Bill Lark has flown to London to be inducted into the Whisky Hall of Fame, due to occur Thursday evening 19 March, London time. The Whisky Hall of Fame draws international commendation.
It’s a permanent tribute to those who have made a lasting contribution to the world of whisky.
Known internationally as “the Godfather of Australian whisky”, Bill Lark is only the seventh person outside of Scotland or Ireland to be inducted. The other six are American, positioning him as the first distiller in the southern hemisphere. The induction is highly regarded worldwide, particularly in the United Kingdom. Into its second decade of recognition, the 2015 awards take place at the Waldorf Hilton in Aldwych, London.
Bill Lark realised that everything you need for a world-class whisky was in Tasmania – rich fields of barley, an abundance of wonderfully pure soft water, highland peatbogs and the perfect climate to bring all the ingredients together in a marriage ofscience, art and passion.
What sets Bill apart is his humble and generous philosophy. Willing to share his knowledge, Bill has assisted more than nine start-up distilleries in Tasmania aloneand has grown a hugely successful premium craft spirit industry in Australia. As Billsays, “a rising tide lifts all boats”.
“I thought people might think we were trying to teach the Scots how to suck eggs and they would think – what are you doing, you silly colonial? We make whisky, you make beer! But in fact it’s been exactly the opposite. We have had tremendous support from the single malt industry worldwide, and from consumers. They were always a little nervous at the start…but it really didn’t take long for the market to truly grab hold of the fact that Tasmania can produce stunning single malt whisky,” adds Lark.
Lark Distillery was the first licenced distillery in Tasmanian since 1839. It was established to produce Tasmanian malt whisky, rich in character with a big finish using the finest Tasmanian ingredients. Lark is very proudly a boutique distillery dedicated to maintaining its proven high-quality malt whisky and other unique Tasmanian spirits. Lark whisky is crafted in small batches and matured in small barrels, and 5-7 years later bottled by hand.
Today the Lark Distillery is one of Australia’s leading distilleries, producing high quality, premium single malt whisky using traditional time-honoured methods. The Distillery runs a 1,800 litre copper pot still along with a 500 litre spirit still.
This induction carries on from Sullivan’s Cove being handed the award of World’s Best Whisky for 2014. The accolade for Whisky Hall of Fame 2015 will be hosted by Radio 4 presenter Garry Richardson and is divided into three stages: Scotland, America and the ‘Rest of the World.’ It is drawn from distillers and blenders worldwide.
Further images are available on request. More information about Lark Distillery is available at www.larkdistillery.com.au.
