Women's Culture Jill

8 J I L L A U S T R A L I A manlyspirits Manly Spirits Co. Distillery M A N L Y S PI R I T S C O. As well as continuing to expand their range and perfect their branding, Vanessa and David have also opened their distillery to visitors. Visitors can drop in at the bar, attend events and see the Manly Spirits team working on the distillery’s four incredible copper stills, each named after one of their children – two of whom work behind the bar at the Manly Spirits Company! How did you come up with the idea of foraging the sea? What a unique concept! It was by chance that we discovered the potential of foraging and the use of native Australian botanicals. As we have always been big fans of cutting- edge restaurants, we were well aware of the famous Copenhagen restaurant NOMA, a two-Michelin-star eatery that became famous for its extremely seasonal approach to Scandinavian cuisine. A week later, we met with NOMA’s foraging chef, Elijah Holland. Elijah brought us tubs and tubs of stuff that he had foraged. He counselled us to not take the easy way out. He encouraged us to take the time to learn each botanical by distilling it separately, building our knowledge from the ground up. We learned from Elijah that what works well in cuisine could work well in our gins, vodkas and liqueurs. Elijah’s enthusiasm was infectious, and it led us to taking the necessary risks with our gins & liqueurs to produce unique spirits, which reflected the terroir of Australia and its coastline. Sea Lettuce was just one of the many seaweeds that Elijah brought for us to distil, but it instantly stood out to us. It imparted our distillates with the evocative taste of sea brine and that ever-elusive umami character – and, because it litters the rocky headlands around Curl Curl Beach, just a stone’s throw from the distillery, it reminded us of home. We forage sustainably, across a large area, to ensure that the sea lettuce is there for the next time we need to make gin. It grows fast in the temperate ocean, and it’s available all year round. Essentially, we embraced the traditional London dry gin flavour profile, whilst crafting a quintessentially Australian botanical profile, with a marine and coastal leaning. Like a good Aussie, the gin is bold and loud, creating a full-flavoured spirit that maintains its character in a classic G&T and Martini alike. We made a gin that, with a splash of tonic, releases the ocean from the glass. We wanted it to remind the drinker of a coastal holiday and a warm ocean breeze. Thankyou Vanessa, look forward to visiting the distillery soon! NOW OPEN TO VISITORS