All about the geography
Whisky is more in tune with the land from which it’s produced than any other type of spirit. Of course, every gin and vodka distillery has its own way of doing things, which results in variety and uniqueness, but it is nigh on impossible to recreate a bottle of Scotch produced on the windswept Scottish island of Islay in Kentucky, and vice versa. 
This relationship was certainly not lost on Kavalan, which, like its counterparts in Scotland and Ireland, uses what it has to its advantage. Kaitlyn Tsai, Brand Ambassador of Kavalan, divulged the distillery’s secret to success to New Food: it’s all in the climate.
“The subtropical/tropical climate in Taiwan hugely impacts maturation. It enables us to develop a rich and complex whisky in just a few years,” said Tsai.
“At Kavalan, it’s not just the heat of Yilan’s summer that causes the accelerated maturation and the smoother, softer finish, but also the cold Siberian winds in winter, which maximise the process of oxidation. Yilan happens to be the first place in Taiwan where the Siberian winds hit, making it the best place on the island to make whisky.”
Located on the North-eastern tip of Taiwan, Yilan County (which Kavalan was the historical name for) is exposed to the Pacific Ocean and the weather systems that it can bring to the island, including monsoon rains.
You’d expect that a beverage manufacturer would do all it could to shelter its vulnerable wooden casks from the 20-degree temperature swings and 2.6 metres of rainfall the region can receive throughout the year. Yet just like Old Pulteney leaves its casks to be battered by the wild Atlantic Ocean to impart a briny finish on its expressions, the masterminds at Kavalan are more than happy to let nature throw what it can at its precious product.
“Our warehouses are entirely left to nature, in contrast to all other parts of our distillery. In summer, we tend to shut all the windows to trap the heat, and then throw them open in winter to let in the cool breezes, which will circulate around the casks, enhancing the oxidation process. We try to harness all the natural resources instead of fighting the heat,” Tsai revealed.
“Our diverse climate in Yilan impacts our maturation. It enables us to develop a rich and complex whisky in just a few years. Our location north of the tropic of Cancer means we experience hot summers and cooler winters brought by the Northeast monsoon. Because of this, our ageing process works on a different track to the traditional system. That’s why we call it ‘Maturation Redefined.’
“However, our ageing process leads to the risk of over maturation. Therefore, we always check and record the condition of every cask carefully. If a cask is matured at the right age, we bottle immediately.”
Whisky – the water of life
The geographical influences do not end there either. The word ‘whisky’ derives from Scottish Gaelic, with the original phrase ‘uisge beatha’ eventually being anglicised into ‘whisky’ (or whiskey, as it’s known in Ireland and the US), meaning ‘water of life’. It’s fair to say that the water that goes into the mash tun (a vessel that combines the grains) is just as, if not more important than, the malt. Plenty of Scotland’s big hitters attribute their success to their water supply – Aberlour even pours a bottle of its 12-year-old expression into the River Spey to “bless” the start of the salmon‑fishing season.3 But, as in every other aspect of the whisky process, Kavalan has its own answer.
“Kavalan is located in the ‘County of Water’, a place of nature boasting the purest water in Taiwan, drawn from a source in the peaks of ancient Snow Mountain,” said Tsai. “Directly supplying the distillery, these waters seep down through the mineral-rich earth, gathering behind our distillery, as well as running across Yilan’s fertile Lanyang Plain to re-join the sea.
“When you taste Kavalan and experience its trademark creamy mouthfeel, you can thank Snow Mountain. That sweet hit is mostly the minerals in the water, on account of the mineral-rich earth, arising from Yilan’s ancient volcanic activity.”
Can Taiwan continue to compete?
Despite the huge promise Kavalan has shown in crafting a niche for Taiwanese whisky in the market, it has a long way to go before it can claim parity with Asian neighbour Japan, let alone Scotland or Ireland, in terms of years of pedigree and success.
But it is perhaps towards Japan that Kavalan should look for inspiration. The island country has a whisky heritage dating back to the early 20th century, but demand for the country’s expressions plummeted towards the end of the 1980s.4 Fast‑forward 30 or so years and Japan’s stock couldn’t be higher. Exports of Japanese whisky rose by an estimated 1,478 percent between 2010 to 2020, according to the National Tax Administration Agency of Japan, and prices have followed, with a bottle of Yamazaki’s 12-year-old setting one back more than £100.5
So, can Taiwan follow in Japan’s footsteps and join Scotland, Ireland and the US as one of the major players? Tsai certainly thinks so. “The trend seems to be going toward a greater number of regions being recognised in a greater number of competitions,” she said. “For example, in the Tokyo Whisky & Spirits Competition (TWSC) this year, Taiwan was classed as its own competing region.
“Around five years ago, Kavalan was recognised as a pioneer in whisky world. There are more and more curious and open-minded drinkers who have a thirst for information behind our label and other ‘new world’ labels. This creates a huge opportunity, especially for the producers in new world nations.
“As one of the new world distilling nations, we also feel that there are a growing number of whisky consumers in those nations who are eager to try local, home-grown brands, making the market for new labels even broader.”
Tsai is correct in that now, more than ever, an increasing number of countries are getting a foothold in a market dominated for so long by a select few regions. Australia, India, and even Sweden, have all produced bottles that have turned heads in recent years – there is even growing competition from Scotland’s closest neighbour, as English whisky continues to rise in stature. There is a long way to go before any of the big four need to start looking over their shoulders, but Kavalan has shown that whisky manufacturing is not the super‑exclusive club it used to be.
Kaitlyn Tsai
Kaitlyn is a Kavalan Brand Ambassador and Global PR Officer. She has a communication degree from one of Taiwan’s most prestigious universities and is passionate about whisky.
References
- www.scotch-whisky.org.uk/discover/faqs…
- www.cnbc.com/2015/06/04/5-rules-that-make-it-bourbon.html
- www.aberlour.com/en/our-deeds/
- www.forbes.com/sites/felipeschrieberg/2018/05/17/4-facts-you-should-know-about-the-japanese-whisky-crisis/?sh=1c5298774d8f
- www.forbes.com/sites/akikokatayama/2021/04/01/japanese-whisky-finally-defined-now-you-know-what-exactly-you-
are-paying-for/
