GIPPSLAND: Victoria’s Dark Horse
When Tamsin Carvan (of Tamsin’s Table) moved to Gippsland from the Blue Mountains in New South Wales 13 years ago, her motto for the region was: ‘Just a little bit crap.’ “You’d order a coffee or something and it would look good, but then it wouldn’t quite hit the mark,” she says.
Back then, Gippsland wasn’t the food and wine destination it is now. There was agriculture, of course; mostly dairy, although that was industry rather than tourism. But what it did have – and continues to have – is a unique climate. Higher than average rainfall, consistent humidity, cool nights with mild-to-warm days and beautiful, fertile soils.
“The first time I came, it was September and everything was glowing green. I literally pulled over on the side of Main South Road and I could not stop crying. The physical effect of the green and the lush and everything was too incredible,” Carvan says.