In the rolling hills of the Tamar Valley, an American expat is shaking up the whisky world by selling bourbon-style whisky back to the Americans.
Justin Turner, a former New York finance executive, today unveiled his distillery’s latest creation: Tasmania’s first-ever bourbon-style whisky, made entirely from local ingredients.
Turner is betting that Americans will fall for the new drop just as they have for his distillery’s Three Cuts Gin range, which is already pouring in top bars across New York and Los Angeles.
“We are proud to be Tasmania’s first and only spirit exporting to the US market in four states now and counting,” Turner said at the launch of his Rosevears Whisky range at Turner Stillhouse.
“There’s genuine interest when I talk to both our distributor partners in the US market and consumers and trying a Tasmanian bourbon-style whisky.”
“It just has never been done before. There’s a lot of demand, there’s a lot of curiosity and interest in doing it.”
The venture has long caught the eye of Premier Jeremy Rockliff, who attended the launch alongside local MP Jo Palmer.
“When a quality product hits the hits the shelves internationally, whether it be in New Zealand, Singapore, Japan or indeed the US, it carries with it a fantastic Tasmanian brand which really means quality,” Rockliff said.
“I couldn’t be prouder of what they’ve been able to achieve exporting a fantastic product right across the globe.”
Turner founded the stillhouse just weeks before Covid hit and has since gone on to launch a number of Tasmanian products.
He says the new Rosevears Whisky has a “super-premium” taste with “a bit of sweetness” from the locally grown corn.
“All of our corn comes from the north-west, our rye from the south and our malt from the north-west as well,” he said.
“It is adhering to US rules around a bourbon-style whisky but using 100% Tasmanian ingredients and we’re really proud of that.”
The launch comes as the state government ramps up efforts to grow Tasmania’s export footprint. Premier Rockliff announced a $3 million boost for the next Tasmanian Export Trade Strategy, set to be unveiled in the May 29 state budget.
“Over the last six years we’ve been able to diversify our markets right across the globe,” the Premier said, noting that Tasmanian exports have grown from $5 billion in 2019 to $6 billion annually today.
The strategy has reduced Tasmania’s reliance on the Chinese market from 44% of exports six years ago to around 32% now, while maintaining overall value through expansion into new markets.
For Turner, who currently sells more product within Australia than overseas, the enormous US market presents a tempting opportunity, despite the occasional tariff-related challenge.
“Australia is well positioned because we have the lowest tariff rates in the world at 10%,” Turner said.
“Overall, certainly it does add a slight increase in our cost basis, however it’s not detrimental to what we’re doing and we just see nothing but upside going to the US market.”
