Miinot Gelato
This Melbourne gelato-maker’s small-batch operation is big on flavour.
WHO Emma Nicholas-Jennings and husband, Gary Jennings, owners of Melbourne gelato shop Miinot, learnt their trade helping Nicholas-Jennings’ parents at their gelateria on the Mornington Peninsula during holiday season.
“We got sick of travelling back and forth, so we thought we’d do our own,” she says. The couple took a risk on a derelict strip of shops in Melbourne’s northern suburbs and opened Miinot in 2015. Despite its off-piste location, the gelateria attracts people from all over the city.
WHAT Local ingredients are used to make flavours such as honey, yuzu and feijoa. On any given day, the cabinet might hold a dairy-free banana, coconut and charcoal gelato, or the OMG, which has layers of salted-caramel gelato, Nutella and butterscotch. Recently, Shropshire
Blue from Melbourne cheesemonger Harper & Blohm was crumbled on a quince and goat’s milk ice-cream. It was a sell-out.
HOW Unlike some gelaterias, Miinot doesn’t own a pasteuriser, often used to speed up the gelato-making process. Instead, Miinot’s gelato thickens naturally overnight in the fridge, allowing the flavours time to steep, and is churned slowly, which makes for a thicker, creamier result. “When we tasted our first batch, we were amazed at the texture,” says Nicholas-Jennings. “Our customers constantly comment on it.” The final step is coming up with a fun name for each f lavour. Sergeant Pepper teams Tasmanian pepperberry with dark chocolate; The Cone of Silence pairs vegan chocolate with waffle-cone pieces; and the Superhero has chocolate swirled with hazelnut and Nutella and layered with wafers.
WHY Miinot is truly smallbatch gelato. Without a pasteuriser to whip up more, once a flavour has sold out, that’s it. “People see a post on Instagram and know to get in quick,” she says.
WHERE Miinot Gelato, 71 Melville Rd, Pascoe Vale South, Vic, (03) 9383 4258