Region & History

On an autumn morning in 2013, three friends hauled a copper still from Germany out of the delivery van in Healesville. The town sits a short hour's drive east of Melbourne, right in the heart of the Yarra Valley. Cameron Mackenzie, Stuart Gregor, and Matt Jones named the still Wilma, after the deceased mother of the head distiller. With Wilma, the three founded Four Pillars, the region's first standalone gin distillery.

Their first release, the Rare Dry Gin, built on juniper, citrus, and spices. Two botanicals joined that had rarely featured in gin before: Tasmanian pepperberry and lemon myrtle from the bush. Success came quickly, and the single still grew into several over the years. Healesville became a mandatory stop for anyone driving through the Yarra Valley wine region.

Shortly before, in 2012, winemaker Andrew Marks founded the Melbourne Gin Company in the heart of Melbourne. Rather than a classic pot still, he used equipment originally built for perfume production. He distilled each ingredient separately before blending the distillates into a single gin. In 2013, the Melbourne Dry Gin became the distillery's first bottle to hit the market.

Both distilleries found a city that already had its own drinking culture. In the narrow Russell Place, the Gin Palace opened in 1997, one of Melbourne's first laneway bars. Velvet sofas and dim lighting were meant to recreate the spirit of the gold rush era there.

Today, Victoria ranks among Australia's densest gin landscapes, carried by Yarra water, bush botanicals, and a city that takes its small bars seriously.