Seabourne Distillery

Growing up, Hayden Weir was never far from distilling. Friends still recall stories of house parties at which Weir’s bootlegging grandfather would arrive, homemade spirits in hand. Years later while travelling through Japan, a trip to the Yamazaki whisky distillery outside Kyoto would inspire Weir to revisit these memories and, by 2020, he was back in Noosa distilling gin under the name Seabourne.

Seabourne’s signature Coastal Dry gin is a botanical-heavy blend of river mint, sea parsley and three local limes (blood, finger and sunrise). Other gins in the range include the Berry Blush – a ruby-coloured spirit flavoured with blackberries, blueberries and raspberries – and the Pacific Gin, an easy-drinking London dry style infused with chamomile, lemon aspen and blood lime. Seabourne’s amaro, Sunset Bitter, is pitched somewhere between Campari and Aperol.

Friday to Sunday, punters can sample the entire range when Seabourne’s bright and airy warehouse distillery turns into a tasting bar. There are cocktails, too, split between classics (the Coastal Dry is a dirty Martini favourite) and inventive seasonal numbers. Otherwise, try any gin matched with Fever Tree tonic – and snack on deli plates and toasties if the spirit moves you.