Never Never Distilling Co. has been awarded World’s Best Classic Gin for its Southern Strength Gin at the World Gin Awards, making history as the first Australian gin to win the prestigious award.
The South Australian distillery launched its Southern Strength Gin in 2017, and in that time, it has quickly become a popular choice at some of Australia’s top bars.
“This is a huge accolade for our young distillery,” says managing director of Never Never, George Georgiadis. “It’s a much coveted award and firmly puts Australia and South Australian gin on the world map, in a similar guise to what the World’s Best Whisky award did for Sullivan’s Cove and Tasmanian whisky.”
In the first round of competition, Never Never topped the Australian list in the Classic Gin category, earning the distillery a spot in the finals where it competed against the very best gins from around the world.
Southern Strength Gin bested a bevy of both emerging and established brands – including one of the world’s most popular gins, Tanqueray No. Ten. The distillery’s Juniper Freak Gin was also awarded Australia’s Best Navy Gin in previous rounds.
“When we started our distillery, we wanted to make waves with a modern take on the classic gin style, but never thought that we would have such a global impact in the short time that we have been in operation,” comments Sean Baxter, Never Never’s brand director.
Launching in August of 2017, Never Never Distilling Co. was founded by three friends passionate about creating bold and distinctive Australian spirits. Since the distillery’s inception, it has produced several award-winning gins, with the juniper at the forefront of everything they do.
Tim Boast, head distiller, thinks that this traditional juniper-forward approach – combined with a focus on quality, consistency and innovation – is the major reason behind Never Never’s success.
“We’re incredibly humbled and excited by the win,” says Boast. “It validates the decision we made right from the outset to focus on juniper as the hero of our gins.
“The Southern Strength Gin is a gin with purpose. It was made with a classic or savoury gin cocktail in mind. It’s a little higher in alcohol than our Triple Juniper Gin and botanically richer, so it stands up to tonic and dilution.”
