LORD HOWE ISLAND (FORMERLY LORD HOWE’S ISLAND) IS AN IRREGULARLY CRESCENT-SHAPED VOLCANIC REMNANT IN THE TASMAN SEA BETWEEN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND, PART OF THE AUSTRALIAN STATE OF NEW SOUTH WALES. IT LIES 600 KM DIRECTLY EAST OF MAINLAND PORT MACQUARIE, 780 KM NORTHEAST OF SYDNEY, AND ABOUT 900 KM SOUTHWEST OF NORFOLK ISLAND.
Image credit: Rian Cope
Welcome to the first instalment of the Gin Journal for 2023! We hope you managed to enjoy some quality R&R with friends and family over the holiday season. We also hope you’ve polished off your bottle of Bondi Gin Co’s Australian Dry Gin from the last delivery.
This month, we’re hopping on a plane and travelling to one of the most incredible locations in not just Australia, but the world: Lord Howe Island. Sir David Attenborough once remarked about the island: “So extraordinary, it is almost unbelievable... few islands, surely, can be so accessible, so remarkable, yet so unspoilt.” Home to almost 250 species of indigenous plants, it’s no wonder Lord Howe Island Distilling Co is able to produce such premium-quality spirits.
We’ll dive into what makes your bottle of Wild Lemon & Hibiscus Gin so special, while also hearing about the ongoing sustainability efforts of both the islanders and the founders of Lord Howe Island Distilling Co. Then, it’s time to add another destination to your travel bucket list as we run through a magical day adventuring around the island.
Trish Brew, an award-winning bartender and Fever-Tree ambassador, joins us on the couch for our latest Ginsider. Lord Howe Island Distilling Co has also generously accumulated a handful of cocktail recipes from local island businesses so at least your tastebuds can enjoy a sip of paradise – even if you can’t physically be there.
As always, you can drop us a line at hello@ginsociety.com. It’s time to switch off your devices, pour yourself a splash of Wild Hibiscus & Lemon Gin and immerse yourself in island time…
Cheers!
Andrew Burge Founder, Gin SocietyVISIT US AT WWW.GINSOCIETY.COM
WILD LEMON & HIBISCUS GIN HAS BEEN VOTED SILVER MEDALLIST AT THE AUSTRALIAN GIN AWARDS FOR THE PAST 3 YEARS
Founder: Andrew Burge
Director: Jagdev Singh
Creative Director: Annah Lansdown
Head of IT: Chris Richardson
Membership Relations: Emily Prunty
Designer: Tori Gibson
Editor: Simon Jones
Got a question or query about your membership? We’re here to help. Drop us a line – hello@ginsociety.com
We welcome enquiries about advertising and brand collaborations. Please contact sales –sales@ginsociety.com
Hosting an event? Looking for unique gins or an organised tasting? Let’s talk – events@ ginsociety.com
Partnerships
Launching a new gin? Opening a new venue or distillery? Let us know –partnerships@ginsociety.com
Image credit: Zach Sanders
Take one part islander, one part mainlander, mix with an entrepreneurial spirit and garnish with endemic island botanicals. This is the story of how two friends are bringing a taste of Lord Howe Island to the masses.
Christian Young spent a decent portion of his time on the exquisitely unique Lord Howe Island. His grandfather Claude Fay, an icon in the Sydney liquor industry, would be right there with him – watching him learn how to ride a bike, swim in the pristine waters and go fishing off the rocks or pier.
“It was an idyllic upbringing,” Christian says.
But after ‘Papa’ passed away, the future co-founder of Lord Howe Island Distilling Co. wouldn’t return to where he spent some of his most memorable moments for two decades.
“It was my wife, Sharon, who was the lightning rod,” Christian says. “She told me: ‘I’m sick of hearing your family stories about Blinky
Beach this and Mount Gower that. I want to go to Lord Howe!’ So we went right back to the same place we used to stay on the island and left the kids at home.”
