Callington Mill

Callington Mill Distillery in central Tasmania is a relative newcomer to the Apple Isle’s whisky scene, having been established in '16, with their whisky first hitting the market in late '21. The distillery shares the site with the historic Callington Mill windmill, built in 1837 to service the local grain growers. There was also an illicit distillery on site, providing some great historical context for the modern facility. This is also the closest thing Australia has to an exact replica of a Scottish single malt distillery, the huge, bulbous pot stills dwarfing most Australian operations, their wide bellies polished to a coppery shine. Apart from their size, which translates into volume and therefore very reasonable pricing, Callington’s big point of difference is their cask programme. Rather than relying on the local wine casks or the relatively inexpensive ex-bourbon casks that most Australian whisky makers employ for maturation, Callington Mill sources nearly all of their oak from the fortified wine producers of Spain and Portugal, opting for some of the most expensive casks money can buy. Money is clearly one thing Callington isn’t short of. You can see it in everything from the shiny, multimillion-dollar distillery fit-out to their luxurious and beautiful packaging. There’s also a full service restaurant and bar on site with better food and drink than you’ll find in most small Tasmanian towns, along with professional tour guides, so it’s well worth a visit if you’re in the area. Given all that, Callington Mill, along with large scale distilleries like Starward and Morris, has the potential to be a game changer in the Australian single malt scene, long dominated by low volume, high priced craft offerings. But it's yet to fully hit its stride in terms of quality and consistency. No distillery I’ve ever known has been at its best within the first 10 years of operation. Good whisky takes time and a lot of trial and error. But some of its products are already punching well above their weight, and at prices that are genuinely competitive with Scottish imports, so Callington Mill is not one to sleep on. -FRED SIGGINS