The Story
White Label Distillery was established in Hobart in 2018 as a contract brewing and distilling company. The distillery provides a number of services, from brewing wash for distilleries, storing whisky casks, creating new make spirit for businesses in Australia and overseas, through to the creation of entire whisky brands.
The business is led by director and shareholder Anthony White, a former farmer, who got his start at Nant as one of their early distillers. The three other directors and shareholders are Phil Gordon, John Goodyear and David Meredith. The latter two, Goodyear and Meredith, are well-known in the Tasmanian business community as owners of the 5-star Islington Hotel and Tas’Mania Limited, a fresh food distribution company which currently exports produce to Hong Kong, with plans to expand to mainland China. The pair are also behind The Glass House and Brooke St Larder on Brooke St Pier, which are fast becoming icons of Hobart’s waterfront.
In the early days, Casey Overeem along with Jane and Mark Sawford were consulting for the distillery, and the experienced Robbie Gilligan was also a manager of the operation.
The distilling side of the business allows clients to use White Label’s own house-style new make, a fruity and clean spirit. However, clients can adjust the process and make alterations to mashing, fermentation and distillation. Any number of changes can be accommodated to meet a desired style, including maturation in over a dozen different cask types.
The experience of the team and its directors have meant that the industry is keeping a close eye on White Label’s progress. How many Tasmanian whisky brands will crop up in Australia and Asia in the next five years with White Label whisky? Might Woolies or Coles look to create their own dominant house brands in the same way they’ve done with wine and beer using contract producers?
Interestingly, White Label will still work with individual clients on niche projects, maintaining that small-scale Tasmanian feel. But the company is certainly eyeing growth, with two larger stills coming online in August 2020 and more fermenters being added to the 16 x 4000 litre tanks already in place. Two further 5000 litre mash tuns will also be installed before the end of 2020.