Whisky Review: Starward Australian Single Malt Finished In Lagavulin Barrels

Editor’s Note: We received a review sample of this whiskey from the brand. However, in accordance with our editorial policies, this has not influenced the outcome of our review in any way.

Starward Australian Whisky has risen from the ranks of whisky from this island nation to become one of the best-known outside of its native land. Crafting spirits from local ingredients and maturing them in barrels from the Australian wine industry has helped this distillery to gain a high degree of fame and recognition globally, including being named ‘Most Awarded Distillery of The Year’ at the 2022 San Francisco World Spirits Competition, and most recently as one of The World’s Most Admired Whiskies by Drinks International (Drinks International, World’s Most Admired Whiskies, 2023).

Starward was founded some 15 years ago by one David Vitale and is headquartered in Melbourne, Australia. Besides resting its whiskies in the Australian red wine barrels and sourcing grains from within a day’s drive of the distillery, Vitale and his team also give credit to Melbourne’s “notorious four seasons in one day” as influencing via a constant temperature change how the whisky barrels contract and expand at a much faster rate, thereby having the whisky within take on a higher amount of flavors from the barrel wood.

What’s in the bottle

The whisky being reviewed here, Starward Australian Single Malt Finished In Lagavulin Barrels, is an experimentation in how additional aging in pretty heavily peated barrels can influence Starward’s normally wine cask forward expressions. To this end, the Starward team, led by Starward Production Director Sam Slaney, traveled to Islay’s Lagavulin distillery in Scotland to observe “the influence of climate on maturation, noting how aging in two very opposing environments impart distinct flavor finishes, and somehow work together in perfect harmony.”

What this turned into, more practically speaking, was the sourcing of ex-Lagavulin peated whisky barrels for use in a special project. Starward’s signature red wine barrel matured Single Malt Australian whisky, already aged three years, was finished for 18 months in the Scotch barrels before being bottled at 48% ABV.

“My earliest inspiration for Starward was to create a deliciously distinctive whisky,” said Vitale at the time of this whisky’s release, “and while we certainly hit that brief with our red wine barrel matured whisky, what whisky better epitomizes distinctively delicious than Lagavulin? Sourcing these barrels to create this exciting expression gives us a magical moment to celebrate the very best of Australian curiosity and Scottish tradition. I’ve always been inspired by Islay; so much so that we named our daughters Islay.”

Starward Australian Single Malt Finished In Lagavulin Barrels is a limited-release offering priced at $130.