Tassie apple history set to be tourism drawcard
Tasmanian organic apple grower and cider maker Andrew Smith is exemplifying Tourism Australia's latest campaign.
Themed 'Restaurant Australia,' the campaign is about selling Australia's fresh produce and fine dining experience experience to international visitors.
Commercial organic apple grower Andrew Smith, the owner of Willie Smith ciders, has bought the Huon Valley Apple Museum along the Grove straight in Tasmania's south.
New owner of the Grove Apple Museum, Andrew Smith, in the old packing shed.
With the help of a $150,000 grant from the state government, Andrew, is breathing new life into the museum and the valley.
"We are deconstructing the interior walls and opening the museum up and half way through packing up all the artifacts...so we can start from scratch and begin a new interpretation of the apple industry and turn it into a museum, cidery and cafe," he said.
The packing shed frame was originally constructed in 1942 but sat dormant and unfinished until after World War II because there wasn't enough workers in Tasmania to log the timber needed to construct the shed.
Still in the shed are a 1902 apple grader built by Joseph Lomaz who lived in Franklin in the beginning of last century, a 1983 rotary bin apple grader, old photographs, mid-century advertising and a thick layer of dust on it all.
When the museum is set to open, as well as a cafe, a bond store for ageing Calvados barrelled from a still, make apple cider vinegar out in the back of the building and an outdoor wood fire pizza oven.
Andrew Smith says there will be a real focus on making the experience not only a place for tourists but for locals too, particularly families.
"We think that the future of tourism in Tasmania is without tenure.
"It's one that says that you don't have to get everything from the tourist, you can actually give a bit to your neighbour, get your neighbour involved.
"We're talking to people around us, there's a blueberry farm, another neighbour potentially looking at building a cheese factory, there's a heritage orchard out the back.
"We'd like to get all these things involved in this that make this a better experience, it's about building an experience down here in the valley without any tenure where everyone gets to benefit," he said,
The museum looks set to open in the coming months.
Source: ABC News, 23 September 2013
