With over 13 international awards.
Established in 2005, Kavalan is Taiwan’s first whiskymaker and the nation’s only family-owned whisky distillery. Kavalan takes the old name of Yilan county where the distillery is located in northeastern Taiwan. The pure water and fresh air make this part of the subtropical island the ideal environment for the production of whisky.
Kavalan Distillery is an entrepreneur’s dream come true. Mr. Tien-Tsai Lee, the founder of King Car conglomerate had long dreamed of producing a Taiwanese whisky, yet it was not until 2002 when Taiwan joined the WTO that his goal could be achieved.
The distillery brings together a professional whisky R&D team with a world-class master blender, Ian Chang, as well as the expertise of renowned whisky specialist, the late Dr. Jim Swan. The team implements the highly specialized distilling and blending skills that King Car Group has cultivated for more than 30 years through beverage experience and knowledge.
Process
Water
Our water is drawn from the springs of Snow Mountain and Central Mountains, which are very pure, creamy and clean. That’s one of the reasons Kavalan Whisky tastes so good.
Germination
During germination the barley secretes the enzyme diastase which makes the starch in the barley soluble, thus preparing it for conversion into sugar. Throughout this period the barley must be turned at regular intervals to control the temperature and rate of germination.
Milling
The malt is crushed in a mill to expose the sugar. For example, before drinking coffee, you must grind the coffee beans. King Car Group has been making coffee for decades. We apply the same technique.
Mashing
The mashing process is the extraction of sugar from the solid malts into liquid by the addition of hot water. The sugary water is called “wort.” It is essential to reduce the temperature of the wort before the next process. If too hot, the yeast will be destroyed before fermentation takes place.
Fermentation
Yeast is added to the wort, turning the sugar into alcohol as well as small amounts of flavour congener. At the Kavalan distillery, there are jacketed layers covering the outside of the washbacks. They are used to control the temperature. If the temperature is not monitored, it could harm the flavour that we want.
Distillation
The double distillation method is applied in the Kavalan distillery. Usually the stills work in pairs. The first distillation is to separate the alcohol and water. The second is composed of three parts: the foreshots (the first spirit to come off the still), the heart, and the feints (the final spirit from the still). The best part of the heart is collected and filled into casks for maturation. Choosing casks is very important for the flavour of the whisky. However, without a quality new make (newly distilled whisky), quality whisky cannot be produced. Our new make is very clean, which is one of the ways we make premium whisky.
Maturation
Each of our two maturation warehouses is 5 storeys high. As Taiwan is hot, the spirits extract the flavour from the oak at a faster rate. Even at a young age, Kavalan whisky is more mature than others at a similar age.
Blending
Blending is the mixing of whiskies from different casks. When whiskies are judged by our master blender to be at their peak perfection, they are blended to produce whiskies with a consistent flavour.
Bottling
When the whisky has reached the desired maturity, selected casks are emptied and Kavalan water is added to create just the right amount of alcohol by volume for certain expressions. Finally, the fully crafted single malt is bottled.