CRADLE MOUNTAIN WHISKY
KEY MILESTONES
1988:
Cradle Mountain Whisky founders Brian & Fay Poke begin their whisky journey by setting up the business and attracting initial shareholders.
1989:
The Cradle Mountain Whisky team of Brian Poke and Don Cameron set a vision to develop a high-quality Australian whisky. Poke and Cameron applied for and received a government grant to use a Darwin laboratory to begin the experimentation and development of a single malt whisky and to continue the production of other liquor products. The operation then moved back to northern Tasmania. Cradle Mountain Whisky distilling began on the 28th April 1989.
1990:
Cradle Mountain Whisky production continued using "pure stream water as it was straight from the hills," said Poke.
1991:
Brian Poke and Don Cameron start production in a new location near Ulverstone, Tasmania, with Brian Poke as Master Distiller.
1992:
The company moved to larger premises "The Potato Shed" in Preston, Tasmania and the company changed the name to the 'Franklin Distillery'. The distillery was designed using sizeable converted dairy vats.
The company was selected to commercially pilot the use of the locally grown Franklin barley. Franklin barley was created in the mid-'80s by plant breeder Dr Wayne Vertigan of Tasmanian's Primary Production and Fisheries. The barley's reputation as a strain of high yielding malting barley gained considerable attention from international brewers and maltsters.
1993:
The distillery was the recipient of a grant from the Grain Research Development Corporation. This grant allowed Poke and Cameron to invest in more equipment and to continue production of Cradle Mountain Whisky using local barley.
1994:
By 1994 the company had grown to 16 shareholders including David MacLennan an ex-math and science teacher appointed as the company Chairman, dentist David Abbott, local businessman Andrew Morrison, along with several other business associates. With the addition of these shareholders, the company changed its name to The Small Concern Whisky Distillery.
1995:
Andrew Morrison visited Scotland with a sample bottle of the 15-month-old Cradle Mountain Whisky. He brought it to the attention of independent bottler William Cadenheads, the marketing arm of Springbank Distillery to get a perspective on the quality of the whisky. Springbank Distillery was so impressed they ordered seven barrels, which in the early days was a considerable achievement for the company, the whisky industry, and Tasmania. This coup received a substantial amount of media attention, both locally and internationally.
1996:
Orders began trickling in from overseas markets like Japan, the UK and the United States.
1997:
In March the Distillery received a call from the Australian Prime Minister’s office. Prime Minister John Howard had heard about the particularly good malt whisky. He hoped to purchase a bottle or two to give to Jim Bolger, the then Prime Minister of New Zealand. To ensure they were received on time, the whisky was bottled into earthenware crocks.
April saw the company bottle one of the barrels made under the Franklin Distillery in 1993. Three hundred bottles were released all signed by the distiller Brian Poke and encased in blackwood presentation boxes. The new expression was launched by the Tasmanian State Premier Mr Tony Rundle at the Ulverstone Civic Centre. The bottles were sold to local buyers as well as buyers from New Zealand, the UK and Kenya.
2001:
The distillery secured several export orders including 500 bottles to Taiwan, Vietnam and Hong Kong.
2002 to 2014:
The distillery while looking for investors continued to bottle and sell their early production while ageing the last barrels to 17 years. It was also the time when the Tasmanian whisky industry began to achieve some international recognition and overseas sales.
2015:
Cradle Mountain Whisky was purchased "lock stock and barrel" by the Lahra Family. A chance tasting of the 17-year-old Single Malt whisky on an overseas trip tweaked the interest of Joe Lahra who claimed: "The whisky was so good we had to buy the company!"
Rebranded as Cradle Mountain Whisky, the new owners prepared for whisky production. With a love of wood and its effects on the ageing process, Joe designed and branded a new barrel concept called Sol' lahra barrel. The innovative stave combinations of these handcrafted casks create a unique method of ageing Cradle Mountain Whisky to produce flavour complexity and a mosaic of aromas.
The barrel is coopered with different stave types, for example, ex-Sherry, Port, Virgin Oak, Bourbon, and Muscat. The ratio of staves is determined by precise surface area calculations based on the flavour profiles and the complexity targets of the distillation formula, the size of barrels and planned maturation.
2016:
Brian Poke the founding father of Cradle Mountain Whisky completes the intensive handover training to the Lahra family and assists with the development of the whisky formula.
