Four Pillars Laboratory

Four Pillars’ inaugural retail offering anchors their multi-space Surry Hills venue with bars aloft. Presenting as a censorial environment to smell, see, taste, and touch the award-winning distiller’s products – from bottled ranges to gin-infused marmalade and chocolate – and associated merchandise, it permeates a solid and reassuring embrace of natural materials. The overarching brief was not to replicate a gin distillery, but rather, create a thriving gin emporium devoid of pretence, bringing patrons closer to the distilled essence of the award-winning Australian Four Pillars’ spirit. Project: Four Pillars Laboratory Materials Used: Juniper Blue Concrete, Portuguese Cork, Australian Red Cedar, Cambia Ash, Copper Year: 2020 Location: Surry Hills, Sydney Square Meters: 270 Awards: Eat Drink Design Awards 2020 Highly Commended – Best Retail Design Eat Drink Design Awards 2020 Shortlisted – Best Bar Design Photography: Anson Smart "Yasmine and her team killed it. They collaborated creatively. They added value with their big picture ideas and every close-up craft detail. They cut budgets when they had to and made the final results better because of it. At every stage of the project, from first concepts to final deliverable, the work just got better and better. And I have no greater praise for any creative partner than that." - Matt Jones, Co-founder & Brand Director, Four Pillars Gin "A bar inspired by the colour of a ripe juniper berry? Sure, I was nervous about such a bold statement. Painstaking testing ensured the shade was just right. The spectacular centrepiece gives every drinker a front-row seat at what we hope will become Sydney's leading gin destination. Eileen’s is a symbol of the power of collaboration and the seamless communication between the design team, makers, and us. The majority of the fabrication and entire installation period took place during covid lockdown over emails and zoom sessions. As an Australian company, we’re super proud all involved were local (the only exception of the bar’s stainless-steel inserts designed using VR with an Oslo-based company). The design team understood, embodied, and built on the distilled essence of what we’re all about: attention to detail, hospitality, and (above all) an endless passion for sharing our craft." - Leah Mackenzie, Experience Director Four Pillars Gin