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There’s a well trodden path in Tasmania of revamping historical sites with whisky distilleries. Sullivans Cove was the first, when property developer Robert Hosken built the original Tasmania Distillery in the old Hobart Gasworks. Another property developer, Keith Batt, did the same thing with Nant Distillery at Bothwell Estate. Redlands Distillery was then constructed at the stunning Redlands Estate and later moved to Dysart House in Kempton; then Shene Distillery at the historic Shene Estate, now set to become the new home of Lark; Lawrenny Distilling at the… you get the idea.
Callington Mill tower – Oz Whisky Review
The new $14 million Callington Mill Distillery, which recently opened its doors to the public, is the latest proponent of this Tasmanian theme. Although the design and scale of this new enterprise is a definite progression of the concept.
I visited Oatlands and the new distillery for the first time a couple months back and got an exclusive preview of the site. It’s a complex operation which takes some unpacking, because the vision here is ambitious, and Callington’s backstory is connected to a number of other Tasmanian distilleries.
Oatlands is located roughly halfway between Hobart and Launceston just off the main highway that connects the two cities. When you pull into town, you’re greeted by stolid and quaint Georgian-style homes that line High Street, the main drag. Further along near the centre of town, the white sails of the old Callington Mill come into view. The size and scale of the sandstone tower, built by publican and free settler John Vincent in 1837, dominates. Across from the mill and the restored heritage buildings, the new distillery rises up in a wave of glass and triangles.
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Nothing about this pointy modernism necessarily gels with Oatlands, renowned as a Georgian showpiece town. In the past, tourists have been drawn to Oatlands’ 138 sandstone buildings, reportedly the most of any town in the country. That and the fully restored 185 year old mill, the only mill of its type that’s currently operational in the Southern Hemisphere.
And yet, the more I walked around, the more I started to understand the conversation the new distillery buildings, designed by renowned architecture firm Cumulus Studio, were having with the site and its heritage.
I was welcomed to Callington by general manager Rizk Mawass. Everyone I talked to about the Callington project in Tasmania spoke highly of Rizk, and after spending some time with him, I could see why.
As Rizk showed me through the heritage buildings, cellar door, restaurant and distillery (phone constantly pinging with calls from contractors and distillery workers), his enthusiasm and reverence for the project was palpable.
‘We want our distillery to be one of the safest and greenest in the world, and we have full transparency and authenticity in our entire process to create premium Tasmanian single malt whisky.’
The modern day Callington mill
The man who put Rizk in charge of the project is John Ibrahim. For over three decades, the Sydney-based Ibrahim has owned and run multiple Caltex service stations throughout New South Wales. He’s also a property developer, and that’s how he originally came into contact with the Tasmanian whisky industry.
When the aforementioned Redlands Distillery needed a new home after the estate owners sold the property in 2015, Dysart House in Kempton, around 40 minutes away, was proposed as an ideal location. Ibrahim had recently purchased Dysart, and when he met Bill Lark, also a Redlands investor, he was eventually convinced to turn Dysart into the new Redlands, now Old Kempton Distillery.
John Ibrahim. Photo – Callington Mill Distillery
Ibrahim became an investor in Old Kempton as part of the deal. From there, his enthusiasm for whisky, a subject he admits he hadn’t thought much about prior to the investment, rapidly blossomed. Soon he invested heavily in Shene Estate & Distillery, then run by Anne and David Kernke. His investment helped to supercharge Shene’s growth, and the estate and its eponymous distillery was then sold to Lark Distilling Co in late 2021 for $40 million.
But well before that sale, Ibrahim had already developed a plan to turn the Callington Mill precinct at Oatlands into a new distillery and heritage site. After Ibrahim purchased what was once the colonial-era Lake Frederick Inn that sits next to Callington Mill, a search began for the best distillery design possible.
Discussions were arranged with Forsyths in Scotland and CARL in Germany. Ibrahim then almost signed a contract with Frilli still makers in Italy (who installed Starward’s latest upgrade), before Bill Lark convinced him to hold out for a local company.
Callington Mill brewhouse – Oz Whisky Review
Eventually, Ibrahim struck up a relationship with Kolmark Engineering based in Tasmania’s north. Kolmark had long specialised in metal fabrication and large-scale equipment for the food and beverage industry. But seeing the explosion in local spirits production, Kolmark pivoted to building stills, and more recently, designing and installing fitouts under their new company, Stillsmiths.
