Ryan Hartshorn of Hartshorn Distillery has followed up his award-winning sheeps whey gin and vodka with a ‘whey-sky’.

“While it’s not technically a whiskey as we’ve used sheeps whey to create the base spirit, it’s been made true to style,” says Ryan.

Like other Aussie drams, Harsthorn’s ‘whey-sky’ has been double pot distilled, whiskey type cut and aged in 20-litre sherry casks for a minimum of three years.

“The main difference in taste is you get a little bit more sweetness from the whey than you would with rye or barley, but otherwise the flavour profile is pretty similar,” says Ryan.

“The sherry cask barrels have given it some toffee and plum on the nose, and then when you drink it, you get a rich fruit sweetness with hints of orange rind and citrus spice. It has a real warmth to it.”

The first batch of whey-sky, which produced 64 bottles priced at $300 each, sold out within 24 hours.

“It was mainly the whiskey connoisseurs who bought it up as well as a few fans of the gin and vodka range. It was really nice to see that people had that kind of trust in our brand to support this entirely new product,” he said.

For those who missed out, Ryan is already planning the next batch, which will be aged in barrels from Porto. He also promises to make a lot more next time around.

However, it’s not the only exciting launch for the 2019 Delicious Harvey Norman Produce Award-Winning distillery this year. Come November, Hartshorn will release a collection of canned cocktails, made from their signature sheeps whey gin and vodka.

The new range, which will be available across boutique bottle stores nationwide, will come in three styles – zesty, spicy and smoky – and revolve around native botanicals, like lemon myrtle, peppermint gum and pepper berries. More details to come.