While for Christian’s wife this trip was a dream escape that had been years in the making, for Christian it sparked a deep-seated passion – and when he spotted the gap, he knew he had the means, the ambition and the business nous to plug it.
Imagine a tiny outcrop in the Pacific Ocean, covered in lush greenery, surrounded by aquamarine waters home to an untouched coral reef teeming with marine life, where only 400 visitors are allowed at any one time. It’s little wonder National Geographic named Lord Howe Island one of the world’s best destinations. There are few better places in the world to drop in – and tune out. www.visitnsw.com/
Image credit: Rian Cope
but I looked around and people were still drinking Bombay Sapphire. I thought to myself: ‘We’re on arguably the most iconic island in the world. I think we can do better than this.’ So I contacted my childhood friend and sixth-generation islander Anthony Riddle. I told him there might be a market opportunity to really showcase the island, its botanical diversity and what the island has to offer. He agreed, and the rest is history.”
A product marketer by trade, Christian realised there was a standout opportunity to bring his and Anthony’s passion for the island to the drinks space. Craft beer was the first port of call – with Lord Howe Island Brewing Co. offering a wide range of pale ales, IPAs, sours, lagers and more – but the chance to literally capture the flavours of the island was what drew the pair to distilling.
“I was looking at the market and trying to figure out the unique selling proposition for the island,” Christian says. “The fact that the island has 114 botanicals that don’t occur anywhere else on the planet is just so special.
“David Attenborough once described this place as the world’s Jurassic Park – it’s such a unique island with unique botanicals that we showcase through our spirits and beer. We’re committed to showcasing the very best of the island and ensuring we do the island’s brand justice as well.”
Both Christian and Anthony are fascinated by the rich history of Lord Howe Island.
“It’s a canvas that tells a story not just with the mountains and the ocean, but also what’s happened here over the centuries,” Christian says. “It was back in the 1830s that the first whalers were trying to put down roots. There are so many stories from that time –from shipwrecks to rats coming ashore to lost gold.”
One story in particular planted a seed in the co-founders’ minds. So much so that they decided to hero it in one of their award-winning gins: the bottle of Wild Lemon & Hibiscus you’re enjoying right now.
“The wild lemon that we use grows in different parts of the island, and it was first planted here by the early whalers. They used Lord Howe as a stopping station to refill their stores with fresh water from the waterfalls and streams.”
The wild lemon that we use grows in different parts of the island, and it was first planted here by the early whalers.”
“They also planted citrus all over to help ward off scurvy. Since they were sailing around the very fertile breeding grounds of the sperm whale in the South Pacific, they didn’t want to waste time going back to the mainland to refuel and recharge. With the wild lemons, they could stop in, grab some citrus and fresh water, ward off the scurvy and then go again.”
The descendants of those first lemon plantings are being picked for distillation almost two centuries later. And while the story behind the lemons might be charming, the sight of one certainly isn’t – at least from the outside.
“It’s a really unique fruit,” Christian says. “It’s ugly. It’s bumpy. It’s the type of fruit you’d find right at
the bottom of the Harris Farm Markets ugly pile. But it has a beautiful scent and flavour that is unlike any other lemon we’ve found.”
The gin’s second hero botanical – hibiscus – is also taken fresh from the island.
In fact, if you visit Lord Howe Island at the right time of year you may just spot co-founder Anthony roaming around the place picking the hibiscus, which has its own DNA separate from traditional hibiscus, and wild lemons for his next distillation run.
Lord Howe Island
Distilling Co are always looking at a variety of ways that they can contribute to the community and ecology of the island. Examples of what they have donated to are:
• Producing hand sanitiser and donated a bottle to every household on the Island, as well as Hospital and School, when
A BOTTLE OF THEIR HAND SANITISER WAS DONATED TO EVERY HOUSEHOLD
all hand sanitiser stocks had dried up in Australia.