Cradle Mountain Whisky begins production of three additional new makes. These are left to mature in Sol' lahra and ex-Sherry, Port, Virgin Oak, and Bourbon barrels of differing charr levels. Some of the legacy stock is also further aged with a target to release a 21-year-old whisky.
2017:
Cradle Mountain Whisky continues to fill barrels and develops 'The Cradle Glass' a whisky glass that changes the way whisky is nosed and tasted. Handblown using traditional glass-blowing methods, the glass by way of its shape effectively reduces alcohol fumes, thus enhancing the taste of whisky.
2018:
Plans for a new, distillery facility for Cradle Mountain Whisky get underway.
2019:
Cradle Mountain Whisky turns 30, and the distillery transition is finally complete. The first run through the new 2000L wash and 600L spirit stills was officiated by the Lahra family with the guidance of Brian Poke.
Cadenheads release the 7th and final cask of Cradle Mountain Whisky - "Cradle Mountain from the Small Concern Whisky Distillery, Aged 23 Years".
2020:
In celebration of 30 years of whisky production Cradle Mountain Whisky released a new expressions; 'The Long Trek' - 30 Year Anniversary.
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The Long Trek received a "Liquid Gold" 95 point rating by Jim Murray's Whisky Bible against a tasting of 4,500 whiskies from around the world. This honour puts this whisky in the Whisky Bible category of "Superstar whiskies that give us all a reason to live"
2021:
An exciting new 2021 release was announced titled "The Alpine Trail". Batch: 20007 ABV: 48.7%, Non-filtered, Macquarie barley, Cradle Mountain spring water. Barrel: Sol Lahra – New American Oak influenced light char
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This is the first time, we believe, in world whisky history where our members were given a rare and unique opportunity through a ballot to purchase and taste the same Cradle Mountain Whisky, one twin aged for 21 years in Scotland and the other aged 21 years in Australia. The two whiskies, ageing in vastly different climatic conditions over a significant period presented entirely differently in colour, nose, palate and finish.
2022:
The Cradle Mountain Single Malt Whisky 2022 release of "The Forest Trail". Batch: 20008 ABV: 48.8%, with a slight Sol Lahra – Bourbon barrel influence with a heavy charr brings a finish of Tasmanian spicey pepper berries, a long mandarine rind finish with a whiff of Habana cigar notes.
The expression: "A Walk In The Woods" batch 20009 was released in March with an ABV of 60%. This whisky was designed for big bold whisky lovers and presented in both 600ml and 130ml bottling, which sold out immediately.
In order to improve the distillery capacity, Cradle Mountain Whisky establishes a new much larger facility located on Cradle Mountain Road.
2023:
After a seriously long wait involving countless tasting sessions and keeping a very close eye on our well aged barrels, we proudly released Barrel 26. This barrel with its interesting array of Sol-Lahra staves produced a complex Single Malt Whisky. Batch 20011 was released with an ABV of 53%. The local Macquarie barley very delicately smoked married exceptionally well with the rich minerals in the fresh Cradle Mountain water. On the nose, we discover toasted marshmallows, lemon myrtle, maple syrup oatmeal, custard cream cookies, stewed rhubarb and strawberries. We close our eyes and contemplate when we taste this whisky, so we called it "a thoughtful whisky".
2025:
Honouring our guiding philosophy — “True quality cannot be hurried” — we devoted an extraordinary amount of time to nosing, tasting, and selecting from our barrels until we discovered something truly exceptional.
“Love at Its Peak” (Tình Đỉnh Cao) stands as both a celebration and a monument to an inspiring journey — a whisky that embodies patience, devotion, and the pursuit of perfection.
Batch 20013, bottled at 54% ABV, remains non-filtered and shaped by the purity of Cradle Mountain spring water. Matured in a Sol Lahra barrel influenced by French new oak and port staves, with a heavy char and delicately smoked Macquarie barley, this release captures the soul of the Tasmanian highlands.
Nose: Freshly ground coffee, Kahlúa, Muscat, and raisin toast.
Palate: Christmas cake, toasted raisins, Medjool dates, cherry wood smoke, and golden honey.
Finish: A long, lingering close — reminiscent of a fine aromatic cigar savoured beside the fireside.