For a decade, Australian gin has been a story of proliferation. New distilleries, new botanicals, new releases crowding the shelf. But Never Never co-founder Sean Baxter thinks the real action has moved somewhere else entirely.
“There’s a limit to how many gin bottles can fit on a supermarket shelf,” he says. “And if you plan on staying there, you need to work hard on being able to move it. Realistically, that’s your job as a brand, not the retailer.”
It is thinking that sits behind Never Never’s Great Aussie G&T, a national initiative designed to get Australians back into venues and reconnect them with one of the category’s most dependable on-premise serves. Not a reinvention of the drink, but a celebration of it.
Baxter is pragmatic about why the on-trade matters so much right now. “In many cases, it’s easier to invest money into on-trade discounts and partnerships with the right venues than to spend on expensive awareness campaigns to drive velocity. It’s also the most cost-effective way to create new brand fans and generate trial.”
Why the G&T is still king
In an era of constantly evolving cocktail menus, the gin and tonic has held its ground. Baxter puts that down to its inherent flexibility.
“It can be dressed up in a wine glass with multiple garnishes or delivered in a can at Laneway Festival or Gather Round. Its flexibility as a serve speaks to a wide array of customers, and it’s a great example of an aperitif serve that caters for the widest selection of drinking occasions.”
The botanical complexity that defines gin as a category is also what makes the G&T such a reliable canvas. Baxter still thinks the best expressions start from the same place.
“The best Gin and Tonic expressions come from a solid base of classic juniper character, which can then be manipulated through the tonic addition and garnish.” For Never Never’s Triple Juniper Gin, that means lemon. For its Oyster Shell Gin, a salty coastal tonic and lime leaf.
“When all else fails, flip over the bottle and check for a signature G&T recipe,” he adds. “Gin producers love adding these to the back label.”
What venues actually want
The conversation with bartenders and venue owners has shifted, according to Baxter. Price point still matters, but it is no longer the whole story.
“More than ever, venue owners and bartenders are asking for support, not only in spirit price points but in the way brands are able to promote and drive the product’s availability among your own support networks. What can you offer the venue that other larger brands can’t?”
For Never Never, that local angle is a genuine point of difference. “How do your local connections work better than those interstate or international brands? Working with venues is critical if you want to see any sort of volume through that channel. No one is in the business of selling bottle-shaped dust collectors.”
The goal, he says, is to create incentive to have the spirit featured as often as possible on cocktail menus and specials boards.
Education versus enjoyment
On the suggestion that premium spirits brands risk over-explaining their product at the expense of just letting people enjoy the drink, Baxter pushes back.
“Australian consumers are some of the most educated in the world when it comes to how we consume. We’re so aware of wine varieties we often joke openly about it in our popular culture (SavvvvyBeeee Kim), and this is shared in our beer and coffee industries as well.”
He points to wine, beer and coffee as categories where Australians have long been comfortable with both knowledge and pleasure existing in the same glass. “When your bottle is often twice the price of an imported entry-level product, you need to stand on your quality assurances and local ingredient claims. The only way to do that is through education.” And the payoff, he argues, is a better drink.
“I strongly believe the higher quality of the gin, the better the final drink, regardless of whether it’s served with tonic water or served straight up in a martini.”
Never Never’s Great Aussie G&T is running nationally across hospitality venues now.
Find more food and drink features on Crumb Wire.
