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Power Cuts, Bush Air, and Bourbon Barrels: The Kinglake Whisky Story.

  • T
  • Aug 31
  • 7 min read

Whisky interviews often lean into the predictable - a swirl of heritage, a nod to tradition, a polite clink of the glass. But Kinglake doesn’t do predictable. Perched high in Victoria’s Great Dividing Range, surrounded by national park and powered entirely off-grid, this is a distillery where whisky grows as wild as the bush around it. Their spirit runs oily and unapologetic thanks to deep cuts, their fermentation is left open to local yeasts and eucalyptus pollen, and their barrels age under mountain humidity so peculiar that the angels here don’t sip water - they steal the alcohol itself. It’s a place where science and stubbornness collide, and the result is whisky with real attitude.


Take their O’Grady’s Stand, the house standard and spiritual backbone of Kinglake. Forget polite aperitifs - this is a dram that walks into the bar heavy-footed and refuses to be ignored. Built from a four-malt mash bill - three drawn from Griffiths in NSW (including one roasted to a decadent chocolate) and a smoky recruit from the Scottish Borders - it’s all stitched together into a rich, oily spirit designed to hold its ground. Aged in small-format ex-bourbon barrels from Kentucky, re-coopered here in Australia, O’Grady’s is chewy, muscular, and defiantly Kinglake. It’s the whisky equivalent of rolling your sleeves up and getting stuck in.


Four malts, a hint of smoke, and a swagger that could out-stare a bouncer.
Four malts, a hint of smoke, and a swagger that could out-stare a bouncer.

Then there’s Double Wood, which shows that even rough-cut characters can dress for the occasion. Most Australian distillers lean heavily on fortified wine casks, but Kinglake took the contrarian route - betting on ex-bourbon as the true canvas for their spirit. The result is pure balance: bourbon sweetness in the form of toffee, vanilla and caramel, layered with French oak tawny port barriques first filled back in 2018. That marriage doesn’t shout, it seduces - just a wisp of fortified richness, some soft tobacco and leather from the wide cuts, and a milk-chocolate depth from the mash bill. It’s whisky in a tuxedo with the tie loosened, offering a charm offensive that lingers long after the glass is empty.


Where bourbon bravado meets French finesse, and the whisky winks while it works the room.
Where bourbon bravado meets French finesse, and the whisky winks while it works the room.

And then comes Full Noise, which is exactly what it sounds like - the volume cranked to eleven. Born from barrels too good to blend away, it keeps all the bourbon-driven sweetness of O’Grady’s Stand but bottles it straight, cask strength, no apologies. The outcome is a whisky that struts in with unmissable force - all golden sweetness, slick weight, and a mouthfeel so commanding it deserves its own seat at the table. It doesn’t sidle up and ask for your attention; it kicks the door in and dares you to keep pace.


The dram that high-fives your mouth and flips your napkin.
The dram that high-fives your mouth and flips your napkin.

So when you sit down with Sam Lowe, you quickly realise Kinglake isn’t interested in peddling misty-eyed clichés about heritage and tradition. This is whisky that takes the wildness of its surroundings, the quirks of its climate, and the stubborn precision of its makers, and turns them into drams that are bold, charming, and occasionally unruly. In short: whisky that couldn’t be made anywhere else - and wouldn’t want to be.


O’Grady’s Bourbon Cask nods to tradition - but where did you sneak in your own signature twist?


Sam Lowe: Obviously, Bourbon Cask Matured whisky is very much the norm but there are a few things we do different that create something unique to Kinglake.


For us making a stand-out whisky is all about creating a spirit that could only be made by us. Bourbon barrels were chosen as our main ageing medium because there’s less chance of cask influence become the star of the show. A much-quoted statistic is that 60% of the character of a whisky comes from the barrel, we are aiming for a balance of 50% spirit 50% cask.


Some of the key factors that allow us to make that unique spirit are:


  • Our own water source, A natural spring that rises on the property. This is used un-filtered, straight from the source.

  • Because we are tucked away on the edge of the bush and Kinglake National park we suffer from very little pollution. That allows us to use open fermentation for our wash. This allows natural yeasts and eucalyptus pollens to become part of the final fermentation.

  • The higher than normal humidity of the Kinglake climate mean the ageing effect of the barrels is gentler than many other regions of Australia.


Double Wood is like whisky in a tuxedo. How did the ex-bourbon and French oak pairing come together, and did it surprise even you?


Sam Lowe: When we set out to create our first Double Wood expression, we knew the fortified cask shouldn’t steal the show. Instead, it had to work in harmony with the spirit and the American oak. That’s why we chose Tawny over Ruby - its dried fruit and praline character better complements bourbon wood’s vanilla and toffee, and the milk chocolate depth from our chocolate-roasted malt.


We also kept the balance at 40% Tawny to 60% Bourbon. The result is a whisky where spirit, fortified, and oak all share equal billing - each element distinct, but perfectly in step with the others.


Full Noise makes a statement - loud, proud, and unapologetic. What was the moment you said, “Yes, this one needs to roar”?


