Housed in a historic double-storey building at 390 Smith Street, it’s a cafe, restaurant, bar, artisanal distillery, brewery and winery, bakery, delicatessen, coffee roaster, cooking school and function space all in one.

For owner Paul Baggio, who has been involved in the supply of wine-making equipment since the 1990s, the opening of The Craft & Co around five years ago was a natural progression.

His father, a native of the Veneto region, arrived in Australia at the age of 19 and built wine-making machinery, while his mother Celeste ran a shop near the Queen Victoria Market, selling equipment to produce homemade wine, passata and pasta.

Baggio describes The Craft & Co as a “temple for beautiful products”.

“We Italians have always seen wine not just on its own; we see beverages come together with what we eat at the table,” he said in an interview on Rete Italia.

“We have a very complete and holistic idea of what the tavola [table] represents.

“The Craft & Co is like a village with the brewer, the distiller, the chef, the cheese-maker and the pastry chefs; everyone does their thing but ultimately they’re all passionate about food.”

Baggio’s idea was to create an inclusive and accessible environment where artisans can collaborate, breathing life into dishes and drinks that go beyond the boundaries of traditional recipes.

The Craft & Co prides itself on being one of the first micro-distilleries to open up in the city. 

It boasts a multi-award winning Navy Strength Gin, as well as a series of mainly Italian liqueurs, from grappa to limoncello and an artisanal expression of a classic Negroni that requires just an orange slice and some crushed ice.

It has also crafted its own unique amaro – classically smooth, deep and complex, yet bittersweet with mild notes of bright grapefruit, chicory and aniseed.

“It took two years of work... we must have tried at least 100 different distillations just to see what would work,” Baggio said.

“There would have to be around 50 different elements in our amaro that we have to balance.”

The Craft & Co also has a winery, cafe and cellar door in Bangholme, around 30 kilometres south-east of Melbourne, where it grows 12 grape varieties.

The boutique coastal winery plans to expand to the cultivation of fruit, vegetables, grains and malt, as well as livestock farming.

The Craft & Co is passionate about sharing the tricks of the trade with aspiring foodies, hosting events such as sausage- or cheese-making classes in collaboration with chefs and leading industry experts.

The enterprise is a must for all cooking enthusiasts, where they can savour sumptuous dishes and taste artisanal wines, craft beers and innovative liqueurs, such as the grappa di prosecco, which is currently in pre-production.

It’s the place to go for, well... everything!