Distillery Trail: Mornington Peninsula
Best for
Holiday makers, families, coast lovers, romantic escapes, foodies. Great for adventurous taste-makers who wish to open their minds to new ways of thinking about classic spirits.
Distilleries Visited
- Penni Ave - Rye (Botanical vodka)
- Jimmy Rum - Dromana (Rum)
- Bass & Flinders - Dromana (Gin, Brandy)
- Chief’s Son - Somerville (Whisky, Vodka)
Transport Options
Your best option is to drive from Melbourne (approx 1hr). If driving is not an option you can jump on a train to Frankston where you’ll find buses for the next leg of your journey. There is also a plethora of tours that take you to destination makers across spirits, wine, cheese and more.
Duration
1 (1-2 distilleries) or 2 days (all 4)
Stop 1: Penni Ave Distillery
43 Peninsula Avenue, Rye
Experiences
Tasting paddles, cocktail bar, cafe, rotating food trucks, events & functions, live music & trivia.
Overview
Penni Ave is the definition of a community hub. Nestled within an industrial estate, Penni Ave brings a bright, buzzing energy to Rye. Starting the day with great coffee and pastries as a cafe, the venue switches to a bar in the afternoon and evenings where you can sample their adventurous range of botanical vodkas across tasting paddles, cocktails and simple serves. If you think there’s not much to vodka think again — Penni Ave’s focus on native botanicals will challenge that perception as you take your taste buds on an adventure through flavours like wattleseed, burnt honey, aniseed, lemon myrtle, kakadu plum and more.
Great for
Families, friends and your four legged pals with something for everyone from coffee, to cocktails, vodka and local beers.
Food
Cafe pastries or check the website for the rotating schedule of food trucks. Keep an eye on the food truck schedule here.
Highlights
Vodka Tasting & Cocktail Experience
If you have the time to settle in, this experience offers you a full range tasting as well as a signature cocktail and one hour to settle in and soak up the hive of local activity buzzing around you. Great for events and functions with groups of up to 30 people bookable. Info and booking here.
Recommended experience
Tour & Tasting
Book yourself (and up to 39 of your friends) in for this 45 minute experience that takes you for a tour through the distillery and production methods behind Penni Ave, followed by a 30 minute guided tasting through the range. You can then settle in to catch an event, live music or more cocktails and a feed after for the “full experience”. Info and bookings here.
While you’re there: distiller’s recommendation
Gen highly recommends heading down to the newly-renovated and ever impressive Hotel Sorrento. Not only is it a great venue in their own right, but they also feature an irresistible Penni Ave Wattleseed & Burnt Honey Martini. For the coast lovers, head down to 16th Beach for a truly beautiful landscape, one so incredible that it inspired Penni Ave’s 16th Beach Vodka boasting notes of Sea Celery and Salt Bush.
Stop 2: JimmyRum
6 Brasser Avenue, Dromana, Victoria, 3936
(Nestled within the Dromana Maker’s Habitat)
Experiences
Tastings, tours, hands-on distilling, “Spice It Your Way” spiced rum masterclass, cocktail classes, exclusive “Day With The Distiller” (bespoke, 6-8hrs), cocktail bar, food and beer garden and an ever-rotating roster of happy hours & events on site.
Overview
Riddled with pre-conceptions of what “rum is”, James set out to change minds, win hearts and revolutionise what it means to be an “Australian Rum” with his award winning distillery found in the heart of the Dromana Maker’s Habitat.
Great for
Families, friends, the distilling-curious, the rum converted and rum curious. This site is cosy in winter with a massive bar and perfect for summer with a sprawling beer garden.
Food
Check the website for current menus.
Highlights
Daiquiri Disco Fridays
JimmyRum is returning to the 80s where disco was wild, Daiquiris were king and prices were groovy. From 4pm till late, you’ll walk back into 80s tunes with $6 flavoured daiquiris and snack plates.
A Day With The Distiller
Whether you’re a rum fan, have that friend who is hard to buy for or want to learn more about the art of rum and craft distilling, this experience grants you a full day in the distillery with one of JimmyRum’s expert distillers. You can tailor the experience to focus on what you’ll get the most out of from distilling, fermentation, bottling, record keeping, safety, business modeling, sales, marketing and beyond. Find out more here..
Recommended experience
Spice It Your Way - Masterclass
The only one of its kind, this masterclass is a two hour experience directly with the JimmyRum distilling team as they take you through their process, then invite you to get hands on to make your own. Like spiced rum but it’s too sweet/spicy or bitey? Not spicy enough? Make your own and they’ll also send you a 50ml bottle of your favourite blend for you to share with friends & family. More info and bookings found here.
