MODERN BUSINESS
the progress to date – so are our
shareholders!
Do you have any plans for other
product lines?
Apart from our single malts we
produce a high-class Whisky Cream
Liqueur. This product combines
the resources of both sides of our
company. The liqueur is made from
five year old single malt whisky
blended with fresh Tasmanian cream.
It’s a lovely, lush post dining tipple
that is starting to find strong favour
here in Australia thanks to some key
distribution arrangements.
We also produce cold grain (barley)
vodka under the ‘Southern Lights’
brand name. It is available in several
flavour options, original, lemon,
orange and apple. This product is
predominantly sold through our Burnie
Visitor Centre and on-line.
One of our more exciting projects is
a sherry cask matured single malt.
In 2014 we filled 120 Spanish sherry
casks which are currently in bond. We
expect this whisky will be one of our
finest and much sought after when it
is tipped and released in about seven
years from now. As I said earlier,
whisky distilling requires a high degree
of patience!
hoped demand would be strong, it
was not. It took two to three years
to establish a reasonable domestic
distribution footprint and with the
quality of our products improving
each year, plus the odd accolade
here and there, distribution grew
and has retained a strong upward
spiral ever since. We understand why
many boutique distillers struggle to
get a return on investment – whisky
distilling is a tough gig.
Tell us about some of the
expectations that you had. Have
they been met?
We have more than met initial
expectations although it seemed an
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November 2016
eternity before the business started to
become viable. In reality, it was only a
decade, which for single malt whisky
production is more like a minute.
Some of the Scottish brands have
been plying their craft for hundreds
of years and here we are, a small
operation from the bottom of the
world, nipping at their heels like a
feisty terrier! We still have a long
way to go before we can say we
have ‘made it’ however a strong
component of our business plan is to
not only create world-class whisky,
but to establish a world-class whisky
business. We are still taking baby
steps, but are very pleased with
The Tasmanian Whisky
industry has developed a name
for itself internationally. What’s
the key to the success of the
local industry?
Overall, Tasmania’s reputation for
producing high quality food and
beverage has been a significant factor
in the growth of the State’s Whisky
industry. Of course this reputation
has been realised on the back of a
wonderful temperate climate, some of
the world’s purest drinking water and
some very sound primary production
models. Combine these assets with a
solid dose of passion and pride and
it’s easy to see why Tasmanian whisky
is being recognised for its quality on
the world stage.