As you walk down the back alleys of Darwin city centre the unassuming entrance to Charlie's is hidden behind a mural of graffiti.
Upon entering, visitors are met with an industrial staircase which leads up to the front entrance of the establishment where two large windows allow you to peer into the distillery.
It's here that owner Bec Bullen can be seen helping head distiller Heath Russell on their latest batch of ferment, the smell comparable to opening a box of cheap wine.
"If you like the smell, I can tell you haven't had a decent drop in a while," Ms Bullen tells SBS News.
But the contents of the large copper drums won't be going towards making gin, instead, they'll be used to make hand sanitiser to meet demand across the Northern Territory.
Charlie's is hidden in the back alleys of Darwin's city centre and opened in mid-March before having to shut its doors just two weeks later. Source: Aneeta Bhole
"The World Health Organisation has a recipe which they have for hand rub, which is 97 per cent ethanol," Ms Bullen says.
"That's essentially what gin is, so we have the ability to distil alcohol which is why a lot of gin distilleries have pivoted during this pandemic."
Ms Bullen opened Charlie's in mid-March and just two weeks later strict quarantine measures saw the closure of her new venture.
"We weren't expecting a lockdown," she says.
"Social distancing made sense and having lived in Asia before I've seen how that can work. But I never could have imagined how bad this could get."
St John Ambulance was the first to receive the coveted product but Ms Bullen said there is still high demand from other organisations.
Heath Russell says the process to make hand sanitiser can take up to 12 days but it is a priority to meet demands. Source: Aneeta Bhole
"I'm making 10 per cent of the orders I have," she says. "We can't fill the demand at all - we're trying our best, we're laying down as much ferment as we can so we can make it ourselves."
"Our next priority will be the fire brigade and the Department of Education who said there were about 100 schools which just don't have hand sanitiser."
"We also want to look after our community so it's been a real struggle deciding who should get the first batches."
The process for making hand sanitiser from scratch can take up to 12 days.
The hand sanitiser comes from a recipe on the World Health Organisation website and is 95 per cent ethanol Source: Aneeta Bhole
Mr Russell has been a distiller for about 14 years and says the process is long but worth it in these uncertain times.
"First we need to make a ferment, so that's basically just a sugar wash where the yeast eats the sugar and gives off CO2 and produces ethanol, similar to making a beer."
"Then we'll do a stripping run, so that removes all the alcohol from the wash and leaves all the rubbish behind, which leaves us with low wines."
"Then, when we have enough of that, we'll run it through the reflux column, and it purifies it up to 95 per cent."
While the priority is hand sanitiser at the moment, Mr Russell says he is excited for the day he'll be able to make gin again.
"I'm itching to have a go," he says.
"When we finally can we'll be producing about 35 botanicals, mostly uniquely Territorian."
"There are some traditional ingredients for gin, but we want to utilise things such as the NT lemon myrtle and a couple of other plants suggested by the NT herbatorium."
At the moment Ms Bullen says each one of the 200-litre ferments will make only 10 litres of ethanol, making it difficult to give the product to everyone at this time.
Charlie's has not been able to make its own gin since opening as the first distillery in the Northern Territory Source: Aneeta Bhole
"I would love to give it to my customers who have supported me through thick and thin," she says.
"But when you're talking about people who are on the frontline, I think the allied health professionals need it first."
People in Australia must stay at least 1.5 metres away from others and gatherings are limited to two people unless you are with your family or household.
If you believe you may have contracted the virus, call your doctor (don’t visit) or contact the national Coronavirus Health Information Hotline on 1800 020 080. If you are struggling to breathe or experiencing a medical emergency, call 000.
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