For so many Australians, 2020 has been a hard year. At the beginning of any year, there are resolutions, hopes and dreams for the year to come. No one could have imagined what we would all face!
We have dreamed of creating something uniquely Australian for years. We'd watch all sorts of documentaries and find ourselves discussing how indigenous foods were under-rated. We think about how native flavours would complement each other in different dishes or drinks. Our discussions turned into a passion for indigenous and native flavour testing, starting with us enjoying these ingredients in our own kitchen.
At the same time, we fell in love with the flourishing Australian Gin scene. Amazing Australian distillers are using Aussie botanicals to create internationally awarded gins. What didn't make sense was mixing these great Australian gins with European inspired or bland, artificially flavoured supermarket tonics. How does lavender and rosemary pair with lemon myrtle and lilly-pilly, for goodness sake? Other tonics might be great for standard gins, but they're not designed for Australia.
And so, the idea for Waterhole Tonics was born. Could we create the perfect tonic water for the emerging Australian gin scene?
So, in 2020 we embarked on creating a tonic water that someone could taste and enjoy the distinct, unique native flavours of Australia while also perfectly complementing Australian gin. While it took more time and many thousands more experiments than we thought it would, the perfect ratio of flavours finally became Waterhole Tonics.
In looking to manufacture, we expected that Australian ingredients may be difficult to source. We did not expect to have problems sourcing our beautiful 300ml bottles. We love the bottles we've selected - they're a little reminiscent of gin bottles. But, it appears that COVID has hit us (along with everyone else) and so we won't be going to market in 2020 with this gorgeous product in our preferred bottle.
In true Aussie spirit, we're fighting through. We are excited to announce that on Thursday this week, we'll be in production in a temporary 330ml bottle so that you, our valued customers and partners, can explore our Waterhole Trio. It will be the taste of what's to come in 2021!
If you are a distillery, bar or resturant and would like to find out more, please reach out to Jodie and the team at spirit@waterholemixers.com
