When sommelier-turned-distiller Paul Walton launched Saint Juniper in July 2024, he wasn’t expecting to make international headlines. Yet within a year, his fledgling Australian gin label was racking up gold medals and earning a spot among the best in the world. Known for its clean, intentional branding and gins that linger with complexity, Saint Juniper has carved a place in the booming Australian spirits scene by staying true to its roots, thoughtful drinking, unique botanicals, and zero shortcuts.
In this conversation, Walton shares how his sommelier background shaped his approach to distilling, why he built his distillery from scratch, and what makes a Saint Juniper serve unlike anything else in the glass.
1. You launched Saint Juniper in July 2024 and within a year it’s being called one of the best gins in the world. Did you see that coming?
It certainly has been a pleasant surprise to see our gins win many awards within the first year. I set out to create a number of gins with flavours that were both diverse and unique, but also a gin that I would be happy to sit back and enjoy regularly at home without getting bored. After sharing some of my earlier recipes with friends and family, the feedback was definitely positive and I knew things were heading in the right direction, but it was never expected to be winning gold medals at a global level within months.
2. Most people don’t go from wine tasting to distilling award-winning gin. How did your background as a sommelier shape the way you make spirits now?
My training as a sommelier has very much taught me how to identify and understand flavours. This has helped me understand not only what flavours complement each other when making a gin, but also identifying where changes need to be made in order to refine and balance the botanicals in a recipe.
3. Instead of buying a distillery, you built one from the ground up. No shortcuts. What possessed you, and what surprised you most along the way?
I initially looked at investing into another distillery as a way of getting into the industry and learning at a faster rate, however, my passion for creating a distillery did not end at creating gin, but also building a brand that meant something to me. Buying into another brand would have meant that I would be stuck with something that was not my creation and maybe not where I wanted to go in the long run.
I’ve always been driven by creating unique experiences and for me the ability to create a product and a brand from the ground up has been exciting, but not without challenges along the way. One of the things that has surprised me is that the industry is very welcoming and most distillers are willing to share and help each other. Whenever something challenging has come up it has been easy to pick up the phone and reach out to other distilleries for advice or just swing by with a bottle of something new to see what they think.
4. You talk about “thoughtful drinking.” What does that actually mean to you, and how do you get that vibe into a bottle of gin?
I often get asked what my favourite drink is, and I think the reality is that what I want to drink will depend on who I’m with, where I am, what mood I’m in, and so many other factors. To me, thoughtful drinking is about savouring the moment, enjoying the company you’re in and sipping slowly on something that really hits all the spots. Saint Juniper is about creating these moments almost as rituals, and we try to show that through minimal and intentional branding, but also creating a gin that lingers.
5. If someone’s cracking open a bottle of Saint Juniper for the first time, what’s the go-to serve or signature cocktail you’d recommend?
Each of our gins has flavours that are unique and work with different styles of cocktails (and even different styles of tonic), but for me, my go-to is a Mediterranean Gin & Tonic made with our Mediterranean Gin, Fever-Tree Mediterranean tonic and garnished with a slice of orange, sprig of rosemary and a drop of olive oil.
It’s quite a unique G&T, savoury and full of flavour with rosemary and olive leading the way, nothing like what you would expect from the classic G&Ts, a London Dry gin would make.
6. The Aussie spirits scene is heating up. Where do you want Saint Juniper to sit in that mix, and what can we expect next from you?
With over 700 distilleries in Australia, it certainly has become a hot scene. We’re trying to stand out not only by making great gin, but also by being more intentional with our distilling. Saint Juniper is a gin distillery, so you won’t be seeing us branch off into other spirits, but you will see us add to our core range of gin and create some limited-release seasonal gins. We’re also on the hunt of finding a new space for 2026 where we can expand into the hospitality side and welcome people to have a drink at the distillery.
When sommelier-turned-distiller Paul Walton launched Saint Juniper in July 2024, he wasn’t expecting to make international headlines. Yet within a year, his fledgling Australian gin label was racking up gold medals and earning a spot among the best in the world. Known for its clean, intentional branding and gins that linger with complexity, Saint Juniper has carved a place in the booming Australian spirits scene by staying true to its roots, thoughtful drinking, unique botanicals, and zero shortcuts.
In this conversation, Walton shares how his sommelier background shaped his approach to distilling, why he built his distillery from scratch, and what makes a Saint Juniper serve unlike anything else in the glass.
1. You launched Saint Juniper in July 2024 and within a year it’s being called one of the best gins in the world. Did you see that coming?
It certainly has been a pleasant surprise to see our gins win many awards within the first year. I set out to create a number of gins with flavours that were both diverse and unique, but also a gin that I would be happy to sit back and enjoy regularly at home without getting bored. After sharing some of my earlier recipes with friends and family, the feedback was definitely positive and I knew things were heading in the right direction, but it was never expected to be winning gold medals at a global level within months.
2. Most people don’t go from wine tasting to distilling award-winning gin. How did your background as a sommelier shape the way you make spirits now?
My training as a sommelier has very much taught me how to identify and understand flavours. This has helped me understand not only what flavours complement each other when making a gin, but also identifying where changes need to be made in order to refine and balance the botanicals in a recipe.
3. Instead of buying a distillery, you built one from the ground up. No shortcuts. What possessed you, and what surprised you most along the way?
I initially looked at investing into another distillery as a way of getting into the industry and learning at a faster rate, however, my passion for creating a distillery did not end at creating gin, but also building a brand that meant something to me. Buying into another brand would have meant that I would be stuck with something that was not my creation and maybe not where I wanted to go in the long run.
I’ve always been driven by creating unique experiences and for me the ability to create a product and a brand from the ground up has been exciting, but not without challenges along the way. One of the things that has surprised me is that the industry is very welcoming and most distillers are willing to share and help each other. Whenever something challenging has come up it has been easy to pick up the phone and reach out to other distilleries for advice or just swing by with a bottle of something new to see what they think.
4. You talk about “thoughtful drinking.” What does that actually mean to you, and how do you get that vibe into a bottle of gin?
I often get asked what my favourite drink is, and I think the reality is that what I want to drink will depend on who I’m with, where I am, what mood I’m in, and so many other factors. To me, thoughtful drinking is about savouring the moment, enjoying the company you’re in and sipping slowly on something that really hits all the spots. Saint Juniper is about creating these moments almost as rituals, and we try to show that through minimal and intentional branding, but also creating a gin that lingers.
5. If someone’s cracking open a bottle of Saint Juniper for the first time, what’s the go-to serve or signature cocktail you’d recommend?
Each of our gins has flavours that are unique and work with different styles of cocktails (and even different styles of tonic), but for me, my go-to is a Mediterranean Gin & Tonic made with our Mediterranean Gin, Fever-Tree Mediterranean tonic and garnished with a slice of orange, sprig of rosemary and a drop of olive oil.
It’s quite a unique G&T, savoury and full of flavour with rosemary and olive leading the way, nothing like what you would expect from the classic G&Ts, a London Dry gin would make.
6. The Aussie spirits scene is heating up. Where do you want Saint Juniper to sit in that mix, and what can we expect next from you?
With over 700 distilleries in Australia, it certainly has become a hot scene. We’re trying to stand out not only by making great gin, but also by being more intentional with our distilling. Saint Juniper is a gin distillery, so you won’t be seeing us branch off into other spirits, but you will see us add to our core range of gin and create some limited-release seasonal gins. We’re also on the hunt of finding a new space for 2026 where we can expand into the hospitality side and welcome people to have a drink at the distillery.
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