Kavalan Classic Single Malt Whisky, 70 cl

Product Information

The distillery is named after the old name of Yilan County. The distillery was completed in December 2005, produced its first spirit in March 2006, and released its first bottling in December 2008. [2] [3] Stout, David (23 March 2015). "You Won't Believe Where the World's Best Whiskey Is Made". TIME.com . Retrieved 25 September 2015. Swan worked with Kavalan for more than 10 years, helping the distillery establish its “fruity, oily and complex” style. “Where Dr Swan influenced Kavalan the most was in wood policy and what kind of casks would influence the flavour of the whisky best,” says Chang. Swan taught Chang and the Kavalan team that American oak should be the brand’s preferred cask type, since European oak would “result in something that’s quite bitter and astringent” because of the effects of the local climate. Whisky maturing in barrels

The maturation process is cut down by a third, from four to six years versus the 15 or 25 years of its Scottish counterparts. In 2015, Kavalan's Vinho Barrique expression was named the world's best single malt whisky by World Whiskies Awards. [8] [9] This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( January 2021) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message) International Whisky Competition Official Results". International Whisky Competition. 17 June 2023 . Retrieved 19 June 2023. Buxton, Ian; Hughes, Paul S. (2014). The Science and Commerce of Whisky. Cambridge, UK: The Royal Society of Chemistry. ISBN 9781849731508.Nestled in the lush green surroundings of northeast Taiwan is a distillery that has been making major inroads into the global whisky scene. Since it opened 15 years ago, Kavalan has become the darling of international tasting competitions, shaping the nascent Asian whisky and broader world whisky movements in the process. Sorry, Scotland! Taiwan's Kavalan named world's best single malt whisky". NY Daily News. 23 March 2015 . Retrieved 25 March 2015. Taiwan’s leading distiller, Kavalan, has been a pioneer in world whisky. Now, it is planning on scaling up its ambitions and reach.

After its first few runs Kavalan bought a new set of much larger German stills to expand production. After experimenting with these stills from 2008-2010 they decided to retire them as they produced an alcohol which was too processed and didn’t allow them to work with texture and flavor. [4] This means the brand will be able to offer more products. Kavalan’s most popular single malt is Kavalan Distillery Select, an entry‐level whisky launched in 2018. The brand plans to launch “more easy‐drinking, daily‐dram single malt whiskies”, says Chang, who adds he wouldn’t rule out the possibility of making grain or blended whisky at some point. This masterful approach to maturation means Kavalan’s whiskies are often seen as having a complexity that belies their tender age. The distillery started accumulating international trophies from 2010, when its whisky could have been no more than four years old. Kavalan does not list age statements on its whiskies, but Chang says the distillery plans to expand its line to include age‐stated expressions in the future.The distillery even moved into an entirely new spirit category in 2019 with Kavalan Gin, which is made from the same malted barley spirit as Kavalan’s whiskies and contains locally sourced kumquat, star fruit and red guava. The line will expand this year with the addition of a cask‐aged variety, while 2021 will see the launch of a colourful, flavoured iteration.

For its part, Kavalan will continue to spread the message of Taiwanese whisky around the world. The brand’s biggest market is Europe, but it wants to gain a footprint in North America and Japan – it now has enough liquid to do so. “We have reached a good point in terms of production capacity, so the next stage is to push for sales in more markets,” says Chang. “But we also need to maintain the quality and complexity of our products. These are our two main priorities.”

The distillery has been recognized as one of the highest rated spirits during the World Whiskies Awards. [10] In 2012, Kavalan's Solist Fino Sherry Cask malt whisky was named "new whisky of the year" by Jim Murray in his guide, Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible. [7] Wade, Mike (25 January 2010). "A whisky on Burns Night? How about a wee dram of Taiwanese?". The Times . Retrieved 24 May 2014. In 2021, the Distillery did very well in the Gold Outstanding category at the International Wines & Spirits Competition, winning all but one of the eight medals that were awarded. A news article at that time added this information about the distillery's success: It "came to prominence in January 2012, when one of its expressions beat out three Scotch whisky expressions in a blind tasting [and has since won] dozens of awards for its whisky bottlings". [12]