Nova
Single Malt Whisky
Our signature single malt.
Our Nova single malt whisky has received many global awards, including Double Gold medals at both the 2022 San Francisco World Spirits Competition and the 2022 New York World Spirits Competition. Nova is a true expression of our red wine barrel maturation process, boasting exceptional length and a layered complexity like no other single malt you've tasted before.
Nova borrows from tradition but breaks away from it too.
A deliciously balanced and bold whisky for sharing and mixing, Nova is matured exclusively in red wine barrels sourced from wineries making shiraz, cabernets and pinot noirs. This whisky reflects Melbourne unique nature in every sip. From the vibrant culinary scene to the wild weather, Nova celebrates all that is unique and wonderful about making whiskies in Melbourne.
Tasting notes
Nose / Like we took bright flavours of red berries and orchard fruit and coated them in soft oak spice.
Palate / Imagine a rich red berry pudding covered in vanilla, caramel and spice.
Finish / Balanced and long. The sweetness fades and the delicious flavour goes on.
It all starts with our new-make spirit.
All Nova’s carefully sourced ingredients come from just a day’s drive away from the Melbourne distillery.
We double-distil our single malt whisky using Australian malted barley. Borrowing from the craft brewing scene, we ferment our barley with brewers’ yeast for an extra bold flavor. Then we installed custom water jackets on our giant copper stills to better control the distillation. It's tricks like this that mean we can pick the fruity characters we like and keep each batch consistent.
Then come the barrels.
We go local.
We source barrels from wineries in the nearby Yarra Valley and Barossa Valley so they keep their fresh red wine flavor profile. Then, they’re lightly charred or steamed. Often, the barrels are still wet with wine when we fill them.
For us, it's all about the flavor. As we fill our barrels at a lower alcohol proof than other single malts, our whisky takes in all the more red wine fruit characters and tannins.
Next comes climate
A far cry from the sunny Australian stereotype, Melbourne is famed for experiencing ‘four seasons in a day’. Bad news for beachgoers, good news for whisky. Fluctuating weather makes Nova work hard in the barrel, extracting maximum flavor from the wood in just a short time. We call this elemental maturation.
And it’s why we couldn’t make Nova anywhere else.