Sam Lowe and Chantal Daniels
Sam:- “Among the many jobs that need doing in a small, two-person distillery, I make the whisky up here in Kinglake. It’s incredibly peaceful — sometimes I’ll go two or three days without seeing another person during my working day.”
I love the quiet: being close to the elements and the nature that surrounds the distillery. A kookaburra often flies in to perch on the Lyne arm of our still, and there’s usually a few wallabies or wombats wandering across the paddock. It’s a far cry from where Chantal — my wife, business partner and fellow adventurer — and I first met, doing snowboard seasons in the French Alps.
Chantal is the extrovert of the business. When she’s not juggling life with our three kids, she’s busy making sure all of Australia knows about our whisky. She’s driven by a deep passion for what we’re creating — and a clear vision for how we tell our story to the wider world.
What brought us together was our shared love of adventure. And when we’re not making whisky, we love exploring the remnants of Kinglake’s gold-mining past — traces that still linger beneath the forest floor.
Chantal’s family has been in Kinglake for three generations. I fell in love not only with her, but with her home: its mist-covered hills, deep forests, and quiet resilience. We knew this was the place to create something lasting — a whisky rooted in land, story, and spirit.
When making our single malt, we try to take full advantage of the natural assets Kinglake offers, crafting a whisky that could only be made here. Every bottle you buy helps us build what we hope will become a lasting legacy — not only for our family, but for this beautiful part of the world we call home.
Thank you so much!