OUR STORY
WHERE IT ALL STARTED
Welcome to the world of Black Cat Gin, where our story is as unique as the gins we craft.
It has been both a personal and profession journey, seamlessly combining our backgrounds of viticulturist and distiller. Spirit production has a long, celebrated history in the Barossa Valley, so we feel that we are simply part of this great tradition.
The vision for Black Cat Gin sprouted from our shared expertise, passion and a ‘Eureka’ moment where it all came together. Through our work nurturing vineyards, making wine and distilling spirits, the idea of creating our own spirits grew like a vine reaching for the sun. It was an obvious step to take from the wine industry into the enchanting realm of gin
distillation.
Our journey began in 2018 when we acquired our small ‘trial’ still. In 2020, we scaled up with a larger alembic still to do the heavy lifting of day-to-day distilling, leaving our small still available to play with new ideas.
WHY BLACK CAT GIN?
The inspiration for our logo rests squarely with our beloved black cat, Aubrey.
As the Brand Ambassador, he roams the distillery with an air of elegant authority, always curious about what’s happening. From checking labels to inspecting botanical quality, he is an indispensable part of our team.
WHERE THE MAGIC HAPPENS
Producing gins that people enjoy drinking is our TOP priority but to be honest, when we are working on blends, we imagine WE are drinking it!
Each day at the ‘coal face’ brings memorable moments. From delivering orders to customers, bars and bottle shops to being ‘busted’ by Black Cat Gin fans curious about the faces behind the label – we relish these encounters. The tough days melt away when we connect with fellow ginthusiasts.
Our downtime is a vital part of our creative process. The distillery garden is our sanctuary and connects us to the seasonality of our gins. Harvesting citrus, leafy botanicals and sloes; protecting sensitive Queensland botanicals from the Barossa winter; planting, clipping and watering – it’s a labour of love that never ends but brings us enormous satisfaction and flexibility.
Seasonality – by definition this is the variation which occurs regularly, over a period of time, i.e. the seasons. Ensuring we capture the characteristic of each gin every year, despite variable growing seasons requires careful observation and planning in the distillery garden. For instance, our Archimedes gin is distilled with fresh olives in the botanical mix. Timing is everything and requires paying careful attention to the maturation of olives so that we harvest at optimal ripeness to guarantee the perfect balance of flavours. Too green and the Archimedes would be too astringent; too ripe and it would be too oily. This labour of love demands multiple trial distillations each year to ensure we craft the best version of Archimedes possible.
BLOOPERS
Even the best laid plans .....
Trials and experiments are nearly the most fun thing about working in the distillery. So long as they are drinkable, right? Actually, we utilise our reflux (or column) still to ‘clean’ any spirit for reuse. This is not only a vital piece of equipment for perfecting our gins but it allows us to reuse/recycle our base spirit to eliminate wastage.
YIN AND YANG
The secret to maintaining the harmony of the universe? In the distillery universe it’s the balance between science and intuition, as well as playing to our strengths. Understanding the ‘why’ and ‘how’ allows us to be precise yet creative in our experimentation and to recognise when we have succeeded in creating a symphony from the botanical chaos.
We incorporate each other’s strengths in the process - from precise engineering to developing flavour and botanical combinations that sing in tune. Its where the magic happens. Whether people pour themselves a classic G&T or concoct a technicolour flavour explosion, we hope drinkers of Black Cat Gin enjoy an original gin spirit and appreciate the craft that has gone into its creation.
Cin Cin
Diane & Steve