This award-winning distillery in Kent Town has a different approach

With more than 100 distilleries spread across South Australia, Jed Coffey acknowledges that “gin is a pretty flooded market. That means it's hard to sell a lot of bottles off the shelf unless you've got a pretty big marketing budget.”

So when he launched Reform Distilling after 16 years as a police officer, he decided to bring the customers to him.

“Most people build a brand first and look for a venue down the track, but we wanted to go about it differently.”

After finding the perfect location at 91 Little Rundle St, Kent Town, Jed and his brother set about transforming it into a distillery.

“It was just the two of us building the place,” he recalls. “The only person we paid was an electrician.”

The result is a venue that feels significantly more homely than most distilleries, with several discrete seating areas, a dartboard and a fireplace for customers to gather around.

“The idea is that when people come in, I want them to feel invited and comfortable,” Jed says.

He always envisioned the space as a community hub, and that extends beyond the locals who live nearby.

“I live next door to my distillery and I'm spoiled for choice when it comes to cafes,” he says. “But Cafetal quickly became my go-to for coffee every morning.

It's a great little cafe with lovely owners who are super passionate about coffee, and the roaster Julian really loves his craft.”

Over several conversations, the two of them decided to partner on a coffee liqueur.

Using imported Colombian beans and sugar, El Jefe is a complex, balanced drink designed for sipping rather than use in espresso martinis.

And while it's so new that Jed hasn't had a chance to add it to his menus yet, it's already won a medal at this year's Tasting Australia Spirits Awards.

His next project also grew from close relationships with nearby businesses.

KHOU wine bar is an offshoot of Signature Wines, while Henry's By Franklie was founded by the owner of the Franklie and Mosquito Hill labels.

“We all work pretty well together, and I sell both of their products,” says Jed.

“And we've always talked about doing street parties and events, so we put our heads together and came up with the Kent Town Crawl.”

The three venues are within easy walking distance, which means attendees can enjoy gin and liqueur tastings at Reform, margaritas at KHOU and a wine flight at Henry's in a single afternoon.

If it goes well, Jed hopes to hold more events and already has plans to invite several other local venues.

“We could do a whole day of it – there are more than enough great businesses in Kent Town and I would love to build on this.”

The Kent Town Crawl will start at 3pm on Saturday 11 October. Tickets are available online

Visit today!

91 Little Rundle Street, Kent Town
W: https://rfrm.com.au/