This year our AGM will be on Friday 15 November at the Sustainability Learning Centre in Mount Nelson starting at 5.30pm.
This is your chance to hear more about what we’ve been up to and find out what’s in store for 2025. Tony Scherer, co-founder of Sprout, will be joining us again, this time with Rory Duggan, Dirk Meure, and Luke Burgess, to discuss small-scale wine making.
Tickets are free, but to help with catering we ask you to register using the link below.
Tony Scherer
Growing up in Santa Cruz, Tony started growing and selling produce at the age of seven. Moving to Tasmania in the 1950’s, Tony introduced organic farming practices and has helped many farms become sustainable growers, saving the land from harsh treatments and producing amazing quality fruit and vegetables statewide.
Tony’s passion for growing has seen him grow both vegetables and fruit crops commercially and start an organic wholesale and delivery business. Tony was co-founder of Frogmore Creek Vineyard, began the business Renew Biological Fertilizers and is now Patron of Sprout Tasmania. He helps facilitate small farming businesses Felds Farm and Constance Farm run their enterprises on his land in Penna, offering mentoring and guidance.
Luke Burgess
Luke has 28 years experience in the hospitality industry as a chef, business owner and consultant. He helmed Hobarts’ Garagistes, a leader in fine dining where small producers and high provenance ingredients were centred. Luke now works in videography, photography and as a kitchen consultant with the Global Cooksafe Coalition as well as running regular pop-up dinners in Hobart throughout the year showcasing local producers bounty.
R. D ‘Meure – Rory Duggan & Dirk Meure
Dirk began August 2000 to start as a winegrower on a tiny vineyard planted in 1991 at Flowerpot on the shores of D’Entrecasteaux Channel.
It was during this time that Rory Duggan set down in Tasmania with little idea that grape growing would be his future. University, studies and travel all preceded the urge to join his uncle in nurturing vines and guiding the wines through the seasons. After 15 years of reinvigorating the land and converting the practices to organic principles Dirk “re-retired” to the south coast of NSW whilst Rory stayed on and went to work for Stefano Lubiana.
Several years passed as Dirk enjoyed the fruits of his time in the vines. Following similar principles to Dirk and merging them with his own views Rory’s wines radiated complexity and character from his first vintage.
Both Dirk and Rory came to appreciate each others wines over long lunches, industry gatherings and to all it was inevitable that they would one day come together to collaborate. Earlier this year Dirk was offered the opportunity to buy back the vineyard at Fleurty’s Lane and hence we have a most exciting partnership.
The vines were planted in 1991 on a gentle North/south-facing slope, with good protection from the prevailing westerly winds provided by the surrounding hills.
The plantings total 1ha and consist primarily of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, along with some Pinot Gris, Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, and Merlot.
The approach in the vineyards and winery are best described as holistic, and the wines as artisan or hand-crafted. They are wild fermented and made without any additions, fining or filtration, only a small dose of sulphur at bottling is added if required.
No systemic sprays or herbicides are used in the vineyard and this has been the philosophy since 2004.