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One recipient is Bellarine Distillery, established in 2015 on a former chicken farm by couple Lorelle and Russ Watson.<\/p>\n
The distillery, which produces a range of award-winning gins and whiskys, is the first on the Bellarine Peninsula and the first to open in the Geelong region since the closure of the Corio Distillery in the 1980s.<\/p>\n
Bellarine Distillery used a grant from the Distillery Door Program to create The Whiskery – a rustic cellar door space created from an old farm shed at the site – and Treasurer Tim Pallas, Bellarine MP Alison Marchant and Member for Western Victoria Gayle Tierney visited the facility on Friday last week.<\/p>\n
“We greatly appreciate the funding provided by the Victorian government through the Distillery Door Program,” Mrs Warren said.<\/p>\n
“It has allowed us to enhance the visitor experience and continue to provide employment opportunities for up to 34 employees across our distillery door, distillery and marketing teams.”<\/p>\n
Mr Pallas congratulated the distillery on its success.<\/p>\n
“Victorian-made drinks are some of the best in the world and the growth in the local distilling sector has been nothing short of phenomenal,” he said.<\/p>\n
“Bellatrine Distillery is a fantastic local success story delivering significant benefits in terms of jobs and visitation that flow through to the wider community,” Ms Marchant added.<\/p>\n
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