• Contributed towards critical new medical equipment for the Island hospital
• Donated to the Island Historical Photographic collection for the preservation of Island records
• Donated to the Phasmid enclosure at the Island Museum
• Supporting the eradication of the invasive Cherry Guava on the Island
Having spent decades on the island, both Christian and Anthony are aware that any change to the ecosystem must be tempered with sustainability measures. And that extends to the production of their new research and development facility. It’s intended to be a small-scale operation, with the bulk of their product still being produced on the mainland. But what the site will offer is a chance to spread their product further and contribute more to the community that has done so much for them.
“The main target for us is distillers from the mainland coming to the island with groups of people and utilising our facility,” Anthony says.
“They’ll be able to have distilling holidays on Lord Howe Island, to come out here and help spread our products throughout the wider community.
“We do have an expansion plan, but we’re also very wary of the island and its limitations. We’ve got a 400-person tourist cap for a reason, so we don’t want to take away from what existing restaurants and businesses are doing on the island. Our concept is more about spreading what’s so special about Lord Howe Island through the rest of Australia and the world, as opposed to having everyone come to us.”
lhidistillingco.com.au lhibrewingco.com.au
Image credit: Zach Sanders
What type of gin do islanders love? We asked Anthony and Christian for their top picks.
Bright citrus of ruby grapefruit and fresh juniper are delicately balanced with subtle spice of aniseed myrtle, cubeb pepper, and tonka beans. Bold, complex and aromatic. A perfectly balanced gin.
Bright citrus character up front. Oily and intense, prominent juniper, supported by earthy undertones and wooded spice. Luxurious and long with a rich creaminess finish which quickly dries out.
The Green Ants display vibrant coriander and kaffir lime leaf flavours, with a citrus and lime burst on the palate further enhanced by Finger Lime. Native Juniper (Boobialla) is evident in the floral, perfumed aromatics, while spicy notes of Pepper Berry balance the citrus flavours.
Juniper notes ring true from start to finish with whispers of delicate pine notes underpinning each taste. Delicately highlighted by the finest Australian fruits and native botanicals, No. 8 is a well-rounded gin from refreshing taste to tail.
Green and grassy character with aromatics of lime leaf, florals and anise. The palate is herbal with good flavour complexity and creamy notes, which carry through onto the finish.
Good balance and definition.
On the palate Mary St Citrus Gin gives you a fabulous burst of mixed citrus with the juniper base also present. The sweet floral notes of the mandarins are wonderfully subtle and round out Mary St Citrus Gin perfectly!
SIGNATURE
“We wanted the gin to shine through as a spin on the Old Fashioned. We call the drink the 3- Month Moss Barrel in reference to Lord Howe’s first ever prisoner being sent back to the mainland in a water barrel and spending three months in it. The barrel was laid down for Moss to sleep in at night and stood up during the day! We use Demerara sugar to accent the caramel notes and a mixture of Angostura and celery bitters to bring out the herbal notes.”
— Christian Young, Co-Founder, Lord Howe Island Distilling Co.
I was introduced via a G&T at my first bar gig, circa 2009. I thought it was revolting and later found out it was the post-mix tonic that disagreed with my palate – and not, in fact, the gin! Once I discovered the gins
I liked, it became all about classic cocktails. Good gin is so versatile.
What makes gin such a special spirit for you?
Running the Melbourne Gin Palace before the gin boom took off in 2011 and attempting to peddle gin – when practically nobody drank it – was a hard graft! At the time it was all about vodka and whisky, and the occasional Hendricks with cucumber but served with soda “NOT TONIC!”
After many conversations with customers trying to sway them towards gin, I would frequently hear the same phrases: “It’s an old lady’s drink” or “Gin is a depressant.” The view of the category was far from cool. Digging deeper, it turned out many customers didn’t like how bitter it was, and of course they were talking about the tonic not the gin. Luckily, Fever-Tree was emerging in Australia, which was a gamechanger for the gin category. Punters could now drink a G&T that tasted great, and their introduction to gin became a delicious affair rather than a cringeworthy one.
