It was an obvious way to bring in money while the whisky matured. It just wasn’t the right decision for Kinglake.

Back in 2018, when we were filling our first barrels, we were often asked whether we planned to sell gin while waiting for our whisky to mature. This had become such a common approach that when we said ‘no’, people often looked at us as though we were crazy. Why would we forgo a proven revenue stream? I like to think that, eight years later, our decision has been vindicated.

Cameron Mackenzie at Four Pillars, who has always been unfailingly generous with his advice, said to us on more than one occasion: ‘Do one thing and do it well.’

Our goal was always to build a respected whisky brand with longevity. We felt that the allure of more immediate revenue could pull us away from that goal for a few reasons.

First and foremost, we started Kinglake Distillery because we were passionate about making the best single malt in Australia. While I also love a dry martini, we didn’t want to spend precious time and resources making gin when they could be better spent pursuing great single malt.

Secondly, there was the question of branding. When I think of gin or vodka, I think of something light, bright and fresh: pale blues and greens, delicate imagery and clean, crisp packaging. Building our brand around that aesthetic could compromise how people perceived Kinglake Distillery once our whisky was ready.

Success with gin, would mean a bigger potential hurdle in getting people to think of us as whisky makers. We asked ourselves how excited would we be about a Tanqueray or Bombay Sapphire single malt.

Many Australian distilleries have built their brands around the distillery itself, with Archie Rose a notable example. For us, with a much more limited budget and less experience, the safer course seemed to be focusing the distillery on one clear product.

We also quickly dismissed selling moonshine, white dog or whatever other name is given to spirit before it is old enough to be called whisky. Our thinking was simple: if it was already the product we wanted to put in front of customers, why mature it into whisky? And if it wasn’t the best product we could make, it shouldn’t be leaving the distillery.

The financial reality of that decision was stark. From the start of the distillery build at the end of 2017 until our first sales in 2021, neither of us, nor the distillery, generated any income whatsoever.

Over the years, we’ve watched the explosion—and implosion—of the craft gin scene while continuing to lay the foundations for an established, well-respected whisky brand. Looking back, the stress and uncertainty were worth it and we’re confident we made the correct choice.