Hartshorn Distillery

We’re an award-winning micro-distillery in Birchs Bay, about 40 minutes south of Hobart. We’re the first team in the world to make and release small batches of spirits from sheep whey.

Sheep what?

Every bottle is handpainted and hand signed by us. It doesn’t get much more bespoke. Winner of World’s Best Vodka 2018.

We’ve got a fair bit to say about why we want what we do to have a positive impact on the environment and the community but, long story short, we’re really just trying not to shit on the planet.

Philosophy’s a bit of a fancy word. To us, it just means doing our best to do the right thing, to do it in a way that hasn’t been done before, and to respect everything involved along the way. The sheep, the people, the land. Every product (including Ewe Care & Grandvewe), we make on our property has to reduce waste and help the planet — environmentally, socially or both. In big boring business frameworks, they call it positive disruption but at Hartshorn, it’s just how we work. It’s a lot of thinking and a lot of hard yards but it’s pretty much the only rule we stick to.

How does it look in practice? The sheep’s whey used in our spirits is an already-existing byproduct from Grandvewe Cheeses. Instead of pouring it down the drain like most places, we worked out a way to use it and Bob’s your drunk uncle — Hartshorn was born. Each day since, we’ve challenged ourselves to innovate further, push the boundaries of the traditional distilling practice and punch out more world-firsts in spirit-making. And it doesn’t stop at our spirits, either. Once our gins are adequately infused, the used botanicals are taken over to Grandvewe and used again — this time fragrancing their sheep’s milk cheese. Trash-to-treasure, teat-to-tipple kinda stuff.

Doing good things differently has and always will be the focus of anything that’s made on our farm.

It’s something we also flex in all of our packaging. Yes, everything is compostable and recyclable — the boxes, the labels, the tape — but our bottles are designed to be kept. They look as good as they taste for a reason. Chuck a flower in it, stick it on a shelf, tell everyone you saw it at MONA. Each of our gift boxes is also stuffed with some sheeps’ wool from our farm. This not only helps to keep our big, boozy babies safe during delivery but adds a little extra to the experience for whoever’s on the receiving end. A bit of where what’s in the bottle you’re holding began. A bit of our home in yours. 

Hartshorn’s more than just a little distillery. It’s more than just a bottle of spirits. It’s our creative outlet. It’s an expression of ourselves. It’s part of our commitment to the environment and how we do our bit like everyone needs to be doing. Doing good things differently has and always will be the focus of anything that’s made on our farm. Producing a vodka you can drink neat without choking’s just an added bonus.

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