Queensland craft distillery Granddad Jack's has opened its first exclusive bar - and it's in Newcastle. Our city, it seems, ticked all the boxes.
"We had been looking around trying to find a place that felt similar to the earlier days of the Gold Coast," founder David Ridden says. He's the grandson of the late David Gould, otherwise known as "Granddad Jack".
"For us, the most important thing is community and we felt so welcomed here in Newcastle every time we visited.
"We found the perfect building to restore and a great spot in the city with local traffic. Newcastle already has so much to offer, and we know it's only becoming more appreciated."
Granddad Jack's is the very definition of a "family affair". Ridden's wife Nicky looks after customer relations, his son Luke is the head distiller and co-founder, and his daughter-in-law Jessica handles marketing and administration.
"My granddad was my absolute favourite person, and he gave everything a go," he says.
"Everything we do is guided by his memory, and our spirits are named and inspired by moments in his life.
"One of my favourite memories is when we just used to sit in the whiskey hut and drink whiskey and talk about life. I miss those days."
Ridden knew "absolutely nothing" about distilleries when the decision was made to start the business.
"We just wanted to tell our family's story," he says.
"Along the way, we became much more than just story tellers. Granddad would be very proud and probably wonder what all the fuss was about.
"We wanted to create a place you would feel at home, a neighbourhood spot where the community could gather, share a drink and a story - exactly like my granddad's barbershop or backyard.
"On the Gold Coast, there were no other distilleries, and we found the Miami/Burleigh area the perfect place because it has that real small community/village feel, and everyone has been incredibly supportive."
Granddad's Bar Experience, as it is called, in Newcastle differs from the two Granddad Jack's venues in Queensland. They are working distilleries with tasting rooms, but this is a standalone bar which only uses Granddad Jack's spirits in the drinks it serves.
"As a spirits brand, we only ever sell direct to the consumer via our tasting rooms or online so you can only ever try our core range and limited releases at our venues," Ridden explains.
"Our bar experience in Newcastle has a carefully curated cocktail menu featuring these spirits and sold-out spirits.
"Each drink has a food pairing, created to enhance your tasting experience. You can also BYO food (so order in a pizza or bring in a cheeseboard) and support some other great eateries around us."
The Granddad Jack's "core range" consists of three unique gins, a vodka, a coffee liqueur and a variety of single-barrel whiskeys.
"These are complemented by two monthly limited releases and seasonal releases," Ridden says.
"To date, we have won over 100 awards for our spirits, including 'World's Best Coffee Liqueur' and 'Australia's Number 1 Favourite Gin'. Everything we sell, is carefully produced, bottled, labelled and waxed by hand at our family-owned Queensland distilleries."
