A Chinese First: This Distillery Has Filled its First Barrels

Monday, 11 August 2025 at 19:03

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After more than 7 years of preparation, the Chinese Nine Rivers Distillery has finally achieved its goal: the first spirit has trickled from the stills and the first barrels have been filled. This marks a significant milestone in the whisky history of Nine Rivers.

In this article:

How long did it take for the first spirit of Nine Rivers to be made?
After 7 years of preparation, Nine Rivers has filled its first whisky barrels.
What is the production volume?
They are starting with 1.3 million litres of pure alcohol per year, with potential growth to 7.5 million litres of alcohol per year.
When will the first whisky be released?
The date of the first whisky release is not yet known. This will take several more years, given that the spirit has just been distilled.

A Liquid Milestone for Nine Rivers Distillery

Over 7 years ago, the team behind Nine Rivers Distillery in China embarked on their journey. The distillery in Longyan, Fujian was planned and built. It took some time, but eventually everything was ready for production this year.

On June 25, 2025, the first mash was made, while the stills were first heated up on June 30. The second distillation took place on July 2nd of this year, with the spirit slowly trickling from the stills.

The Nine Rivers new make spirit has been ageing since July 10 in small 58 litre barrels. This simultaneously kick-starts a test to see if it matures more quickly in this way.

The real starting gun for the first single malt whisky from the Chinese distillery won't be fired until the whisky is actually ready and bottled.

Ambitious and Modular Whisky Project

Nine Rivers Distillery has made a strong start. The Chinese distillery has started with a substantial capacity. There are three copper stills present, including the wash still of 15,000 litres.

That puts the current production at 1.3 million litres of alcohol per year, but that's not the final goal. The ambition is much higher.

The distillery is modularly set up on a plot of 1500 m2, of which 500 m2 is currently occupied. There are seven more stills to arrive, along with their own cooperage where Nine Rivers will produce 100,000 barrels per year.

The 30 ton mashtun is currently fairly large, but will soon be assisted by an equivalent companion. This will bring the future capacity to over 7.5 litres of alcohol per year.

The distillery is not only focusing on whisky, but also on other spirits like gin and rum. In anticipation of Nine Rivers' first whisky, enthusiasts can already purchase the Founder's Casks whisky and whisky barrels.

Fun fact: Did you know that Nine Rivers was financed by more than 400 whisky fans from over 28 countries through a crowdfunding campaign?