Milton Distillery set to be revived after more than 130 years

A vital piece of Brisbane’s history is set to be revived by a young local entrepreneur with big plans.

A young entrepreneur is set to bring back to life one of Brisbane’s original spirit distilleries – more than 130 years after it closed.

Alexander Bell of Milton Rum Distillery is in negotiations with a developer to revive the former Milton Distillery, which operated in the late 1800s, producing rum, distilled wine and other spirits.

“It’s about rebuilding Brisbane’s history,” Mr Bell said. “There was an old distillery in Cribb St, Milton and we want to find a site around there to bring back the heritage to the area.”

The location will then become home to Mr Bell’s award-winning Milton Rum Distillery brand, which he set up a few streets away in 2018, but is currently operating out of a warehouse in Morningside.

“Hopefully in the next 12 to 18 months we’ll have a brand new site, which will be large enough to produce one million to five million bottles a year,” he said.

Milton Rum Distillery owner Alexander Bell wants to revive the old Milton Distillery after 130 years. Picture: Zak Simmonds

Despite the pandemic, Mr Bell’s company has boomed in the past 18 months, going from producing 5000l of spirits a year to an incredible 150,000l.

The jump in production was possible thanks to a special miniaturising system the chemical engineer developed, which reduces the amount of space needed to produce large volumes of spirit.

The technology has enabled the business to now supply to more than 100 major liquor outlets across the country, with plans to export to Kenya, South America and Europe.

Mr Bell has also developed a way to create premium spirits from food waste, including banana, orange, grape and pineapple skins.

“A lot of the food that gets thrown away is at the farm level – the stuff Coles and Woolworths doesn’t buy – so it solves multiple problems on multiple levels and does good for the planet,” he said.

The 27-year-old’s hard work has not gone unnoticed, being named as a finalist for the Port of Brisbane Award for Young Business Person of the Year in this year’s Brisbane Lord Mayor’s Business Awards.

The winners will be announced at a gala dinner at City Hall on October 22.