Review: First look at the Waubs Harbour Single Malt Whisky range

Luke McCarthy -
Whisky Reviews
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On tasting: Waubs Harbour Original Single Malt Whisky, Waubs Harbour Port Storm Single Malt Whisky, Waubs Harbour Founder’s Reserve Single Malt Whisky

Australian maritime single malt whisky. It’s an interesting idea, and not necessarily a new one. A number of distilleries across the country like Limeburners, Fleurieu and Furneaux are situated on or across the road from bays, inlets and oceans, while Fannys Bay, Bellarine, Manly Spirits Co. and several others are a quick walk to the shoreline.

The influence of the sea on the maturation and flavour profile of these whiskies is often palpable – think salty, sea spray, oyster shell and briny notes. It’s these flavours that Waubs Habour Distillery are looking to emphasise in the whiskies they’re creating.

The distillery was founded in 2018 by Tim and Bec Polmear and Tim’s brother Rob (check out our interview with Tim and Bec for the full Waubs story). The intent was to create one of Australia’s most distinctively ‘maritime’ single malts, and the incredible location of the distillery in Bicheno on the Tasmanian east coast will definitely assist with that.

The whiskies themselves are an interesting representation of that location but also of Rob Polmear’s distilling background. Rob previously worked at Overeem and Lark and you feel the influence of those distilleries in Waubs single malts. There’s the Overeem finesse, tidiness and richness of flavour, but you also feel the nutty, toasty, biscuity notes present in Lark whiskies here as well.

Whether or not these early releases have captured the maritime, saline quality advertised, I’m not so sure. I tasted these Waubs Harbour malts next to a number of benchmark Scottish and Australian whiskies, and they don’t quite have the briny, saline grunge of the best practitioners of the style. But the early signs here are incredibly promising, and it will be fascinating to see how these smartly designed and executed whiskies develop in future.

  • Waubs Harbour Waubs Original First Release Single Malt Whisky
    The Stats
    • ABV: 43%
    • Price Band: $ $ $ $ $
    • Style: Single malt whisky
    • Production Story: Distilled at Waubs Harbour Distillery through Knapp Lewer pot stills from a mash of Tasmanian pale malt barley. Matured predominately in ex-Bourbon casks with a smaller percentage of Australian tawny cask matured married into the batch. Released April 2023. 445 bottles in total.
    • Location: Bicheno, TAS
    • Score: 84
    Nose
    Lovely nutty, macadamia and malt flavours to kick things off. Caramel and salted toffee, which seems to be a distillery trait from the various Waubs malts I've tried. Time in glass brings out some fruits, florals and raisins, and yes there is a hint of something saline in there.
    Palate
    More of that caramel, salted toffee here as well, with coconut, vanilla and raspberries from the American oak. Hints of youth, I'm guessing from the ex-Bourbon cask components, but that brings forward some of the lovely biscuity malt flavours in the distillate.
    Finish
    All the Jersey Caramels from the marriage of malt and American oak. Sustained length with hints of those tawny casks here, too.
    Comments
    A lovely entry point to Waubs Harbour single malts. Brilliant balance of flavours, and a bit more distillate-forward as well, which is probably why it's my personal favourite of the range. Not quite getting the 'maritime' briny flavour touted, but there's hints of that emerging and this bottling will definitely improve over time (it's already pretty damn good now).
  • Waubs Harbour Port Storm First Release Single Malt Whisky
    The Stats
    • ABV: 48%
    • Price Band: $ $ $ $ $
    • Style: Single malt whisky
    • Production Story: As above, although the Port Storm is matured predominately in French oak ex-tawny casks with a smaller percentage of ex-Bourbon matured whisky married into the batch. 433 bottles in total.
    • Location: Bicheno, TAS
    • Score: 86
    Nose
    Big fruitcake and forest floor notes upfront. Peanut brittle, nutmeg, jam and plenty of red fruits from the tawny casks.
    Palate
    Lots of rich tawny here. More spice, too. That Waubs caramel nuttiness meets more tannin and grip from the cask, adding a pronounced stewed raspberries and jammy character. Holds the higher ABV and more prominent tawny notes well, despite the heavier tannins at play.
    Finish
    Definitely carries further on the ABV here. More grip and syrupy fruits on offer, too.
    Comments
    A Bicheno take on Overeem Port Cask. Lots to like here. Good integration despite the heavier oak presence, great texture and length, and the ex-Bourbon cask components have prevented this from becoming too tawny dominant.
  • Waubs Harbour Distillery ‘Founder's Reserve’ First Release Single Malt Whisky
    The Stats
    • ABV: 62%
    • Price Band: $ $ $ $ $
    • Style: Single malt whisky
    • Production Story: As above, but this time solely matured in ex-tawny casks. 401 bottles in total.
    • Location: Bicheno, TAS
    • Score: 88
    Nose
    Yep, a big Tassie tawny bomb. Certainly spicier, that's the higher ABV at work but the casks have kicked in more Christmas cake, old leather and maraschino cherry.
    Palate
    Returns to the salted peanuts and malt before a flood of juicy raisins, tawny and dark chocolate take over. I liked this with just a few drops of water, but pretty banging at cask strength as well. Very polished.
    Finish
    That's not stopping. Pudding and sea salt, almost a caramelized, sweet and salty braised fish character. Yum.
    Comments
    Great selection of casks and they've been married together beautifully. While not my favourite of the trio, this is very well integrated and deliciously complex.
How We Score
Luke McCarthy
Luke McCarthy is the editor and publisher of Oz Whisky Review. An independent writer, author and drinks columnist, Luke's written about whisky and spirits for numerous Australian and international publications and is a judge at the Australian Distilled Spirits Awards. His book, The Australian Spirits Guide, the first to tackle the history and resurgence of the Australian spirits industry, was published in 2016 by Hardie Grant Books.