With tonic, of course! There is a science behind why the G&T works so well. Quinine (the bitter flavour in tonic) is attracted to alpha pinene (a compound in juniper) forming an aggregate, so the combination is more delicious than the sum of its parts. How romantic! I match my tonic to my gin. If it’s a floral gin, the Fever-Tree Elderflower Tonic is divine. If the gin is herbaceous or bursting with native botanicals, the Mediterranean Tonic is delish. For your classic styles of gin, the Indian Tonic is powerfully cooperative.
LUCKILY, FEVER-TREE WAS EMERGING IN AUSTRALIA WHICH WAS A GAME CHANGER FOR THE GIN CATEGORY... PUNTERS COULD NOW DRINK A G&T THAT TASTED GREAT.”
What are some of the new gins you’ve been trying lately?
There are many distilleries experimenting with flavoured gins, and some are absolutely nailing it. A standout from a recent gin tasting was the Threefold Christmas Cherry Gin, which was unfortunately a limited run but truly divine.
What are your three desert island gins?
Well, that depends on what mixers are available on the island. The first two that spring to mind are:
• Plymouth Gin – dry with a twist is my favourite martini of all time.
• Never Never Oyster Dark Series Shell Gin – this one disappears the fastest in my house, where it’s always G&T o’clock!
So many more choices for the third one – can I have 10 desert island gins?
What have you noticed about the gin landscape in Australia recently?
What’s your most memorable gin experience?
I am lucky enough to have visited more than 100 distilleries around the world, and one of the most lavish trips was to Monkey 47 distillery in the Black Forest of Germany. It was the trip of a lifetime, and the gin is truly spectacular! We made black forest cake in the Black Forest drinking Monkey 47 G&Ts – with Fever-Tree Mediterranean Tonic, of course.
The category has reached its peak, with many decerning gin drinkers having bigger collections than most bars.
Though there seems to be an endless number of flavours to utilise in gin production, we have drifted a little too far from the classic style and have entered more of the ‘flavoured vodka’ realm.
I predict this is where the pendulum will start to swing back the other way, towards the more versatile, classic-style dry gins that are made well and taste great.
What do you like most about the Gin Society?
Gin Society does some serious research and delivers a premium service that takes the guesswork out of such a heavily diluted category. Perfect for gin afficionados and novices alike!
Plymouth’s uniquely smooth taste is based on a recipe which dates back to 1793 - and specifies a unique blend of seven ingredients or botanicals, distilled in combination with pure grain alcohol and soft Dartmoor water. A great depth of flavour, with a wonderfully fresh juniper, lemony bite with deeper earthy notes. Plymouth has a slight sweetness and extraordinary concentration and complexity. “From deep earthy notes to wonderfully fresh juniper and a lemony bite, Plymouth Gin Original’s great depth of
Oyster Shell Gin uses Kangaroo Island oyster shell, waxflower, Tasmania wakame, coastal daisy bush, saltbush and round mint to create a unique expression of the Australian coastline and built for contemporary seafood pairings. Fresh sea spray jumps from the glass, bursting with split lime-leaf and fragrant grapefruit zest. The palate expresses the saline and savoury minerality of Kangaroo Island oyster shell and dried Australian wakame. This gin is built for a martini.
https://neverneverdistilling.com.au/
Dreaming of an island adventure on Lord Howe? Here’s what the locals suggest for a perfect day spent in paradise.
Rise early because you’ll want to attack the day by heading out for a dazzling walk up to Malabar. One of the most glorious peaks on the island and only a
half-hour walk from most accommodation, you’ll trek along the ridge line with the expansive blue ocean at your side.
Overlooking the whole island, keep an eye out for red-tailed tropic birds and take in the beauty of the Admiralty
Islands to the northeast. Leave early enough and you’ll be able to watch the sun rise –the perfect start to your day.
