The Gospel unveils Australia’s first Bottled-in-Bond whiskey
Australia’s only dedicated rye whiskey distillery has expanded its core range for the first time in almost six years. In the process, it has unveiled the first Australian whiskey made to the strict Bottled-in-Bond standard. But The Gospel’s latest dram is anything but an ode to its US counterparts. This is the story of what Australian rye whiskey can be.
Bottled-in-Bond requires a whiskey to be distilled in a single season, at a single distillery, and by a single distiller, before being matured for more than four years and bottled at 100 proof, or 50% ABV.
For The Gospel, Bonded Rye means building on its established pedigree as a key leader of the Australian rye whiskey category.
Co-founder Andrew Fitzgerald told Whisky Magazine: “We [were] the first Australian straight rye to hit the category requirements of straight [rye], which means over 51 per cent rye, age for two years in American oak, distill below a certain percentage. Bonded is the next level of that; it refines it further. It's one distillery. It's one season. It makes Bonded a great expression of development and of time and place, which was summer of 21.”
Bonded Rye also champions the different profile of Australian-grown rye, sourced from a single farmer in South Australia’s Murray Mallee region specifically chosen for its harsh climate.
The resultant whiskey is characterised by its bold structure and generous depth, with aromas of rye bread, spice, toffee apple and sweet pastry.
“This is the most deliberate whiskey we’ve ever made,” said Fitzgerald. “The result is a whiskey of extreme precision and provenance. It’s for the people that take their whiskey as seriously as we do.”
Despite The Gospel Distillery’s success, and despite its annual Project Releases, which typically sell out within a day or two, Bonded Rye is the first whiskey to join The Gospel’s core, permanent range since the launch of Straight Rye Whiskey, which followed the original SKU Solera Rye Whiskey.
All three are crafted by Ian Thorn, Australia’s only accredited Master Distiller, who has been guiding The Gospel’s distilling operations since its early days.
Bonded Rye will be available from 12 October at an RRP of $140.
The Gospel's three core-range whiskies: Solera Rye, Bonded Rye, & straight Rye
