Kavalan Distillery

Kavalan Distillery (Chinese: 噶瑪蘭酒廠; pinyin: Gámǎlán jiǔchǎng) is a Taiwanese whisky distillery. It is owned by the King Car Group and is located at Yuanshan Township, Yilan County, Taiwan.[1]

Kavalan Distillery
噶瑪蘭酒廠
LocationNo. 326, Sec. 2, Yuanshan Road, Yuanshan, Yilan County, Taiwan
OwnerKing Car Group
Founded2005 (2005)
FounderLee Tien-Tsai
StatusActive
WebsiteKavalan Whisky

History
Whisky Distillery 1, King Car Kavalan Distillery

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]

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]

In January 2010, one of the distillery's products caused a stir by beating three Scotch whiskies and one English whisky in a blind tasting organised in Leith, Scotland, to celebrate Burns Night.[5][6]

The distillery was named by Whisky Magazine as the World Icons of Whisky "Whisky Visitor Attraction of the Year" for 2011, and its products have won several other awards.[3]

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]

In 2015, Kavalan's Vinho Barrique expression was named the world's best single malt whisky by World Whiskies Awards.[8][9]


Ian Chang left Kavalan in early 2020.

Recognition

The distillery has been recognized as one of the highest rated spirits during the World Whiskies Awards.[10]

In 2016, Kavalan's Solist Amontillado Sherry Single Cask Strength was named the World's Best Single Cask Single Malt Whisky in that competition.[11]

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]

In June 2023, the company was awarded the prize for “Distillery of the Year” in the annual International Whisky Competition. Its Kavalan Solist Port Single Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky came in second in the Top 15 Whiskies of 2023 category and Kavalan Triple Sherry Cask Single Malt Whisky rated fourth among the 92 Whiskies Scoring Over 90 Points in the competition.[13]

Whisky variants

Kavalan single malt whisky is currently sold in 19 variants.

Kavalan Series

Kavalan Class Single Malt Whisky

Kavalan Concertmaster Single Malt Whisky

King Car Conductor Single Malt Whisky

Kavalan Podium Single Malt Whisky

Kavalan ex-Bourbon Oak Single Malt Whisky

Kavalan Sherry Oak Single Malt Whisky

Kavalan Distillery Reserve Single Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky (Peaty Cask)

Solist Series

Kavalan Solist ex-Bourbon Single Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky

Kavalan Solist Sherry Single Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky

Kavalan Solist Fino Single Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky

Kavalan Solist Vinho Barrique Single Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky

Kavalan Solist Brandy Single Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky

Kavalan Solist Amontillado Sherry Single Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky

Kavalan Solist Manzanilla Sherry Single Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky

Kavalan Solist PX Sherry Single Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky

Kavalan Solist Moscatel Sherry Single Cask Single Malt Whisky

Kavalan Solist Port Single Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky

Kavalan Solist Peaty Cask Single Malt Whisky

Premium Series

Kavalan Premium Single Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky (Amontillado & Manzanilla Sherry Cask)

Kavalan Premium Single Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky (PX Sherry Cask)

Gin

In 2019 Kavalan introduced a gin. Kavalan’s gin sets itself apart from other gin offering by using Taiwanese herbs, spices, and botanicals like kumquat, red guava, and dried star fruit. The gin is produced using the set of German stills Kavalan bought in its early days.[4]

References

Notes
  1. Buxton & Hughes 2014, pp. 256–257.
  2. Tan 2014.
  3. Niinimaa 2012.
  4. Quartly, Jules (9 January 2019). "Kavalan Finds Further "Ginspiration"". topics.amcham.com.tw. Taiwan Topics. Retrieved 9 January 2021.
  5. Wade 2010.
  6. Rosenblatt 2010.
  7. Stout, David (23 March 2015). "You Won't Believe Where the World's Best Whiskey Is Made". TIME.com. Retrieved 25 September 2015.
  8. "Sorry, Scotland! Taiwan's Kavalan named world's best single malt whisky". NY Daily News. 23 March 2015. Retrieved 25 March 2015.
  9. "You Won't Believe Where the World's Best Whiskey Comes From". Time. 23 March 2015. Retrieved 25 March 2015.
  10. Stout, David (23 March 2015). "You Won't Believe Where the World's Best Whiskey Is Made". TIME.com. Retrieved 25 September 2015.
  11. "World Whiskies Awards 2016: Winners". The World Drinks Awards. 2016.
  12. "The Best World Whiskies According to the 2021 International Wines & Spirits Competition," Forbes, 29 June 2021, retrieved 16 August 2021
  13. "2023 International Whisky Competition Official Results". International Whisky Competition. 17 June 2023. Retrieved 19 June 2023.

Bibliography
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