Take your time heading back down to your accommodation and enjoy a hearty breakfast to replenish your spirits. You’ll need the energy as you head out for a
busy morning of water activities. There’s no shortage of choices on Lord Howe Island – for the thrillseekers you can join a tour and dive with the local sharks. Or if you’re looking for something a little more low-key, go and grab a snorkel
and mask to explore the waters at your own pace. A happy medium of adventure and relaxation is stand-up paddleboarding.
Hopefully you’ve not had your fill of the water just yet, because it’s time to join Lord Howe Island Distilling Co.’s
co-founder Anthony Riddle on his famous Turtle Tours. A sixth-generation islander who lives and breathes Lord Howe’s natural ecosystem, climb aboard and journey out to North Bay for a memorable snorkel with turtles. There’s even an old shipwreck to swim around and explore. Don’t forget to pick Anthony’s brain about some of the wonderful gins he’s created!
Depending on where you are staying on the island, some accommodations will pack a picnic
for you – with some even setting it all up on the shoreline so you can enjoy your own private barbecue or picnic! After you’re finished with your late lunch, it’s up to you whether you want to take things down a notch with some fishing just off the pier, or you can get those legs pumping again with a huge selection of hikes around the island.
If time is at a premium, we recommend a shorter walk like Intermediate Hill, which takes you right down to Neds Beach for some of the most spectacular views on the island.
After a day packed with fun and adventure, you’ve earned yourself a cocktail or two at local favourite the Crooked Post. Located across the road from the
lagoon, it’s a cool and quirky bar that will feel like stepping back into the 1970s. Sit out on the verandah and enjoy a Lord Howe Island Distilling Co. Gin in a relaxing atmosphere. Owner Tim Cruikshank is a quirky character with plenty of amazing ideas when it comes to his cocktail selection. Plus he stocks a lot of different spirits that other places on the island don’t, so you can spend more than a few hours here – and if you’re lucky he might even whip up a delicious meal! When you’re feeling warm and fuzzy, it’s time to head back to your accommodation to rest up and do it all over again tomorrow!
Neds Beach Road, Lord Howe Island
Some visitors to Lord Howe Island journey over here just for the
chance to summit Mount Gower – it’s known as being one of the best day hikes in the world. Commit to the climb and you’ll be rewarded with spectacular views, but
it’s certainly not for the faint of heart! It’s also something that needs to be tackled over a whole day, so make sure you reserve enough time during your stay on the island.
Mount Gower is for the really adventurous types, but it’s such an amazing climb. A lot of people come to Lord Howe Island specifically to do Mount Gower –the people who are more serious hikers. It offers something really special.”
Trina Shepherd, Executive Officer at Lord Howe Island Tourism
Given its fragile ecosystem, co-founders Christian and Anthony want to ensure Lord Howe Island Distilling Co leaves as small a footprint as possible on the island.
Lord Howe Island Distilling Co. is currently in the midst of a transformation. They are expanding their distilling operation from the mainland to the island, beginning with converting an established building into an R&D facility that will also run tours and tastings. But with sustainability such a core part of maintaining Lord Howe Island’s ecosystem, the co-founders are aware that they need to make decisions with an overarching ‘green’ mindset.
“Shipping and the carbon footprint you can leave is a big thing for the island,” Anthony says. “After all, whatever comes over to the island pretty much has to leave it at some stage. We are building a distillery here that should hopefully be up and running by February or March. We’re currently relining the façade of the building, and inside we’ll be updating the electricity and everything else in time for the start of 2023.”
Even with an operational distillery just a few short weeks away, Christian says this isn’t the type of project that you can scale up at speed. “We want to make sure that our footprint on the island is as minimal as possible, which is why we will always do our scale production on the mainland.”
One major benefit of being able to test new recipes on the island is the access to native botanicals.
