Kinglake Distillery is Revealing with a World First and it's Not Whisky

Kinglake Distillery in Australia has begun building what could be a world first: an underground dunnage warehouse. It may well become the lowest whisky maturation warehouse on the planet.

With this warehouse, the distillery is taking on Australia’s heat, which typically drives a higher Angel’s Share than in places like Scotland.

The distillery aims to craft more complex whiskies, and that calls for a cooler climate. In Australia’s current conditions, that’s not easily achieved without drastic measures. So Kinglake Distillery has dreamed up a smart solution that could also be a world first: the first underground whisky warehouse.

By building the warehouse below ground, the distillery can maintain lower temperatures and a more stable climate. This allows for maturation conditions comparable to those in Scotland.

Sam Lowe, co-owner of Kinglake Distillery, explains that Australia’s climate produces young, vibrant whiskies, but the distillery is seeking ideal conditions for maturing its spirit.

According to Lowe, whisky in this warehouse should be able to mature for significantly longer. There’s a clear motivation: the distillery wants to stand shoulder to shoulder with very specific benchmarks.

The warehouse’s unusual location isn’t only a response to Australia’s heat. The regular bushfires in Victoria are also a factor. An above-ground warehouse is vulnerable to fire, underground, that risk all but disappears.

If all goes to plan, the construction of this unique warehouse will be completed by the end of this year. And if this warehouse starts to fill up, Kinglake Distillery could add a second underground facility nearby. But that's something for the future.