A fourth global title – unprecedented in the history of the awards – firmly cements Sullivans Cove’s place at the forefront of world whisky.
March 26, 2026 (London, UK) — The multi-award-winning distillery has once again been recognised at the highest level of global whisky, awarded World’s Best Single Cask Single Malt at the World Whiskies Awards for its 18 Year Old French Oak ex-White Wine (Single Cask No. TD0112).
This marks the fourth time Sullivans Cove has received a World’s Best title, following its watershed win in 2014 and subsequent awards in 2018 and 2019. It is a level of recognition no other distillery has achieved, and all the more remarkable given their scale – a small, single cask producer at the bottom of the world, continuing to set the global benchmark.
The awarded cask represents a leading edge of maturation practice. While white wine casks are increasingly explored across the category, very few distilleries have extended them to such age, and fewer still have achieved this level of balance, structure, and composure.
This success reflects not only exceptional cask selection, but the discipline required to steward and navigate such casks over nearly two decades. Managing active oak of this kind demands continuous sensory monitoring, calibrated intervention, and a deep understanding of the evolving relationship between spirit, oak, and environment.
Sullivans Cove’s production philosophy underpins this outcome: extended fermentations that create the building blocks of flavour and texture; distillation in high-reflux Charantais-style alembic stills with worm tub condensers that retain weight, structure, and spirit character; and maturation in exclusively full-size casks, enabling slower, more integrated development over time.
Each cask is assessed individually over its lifetime, with bottling decisions driven by sensory readiness rather than fixed age statements. The result is a whisky defined by clarity, structure, and quiet authority – never rushed, never replicated.
“To be recognised again at a global level speaks less to any single whisky, and more to the philosophy that underpins everything we do.” said Andy Gaunt, CEO. “Sullivans Cove has never set out to follow established pathways – we have focused on understanding our own conditions, our own materials, and building a framework that allows each cask to reach its full potential. The success of an 18 year old white wine cask is a strong example of that. It challenges traditional expectations of maturation and highlights the quality of Australian wine casks when paired with the right spirit and long-term intent. For us, this is about continuing to contribute to the evolution of global whisky – demonstrating that with patience, discipline, and clarity of purpose, new benchmarks can be set from outside traditional centres of production.”
“An eighteen year old whisky matured in French oak ex-white wine is exceptionally rare in Australia, and it is not a style that can be approached passively.” said Heather Tillott, Director of Whisky Creation. “These casks bring structure, brightness and tannin, which over extended time require both resilience from the spirit and precise, considered management in the bond store. Every stage of its maturation has been closely observed and carefully guided. Decisions are made incrementally, with a long view, allowing the whisky to develop without ever losing balance or clarity of character. To see that tension resolve so completely at this age is deeply rewarding. This whisky reflects the integrity of the cask, the strength of the spirit, and the cumulative effect of disciplined stewardship over nearly two decades. It is a result we are proud to stand behind.”
From its founding in 1994, Sullivans Cove has pursued a distinctly Tasmanian approach to whisky making one grounded in patience, precision, and respect for the individuality of each cask. Its continued success at the World Whiskies Awards reinforces its position as a defining force within the global single malt category.
Single Cask No. TD0112 was matured in a French Oak ex-White Wine cask for 18 years, yielding a limited number of bottles that are long sold out. However, you can discover the depth and individuality of Sullivans Cove’s wine cask maturation through their current releases: https://sullivanscove.com/collections/wine-cask
This latest recognition further cements Sullivans Cove’s role in shaping the evolution of world whisky, demonstrating what is possible when long-term thinking, technical precision, and uncompromising standards converge.
ICONS OF WHISKY
Global Innovator Manager of the Year: Heather Tillott
This award acknowledges innovation within restraint and constraint. The methods referenced are carefully developed processes around cask management, maturation control, and quality oversight; the quiet, compounding work that underpins consistency, longevity, and world-class outcomes. It is innovation measured in decades.
“True innovation in whisky is often mistaken for change, when in reality it is about refinement. At Sullivans Cove, our focus has been on building systems that allow us to better understand the interaction between spirit, cask and time – particularly with more demanding cask types like French oak ex-white wine. Maturing a whisky of this age in such a cask is not a passive process. It requires continuous observation, restraint, and a willingness to make small, informed decisions that compound over decades. What we are seeing now is the result of that long-term approach. It reinforces that innovation in this category is not about accelerating outcomes, but about creating the conditions for exceptional whisky to emerge in its own time.” – Heather Tillott, Director of Whisky Creation
Global Warehouse Manager of the Year: Marcelo Viapiana
Recognising the often unseen work that underpins every release at Sullivans Cove, this award speaks to exceptional operational discipline, deep technical understanding, and an uncompromising approach to quality oversight. From logistics and compliance through to the final steps that ensure each bottle reaches its destination safely, the warehouse plays a critical role in safeguarding some of Australia’s most rare and valuable whiskies.
“Warehouse work is about removing friction without ever compromising the whisky. Over the past year, the focus has been on improving flow and reliability, reducing errors, and strengthening quality control at every stage. That includes refining how orders move through the warehouse, improving on-time delivery, and building systems and training that support consistency across the team. It is a continuous process of small, deliberate improvements, all with the same goal: to ensure every bottle leaves us exactly as it should.” – Marcelo Viapiana, Supply Chain Manager
About Sullivans Cove
Sullivans Cove Distillery is the sum of many things; an unrushed approach to distilling, its geographic location – Tasmania, Australia – and above all, a dedication to realise the full potential of every cask. Founded in 1994, Sullivans Cove is Australia’s most decorated whisky distillery, having won World’s Best at the World Whiskies Awards in 2014, 2018 and 2019. Using local ingredients their unrushed process does not follow timelines. The whisky comes good when the whisky comes good. The Sullivans Cove mentality does not compromise; whatever it takes to craft exceptional single cask whisky. Only a couple of hundred bottles of the world-class, award-winning whisky are released at a time, each batch having its own unique character and flavour profiles. No two batches are the same. To taste a whisky that can never be replicated visit sullivanscove.com.
Sullivans Cove Production Process
At Sullivans Cove, every step of production is guided by a singular obsession: to create a unique spirit capable of standing the test of time. Fermentations are among the longest in the world of whisky, yielding a rich, briny, complex wash destined for decades in cask. Distillation in a high-reflux, Charentais-style alembic still extracts fragrance and nuance, while passage through a traditional worm tub condenser ensures intimate copper contact, adding clarity and texture.
Maturation is approached with meticulous care: only large casks are used, and each is tasted repeatedly over many years, monitoring the whisky as it develops extraordinary depth and layered complexity. Once each individual cask has reached its peak of flavour, harmony and integration, the Sullivans Cove sensory team often undertakes ABV trials to determine the optimum bottling strength for each specific cask. The final drip dilution – inspired by centuries-old Cognac techniques – brings the spirit to that perfect drinking strength, slowly, while preserving its vibrancy and texture, filtering nothing out.
Every element is intentional: Sullivans Cove is a bold, resilient spirit, crafted from the start to evolve gracefully over decades and deliver a single malt of remarkable richness and careful balance.