Ibrahim and Kolmark managing director Mark Kolodziej then travelled to Cardrona Distillery in New Zealand (a Forsyths build) to research and devise their own turnkey distillery fitout. With the research done and the designs drawn up, Kolmark started construction at Callington in early 2020.
Callington Mill casks filled with spirit from Glenorchy, Old Kempton and Shene distilleries
Behind the scenes, work on the distillery had, in a way, already began in the form of a prototype distillery at a site in Glenorchy, a suburb in Hobart’s north. Kolmark and Ibrahim wanted to fine tune and road test some of their designs and the prototype distillery allowed them to do exactly that. Ibrahim and the team also started filling casks using malt spirit from the prototype stills in early 2019. The Glenorchy site continues to distil and fill casks with spirit today.
The Kolmark team worked through 2020 and 2021 with Tasmania evading the worst of the pandemic, and by late last year Callington Mill Distillery was completed.
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‘I think the Callington Mill story has it all,’ Ibrahim later told via me email, following the opening. ‘It will appeal to lovers of history, lovers of tradition, lovers of whisky… We are restoring and celebrating Callington Mill’s history with a firm eye on the future, on our destination, which is to become a worldwide recognisable brand.’
The first look at the Callington Mill whisky brand was revealed in late 2021 with the unveiling of the Leap of Faith Series, a whopping eight bottlings – six using spirit sourced from Old Kempton Distillery, the other two starting with triple distilled spirit sourced from Shene Distillery (see here for our review of the series).
Callington Mill Leap of Faith Series
Whisky distilled and matured at Callington Mill in Oatlands won’t be ready for a few years yet, but, whisky distilled at the Glenorchy site is almost ready to go and will be used in upcoming Callington bottlings. When I asked Rizk if using this Glenorchy-distilled whisky might confuse the Callington ‘single’ malt concept, he told me that the provenance of the spirit will be made clear on future bottlings, as it has been with the Leap of Faith of Series.
As for production at Callington Mill, Kolmark and Ibrahim have left no stone unturned on the distillery build. A number of green credentials have been built into the distillery via energy saving processes and a specially designed electric boiler.
In terms of production, a 1.5 tonne mash tun feeds eight fermenters with wash, and after a long ferment, wort will be pumped into a 9000 litre wash still and 6500 litre spirit still, producing around 420,000 litres of new make per year when fully operational. The award-winning Poltergeist gin has also been purchased and relocated to Callington, and peated whisky using a Kolmark-designed smoking drum is also on the cards.
Callington’s cask program, with maturation taking place at a site located just outside town, is vast. Alongside sourcing sherry and port casks from Spain and Portugal and some Australian fortified wine casks, Callington is also carrying out cask seasoning onsite with bulk imported sherry. A bottling plant and cooperage will eventually be constructed alongside the 18 bond stores that have currently been built (a further six bond stores, at least, are also on the way).
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For the town of Oatlands, the importance of the new distillery can’t be understated. Oatlands had been languishing before Ibrahim came along, and was desperate to attract more visitors to the area. The updated Callington Mill precinct will certainly take care of that.
‘I believe we appeal to all,’ says Ibrahim. ‘Our visitor experience showcases Oatlands’ colonial past. The heritage precinct is brought to life with audio and video activation offering a true historic experience. The windmill is fully restored and its presence is majestic. Our BBQ area and children’s adventure park is world class. Our restaurant boasts Tasmanian produce – honest food on a plate. There is something for the whole family.’
‘And, of course, there is the whisky, the distillery and the barrel room, all brought to life by an unguided tour: where you can rub shoulders with our whisky makers, where animation and interpretation boards provide knowledge of our whisky making process, where you can blend and bottle your own whisky.’
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The first entry level Callington Mill whiskies are retailing at $120 for 700ml at 46%, marking a departure from other Tasmanian malts which predominately start at $150+ for 500ml.
There are, as you can see, plenty of departures and moving parts to the Callington project. What would be a small to mid-sized distillery internationally has quickly established itself as one of Tassie’s biggest producers. Some of the finer details still need to be worked through, and Callington-produced whisky is a few years away, but this is the next phase of Tasmanian whisky coming to life. A new tier of larger, well capitalised Tasmanian whisky distillery is emerging, and I’d check out Oatlands for a taste of what that might look like.
