Oz Whisky Review is the ultimate Australian whisky resource. We’re an independent online magazine bringing you in-depth news, reviews, profiles and feature articles on the Australian scene.
We taste and write about whisky through a creative, critical and honest lens and revel in bringing you the stories and histories behind this fascinating industry.
Our focus is Australian whisky, but we’re constantly thinking about the wider whisky world and our place within it. Whisky is the ultimate sharing spirit, and we’re excited to be sharing these stories with whisky lovers across the globe.
The site is published and edited by Luke McCarthy, with contributions and reviews from Julian White and Ev Liong.
Luke McCarthy
Luke McCarthy is the editor and publisher of Oz Whisky Review. After receiving a bachelor in writing and literature, he then completed his graduate studies at Melbourne’s Whisky & Alement and wrote a longstanding national drinks column for The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald on the drinks and bar trade. Now an independent writer, author and semi-retired bartender, his writing on whisky, travel, books and culture has appeared in numerous Australian and international publications. He’s a judge at the Australian Distilled Spirits Awards, and his book, The Australian Spirits Guide, the first to tackle the history and resurgence of the Aussie spirits industry, was published in 2016 by Hardie Grant Books. His spare time is mostly filled with average distance running and sub-standard cricket, and he’s convinced whisky is helping with both endeavours.
Julian White
Julian White is the co-owner of Melbourne’s Whisky & Alement and the driving force behind its importing arm, the Independent Whisky Company. His career in whisky began in the normal way, with an advanced diploma from the Western Australia Academy of Performing Arts and a degree from the National Institute of Circus Arts. Those boxes ticked, he then drew on years of hospitality experience to co-found Whisky & Alement and turn it into one of Australia’s most renowned whisky bars. When he’s not scouring the planet for old and obscure bottlings, and creating daring whisky and beer projects for Australia’s curious drinkers, he’s a panel chair at the Australian Distilled Spirits Awards and a presenter, whisky educator and consultant. He’s also a devoted homebrewer and gardener, but finds that success with the former kills progress with the latter.
Ev Liong
Ev Liong is one of Australia’s most distinguished whisky and hospitality professionals. Over the last 14 years she’s been a venue manager, bartender and sommelier in some of the country’s top bars and restaurants, including Whisky & Alement, Lee Ho Fook and Spice Temple, and designed numerous award-winning beverage programs and events. When not entertaining her two daughters, Ev now works as a spirits blender, consultant and spirits judge, and is more officially known as the ‘Queen of the Dram’.