Cheers! Woodlands Distillery in the Porongurups wins champion whisky title at Royal Distilled Spirits Awards

Connections of Woodlands Distillery in the Porongurups are toasting their decision to turn an old shearing shed into a distillery after their single malt, single cask whisky won gold in a prestigious competition. The distillery, on a 180ha farm south of Porongurup, won medals at the Royal Agricultural Society of WA’s 2025 Perth Royal Distilled Spirits Awards, beating off a host of more experienced entrants. Woodlands also won a silver medal for its wheat whisky, which came from a shiraz barrel and was distilled from wheat grown on the farm. Its other podium finish was bronze for another single malt, which came from a bourbon and port barrel. Woodlands’ manager Estelle Ridgway said the triumphs were a ringing endorsement for Peter Waters, the craftsman behind the distilling process, especially as the distillery had only been in operation since 2018. “We were up against some really stiff competition with everybody else having been doing this for much longer than us,” she said. “It will mean a lot to Peter to know he’s on the right track. “He has an absolute gift for the process.” To win a gold medal, the whisky had to earn more than 90 points and be outstanding in terms of taste, aroma and appearance. The judges’ comments noted Woodlands’ single malt, single cask entry had “nice clarity and colour, a touch prickly on the nose, delicate floral and cereal aromas are present”. In addition, they said it was “moreish” and had a “delicious, medium-length finish”. The distillery was founded by four friends who decided they wanted to promote the region as capable of producing high-quality liquor. “Our mantra is small batch, handcrafted,” Ms Ridgway said. The awards were established in 2019 and are part of the Perth Royal Food Awards. Woodlands were not at Claremont Showground for the award presentations on August 20 because they had no idea they were going to win. “We didn’t know we were getting the champion whisky award until the day of it, so we couldn’t close down the distillery and go,” Ms Ridgway said. The distillery, at 1455 O’Neil Road, Porongurup, is open from Fridays to Mondays from 11am-4pm.