Knocklofty - Spirit of West Hobart

On my adventures so far I have discovered that the more that you put yourself out there the more invitations to attend exciting events will come your way.  My friend casually asked me, "Do you drink gin?"   Hahahahaha.  I was subsequently invited to attend the launch of her new venture - a distillery.  Yeah baby!!

The setting for this fabulous event was beautiful.  It was held in amazing gardens hidden away in suburban Hobart.  It was the stuff of the English novels I read as a child.  I felt like I'd entered an Enid Blyton book and I fully expected to see fairies at the bottom of the garden enjoying 'lashings of ginger beer'.  The music, however, was reminiscent of that in a hip London bar on the Thames.  It all conspired to make me feel that maybe I was now one of the elite social set who get invited to fancy launch parties.

Knocklofty's products are made in their small distillery in West Hobart using their own base spirit.  They individually distill each botanical and hand bottle and label each product.  They currently produce three products - Penn Gin, O Orange Liqueur, and Kahvi Coffee Liqueur.

Penn Gin has a very smooth mouth feel then you are hit with the taste of Tasmanian Pepper Berry, ground Wattle seeds, Angelica root and Thai basil.  It has a distinctly Asian influence which made me feel that I was at a fancy Thai resort putting away endless gin inspired cocktails by the pool.  Thailand has that special smell that has been bottled and infused in this gin.  It is one of the best gins I have ever tasted and is the perfect drink to accompany your stir fry.  All gin lovers should give this one a go - you won't regret it.

O Orange liqueur is very sweet and was good with ice and water but would be better in a cocktail or a great addition to Sangria.  I can't wait to do some experimenting.  Kahvi also very sweet but was great with cream and ice.  It is sweeter and had a stronger coffee taste than a certain popular coffee liqueur.  I am looking forward to trying these two in a B-52 shot.

Now that I am a sophisticate that gets invited to fancy openings maybe I have proven my worth as a 'Supporter of Local Producers'. I can't wait to see what Knocklofty come up with next so I can take another step forward in achieving my New Year Resolutions.



Postscript:  If you take a look at Knocklofty's website you'll notice that the cover photo looks familiar.  It appears that I am now a photographer, of sorts.  It seems that I am more than just a Patron of the Arts but an actual Artist.  Yay me!

Knocklofty Website