NED Australian Whisky has released the third annual edition of the Sounds of Bathurst whisky, made in partnership with Supercars and Grove Racing.
The reserve grade whisky barrels are aged at NED’s Melbourne distillery inside a custom-built, sound-proof container. The container is fitted with speakers delivering 2,000 hours of in-car audio from David Reynolds and Mat Payne’s laps around the Bathurst racetrack. This year’s barrels also received archival Commodore and Falcon audio, alongside Greg Murphy’s 2003 Lap of the Gods, and Steve Richards and Mark Winterbotom’s victories. The distillery team has noticed that the unique sound aging process enhances the whisky’s dark toffee and burnt maple flavours.
Master Distiller Sebastian Reaburn spoke to the quality of the whisky.
“At the heart of Sounds of Bathurst is our NED Australia Whisky, but what truly sets this release apart is the Supercars alchemy. Over 2,000 hours, we’ve witnessed the whisky evolve, the V8 engine roar infusing rich oak and caramel undertones with nuanced layers of complexity. It’s not just about aging whisky; it’s about capturing the essence of Bathurst within each bottle. And I genuinely believe, with this edition, we’ve pushed our craft to new horizons,” he said.
The 2023 edition features two labels of Retro and Innovation, reflecting the 60th anniversary of the Bathurst 1000 and the exciting future of Ford’s Gen 3.
This year also sees the new release of Start Line. Start Line is almost exactly the same as the Retro and Innovation labels, but it did not undergo sound aging, allowing consumers to taste the effects of the sound aging process.