Single malt whisky def: a Whisky distilled at a single distillery and made [only] from barley, water and yeast. Single malt whisky is distilled using a copper pot still and are typically associated with Scotland, though they are produced elsewhere, notably in Ireland and Japan – and Australia!

Shared love of a wee dram that has distilled into a brilliant business

Single Malt Whisky Club. Brad Wright, Single Malt Whisky Club founder, shared more whisky wisdom in an interview with Australian Rural & Regional News. See below the story.

The Single Malt Whisky Club (aka SMWC or singlemalt.com.au) started when two mates would catch up on Friday nights and relax with a shared bottle of single malt whisky.

At the time single malt whisky mainly came from Scotland and only a few brands were available in Australia.

Friends and family soon got in on the action and then rare and hard to get single malt whiskies were being shared, assessed and enjoyed.

In 2005, the two friends had an epiphany – if we like doing this, surely there are others who would like to partake in the ‘water of life’ and the club was born.

SMWC is a subscription whisky club focused on seeking out the very best, rarest and most interesting single malt whiskies from around the world. With some unique and surprising additions along the way!

Over the last 20 years single malt whisky has boomed and nowhere more so than in Australia.

Tasmania, the home of Australian whisky, which had no distilleries 30 years ago has over 70 at last count with even more coming, and Australia now boasts over 700 distilleries – with around 200 of those producing whisky.

The rise of ‘World Whisky’ has also happened in our time, with countries such as America, France, India, Japan (and Asia in general) – even Israel – all being recognised on the world stage for the whiskies they are producing. And these ‘world whiskies’ are (like the Australian whiskies) taking medal after medal in the world’s most respected awards and publications.

Scottish distilleries that had previously closed have opened back up due to the demand for all styles of whisky.

All of which is great news for the SMWC as it means more options for members to sample and delight in.

“We initially developed the SMWC back in 2005 because we just couldn’t buy most of the really interesting single malts in Australia,” founder Brad Wright said. “We started simply as genuine enthusiasts, and our idea was to import a case or two and share the costs with others who were similarly interested.”

“Now the SMWC’s buying power means we can work with many of the distilleries we feature to bring unique expressions of their whisky to our members. We feature special ‘SMWC-exclusive’ releases from such distilleries Glenrothes, Benrinnes, Glen Scotia (to name a few) as well as many exclusive casks from well-known Aussie producers, and tiny ‘artisanal’ distilleries from all over Australia.”

“Amongst these ‘special’ projects, our wildest was probably our collaboration with Iron House Distillery in Tasmania where we had a couple of casks of their whisky stowed on a Tassy Abalone boat (the ‘Maverick’) for a year,” Brad said.

“In those 12 months, the casks travelled 3280nm (about 6000km) in some of world’s most treacherous waters, endured 7 metre waves, 100km/h hurricane force winds and barometric pressure ranging from 910to 1040HPA. All these factors combined to create a ‘hyper-aging’ environment. And what a whisky it turned out to be! Our members loved it, and it was swooned over at every whisky show we sampled it at that year.”

“I think this is where SMWC is different to others. We’re enthusiasts. For us every whisky is an adventure, and we’re always up for new experiences that we take our members along on the ride for. That’s not something you’ll get in a less personal club.”

In 2021, Single Malt Whisky Club won the prestigious Icons of Whisky: Whisky Buyer of the Year Award, a nod from the industry that the boys really do know what they’re doing!

The SMWC is a club first and foremost, with a single malt of the month delivered to members’ door as frequently as they like – monthly, bi-monthly or even just once or twice a year. Members are able to choose the whiskies they don’t want and ‘opt-out’ as often as they like.

SMWC also has an online store, offering an array of fine malt whisky for those not wanting a monthly purchase or looking for something special.

“We are about much more than just cost-effective, home delivered single malt whisky,” Brad said. “We believe that the best way to truly appreciate something is to learn about it. To this end, it is our mission to provide information and activities that ensure the tasting experience is as full as possible.”

“We provide detailed tasting notes on everything we sell, and we don’t rank – we review. Taste is a personal and subjective thing, so we tell you what it tastes like but not whether it is good or bad. What we dislike you may love. We provide guidance to our members and customers, so they choose based on their own preferences,” Brad continued.

The SMWC prides itself on providing whiskies from distilleries that produce tiny amounts of single malt, and whisky from regions previously only read about in dusty tomes are regular monthly malts.

