by gin and wine-maker Nat Fryer, the Sophia’s Gin is an ode to Jo’s family and how they made their way to Tasmania.
“The gin pays homage to my five-times great-grandmother Sophia,” Jo said. “She as transported to Van Diemans Land for highway robbery, she stole a shilling to buy gin. “Even though it’s not made on site like the wine, we’re very conscious of using ingredients from Tasmania in the making process to keep it authentic to us.”
Evidence of attempted hop growing and drying on the Mayfield farm shows that diversification has always been a staple of the property, even before the Dunbabin tenure. Diversifying their property to take advantage of a strong tourist presence in the region looks to be a far more fruitful venture.