For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, nature is our clock, the stars are our calendar, and changes in the winds, plants and animals tell us the new season has arrived.
Dragonflies announce the dry season and fruiting of the native cherries. The green tree frog tells us the big wet is coming. And when the bum gets fat on the green bush ant, we know it’s ripe with juicy, citrus pop.
Seven Seasons heroes native Australian ingredients. Following the sustainable lores of the land, and using what is bountiful in nature, they make sure those ingredients are there again next year and the year after that.
Monsoon season
January & February
Speargrass, Goose egg & knock 'em down season
March & April
Barramundi & bush fruit time
May & June
Heavy dew time
June & August
Windy time
August & September
Build up
September & October
Rainy season
November & December
MEET OUR MAKERS
Daniel Motlop, Founder
Before he became a food and beverage entrepreneur, Daniel was a successful AFL footballer, playing for both the North Melbourne and Port Adelaide clubs during his career.
Since 2016, he and his father Eddie and brothers Steven and Shannon have been majority owners of Something Wild, which supplies native Australian ingredients to restaurants and consumers around the country. During that time, they have built strong relationships with Indigenous communities around Australia, providing them with positive opportunities and outcomes.
Daniel is a proud Larrakia man who is passionate about promoting the ethical, sustainable and permitted use of native Australian ingredients.
Larrakia People
The custodians of the Darwin region, Larrakia country runs from Cox Peninsula in the west to Gunn Point in the north, Adelaide River in the east to Manton Dam in the south.
It’s here that the Larrakia people search for the native ingredients that showcase their incredible culture.
SUSTAINABILITY MATTERS
Following the sustainable lores of the land, and using what’s bountiful in nature, they make sure those ingredients are there again next year, and the year after that.
While certain ingredients and botanicals, like juniper, come from far-flung sources, much of the produce for Seven Seasons’ spirits is sourced only from Aboriginal communities who employ Aboriginal harvesters. They take only what is bountiful to ensure a plentiful annual return.
Each year, more than three tons of fresh native ingredients – the green ants, bush apple and yams, of course, but also boobialla, strawberry gum, pepper berry and more – are bought direct from communities throughout the Top End.
By employing local harvesters and creating a market for their products, Seven Seasons has been able to create sustainable jobs for hundreds of Aboriginal people and their payments flow back into supporting their communities.
Approved for sustainable harvesting by both the Government and Traditional Owners of the land.
Sustainable Harvesting Permit Number: 57947
SEASON: WINDY TIME
AUGUST / SEPTEMBER
Green Ant Gin
When it blows, the wattle flowers, and we feast; cockles and stingrays are plump, as is the bum of the green bush ant. New life is starting to form on the trees during Windy Time. Leaves are green and big for the ants to make their new nests after the old brown leaves were burnt off trees (gurrulwa guligi).
Sustainable Harvesting
Using a secret traditional method, ant nests are carefully chilled at a specific temperature so excess worker ants can be carefully removed from the nest. Only worker ants are harvested – we steer clear of breeding times or taking queen ants from their nest, so life is plentiful next season.
Unique Native Ingredients
Inspired by a traditional cold remedy, green ants are added before and after distillation, to give the gin a citrusy pop. Each bottle contains 8-10 green ants. Boobialla (native Australian juniper) is a coastal plant that brings floral notes with a hint of sweetness.
Strawberry gum adds a touch of warm spice with eucalyptus on the nose, lemon myrtle and pepper berry add depth to the base citrus profile.
How To Enjoy
Native green ants give this gin fresh lime and coriander flavours. Nature is full of delicious surprises. Garnish your G&T with makrut lime leaf or finger lime.
SEASON: MONSOON SEASON
JANUARU / FEBRUARY
Bush Apple Gin
When it buckets down, new life is everywhere; the crocs and Barra lay their eggs, and the pink bush apples are ripe.
Sustainable Harvesting
When the heavy rains start, bush apples are collected from the tree tops and placed in harvesting buckets in Maningrida through Bawinanga, and from the Darwin area from the Motlop family.
Unique Native Ingredients
Inspired by the fruit Motlop ate as he walked to school, bush apples have long been valued for the medicinal properties. A tart fruit that resembles a pomegranate, its colour provides the blush hue for the gin.
We also use boobialla, pepper berry, lemon myrtle and finger lime. These botanicals balance the requisite juniper with flavours of gently spiced orange blossom and jammy forest berries.
How To Enjoy
Bush apples give this gin floral, berry and eucalyptus flavours. Nature makes it pink and delightful to drink. Garnish your G&T with white grapefruit and mint.
SEASON: RAINY SEASON
NOVEMBER / DECEMBER
Native Yam Vodka
The green tree frogs are singing and native plums are ripe, signaling the onset of the Rainy Season in Larrakia country.
Sustainable Harvesting
Native yams are located on the root of a long vine that is characterised by distinctive bell-shaped flowers at the vine’s end. The vibrant flower blossoming is a sign that the yams are ready to be pulled from the earth. Local harvesters carefully dig the yams from the ground, ensuring a minimal footprint is left of the earth.
Unique Native Ingredients
Rainy days were spent pulling yams from the soft ground and throwing them straight onto a fire so the skins would peel off easily.
These memories led Motlop to create Native Yam Vodka. The only botanical present, we have used two types of yams: the ones Daniel grew up eating, and another from Maningrida in Arnhem Land.
How To Enjoy
Pulled from the earth during the rainy season, native yams give this vodka a creamy, warm and earthy flavour. Elevated nature. Garnish your Native Yam Vodka with strawberries and thyme.