In 2015 during the Yarra Valley vintage, Four Pillars were making gin out the back of Rob Dolan’s winery in Warrandyte. In April, a tiny parcel of just 250kg of Shiraz came to the winery from one of the region's best vineyards, and Dolan wasn’t sure what to do with it. Four Pillars took the Shiraz off Rob’s hands, and he never saw it again. Cam Mackenzie from Four Pillars believed that it should be steeped in high-proof gin to see what would happen. After weeks the juice turned a magical purple colour and built sweetness straight from the ripe grapes. The spice and the pepper of the Shiraz started to combine with the citrus and juniper notes of the gin. The sweet elixir was born, and as the team were discussing how they had bled the colour from the skins, the natural next step was to settle on an unmistakably Australian name, Bloody Shiraz Gin.
Currently, the Four Pillars Bloody Shiraz Gin is only available in Australia, but other gins in the range are available in New Zealand. For more information visit www.fourpillarsgin.com.au.
