Australia’s most awarded whisky is now Wallabies-approved

The news is the second massive announcement for Starward so far this year after it was fully re-purchased by its founder David Vitale following a decade of being partially owned by the company that makes Johnnie Walker, Talisker and Lagavulin. 

David says sponsoring Rugby Australia is a key milestone in achieving what he set out to do back in 2007 – “to make a whisky that could stand next to the world's best and belong there. Not as an Australian version of something else, but as something the world hadn't tasted before.” 

“The Wallabies and Wallaroos are building toward exactly that moment,” he goes on to add. “Australia on home soil in 2027 and 2029, showing the world what we're made of. That's a story Starward understands from the inside. We're proud to be part of it."

 Phil Waugh, the boss of Rugby Australia, adds that he is “thrilled to welcome Starward, a proud Australian owned and operated business, into the Australian rugby family.” 

What does this mean for whisky fans?

Arguably not a lot, unless you are also an avid rugby supporter. 

But wins of this nature, for Australian brands of world-class product, are worth writing about and raising a glass to. 

It is also a bright neon sign of much more to come from the two-time Distillery of the Year of one of the world’s most prestigious global spirits comps, the San Francisco World Spirits Competition. 

David Vitale, founder of Starward Whisky