“Our single malts are sourced from the highlands, lowlands, speyside, Islay and the Islands of Scotland together with the emerging single malts of Australia, Japan, Canada, NZ, India and Ireland. In fact, we’ve featured whiskies from 19 countries at last count!” Brad said.

And if sharing a love of whisky wasn’t enough, the boys have started the Rum Tribe (rumtribe.com.au) to let rum lovers experience the diverse and hard to get rums from around the world.

Rum is where whisky was around twenty years ago,” Brad said. “I am looking forward to seeing the growth of this wonderful drink and how Australians will embrace the rum experience into the future.

Operating in much the same way as a wine club, the SMWC offers a ‘Malt of the Month’ for members, tasting notes, video reviews and whisky education.

There is no obligation, no minimum buy, no joining fee, no hidden contracts, and as the boys say, no bull.

Gift cards and gift memberships are available, or you can simply purchase individual bottles online.

Australian Rural & Regional News learnt more about single malts, the club and the business from SMWC founder Brad Wright.

ARR.News: It’s a fantastic business idea, combining a fun and informative club with an online store. The online store and running the SMWC has clearly taken and takes a good deal of work. When you founded the club, did you think it might be an easy way to support your love of whisky and expand your knowledge? Has it turned out to involve more work than you thought it would at the outset? Is running the SMWC and the online store a full time occupation now?

Brad Wright: At the very start, it was about a few mates saving a bit of money by chipping in to buy a carton so we’d get a bit of a discount from whatever bottle-o we bought from. When we kicked off the business proper in 2005 – we thought it would be a little extra income and yes, also a way to increase our knowledge/experience with something we loved. It has definitely turned out to be more than we thought at the outset and, yes, running the SMWC and the RumTribe is a full-time job now. Offerings can take years in the making/organising/dealing/shipping.

ARR.News: Business model. Can you share the business model?  Is it primarily commissions on sales? Other ways to monetise the club? I see you are starting tasting nights. Do these bring in a little money?  How about whisky tours, within Australia or globally?

Brad Wright: Our focus as a business has always been supplying hard to find whiskies to our members via our online site. We are big enough to normally deal direct with the distilleries and purchase at enough quantity to pass on those savings to our members. Any other services such as tasting nights etc are all for marketing and brand recognition of the club.

ARR.News: How have you managed to have such a good deal on postage?

Brad Wright: We have a 20 year relationship with Auspost and get bulk rates due to number of shipments we make per month.

ARR.News: How do you keep abreast of all the new distilleries, whiskies and whisky news? Do you get dozens of bottles a day arriving for you to sample?

Brad Wright: It’s a combination of watching social media, industry news sources, members and friends recommendations, and of course, many long term relationships with many people in the industry in general from farmer right through to bar staff and management – and direct contact from distilleries or importers/wholesalers themselves. After 20 years I’m lucky enough to have a network of ‘whisky people’ that I regularly chat with. And yes – the constant stream of samples and bottles in general is the bane of my lovely wife’s existence. :)

ARR.News: Tasting panel. Can you say who is on the tasting panel? How does one get to be on the tasting panel :)?

Brad Wright: Not so much a tasting panel as a 20 year old network of producers, importers, retailers, reps, bar tenders, friends (both IRL and SM), serious enthusiasts and collectors. I guess you could say I have spent two decades now building a network of trusted palates whose recommendations on brands/distilleries and ‘tip-offs’ on upcoming releases and currently maturing casks are invaluable. But – I’m the buyer, so ultimately that side of the business rests on my shoulders. I like to think I’m doing a fairly decent job of it – and was quite chuffed to win the ‘Icons of Whisky – Buyer of the Year (Australia)’ at the World Whisky Awards in 2022.

ARR.News: Whisky as an investment. Do you know of many people who use single malts as an investment? Do you give advice to whisky investors? Do you yourself keep some for investment purposes? If so can you say which or what type of whisky makes for a good investment? Have you seen any appreciate in value dramatically since the club began?

Brad Wright: I don’t personally know anyone (including myself) who is investing in whisky casks. Like any investment I’d say do your research. I don’t keep whisky for investment purposes – but I’ve acquired a lot of bottles over the last 20 years and I’m sure some are worth a bit more now than when I acquired them. Our Cradle Mountain releases are probably our most valuable bottles  – going for ~$1500 at auction I believe.

