Hurdle Creek Grain Jenever

If you’ve had a Jenever before, it was probably Bols (basically the only brand of Dutch-produced Jenever available in Australia). Bols has recently stopped importing into Australia at scale and our friends at Hurdle Creek (about an hour drive south of Albury-Wodonga) have stepped into the breach.

Jenever was likely first produced 300-400 years prior to gin being named/invented in London in the late 1600s. Around 1000 years ago, chemists and religious folk across Europe were on a mission to find an elixir which many called “aqua vitae” or the water of life in English. Juniper was often used in these concoctions as it was seen as somewhat of a health-improving herb. In fact, Juniper has been used in religious and health ceremonies for thousands of years longer than that – we’ve found Juniper berries used in Egyptian tombs used in the embalming process for mummies.

Jenever came about in the Netherlands because most the water of life elixirs were produced with grapes however it was too cold to grow grapes in Holland. They produced their spirit with a grains and barley.

Hurdle Creek have done just that with an Australian twist. It’s perfect neat, on the rocks, or mixed with a little Soda. If you have tried Jenever before and didn’t like it – give it another go, we did and we love it!

Due to COVID isolation requirements of the Box Bar team, the interview with the team at Hurdle Creek was delayed and will be available on 11 April. Thank you for your patience.