Aussie whisky never tasted so good

We’ve treated Members to Starward – aka the world’s most awarded distillery – matured in the crème de la crème of spirit casks and we’ve launched the inaugural Port Barrel Whisky from Morris, the new darlings of Aussie whisky. We’ve uncovered the hidden gem that is Hobart Distillery and delivered a cracker Tokay cask from one of the country’s founding distilleries, Overeem.

Pour yourself a dram of your favourite local liquid and hear why the country’s very best whisky makers, Bill Lark, Starward’s David Vitale and Morris' Darren Peck, love creating top malts for our Members. 

But first, a quick whisky history lesson – because these past events have shaped our industry and lifted the quality bar to the exceptional levels we’ve come to expect today.

In the late noughties, local Aussie distilleries started gathering awards for their whiskies, thanks to the likes of Lark and Sullivans Cove.

Then in 2013, there was a true turning point when the World Whisky Awards created the Australian Single Malt category, putting Australian whisky firmly on the world stage.

The year after, The Whisky Club’s co-founder Bertie Cason — then marketing manager at Sullivans Cove – entered whisky HH0525 (Sullivans Cove French Oak) into the World Whiskies Awards.

The whisky was crowned World’s Best Single Malt – the first whisky to ever take out this prestigious title that wasn’t from Scotland or Japan.

The win cemented Australia into the whisky-verse, carving the way for every craft distillery in the country. People across the globe started seeking out Aussie whisky. In turn, this has seen a huge proliferation of new distilleries popping up across the country.

As a proudly Tasmanian family business, we're based in Hobart, smack-bang in the middle of Tassie whisky heartland — and where the boom began.

We’ve always known Aussie whisky is pretty special.

The Whisky Club has proudly spearheaded the growth of our local industry, featuring monthly Aussie whiskies along with the best of Scotch and the rest of the world.

The Club has unparalleled relationships with the country’s best distilleries, from the founding distillers of Australian whisky to the rising stars, all of whom compete fiercely for our much-prized monthly whisky slots to get their liquid to our Members around the country.

And that’s why only the very best of the best liquid makes it into the hands of you, our Members and Australian whisky lovers.

This month, we’re teaming up with another Aussie trailblazing distillery to bring back the incredible Aussie Sherry bomb: Starward Pedro Ximénez Cask.

Nine years ago – before they were crowned as the world’s most awarded distillery in 2022 – Starward released a single cask bottled at cask strength fully matured in an ex-Pedro Ximénez cask direct from Spain — the first of its kind in the country.

But it’s not the first time we’ve partnered with the distillery. We started working with Melbourne’s craft whisky legends back in 2019. And we’re pumped to be making the Club another exclusive whisky.

And so is Starward.

”As the leading Australian whisky club, The Whisky Club brings interesting whiskies to an amazing, and very engaged audience. They do an incredible job of showcasing unique, high-quality releases at a great price-point,” says Starward founder David Vitale.

”We love how passionate The Whisky Club’s members are, in the way they engage with each other and with distilleries. We’re very excited to work with the club again, to bring something truly special to their audience.

”The Whisky Club has been leading the growth of the Australian whisky industry, and it has been great to see more Australian whiskies feature as the Whisky of the Month.”

We’re proud to have introduced Members to their favourite new up-and-coming whisky distilleries as well. Case in point: Morris Distillery.

In April last year, our friends at one of Australia's newest distilleries, Morris Whisky of Rutherglen, made the Morris Tokay Barrel. And Members loved it. This relatively unknown distillery was crowned Member’s second favourite Whisky Of the Year.

And what a debut. Our Morris Tokay Barrel was awarded the highly coveted Double Gold medal at the 2022 San Francisco World Spirits Competition, sitting pretty with an elite line-up of whisky giants including our very own Glenfiddich Gran Couronne 26 Year Old, Ardbeg 25 Year Old, and 2021’s overall winner, the ‘Best in Show’, Glen Scotia 25 Year Old. The Morris Tokay Barrel was also awarded Master at the Spirits Business Luxury Masters 2022, and it was the only world whisky to pull off that feat.

When we first met the team at Morris, we knew we were onto a good thing. Luckily for us (and our Members who got to discover the distillery’s incredible liquid), the team were just as excited to work with the Club.

”From the moment I met Bertie, Em and The Whisky Club team down in Hobart, I could tell immediately they were genuinely invested in the category,“ says Morris Head Distiller, Darren Peck. ”They were deeply curious about the whisky we were making and passionate about supporting Australian whisky brands.

”The Whisky Club is a big supporter of local whisky, and through their ‘Whisky of the Month’ releases, they have shown club members that homegrown Aussies whiskies are world-class, and can take on the big brands,” Darren says. “They have created the perfect platform to share new whiskies from the big international brands but also Australian distilleries, which up until now have been hard to find or inaccessible for the average punter.”

We’ve always known Australian whisky is special and we love working closely with local distilleries to create something incredible for Members. And when the whisky deserves to be a Whisky of the Month, we work hard in partnership with the distillery to deliver the goods.

“We really value The Whisky Club and their members because we feel that it’s a really good litmus test of quality. If we can please you guys, I think we’re onto a good thing,” says Morris global marketing manager, Michael Sergeant. 

“I know Seamus (The Club’s Head of Whisky) has got some high standards, so if he’s smiling then we’re all happy too.

“Working with you guys from day one, it was definitely a partnership. And obviously, when we work with experts such as yourselves, we can make some amazing products.”

If you love Aussie whisky, the Club is the place to be. And if you want to get your hands on November’s incredible Sherry bomb from Starward, join Australia’s biggest community of whisky lovers free now.

The Aussie goodness just keeps growing! Everyone who gets a bottle automatically goes in the draw to win a money-can’t-buy distillery experience at Starward.

Curated by Head Distiller Sam Slaney, the lucky winner will taste their way through every step of the whiskymaking process and get a private barrel tasting along with a unique bottle to take home.

This all-expenses paid package includes interstate flights, 5-star accommodation and all meals, and is worth approximately $5,000 for two people.