ARR.News: Whisky itself.  How does Australian whisky compare to other whiskies and why? Was that stowage on the Tassie abalone boat intentional? The notion of pairing whiskies with different foods seems fairly novel.  I’m not sure that the purist Scots would approve of mixing a single malt with anything, including food …? Do you have some general guidance on what types of whiskies suit particular types of food? A toughie, possibly, but what whisky could possibly go with … ice cream .. ;) ? 

Brad Wright: Aussie whisky in general is excellent and highly rated on the world stage. Our distilleries have been winning gold, double gold, best in class and ‘liquid gold’ awards around the world since the early 2000’s. IMHO, a couple of reasons for this – firstly our climate. We have so many different environments and micro-climates in Australia, tropical, sub-tropical, temperate, maritime, alpine, forests, deserts and everything in between – some very humid, some very dry. And all the different environments effect maturation differently (terroir!), leading to a large range of styles of whisky being produced here.  But pretty much all with a fair range between max and min temps daily (which ‘works’ the whisky in the barrels more – expand, contract, expand, contract – like a set of lungs). All these factors give us a little advantage in the maturation game. Second is the distillers themselves. So many of them very small (single operator or ‘husband and wife’) affairs – but they’ve taken the time to learn from the best around the world and adapt those lessons to our land. Very much like our bourgeoning wine industry did in the 70’s.

The ’Maverick’ abalone boat release was a colab with Iron House in Tasmania. Yes it was completely intentional – in fact there were actually two different expressions aged in the boat- an ex-Muscat cask and a (smaller) ex-port cask. They were originally lashed outside the wheelhouse, but [as they were constantly soaked with salt water] were moved into the hold after the first few weeks.

Whisky and food – perfectly acceptable to drink a whisky with a meal, or charcuterie, or chocolate and cheese after dinner etc. Pairing food with whisky (and even using it in some recipes – whisky cream sauces etc) isn’t at all frowned upon. Burns night for example, is traditionally feasting on haggis whist drinking single malt whisky.

The aversion/debate/age-old argument is about adding mixers/ice/water to the whisky you’re drinking. ‘How should I drink my whisky?’ is a question I’ve been asked since we set the club up 20 years ago – and my answer has always been ‘if you paid for it, then drink it any way you like and let them be damned’. But having said that – we won’t be adding diet coke to any of the single malts at my house. I’ve got some blended scotch if that’s your thing (‘not that there’s anything wrong with that!’ ;)) – and even some Fanta in the fridge – knock yourself out!

Personally I drink the majority of my whisky neat. With the exception of cask strength whisky (bottled strait from the cask without any dilution) which I add a [literal] couple of drops of water to, which ‘opens’ the whisky.

Some pairings:

• A nice lightly peated Islay (Caol Ila perhaps) ex-bourbon cask whisky with oysters, prawns etc. The smoke notes and salty-seaweedy notes compliment shellfish perfectly.
• A big non-peated ex-sherry matured whisky for steaks, game and roasts and the like.
• A super peaty (smoky/musty notes) whisky for cigars and cheese platter.
• Ice-cream? In this guy’s experience, by the time the ice cream comes out… doesn’t really matter, does it? J But technically, I guess, I’d go for an ex-bourbon cask matured, non-peated whisky for the citrus, vanilla and floral notes typically found in that style of maturation.

ARR.News: Do you think whisky and single malts will always have a more limited market because it is for taste, reflection and kick rather than a thirst quencher?

Brad Wright: Yeah, I think that’s a pretty fair statement. But I think it’s probably also true for all ‘high-end’ spirits. It makes sense that the more you’re paying for a product, the more you want to take time and appreciate the product. And as you allude in your question, the Aussie climate(s) – for the most part – isn’t really suited to knocking back a dram or two of 40-60 per cent abv alcohol after ‘digging a hole’, is it!

One last thing.

Being as this interview is for ARRN, it’s a great opportunity for me to thank all the farmers and rural/regional-living people for giving the SMWC a real ‘leg-up’ in those early days. For the first few years of our existence, we had a large percentage of ‘country people’ as members (as good whisky was even harder to find out bush back then). We were a very early adopter of a purely ‘eCommerce’ business model – and regional people were definitely early adopters of both using eCommerce/mail-order and trusting a company on the internet to hold their credit card details for monthly payment to a club. So a huge ‘thank you’ to our farmers and those living in regional areas (some of whom are still members!) for the support we received from them in the seminal years of the club’s existence.