General News
15 December, 2022
Solar power prize for Pyrenees gin distillery
Glenpatrick distillary Mrs Bakers Still House has proved it can do more than just produce great gin — this month claiming a green energy award for its solar power system. The business recently took out the top gong in the 2022 National Electrical...
Glenpatrick distillary Mrs Bakers Still House has proved it can do more than just produce great gin — this month claiming a green energy award for its solar power system.
The business recently took out the top gong in the 2022 National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA) Victoria Excellence Green Energy category.
The solar system generates more electricity than is required to run the distillery, and extra electricity is fed back into the electrical grid network, owner Jane Baker said.
“It means that our gin productions are not damaging the environment, which is really important to me,” she said.
“For me, the solar energy generation needs to operate seamlessly in the background and should not have an impact on how we create our gins and liqueurs. But I do wake up on a sunny morning, and think ‘it’s a great day to do some distilling’.”
Jane said the system was the “brain child” of her partner Benjamin, who has worked most of his professional career developing energy control systems for large industrial plants and energy utility companies.
“We employed Seven20 Electrical to do this installation, but I had a number of additional requirements and specifications about which hardware to use for the batteries and inverters which made the whole design and implementation quite a collaborative project,” Benjamin said.
“It is a great thrill to have our solar power plant recognised and awarded by NECA, the peak industry body in the electrical industry.
“Distillation is so energy intensive — heating the kettle and chilling at the head of the column. It makes sense that we use a renewable energy source, and so the production of our craft spirits is carbon neutral.”
