LIVING ON THE LAND
Nick and Ally Ayres
Easy to drive steering wheel Zero Turn Mower
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The Karu crew – husband and wife gin distillers , Ally and Nick Ayres . Producing world class gin has become their financial mainstay . Photo : Kathryn Johnston .
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STOCKISTS OF LEADING BRANDS
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by Greg Martin
You know you ’ re onto something when you win a trophy at a major international awards ceremony and Grog Goliath , Dan Murphy ’ s , wants to market your goods .
Husband and wife team , Nick and Ally Ayres , launched their Karu gin distillery business in Grose Vale in late 2017 and their development of skills and hard work have immediately reaped rewards .
The adage , “ luck always seems to favour the hard working ”, can without a doubt apply to the Ayres .
Since launching the first of their gin products , Affinity , in August 2018 , Karu Distillery ’ s gins have won just on 50 awards , including the latest bestowed on them at the 2021 International Wine and Spirits competition .
The international judges declared Karu ’ s signature drop , Affinity , as the World ’ s Best Contemporary Gin .
The success of Affinity from the very first drop set Nick and Ally on the road to owning a highly successful business .
The Karu range of Affinity and Lightning gins , G & Tea cocktail infusions and the increasingly popular Morita Chipotle Vodka , are marketed all over Australia .
Other major outlets selling Karu products locally are BWS in Richmond , Windsor McGraths Hill and Riverstone and independent retailers in Kurmond , Kurrajong and Wilberforce . And in the beginning .. .. .. Just the two of them did the lot – seeking the best of produce , tending the first of their stills which produced just 50 litres of Affinity gin and then marketing their wares .
“ We now produce our gin in a 200 litre still which we call “ Ding ’ – it arrived at the distillery with a ding in the back , and a 600 litre , Australian- made still which we are now using to produce a rum which we will soon begin to market ,” Nick said .
The staff has expanded beyond Ally , the chief distiller , and Nick who is the operation ’ s manager and Ally ’ s able assistant at the distilling caper .
Joining the Karu team are Brogan Clark , the brand ambassador – he is the face of Karu out in the marketplace , and Jill-of-all-trades , Michelle Nalty , who handles the social media and website as well as lending a hand selling Karu products at farmers markets all over the Hawkesbury , Hills and Blue Mountains .
And not to mention distillery-hands , Irene Sabur and Taylor Lang , whose workloads will be expanded to co-manage a Tasting Room at the distillery which should be open at the end of next month .
Obviously , your writer asked the Ayres , why leave their secure jobs and venture into unknown territory .
“ Ally and I met at a Punk and Music festival in Sydney in 2014 and we soon discovered that each of us wanted to open a cocktail bar in either the Hills , where I lived at Arcadia , or in the Hawkesbury – Ally ’ s a Cattai girl ,” Nick said .
“ We began experimenting with cocktails and we fell in love with what ’ s behind the many different tastes .” Tough job , but someone ’ s gotta do it ! “ We also studied many courses online and then headed down to Kempton in Tasmanian to complete an in-depth course in gin distillation and marketing conducted at the Old Kempton Distillery ,” Ally explained .
“ We also learned a lot in the early days from our peers , especially from the wonderful Reg and Greta Papps who operated Ironbark Distillery in North Richmond .
“ They made themselves available all times of the day and night , and for their support and encouragement , we ’ ll be forever thankful .”
Both Ayres somehow managed to continue working in the previous occupations despite devoting much of the spare time to learning their new craft .
“ Ally worked in accountancy and I was heavily involved in the film industry as a video editor and Grip who are the people who manage camera placement and movement ,” Nick explained .
Despite the success of their new venture , Ally and Nick are not resting on their laurels .
“ Our Tasting Room at the distillery at 296 Cabbage Tree Road , Grose Vale , is just about ready to open and we are now well on our way to commence distilling a rum and a range of liqueurs ,” Ally said .
Yep , fortune does favour the brave and those who put in the hard yakka !
38 ISSUE 142 // MARCH 2022 theindependentmagazine . com . au THE HAWKESBURY INDEPENDENT