Majestic mountains capped with clouds, magnificent primeval rainforests, endless golden beaches, cascading brooks, alpine moorlands, wild rivers that tumble through untrodden countryside, native forests that team with life…Tasmania is truly a wild and amazing place with hundreds of stunning picnic spots.

And with its mild climate, four distinct seasons, southern isolation, clean air, unpolluted waters and rich soils: Tasmania is a natural larder. The cool surrounding ocean waters produce shell and table fish of rare and delicate flavour, especially famed are rock lobsters, scallops, farmed Atlantic salmon, wild and farmed abalone and farmed Pacific oysters. The State prides itself on its ‘clean, green’ reputation. Tasmania offers 100 varieties of speciality cheeses, as well as premium beers, award-winning cool climate wines, mineral waters, lamb, beef, wallaby and venison, the unique leatherwood honey, gourmet ingredients like saffron, buckwheat, ginseng, hazelnuts and walnuts, and crisp vegetables. Apples, cherries, apricots, other stone fruits, and a delicious array of berries and currants top the Tasmanian fruit bowl.

The cuisine of Tasmania has developed out of the bounty of its indigenous foodstuffs and during its early colonial history these products were integrated into the British farmhouse country-cooking tradition. The state was the home of Edward Abbott, a great gourmand and the author of Australia’s first cookbook, published in 1864.

Tasmania is the home of Australia’s oldest: bottles of sparkling wine, brewery, hotel, colonial oven and bakery. Perhaps the biggest culinary change was the coming of the Greeks, Italians, Polish and other European migrants after the Second World War. Tasmanians see them selves as living in a gourmet paradise. Pick your own and grow your own is common.

Tasmania has a diverse range of eating options from fish and chip take aways to fine dining restaurants listed in the top 100 in Australia. And Tasmania is attracting more and more quality chefs from around Australia and the world who want to truly cook seasonally and forge close relationships with the many artisan producers. One fine example of this is Steve Cumper from The Red Velvet Lounge in Cygnet, who was recently voted ‘Best Country Chef in Australia’.