Tasmanian whisky has made a name for itself – a very good name. It all started with Sullivan’s Cove, which in 2014 became the first distillery outside of Scotland and Japan to win the World’s Best Single Malt at the World Whiskies Awards. And there are countless other distilleries on the Apple Isle, but Callington Mill is another major player in this field. The Callington Mill Distillery is in Oatlands, a charming, tiny, picture-book town with Australia’s highest concentration of historic sandstone buildings (150 of them!). It’s the largest intact Georgian streetscape in Australia, and it’s so well-preserved, it looks like a movie set. Even if you don’t like whisky (or gin), the town itself (in the middle of Hobart and Launceston – about an hour and a quarter drive from both) is well worth a visit.
You’ll know you’re at Callington Mill when you spot the (wind)mill – it’s the original one that was built back in 1837 and has been restored to full working order. The property was built as a flour mill, but the miller also distilled sly grog on the side. In 2017, John Ibrahim (not the Sydney bloke of the same name) – who had developed a passion for whisky through a friendship with Australia’s godfather of whisky making, Bill Lark – bought Callington Mill and started making whisky and gin.
Ibrahim has built a serious (but fun), world-class distillery operation from there. There’s now a fabulous on-site eatery and bar, where you can sit down for some fine spirits (or wine or beer, if you prefer) and an excellent meal – the menu heroes Tassie produce, particularly seafood (we had the scallops, bugs, crab cakes and gin-cured ocean trout while we were there, as well as some great chips cooked in duck fat). The dining room is so beautiful – that modern, Tassie style of architecture that spotlights concrete, timber and glass to let the outside in while keeping you cosy. It’s all put together in a dramatic, high-ceilinged, sharp-angles way. There is also a glass wall separating the dining room from the distillery, so you can see the copper stills in the other room.
You can of course tour the distillery, and – our favourite part – mix your own blend of Callington Mill whisky. Called the Serendipity experience ($295, including the personalised bottle of whisky you take home), you sit down in front of a range of tasting glasses and glass test tubes, then work out what ratio of a range of different flavours – from tokay to muscadelle – you want in your final mix. You can trial up to five different blends before deciding on your final recipe that you like best, and then they help you bottle that exact blend. You add a label to the bottle with your name, your signature and the date, then they actually keep your recipe in case you ever want to order it from them again. We don't purport to be whisky buffs, but we tried the experience ourselves and produced a delicious drop!
Callington Mill Distillery and Oatlands are great days out – Oatlands is cute, you’ll learn a lot, and you'll come away having enjoyed a whole lot of delicious Tassie food and drink. Try to shotgun the passenger seat (not the driver’s seat) for the way home.
FYI: If you want the Callington Mill experience in Hobart itself, head down to MACq01, where they have a restaurant and bar on the ground floor, looking out over the historic waterfront. Try some excellent whiskies or gins – or cocktails – and pair it with some great Japanese-inspired food if you’re hungry.