A decade ago, on the windswept shores of King Island, a revolution in the craft spirits world began to stir. Heidi Weitjens, with a vision as clear as the gin she would soon distil, established King Island Distillery – at the time just the 10th distillery in Tasmania and the first of its kind on the island – and a pioneering beacon in Tasmania’s flourishing spirits industry was born. W hen Heidi Weitjens launched King Island Distillery in October 2013, she was stepping into largely uncharted territory. At the time, it was not just the island’s first distillery but also only the tenth in the entire state, signalling a new era for local craft spirits. Weitjens, a native of the island, was driven by a passion to harness the pure, untainted essence of her home, translating it into spirits that resonated with the character of the place and its people. Although distilling was a completely new venture for Weitjens, the world of hospitality and starting a small business was not. So where do you turn to find out about the world of craft spirits? None other than the grandfather of Australian whisky – Bill Lark.
these native ingredients to make it work and all I really wanted to do was make a gin that, if nothing else, I could at least drink it myself,” Weitjens says. “Turning on the stills for the first time, it was two o’clock in the morning… I was nervous and fluffing around because you’re procrastinating. Anyway, you press a button, and I just thought well, let’s hope this works! “I sent it to Bill Lark because I was no expert, and he said, ‘you need to put this gin in in the Australian Gin awards’. Then when we got a silver I rang Bill, I was all excited, and I’ll never forget this, he said, ‘you’ve just got a bloody good gin.’ There’s been many amazing moments, but that was huge.” While the beauty of the King Island background provides the ‘Ginspiration’ – and helped coin Weitjens’ motto ‘Happy Heidi’ – the remoteness of island life also brings distinct challenges. She can look back at the journey with fondness now, but Weitjens will never forget the feeling of the process of starting up and the distillery. “I just love this place. I can’t get enough of the fresh air, the freedom, the bare beaches and everything’s salt kissed over here, despite that costing me a fortune.
“I spent months creating a recipe to incorporate
9 Tasmanian Hospitality Review Oct/Nov Edition
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