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Walkamin whisky best in the world

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The team...

MANAGING EDITOR Carl Portella SEVEN years of hard work has paid off for the Mt Uncle Distillery when it took top honours for their single malt Watkins Whiskey in the ‘12 Years and Under’ category at the 2020 World Whiskies Awards in London on February 8 and 9.

Based in Walkamin halfway between Mareeba and Atherton, Mark Watkins set up the Mt Uncle Distillery in 2001.

The Watkins Whiskey Co. single malt will now be considered for the prestigious title of the World’s Best Whiskey.

“It’s pretty much the Olympic Games of the whiskey world,” distiller Mark Watkins said.

“Performing well here is epic for us, a great testament to the team and we’re stoked to put Walkamin on the map.”

The World Whiskies Awards is a prestigious competition held in London annually, where the best Whiskies from around the world compete to be crowned champion in their respective categories.

Everything from blended whiskies to limited edition single malts and world blends get their chance to shine as experts blind taste and score each one across several rounds, with the final winner being announced in March.

In recent years, Mt Uncle Distillery has collected a swag of awards – their flagship product, the Mt Uncle Botanic Australis Gin has collected national and international medals;

One day, Watkins was wandering the Tablelands looking for Botanics. A bushfire had recently happened, and some of the Botanics he had gathered were smoked. He decided to use them and ‘Bushfire’ Smoked Gin, Australia’s first-ever smoked gin, was borne. The drink went on to win silver in the 2018 International Wine and Spirit Competition and is now sold at Dan Murphy’s.

The Mt Uncle FNQ Co Platinum Rum won gold at the 2019 Hong Kong International Wine & Spirits and was ranked second overall out of all rums worldwide, and the FNQ Rum Co Iridium Gold was named World’s Best Pot Still Rum (5 Years & Under) at the World Rum Awards in 2019.

Mt Uncle Distillery is located at at 1819 Chewko Rd, Walkamin.

JOURNALIST Phil Brandel

ADVERTISING MANAGER Natasha Srhoj

CADET JOURNALIST Rhys Thomas

ADMIN / ONLINE PRODUCER Natasha Burton

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Nate fights on

LITTLE Nate Moule (pictured) has been battling hard for the past year and will continue to fight after another visit to Dr Charlie Teo in Sydney on Monday.

Nate, who has captured our hearts, has been under the care of world renowned neurosurgeon, Dr Teo who has operated on Nate numerous times since his diagnosis of a brain tumour in October 2018.

Nate underwent seven weeks of radiation therapy late last year to treat the tumour.

Nate had a follow up scan recently in Brisbane which revealed a reoccurrence of his tumour, Nate and his family flew down on Monday to see Dr Teo. Nates mother, Katie Moule has thanked the community for their unwavering support for Nate.

“Mareeba has been fantastic to us,” she said.

“They just keep helping and rallying around us.

“We want to thank everyone in the community.”

The Northern Pride hosted a trail match on Sunday in support of Nate, raising money for him and his family via gate takings. For more information on Nate, his story and how to donate head to the Nate’s Mates Facebook page.

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Applications open for community sponsorships Recipients of the 2019 Mareeba and Dimbulah Bendigo Bank Community Sponsorship Program.

THE 2020 round of community sponsorship funding has been opened up by the local Bendigo Bank branches in Mareeba and Dimbulah.

Local clubs, schools and organisations are now invited to apply funding as part of the Community Sponsorship Program, which opened on February 3 and closes on Monday, February 24.

To apply for the 2020 sponsorship program, drop into or phone the Mareeba or Dimbulah Community Bank Branches.

The Mareeba branch is located at 94 Byrnes St or phone 4092 2099 and Dimbulah at 31-33 Raleigh St or phone 4093 5266.

Applications can also obtained by emailing Rhonda Stevens at secretary@mdfsi.com. au or phone 0402 112 815.

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