Sam Lowe: We’ve always believed our whisky shines at cask strength - so much so that we once considered releasing everything at that ABV.


Our first limited release, Full Noise, proved the point. The feedback was so strong that it quickly earned a permanent place in our core range.


When we assemble each batch of O’Grady’s, we draw from five to ten casks. During that process, the barrels that truly stand out - those rare, exceptional examples - are set aside. These become Full Noise: the very best of our bourbon finishes at any given time.


Kinglike’s climate isn’t for the faint-hearted. How do heat, frost, and humidity shape your whisky’s personality?


Sam Lowe: Winters in Kinglake are the real thing, crisp and bracing, and they remind me of home. But it’s the rain and fog that give us so much beauty in the other seasons - spring and autumn here are especially spectacular.


Those cooler months are also a blessing for whisky-making. Fermentation generates its own heat, often lifting the wash by 10 degrees, so the mild climate helps keep the yeast in its best operating window. In summer, it can be more of a challenge to hold that balance.


Ageing here is equally unusual. At most distilleries, the alcohol content rises as the angels take their share. In Kinglake, ours drops. The reason is the high mountain humidity - with so much water in the air, less escapes, so the angels take alcohol instead sadly.


Chyser Creek water is your secret ingredient. What magic does it lend to the final dram?


Sam Lowe: The main elements in the water that are important are Iron and Calcium. We want not too much Iron and plenty of Calcium. We’ve tested the water and both elements are perfect for making whisky. The water is used straight from the lake, unfiltered and untreated.


Calcium (Ca²⁺) is vital for beer fermentation as it lowers mash pH, activates mash enzymes for better sugar extraction, improves yeast health and flocculation, and aids in oxalate removal.


Your four-grain mash bill is a bold move. How do these malts play together, and do they ever get stage fright?


Sam Lowe: There was a 12-month waiting list for our still to be built and we used this whole period to experiment with our mash-bill.


The main components that needed perfecting were the peated and the chocolate. We wanted a solid hint of peat but no more and we spent a long time decided whish peated malt to use and how much. We found it worked best to use a really high ppm malt but less of it.


The correct amount of Chocolate malt is also very important to get right. Too much can give bitter notes in the final whisky. We’re looking for a taste which almost isn’t discernable in itself but just adds depth to the flavour profile of other elements.


The man proving that whisky can be as wild, stubborn, and charmingly unruly as the bush it’s born in.
The man proving that whisky can be as wild, stubborn, and charmingly unruly as the bush it’s born in.

Open-fermentation in an off-grid setup sounds romantic - and terrifying. How does that wild yeast magic translate into flavor?


Sam Lowe: Putting together a distillery Off-grid created lots of added complexity to the build but actually helped us make some difficult decisions more easily. For example, 3-phase power wasn’t available so the decision to heat our still with a gas-powered steam-coil was easy. Although more expensive to set up in term of infrastructure, it is extremely efficient.


Our chosen Yeast, the traditional Scotch M1 is very voracious and so whilst this is working not much else gets a look in. Nevertheless after 3 days and once the M1 has finished we still have some residual sugar and a Specific gravity of around 1004. This still leaves enough sugar to attract local yeasts and have them make their mark but without completely changing the profile of the wash.


Sustainability isn’t just a buzzword for Kinglake. How do you balance carbon-neutral operations with crafting whisky that wows?


Sam Lowe: We’re the first to admit that making whisky - or any distilled spirit - can never be fully sustainable. The process of heating and cooling vast volumes of liquid is one of the most energy-intensive things you can do.


That’s why we’ve chosen to combine pragmatism with purpose, committing to do everything we can to reduce our impact. Becoming Climate Active certified Carbon Neutral means measuring our carbon footprint every year with an incredibly granular audit, offsetting exactly our emissions, and - most importantly - committing to real reductions before the next audit. The process is rigorous, but it gives us a clear view of where we need to improve.


One of the most tangible steps we’ve taken is to covenant a third of our land to Greenfleet for 100 years, allowing it to be re-wilded. Not only does this create a lasting carbon sink, it also restores habitat for endangered species unique to Kinglake.


Kinglake itself feels like a character in your story. How has the history and community influenced your approach?


Sam Lowe: Kinglake is at the heart of everything we do. Even our visual identity draws from the land - gold from the hills, falling leaves from the forest floor, stones smoothed by the mountain streams.


The support we receive from the Kinglake community goes far beyond sales. Neighbours lend advice, spread the word, offer a hand building, and share encouragement that keeps us moving forward.


There’s a no-nonsense, straight-talking spirit in Kinglake - a toughness matched with generosity - and it’s this character that flows directly into our whisky.


Looking ahead, what mischief, surprises, or new expressions can whisky lovers expect from Kinglake?


Sam Lowe: Our next special release is Weird Science - a bold experiment in flavour. This whisky was aged in a full-size Bourbon ASB that first held an ice-bock beer for 12 months before being wet-filled. The result? A spirit layered with subtle, delicate complexity, and a touch of mad genius.


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Words and questions by AW.

Answers by Sam Lowe.

Photos courtesy of Kinglake Distillery.

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