The Story

It’s not a simple task to properly unpack the history of Sullivans Cove whisky. The distillery that was founded by Robert Hosken in 1994 at Hobart’s old Gasworks is so far removed from the current brand that most industry folks like to pretend it never happened.

Hosken was something of a visionary for Tasmanian whisky and spirits production. But consider the legal trouble he was eventually mired in, from being issued court orders by the ACCC for misleading labelling, to his subsequent prosecutions for insolvent trading, and it’s little wonder many prefer to bury the Hosken part of the story deep under the cellar.

Left: Robert Hosken, developer and Sullivans Cove founder; Right: Old Gasworks, Hobart – The Mercury

‘Sullivans Cove Premium Whisky’ – the ‘Tasmanian Scotch’ that landed Robert Hosken in court

On top of that, a number of the pioneering figures in Tasmanian whisky worked for Sullivans Cove in its formative years.

Lyn Lark was one of the original distillers when Hosken was in charge. Bill Lark then did a stint as general manager during the Highland Holdings period, when investors Tom Elvin and Neville Parton acquired the business in 1999 (something Lark Distilling drew attention to with the ‘Legacy’ bottlings).

Patrick Maguire worked as a still hand in the Hosken era, then as a full time distiller during the Highland Holdings period under Bill. Pat then took over the business in 2004 with two other investors, and over the next 15 years, steadily built the brand into the version fans know and love today.

Here’s a basic breakdown of the different periods:

The Hosken Era (1994-1999): Hosken acquires the Gasworks site and opens the distillery in December 1994; ‘Sullivans Cove Premium Whisky’ is released (see above), a blend of Scotch whisky sourced from the Invergordon Distillery – the bottling subsequently lands Hosken in court. Sullivans Cove ‘First Edition’ is released, a two year old distilled in March 1995 and bottled in March 1997 – this is the first official bottling of Tasmanian whisky since 1838. In 1998, Hosken is charged and convicted for insolvent trading.

Highland Holdings (1999-2004): in 1999, Sullivans Cove is purchased by Canberra-based investors Tom Elvin and Neville Parton under the joint company name Highland Holdings; production is improved and increased at the Gasworks site and numerous Sullivans Cove whiskies are bottled in subsequent years. Elvin and Parton fall out over unpaid debts and the business goes into liquidation in 2003.

The Maguire Era/Tasmania Distillery (2004-2016): Patrick Maguire and two other investors purchase the distillery and all its stock; the distillery is moved to an industrial park in Cambridge, two sheds down from its current location. By 2008, Maguire completely redesigns Sullivans Cove livery to its modern version and releases three core bottlings: American Oak, French Oak and the Double Cask. In March 2014, Sullivans Cove French Oak HH0525 wins world’s best single malt at the World Whiskies Awards.

The Sable Era (2016-present): Sullivans Cove is sold to a Melbourne-based family business headed by Adam Sable for an undisclosed sum; a number of new single cask and age statement bottlings are released, including a 21 year old, Australia’s oldest official distillery bottling to date.

When Patrick Maguire took the reins in 2003 with the backing of several investors, there was a lot to do. He wanted to completely redesign most of what he saw with how the whisky was made and branded, and the first step was moving the distillery from the old Gasworks in Hobart to an industrial park in Cambridge.

From there, Maguire developed the modern version of Sullivans Cove you see today. He shored up Sullivans wash supply (which was long produced at external breweries), refined the old pot still, and took a more considered approach to distillation.

Over the years, the production of Sullivans Cove whisky has also undergone several changes. Initially, Hosken commissioned an alembic charentais still, similar to those used for cognac production. The still had a number of peculiar elements that have remained in some form or other even today, helping to produce a malty, meaty, slightly sulphury character in the Sullivans new make.

Crucially, Maguire also decided to fill large format tawny (300 litre) and Bourbon (200 litre) casks believing that the whisky inside them wouldn’t hit its straps until the 10+ year mark, minimum.

His thinking was long-term, small batch, high quality. And it worked. When the accolades and awards started accumulating in the early 2010s, it was vindication, finally, for years of patience and hard graft.

Consumers started to get on board, too, assured by the consistent core range Maguire had introduced, but intrigued by the traceability and variety that each single cask presented.

All the intricate details were there on the bottle (another Maguire decision). So when the French Oak HH0525 won world’s best single malt in 2014 at the World Whiskies Awards, that bottling, and the entire back catalogue of whiskies, quickly turned into a collector’s dream.

In retrospect, it’s difficult to overstate the impact of the win at The World Whiskies Awards. It catapulted Sullivans Cove, and Tasmanian whisky more generally, on to the world stage. Whereas years before Maguire would look around at all the casks in the distillery and dread the possibility he’d made more whisky than he possibly ever sell, suddenly he wished he’d made 10 times more.

In 2016, the progress spurred a family-operated group led by Adam Sable, who’d worked with Melbourne-based David Prior at Bladnoch Distillery, to purchase Sullivans Cove and set about transforming the company into one of the world’s most sought-after whisky brands.

These days, anything Sullivans is fanatically collected, and every bottling is snapped up as soon as it’s released.

The consistency and quality of the offerings has also improved, with distillery manager Heather Tillott taking over from Maguire to drive the whisky program forward. Bottlings are now frequently released at 15+ years and the maturity of the whisky has hit a new level for the Australian category.

The core range American Oak, French Oak and Double Cask are still progressively released, but over the last few years, dozens of one-off and limited bottlings have been added under the Special Cask, Old & Rare and Limited Editions range. In 2019, Sullivans Cove also moved away from any form of flocking or filtration for their single cask offerings, a move now being emulated by other distilleries across the country.

In December 2024, the distillery in Cambridge was significantly renovated and underwent a $14 million refurbishment, including a plush upgrade to the cellar door space. Mashing and fermentation will now be conducted on-site and two new Forsyths stills will help to expand production moving forward.