Highwayman – A man on a horse, carrying a gun, who holds up and robs travellers on public roads. Highwayman Whisky – an altogether different beast, as we shall see…
The “next wave” of Australian craft distilleries is washing across the nation at present, with the last six months seeing a large number of new names bring their debut releases to the market. Most of those distilleries have taken the “traditional” route by setting up, distilling, and waiting patiently for their spirit to mature. Others, as Whisky & Wisdom has written about previously, have adopted the strategy of purchasing spirit distilled elsewhere and then selling it under their own brand/label to establish their name whilst they wait for their own distilled spirit to mature. They effectively operate as independent bottlers, until such time as the spirit they’ve made themselves is ready to launch.
Highwayman is one such distillery and operation. Effectively established in 2018 by Dan Woolley, Highwayman is based in Byron Bay, adding to the rapidly growing number of distilleries in New South Wales. Dan’s name is known to most Australian whisky enthusiasts, having worked tirelessly for many years as the brand ambassador for the Beam/Suntory portfolio in Australia, most notably with Laphroaig. What many people weren’t aware of is that, during this time, Woolley would spend his holidays and time off working voluntarily at numerous distilleries in Scotland, the USA, Japan, and Australia, learning the art and craft of distillation. Highwayman is thus the realisation of a long-term dream, in more ways than one.