“We’re working with these really unique, endemic botanicals that we can carefully trial and make sure that islanders and tourists alike have an opportunity to really taste something they’ve never tasted before,” Christian says.
Beyond natives, Anthony adds that they are also trying to be more creative about how they fuse endemic botanicals with other exceptional flavours from around the island. “A number of botanicals on the island here are endemic to this island, but there are also things we can get our hands on straight away, like citruses that were introduced to the island generations ago,” he says.
“Especially with our Wild Lemon & Hibiscus Gin, it’s about balancing those incredible wild lemons, which have been here for over 180 years, and blending them with some of the smaller native botanicals. We’ve got a research and development permit with the Lord Howe Island Board, which allows us to look into some of the unique botanicals that we have here and then possibly bring them down to the residential areas, grow them a bit more sustainably, and then infuse them into our products.”
Christian is the first to admit that their heavy focus on R&D translates to a higher final price of their spirits – but a quality process breeds quality products, and you really do get what you pay for with LHI Distilling Co.
“We are a boutique brand, and our pricing is certainly at the upper end,” Christian says. “We’re also dealing
with operational issues such as how to actually run a distilling business 600km off the coast of New South Wales.”
It’s a constant learning process – one that both islander Anthony and mainlander Christian are committed to doing right. And that starts and ends with sustainability.
With Lord Howe Island home 241 species of indigenous plants, of which almost half (114) are not found anywhere else on the planet, Christian and Anthony are spoilt for choice when it comes to testing out potential new flavours.
Here are just a few of the botanicals you’ll find in your bottle of Wild Lemon & Hibiscus Gin – with a handful of ingredients staying secret!
• Wild bush lemons • Hibiscus • Juniper berries • Angelica root • Cassia bark • Coriander seed • Oranges …and a few others you’ll have to let your palate figure out.
doesn’t come cheap
(AMAZON $18.99)
Have you noticed the hype around gin yet? Maybe you’ve loved gin for a long time and wonder what you can do with it? A simple Martini or Negroni seems too boring? Then this book is ideal for you. In this book, I present you with numerous gin recipes. Contrary to what you might think, these are not just cocktail recipes. You can also cook and bake excellently with gin and I also tell you how to make your own gin.We present you recipes around martinis, sours and fizz.
(BOOKTOPIA $23.25)
Lavishly illustrated and written in an easy-toread style, this book will go down as well as the most lovingly created gin & tonic. Gin: The Essential Guide for Gin Aficionados celebrates the clear spirit in all its guises; as a straight drink, the increasingly popular flavoured brands, as a base for cocktails and a cooking ingredient. It describes the history of the spirit; how it is made and how the method of distillation has changed across the centuries; the variations of gin; classic cocktail recipes; where to buy the premier brands; and tasting notes. Lavishly illustrated and written in an easy-to-read style, this book will go down as well as the most lovingly created Gin & Tonic.
(BOOKTOPIA $13.75)
From the Martini to the Negroni.
The most popular Gin recipes. Gin Cocktails is a compact edition of the most popular gin cocktails that are considered the classics that everyone loves. Simple and easy recipes to create at home.
(LISTEN ON APPLE PODCASTS AND SPOTIFY )
Stu is a co-founder and Trade Director of Four Pillars Gin. Before starting the gin distillery in 2013 he was the founder of Liquid Ideas, Australia’s leading creative communications agency for lifestyle brands.
Stuart is an engaging communicator on all matters communications and marketing and also has a lengthy background in food, wine, hospitality and travel, including also co-owning a luxury travel business Gregor & Lewis. A former panellist on ABC’s Gruen, Stu has a Masters in Marketing from the Melbourne Business School, a Diploma in Wine Marketing from Adelaide University and is a Graduate of the AICD. He was a director of food rescue organization, OzHarvest for nine years and has worked alongside many not-forprofit organisations. He has a daughter, a son, a wife and a passion for every sport imaginable.
https://podcasts.apple.com/
