Three years on from its purchase of the historic Beenleigh Distillery in Queensland, Bickford’s Group of Companies including Vok Beverages has completed the $5 million upgrade of Australia’s oldest registered distillery and new visitor centre. The South Australian based, family-owned business has made this upgrade as part of a wider $25 million investment into Queensland and hopes to attract up to 200,000 visitors a year to the site as a result. Dating back to ...

Diageo Australia has appointed Anthony Mortimer as the new Chairman of Bundaberg Distilling Company (BDC). Mortimer joined the Australian business as Supply Director in July and will continue his role in conjunction with the new appointment. In Mortimer’s new role as Chairman of the BDC, he will be responsible for advising on new liquid innovation and business strategy, as well as distillery operations and development plans. Mortimer will also be ...

A producer of exclusive, super premium spirits has expanded its footprint to Australia, bringing with it a portfolio of high-end whiskies, including The Last Drop 1967 Glen Garioch Single Malt Scotch Whisky and 48 Year Old Blended Scotch Whisky - both 2015 award winners in Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible. The company, The Last Drop Distillers Limited, is owned by whisky industry veterans, James Espey, Tom Jago and Peter Flack, who came together ...

Four Pillars has appointed bartender Sam Ng as its full-time Gin Ambassador and Bartender in Residence. Sam previously worked at the award-winning Black Pearl in Melbourne, where he moved up the cocktail ladder from bar back to General Manager. Sam has also collected a number of personal awards, including Australian winner of the Olmeca Altos Tahona Society in 2015 and 2014 winner of Bombay Sapphire’s Project Botanicals. Sam has also been ...

The 2015 winner of ‘World’s Best London Dry Gin’ at The World Drinks Awards is now available to Melbourne-based on-premise venues from The Wigs Cellar. The Wigs Cellar has been appointed as the official supplier of the Scottish gin for major bars and restaurants across the city. The NB Distillery is located on the east coast of Scotland in North Berwick and follows the stringent London Dry distillation process to the letter to ...

Chivas Regal has released a series of ultra-premium Scotch whiskies finished in a variety of first fill wooden casks, created exclusively for global travel retail. The first edition in the Chivas 18 Ultimate Cask Collection to be launched is the Chivas 18 Ultimate Cask Collection First Fill American Oak Finish. The brand will stagger the release of two additional expressions into the collection 18 months apart from each other. Colin Scott, Master Blender at Chivas ...

A new, slightly unusual looking product called Outerspace Vodka is expected to land Down Under in 2016. The product follows other vodka producers who have used head shaped bottles to house their liquid, such as Crystal Head Vodka which experienced exponential growth after it launched in 2010. Attempting to tap into the same ‘point of difference’, Outerspace Vodka has come up with this distinctive green glass alien head, which it says provides a huge advantage over the ‘conventional ...

An Australian company has just launched what it’s calling the official spirit of Australia. The spirit, named Vantage Australia - The Spirit of a Nation, is made wholly from Australian grown ingredients and is attempting to place itself on the map as the nation’s signature spirit. Hero ingredients include the native flora, Australian lemon myrtle, Tasmanian Mountain Pepperberries and oil from Australian imperial mandarins. The spirit has a unique smoky flavour and ...

Stolen Spirits, producer of Stolen Rum, has agreed to give US company Liquid Asset Brands LLC (LAB) a majority stake in the business for US$14/AU$19 million. The significant investment from LAB will provide Stolen Spirits with the growth capital it needs to expand its portfolio further, with plans to produce a smoked whiskey and several other rums next year. Based in Chicago, the partnership with LAB will also leverage Stolen Spirits’ portfolio into the ...

Famous duo, Jennifer Hawkins and Jake Wall have announced a partnership with Mextrade for the distribution of their new small batch tequila in Australia, which launched last month. Sesión co-founder, Jake Wall said they had been looking for an authentic distributor that had a strong focus on tequila. “Mextrade have built some great relationships in the on- and off-premise trades and are well regarded by the best bar people in Australia”, Wall said. Founded ...