Richard-ModernDrinking
Starward Two-Fold Double Grain
Other Whiskey — Victoria , Australia
Reviewed
January 16, 2021 (edited August 5, 2022)
It’s not often that I come across such a rich tasting whisky at a 40% ABV, especially one that has been aged for as little as two years. Flavors like chocolate-covered raisins and strawberries pop vividly in the mouth and the finish stretches deliciously to dry red wine notes. The Yalumba winery Shiraz barrels have worked wonders without any of the STR-processing that many young distilleries lean on. When I went to look up the price for this, I assumed it would be about $75, but I was dumbfounded to find that it sells in the US for just $30. That is unbelievable value. Go buy it, now.
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@Richard-ModernDrinking Archie Rose is both the distillery and the brand name https://archierose.com.au/shop A lot of their effort to date has been gin and vodka to keep the money coming in, but the whisky has been simmering in the background. The brown spirits you will eventually see will be a single malt and a malted rye/barley. The single malt is OK but hopefully it will get a lot better. The rye is excellent. I have reviewed both here on Distiller.
@cascode I tasted this at a Drammers Club event with David Vitale and he mentioned Archie Rose. What are their brands?
@cascode Indeed! For almost 30 years our distillers have suffered from being small cottage-industry operations. Fantastic whisky sometimes, but at a very small scale and consequently very expensive. New World Distillers are the first to ramp up production to Scottish or Irish levels where volume brings economy. Expect to see the same thing soon from Archie Rose distillery, and some others will be following in a year or two.
@cascode I would go so far to say that this is a game-changer for world whisky. It’s competed on quality for years, but now it’s moved the goalposts for value.
This is the standout success story of recent Australian whisky.