Lark Distillery founder Bill Lark. Lark Distillery

Whisky is not usually my bailiwick, although I do love an aged malt. But when a great whisky comes along, produced by an Australian distiller, and involving casks that once held Seppeltsfield 100 Year Old Para, I weaken.

I make no excuses. This is a magnificent whisky, and it has a unique story.

Tasmania’s Lark Distilling is a pioneer—and a giant-killer, having won awards in competition against some of the famed distilleries of Scotland and elsewhere. It was established by Bill Lark in 1992 and claims to be Australia’s first craft whisky distiller. As the story goes, it was during a fishing trip in the Tasmanian highlands, surrounded by pure water, fields of barley and freshwater sphagnum peat, that Lark had the idea to create a world-class whisky from pristine Tasmanian ingredients.

And I know how chilly and in need of a dram you can be when stalking wild brown trout in those highlands. History doesn’t record whether Lark’s hip-flask ran out at a critical moment, or maybe what was in the flask didn’t measure up to his standards.

Lark’s shrewd move and quick success emboldened others to establish distilleries in Tasmania and the industry now has a full head of steam.

Lark recently also released its ‘rarest and oldest’ whisky yet, the 19-year-old Legacy. I haven’t tasted it yet, but I digress.

There is a fashion among Scottish malt whisky distillers to use casks that previously held other exalted drinks, both spirits and wines.

Glenmorangie have produced malts that have been finished in casks that contained American bourbon, Spanish sherry and Madeira Malmsey. Tullibardine finished a malt in Château de Chassagne-Montrachet casks.

The Lark PARA100 Vintage Tawny Cask is part of Lark’s Rare Cask Series. Lark managed to acquire two casks, which had each held Seppeltsfield’s 100-year old Para Vintage Tawny, and these casks were used to finish Lark’s PARA100 single malt whisky, leaving behind, as they say, exciting notes of the Para’s past lives. Before finishing in the Para casks, the whisky was aged for five years in ex-sherry, ex-port, and ex-bourbon casks.

Seppeltsfield Para Vintage Tawny is of course legendary. Produced in Seppeltsfield’s Barossa Valley winery, and believed to be the world’s only unbroken line of single-vintage wines dating back to 1878, Para was the brainchild of the visionary Benno Seppelt who laid down the first cask in 1878 and declared that it would not be bottled and sold until 100 years later.

Only 450 bottles of Lark PARA100 were produced, and it’s been aimed squarely at the collector market, retailing for AUD $1,000, and each specially-boxed 700ml bottle is accompanied by a 100ml flask so that you can sample the whisky without broaching your collector’s item.

For an extra bit of bling, there is a tiny copper medallion attached to the neck, fashioned from a piece of a decommissioned Lark copper pot still.

How does it taste?

In a word, spectacular.

The colour is deep mahogany and the bouquet is explosive, with lots of rancio character that reminds me more than a little of a very old tawny port. Burnished wood panelling, old leather chesterfields, dried fruits, spices including cinnamon and raisin bread, flake tobacco—really quite exquisite. In the mouth, the explosion is fully realised: a monumental blast of flavour that commands your full attention and lasts for several minutes on the aftertaste, thanks in part to the 56.3% alcohol content.

A rare spirit of great complexity and character.

Lark Rare Cask Series Single Malt Whisky, finished in Seppeltsfield Para 100 Vintage Tawny cask. Enquiries contact Lark Distillery.