Office Liquor, Gaming: Gold Coast’s Grandad Jack’s can sell liquor

A GOLD Coast distillery has alerted patrons they must take tours to sample its products but the regulator begs to differ saying it can sell on site and takeaways too.

Granddad Jack’s Craft Distillery owners Luke and David Ridden. Picture: Glenn Hampson

A GOLD Coast distillery has alerted patrons they must take tours to sample its products but the regulator begs to differ saying it can sell on site and takeaways too.

Grandad Jack’s Craft Distillery, operating for almost a year, had posted on its social media last week, telling loyal followers the only way to try its products now was to take tours.

One of the owners of Grandad Jack’s David Ridden broke the news to his fans on Instagram last Friday.

But a spokesperson for the Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation (OLGR) told the Bulletin today patrons don’t need to take “a tour” to consume its products on site.

“If people want to have a drink on site they can. If people want to take awsay they can. They have said you need to participate in a tour but that’s absolutely not the case.”

The owner David Ridden fears it could damage their business. Photo: Glenn Hampson

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Grandad Jack’s had posted to Instagram: “The Government Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation (OLGR) has had to make changes to the way our distillery has been operating until we have been granted the appropriate licence,” he wrote.

“We’ve been told that the professional liquor licensing advice we sought and were given when setting up our liquor licence and operations no longer meets OLGR’s interpretation of the ‘Producer/Wholesale Liquor Licence’ we currently hold.

“We are working with both state and local government to resolve this situation and return Grandad Jack’s Craft Distillery to the experience that many have already grown to love.

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Owners David Ridden and Luke Ridden when Granddad Jack’s was under construction last year. Picture: Glenn Hampson

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“The only way to enjoy Grandad Jack’s Craft Distillery, the spirits and the beer we produce here, is to join one of our distillery tours.

“We have expanded our tour offerings and times as a result.”

Mr Ridden told the Bulletin: “We have become a victim of success. We are stuck in the middle of it and are trying to get through it.”

But OLGR, in a statement to the Bulletin said Granddad Jack’s Craft Distellery holds a “producer/wholesaler licence”.

“As a holder of a producer/wholesaler licence under the Liquor Act 1992 and of a brewery licence under the Excise Act 1901, the licensee of Granddad Jack’s is able to sell their own liquor (liquor produced by the licensee on the licensed premises) to patrons for consumption both on and off the licensed premises, provided they continue to meet the principal activity of their licence...

“Patrons do not need to participate in a ‘tour’ to consume liquor on the premises,” the OLGR statement said.

“The relevant licence type is a producer/wholesaler licence and there has been no changes to its provisions. As the OLGR is currently investigating matters in relation to Grandad Jack’s operations, it would be inappropriate to make further comment at this stage.”