Dacelo Distilling

Dacelo Distilling is Coolum Beach’s first distillery, producing premium Australian spirits with a strong focus on native botanicals. At its cellar door on Lysaght Street, visitors can learn more about the range, book a tasting and meet the team behind the brand. It is a useful stop for Sunshine Coast locals wanting to try something made in the region, as well as visitors looking for a distinctly Australian spirit to take home.

Gin is the central focus, with the range drawing on botanicals including banksia, pandanus nut, gumbi gumbi, white kunzea, desert oak wattle seed and lemon myrtle. The result is a collection designed around local and native flavours rather than a standard botanical profile. The Banksia Blue-Winged gin is one of the more unusual offerings: its colour changes from blue to purple when tonic or citrus is added. Another standout is the Premium Green Tea, Jasmin and Pear Gin, which is barrel-aged in a French oak Pineau des Charentes barrel for added floral character.

The distillery also produces vodka, limoncello, liqueurs and a range of gin fruit jams made using steeping fruits from the distilling process. The website lists fruits such as muntrie berries, cranberry, pineapple, pandanus nut, coconut, vanilla pods and pear, giving the operation a practical approach to using its ingredients. Dacelo also highlights its sustainability measures, including native botanicals sourced from local sustainable and ethical growers, Australian-made bottles containing at least 70 per cent recycled glass, and spirits made without artificial flavours, preservatives or colouring.

The name comes from Dacelo, the taxonomic genus of the kookaburra. Owners Sammy and Siobhan, who live at Mount Coolum, say regular visits from kookaburras near their home inspired the distillery’s identity and its light-hearted connection to the “bushman’s alarm clock”. That story gives the brand a clear sense of place without separating it from the products themselves. A tasting would suit gin enthusiasts, curious solo visitors and small groups wanting to compare native Australian spirit styles. The cellar door also offers a direct way to discover limited releases, gift-sized packs and other products that may not be familiar to people visiting from outside Coolum and the wider Sunshine Coast.