By Andy Young
New South Wales whisky distillery, Corowa Distilling Co., is offering whisky lovers and investors an alternative way to invest in a grass-roots, regional distillery.
Following the recent negativity surrounding barrel investment schemes as a result of the on-going dispute between the Nant Distillery and Australian Whisky Holdings, the team at Corowa Distilling Co, wanted to offer investors a way of investing that also gave them something to celebrate straight away.
Founder Dean Druce has sourced 10 casks from the historic Ben Nevis distillery, which were between 16- and 18-years-old when bottled in March 2015. Whisky from those barrels is now being sold in sets of 10, which gives investors something immediate to enjoy while helping to fund the financially-draining process of distilling whisky.
Corowa Distilling Co is the latest distillery to join the Nip Of Courage portfolio and Druce worked with Kathleen Davies from Nip Of Courage to come up with the idea and to get the casks out to the trade and public.
“It’s very difficult for start-up Australian distilleries who have taken the plunge to focus on aged spirits,” said Davies.
“Products like whisky, rum or brandy require, by Australian law, the distilled spirit to be aged by in a cask for a minimum of two years.
“This is why a lot of distilleries have recently taken on the production of white spirits that don’t require cask aging, and we’ve got some amazing gin, vodkas and moonshine in Australia at the moment.
“This way distilleries can look to generate immediate revenue, but it inevitably takes time and resources away from the production of aged spirits.”
The majority of bottles will be sold in sets of 10, retailing for approximately $1700, giving whisky bars, independent retailers and whisky collectors the opportunity to own a collection of single casks from an iconic distillery while also knowing that they are investing in the future of Australian whisky.
“It’s a vision that I have had for a while but we just simply haven’t had the time to implement with the set-up of our distillery and our busy production schedule, that’s why we turned to Kathleen at Nip Of Courage for her assistance,” Druce said.
The collection of 10 Ben Nevis single cask bottles can be purchased from ALIA Liquor Store of the Year, The Oak Barrel in Sydney, or from Nip Of Courage direct.