Jansz Vineyard Sparkles, and Bubbles

A gathering of beautiful people in a vineyard? What’s not to like? Especially when it’s at Jansz Vineyard Tasmania. If you’re in Tassie, don’t miss this gorgeous place. And have a designated driver. It’s that sort of temptation. 

“Champagne is the only wine that leaves a woman beautiful after drinking it.” Did Madame de Pompadour really say that? Bless her!

The high hitting Lisa Messenger, creator of collectivehub.com magazine did a FIFO last month. That’s Fly In Fly Out for those with mushrooms on their heads.

So we made the trek to Launceston to meet Lisa and be bussed out to the Jansz Tasmania Vineyard. They make seriously good bubbles there, and bubbles were in seriously plentiful supply.

Paired with delicious food served imaginatively as Tasmania turned on a clear blue day, the bubbles shone. We schmoozed and boozed and schmoozed some more. And what a great opportunity to meet some of Tassie’s movers and shakers.

In between canapés I caught up with Samantha Christian, just in the process of launching the first women’s paper in Tasmania. It’s called Lois Magazine and should be a great read.

The ‘roaming oysters three ways’ were wonderful, and I think we all voted the ones with sloe gin jelly, beetroot juice and micro herbs the winner. Though it was a close call.

Micro celery cones filled with blue cheese cream, walnut and fig swirled by, and the Premium Cuvée held its own. Delicious, grapey, sparkley goodness. The Vintage Cuvée with the hot smoked salmon dish (which seemed to have a zillion tiny ingredients) was tasting damn good. We are on a roll.

By this time, the noise was loud (do we really talk louder when imbibing?). And as we floated on to the main of Rannoch quail served with roasted apple and an ancient grains salad, we were feeling at one with the world.

Or this world at least. The geese grazed on lime green pasture, which I’m sure was abundant with worms. We grazed on heavenlier stuff. By this time, the 2013 Vintage Rosé was perfectly paired and the Single Vineyard Chardonnay (2010) were ‘served feast-style, to share’.

Magnificent. But my eyes were losing their grip, and I was so grateful to know I was going to bus it back to the hotel. Lisa spoke to us about her journey to becoming one of Australian media’s big success stories, and we loved to find out that the chief winemakers at Jansz are women!

All hail, Louisa Rose and Jen Doyle. With a Premium Rosé we picked our way through a strawberry consommé, with a dome of lemon icecream offset with a basil gel and kiwi fruit. Interesting.

Nearing the end of the day, we take our swag bags and find the bus. And of course we burrow back into Lily Bollinger’s famous quote about champagne and how she needs no excuses – none at all – to imbibe. It is as natural as breathing.

Aaaah. Some of the guests actually went on for dinner in town (Launceston), but I took my leave and crashed. So much wine and so little time.

Have you been, dear reader, to Jansz yet? If not, get thee hence! And then share how you found it. We’d love to hear! 

As always, we paid our own way. $160 – and worth every cent. 

Chrissie