ABOVE: THE MACQ01 BUILDING ON THE WATERFRONT PRECINCT RIGHT : FROGMORE CREEK BRAND MANAGER SHELLEY BICKERSTAFF WITH RIZK
to get them to visit us, to see how we make whisky from start to finish.”
Bickerstaff, the handover is both bittersweet and timely. Shelley has been connected with the venue from inception, helping design the interior and creating a space which promoted the company’s premium wines, while helping drive visitation to their cellar door and restaurant in Cambridge. The decision to step back from the site isn’t driven by waning passion, but by the pull of opportunity elsewhere. With Frogmore Creek in the midst of a 60-hecatre vineyard expansion, it was time to narrow the focus to strengthen their position in an increasingly competitive market. “We want to be more accessible to those seeking a whisky experience, and we will always invite them to visit the home in Oatlands.” - Rizk Mawass “The Lounge has been a big part of our lives for the last 10 years,” Shelley says. “Obviously it’s our baby, we designed it, and I actually personally was very heavily involved in the design process. So from that point of view, it’s a bit sad.
The seeds for this collaboration were planted in true Tasmanian fashion – over a good meal and, perhaps, a dram or two. “John [Ibraham, Callington Mill owner] met James [Skabo, Frogmore Creek’s CEO] over dinner, and they were talking about the vision that we had,” Rizk recalls with a smile. “James said they were thinking of passing on the site to someone and asked John, ‘What about you take it over?’ It’s a great place already, the decoration is high end and it is looking good. We will just refurbish a few things, change the theme a little bit to make it whisky focused and we will slightly evolve the place and rejuvenate it all to be a Callington Mill whisky experience. But for now, we’re very happy with what is there already. “We’re going to have cocktails also inspired by whisky and gin and on top of that the food, people can sit on the harbour and really connect with the journey of what we make and how we would like to transition this over to people seeking new adventures.”
“We have known John and the team for a long time, even when they opened Callington Mill, and still to
For Frogmore Creek’s brand manager Shelley
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Tasmanian Hospitality Review Apr/May Edition
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