The Spirit on the Murray Festival was a successful two-day event held at Radcliffe’s in Echuca, showcasing Victoria’s craft distillers.
The inaugural Spirit on the Murray Festival has been celebrated as a success, drawing together Victoria’s finest craft distillers for a two-day showcase at Radcliffe’s in Echuca on September 6 and 7.
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Twenty-five distilleries from across Victoria gathered to share their craft, offering masterclasses and tasting experiences.
Echuca Distillery head distiller Peter de Vries noted the event’s strong turnout and enthusiastic response from industry participants and guests alike.
“At the masterclass, we had 40 people come in, sit down, have tea, coffee, cake and listen to what James, Holly, Leigh and Shaun had to say,” Mr de Vries said.
“I heard James and Leigh speak and they were both very personal.
“They had the crowd laughing and James was talking a bit about the history of rum, the laws about rum, how it is interpreted in Australia versus the rest of the world and some differences and how we are allowed to solve things one way here and not in the rest of the world and vice versa and the complications that come with that as well, which was all very interesting.
“Leigh from Backwoods had some really cool thoughts on producing spirits in Australia.”
The masterclass explored the nuances of rum production and Australian spirit-making heritage.
“We don’t quite have the traditions, as for example, Scottish whisky, where it is all done a certain way,” Mr de Vries said.
After the masterclass, the festival hosted two Saturday sessions at Radcliffe’s, where people could chat and taste with any of the 25 distilleries in attendance.
Twenty-five distilleries participated, offering masterclasses and tasting experiences to a positive response from industry participants and guests.
Echuca Distillery head distiller Peter de Vries highlighted the engaging and informative masterclasses led by industry experts, including discussions on rum production and Australian spirit-making heritage.
“Everyone liked the number of people in the venue. They love the venue and having the ability to get one-on-one time with the distillers,” Mr de Vries said.
Sunday featured a free, family-friendly market day, celebrating local food and beverage producers.
Campaspe Shire Mayor Daniel Mackrell attended the market day and said it was fantastic to see events such as this bringing local producers and their products to the attention of a wider audience.
“Council is working hard with producers to further explore opportunities like this one, and we hope to see more such events on our calendar soon,” he said.
Mr de Vries noted the festival attracted an equal mix of locals and visitors from outside the region, with organisers already planning improvements for next year’s event.
“We have definitely got some firm ideas of how we can make it even better next time,” he said.