While you’re there: distiller’s recommendation
JimmyRum is centered in the heart of the Dromana Maker’s Habitat. Make the most of your day here by visiting Bass & Flinders distillery literally down the road, or explore the plethora of “soul traders” such as Boatshed Cheese, cool-climate local wine makers Rhino Tiger Bear, Little Rebel Coffee Roastery, Red Hill Candlemakers and more. There’s something here for everyone, all within walking distance.
Stop 3: Bass & Flinders
40 Collins Road, Dromana
Located within the Dromana Maker’s Habitat.
Experiences
Gin masterclass, gin high tea, bottomless brunch, bar and cellardoor.
Overview
Bass & Flinders operate on the ethos of “from grape to glass”, making stunning gins from their own spirit base distilled from local grapes all the way through to prize winning brandies and cognacs. Distiller and Managing Director Holly Klintworth undertook a 6-week internship in Cognac, France, learning brandy and eau-de-vie production from generational master distillers in the Charente region. This priceless point of view, combined with their stunningly impressive important cognac still, means Bass & Flinders offer an experience found nowhere else world-wide.
Great for
Families, couples, groups of friends, special occasions, events, functions and sitting on the up-stairs rooftop balcony, sipping on a G&T and watching kangaroos bounce by.
Food
Check the website for current menus.
Highlights
Original & Gin Graduates
Start out with Bass & Flinders Original Gin Masterclass where over two hours you get hands on and craft your very own gin recipe (including a 500ml bottle to take home) — and this is where it gets interesting. Your recipe will be stored on site so that you can re-order your unique creation anytime.
If you’ve done that but you’re thinking to yourself, you want to give it a little more oomph? Come back for the truly unique Gin Graduates class. Starting with your original recipe, you now get to bring it new life exploring the addition of elevated botanicals such as yuzu, cubeb pepper or pink grapefruit, or natural colour for a purple or pink hue. You then perfect how to drink it, going through premium tonic pairings until its perfect match is found.
Both masterclasses include the 500ml bottle to take home, recipe storage for re-order and of course a delightful cheese platter to fuel your creative thinking. Find out more and book here.
Recommended experience
Farm To Table (2 hours)
Just like Bass & Flinders dedication to make their spirits from grape-to-glass, this farm-to-table experience is the perfect way to experience the Mornington Peninsula no matter the weather. Bass and Flinders will create two bespoke cocktails inspired by their land, home and spirits and pair it with a curated platter celebrating local cheese, meat and other gourmet delights such as goats cheese & roasted leek tarts, beetroot-cured smoked salmon and more. This lush experience takes you all across the Peninsula without moving from your seat. Find out more and book here.
While you’re there: distiller’s recommendation
Make an entire day of your time here and book a wine tour that includes a stop at Bass & Flinders. Sit back and let these tour groups take the reigns (and wheels):
Hop It
Elevate Wine Tours
Wine Compass
Elite Day Tours
Amour of the Grape
Brew Bus
Stop 4: Chief's Son
25/50 Guelph Street, Somerville
Experiences
Whisky tasting, distillery tour (+ cheese), tasting room & cellar door, private cask program.
Overview
Chief’s Son, a family run business, produces award-winning single malt whiskies (and vodkas). Established in 2013 by Stuart and Nicole, the couple spent three years trialing and testing their process until launching their first single malt at the current Somerville site. The duo believe that whisky is a spirit that brings people together, connecting family, friends and in this case creating a strong thread and paying homage to their intergenerational history of making fine whiskies.
Great for
Whisky fans, whisky curious, couples, groups and collectors who want something bespoke.
Highlights
Cellar Door
Chief’s Son has used their space brilliantly, so head on upstairs to the tasting room featuring large glass windows that overlook the operational distillery. Buy a whisky flight, settle in and watch the buzz and hum of what an operating distillery looks like with the best view in the house.
Recommended experience
Distillery Tour & Cheese Platter
Starting with bookings of a min 2 people, you might get a private tour or be paired with new friends as the team at Chief’s Son take you on a 1hr 40min journey through their site and whiskies. Your tour is hosted by a distiller as you check out the gear that makes the magic happen, sample whisky straight from the barrel, taste through the core range with a curated selection of cheese and fill your own 100ml sample to take home. At great value of only $89 per person you can find out more and book here.
