Hippocampus Metropolitan Distillery

AN INDEPENDENT AUSTRALIAN DISTILLERY, HIPPOCAMPUS WAS FOUNDED BY A GROUP OF LIKEMINDED FRIENDS WHO SHARED A PASSION FOR HANDCRAFTED, QUALITY SPIRITS AND A SIMPLE IDEA: TO CRAFT SUPERB AUSTRALIAN SMALL BATCH SPIRITS, THE TRADITIONAL WAY.

ABOVE: Hippocampus copper pot still.

RIGHT: The distillery entrance. IN JUNE 2014, HIPPOCAMPUS commissioned its custom-made 450 litre copper pot still from the family-run company Carl who have been crafting artisan distilleries in Germany for over 140 years. The still is steam driven to provide gentle and even heating to allow maximum control over the distilling process and copper was specifically chosen due to its ability to remove impurities whilst preserving the smooth character and delicate flavour found in every bottle of Hippocampus.

It took almost nine months of finetuning the ingredients, recipe and distilling process for Hippocampus to settle upon the ideal combination for their organic vodka. By using local organic wheat, fermenting in small batches and then distilling in the custommade still, Hippocampus Distillery began production of a unique Australian vodka crafted from the ground up.

ABOVE: Distiller, Alex Poulsen.

BELOW: Hippocampus Vodka Martini.

Blessed with rolling hills, blue skies, nutrient-rich soil and clean, country air, Western Australian farmers grow some of the best grain in the world. It is Hippocampus’ belief that “the better the input, the better the output” so with this ideal in mind, the distillery sources 100 biodynamic soft wheat from local farmers in Dumbleyung, WA.

Due to its delicate flavour profile, producing vodka is a precise and technical craft and so after securing the perfect base ingredient for their vodka, Hippocampus then puts in the time and effort needed to ensure the base wash is of the highest quality before beginning to distil their vodka using traditional methods.

The wheat is fermented in small batches with filtered local water to soften and create a “wash” packed with flavour and as pure as possible. The wash is then introduced to the still, and distilled through two 10 plate copper columns, which naturally remove impurities, to create a smooth, clean spirit.

After two distillations only the best of the “heart” spirit is kept and the heads and tails of the spirit are discarded. As only the heart, and therefore the very best of the spirit is kept, the vodka does not need to be filtered, ensuring the finest character, texture and flavour of the soft wheat is retained in the final product. Finally, the spirit is blended with purified water before being bottled by hand and then left to rest at the distillery before being released. Although this may seem like a labour-intensive process, the care and attention that goes into every bottle of Hippocampus vodka is evident through its complex, unique and full flavour profile. Hippocampus vodka features a beautiful vanilla aroma from the organic WA wheat, and a clean, rich palate with a distinctly smooth mouthfeel.

The time and attentiveness that goes into the production of Hippocampus vodka is clear: the spirit received a bronze medal in the highly prestigious San Francisco World Spirits Competition and shortly after received a silver medal at the 2016 Australian Distilled Spirits Awards.

With a track record for making excellent vodka, Hippocampus Metropolitan Distillery began experimenting with other spirits and has recently released a traditional dry gin. Following in their vodka’s footsteps, the flavoursome gin was awarded a gold medal at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition and is a sign of great things to come from this small WestAustralian Distillery. ❧