Applewood Distillery

About the distillery (Kort om destilleriet)

Applewood Distillery is located in Gumeracha in the Adelaide Hills and makes Australian spirits with a clearly place- and season-driven character. There is a focus on small batches, foraged botanicals, and production rooted in Peramangk Country. It is primarily a gin producer, but also a house that uses collaborations and experiments to explore how Australian plants, smoke, and wood can shape flavor.

History (Historie)

Founded by Brendan Carter (Grundlagt af Brendan Carter)

Brendan Carter stands as the founder and formulates the distillery’s view of place as a distillery that sits within its landscape rather than on top of it. From the beginning, the work has been described as small-scale and grounded, with a focus on terroir and on using botanicals from Australian landscapes.

B Corp certification (B Corp-certificering)

The distillery describes itself as Australia’s first B Corp-certified distillery and highlights that the work is measured, verified, and published every year.

Bottle Shock in Gumeracha (Bottle Shock i Gumeracha)

In Gumeracha in the Adelaide Hills, Bottle Shock has become the distillery’s bar and bottle shop. From Friday to Monday, pours are served, and guests can, by arrangement, have an Applewood journey and tasting set up on site.

Ingredients and production (Råvarer og produktion)

Production is based on a grape-based spirit and a broad botanical palette. The signature gin is built on 25 botanicals, with Wattleseed, Strawberry Gum, Desert Lime, and Saltbush among the names that come through most clearly. Applewood emphasizes that everything in the bottle is there for the sake of flavor, and that the most special ingredients are among the plants that grow here and that many Australians rarely get to taste. The work is described as small batch distillations with foraged and selected botanicals, with an emphasis on distillation as an agricultural craft—dependent on soil, seasons, and growers. This results in a style where the raw material and the landscape guide the expression, while the product expressions can range from dry, herbal-leaning notes to floral-driven, smoky, and spiced profiles.

Maturation and cask types (Modning og fadtyper)

Maturation takes place especially in the collaborative releases. Flicker is an aged Australian gin explicitly stored in native wood and composed of three distillates. This kind of work points to the fact that the wood is used to add depth, structure, and a more mature expression than in a classic, clear gin. Plume takes another direction, where smoked Davidson plums and maceration are included as part of the overall profile. At Applewood, then, storage and experiments are not an end in themselves, but a way to expand the gin’s range.

Whiskies (Whiskyer)

The core range consists of Applewood Gin along with three named Core Range editions: Coral, Alpine, and Navy. The signature gin is described as The Desert, while the other products are grouped under an idea of one continent and four landscapes. In addition, there are collaborative releases such as Flicker, Flourish, Plume, and Garden Gin, all of which work more explicitly with seasonality, ingredients, and experiments. The range therefore sits between a fixed core and a layer of limited releases, where the expressions can go from fresh botanical notes to smoke, florals, and darker, more spiced profiles.

The style and flavor profile of the whiskies (Whiskyernes stil og smagsprofil)

Across the range, there is a clear through-line of strawberry gum, desert lime, and wattleseed, which provide both freshness, acidity, and an earthy sweetness. Several editions also draw on citrus and spice, while Flicker adds light smokiness and a nutty sweetness. Flourish leans toward flowers, florals, and vanilla, and Plume brings together spice, citrus, smoked Davidson plum, wattleseed, and cacao into a deeper and more dark style.

Visiting the distillery (Besøg destilleriet)

Applewood can be visited in Gumeracha, where Bottle Shock serves as the distillery’s bar and bottle shop at 24 Victoria Street. It is open from Friday to Monday, and tastings are arranged by appointment. The visit is not a traditional tour, but a place where you can sit down, enjoy something good to drink, and arrange an Applewood journey if you want to go further into botanicals, flavor, and the landscape the spirit comes from.

The stated opening hours are: Bottle Shock is open Friday to Monday. Tastings are arranged by appointment.
See times and book a visit.

Philosophy and craft (Filosofi og håndværk)

The distillery’s philosophy is tied to provenance, terroir, and an agriculture-minded understanding of spirit. Small batches are made with botanicals from Australian places and with a declared willingness to use ingredients that are there for the sake of flavor and not for show. As a B Corp-certified company, Applewood also highlights transparency and verified, annual measurements of the work.

Sustainability (Bæredygtighed)

Certified B Corporation.
Australia's First B Corp–Certified Distillery.
The way we work is measured, verified and published every year.

Awards and recognition (Priser og anerkendelser)

• Double Gold (Double Gold, Applewood Gin)

• Gold (Gold, Applewood Gin)

• 90 Points (2018, 90 Points, Applewood Gin)

Latest news (Seneste nyheder)

Escape to Gumeracha: A Perfect Family Weekend – 2024-12-18

A travel post about Gumeracha as a weekend destination with the well-known hobby horse, local vineyards, locally produced ingredients, and views across the Adelaide Hills.

Celebrate in Style With Geraldton Waxflower – 2024-06-06

A post about Geraldton Waxflower, described with citrus and pine-like aromas and the season’s use in cocktails and spirits.

Getting Snapped Up By Bush Tomatoes – 2024-05-09

A post about bush tomatoes as an ingredient from spring forest and the outback in the distillery’s story and work with Australian plants.