Dr. Jim Swan’s Legacy

When discussing our distillery, the impact that Dr Jim Swan had on our earliest days is hard to overstate. After our founding in 2013 the decision to hire Jim as a consultant was one of the first steps we ever took. It was an easy choice. Jim was at the time renowned as the ‘Einstein of Whisky’, zig-zagging all across the globe assisting distilleries in exotic locales, places opposite to whisky’s traditional strongholds of Scotland and Ireland.

Of course he didn’t stay just a ‘consultant’ for long. Jim almost instantly became our beloved mentor and friend. His lofty goals and relentless excitement for the future of Israeli whisky was infectious, and provided us with the inspiration and know-how to build the distillery as it stands today. 

In the technical sense he guided us on how to work with, not against the blistering climate. Everything needed to be tinkered with, from our cutting regime to even the angle of our still’s lyne arm! Though as with all whisky nerds, his true attention was towards the casks. Jim invented the STR cask (Shave-Toast-Rechar) for specific use with fast whisky maturation in hot climates, thus it’s no secret that Jim’s STR casks are a staple around our warehouse! Jim was also known to almost salivate at the gorgeous diversity of Israel’s climate zones, often calling it a “whisky maker’s playground”. From the glitzy promenade of Tel Aviv to the salt-caked shores of the Dead sea, we certainly play with our casks just as he intended.

Dr Jim Swan passed away in 2017. The blow to his family, our distillery, and the whisky world at large was unfathomable. Jim was a cornerstone of the international whisky industry, a household name from Taiwan to Islay, imagining a whisky world without him was impossible. The man invented the whisky tasting wheel for god’s sake he was the BEDROCK of the industry. Then he was gone.

To honor his great legacy, both as a whisky mentor and as our dear friend, we collaborated with another of his misbegotten distilleries: Cotswolds. Remember how I mentioned setting up distilleries that were in the antithesis of Scotland and Ireland? Well Cotswolds distillery is in England! Low hanging fruit aside, Jim was instrumental in their establishment as well. The Cotswolds team proudly sent Jim the first ever run of their new make, to which he famously replied “It’s shit. I’ll be there next week, we’ll fix it.”

We married whisky from our very best STR casks with the phenomenal ex-bourbon cask whisky from Cotswolds to create a final love letter to this great man. Please enjoy this liquid example of this legend’s legacy. 

L’chaim.