Check out this great little Drinks Adventures Podcast from James Atkinson talking with Holly Klintworth about her six-week internship in Cognac, France supported by a Churchill Fellowship.
So proud of our Managing Director and Head Distiller Holly, who spent 6 weeks in Cognac, France on an internship building on her vast knowledge of brandy production from the some of the great distillers in the world. An incredible experience working with cognac producers large and small, and importantly all the incredible knowledge – much of which spans generations - that has been imparted in her quest to reignite Australia’s love affair with brandy.
'My goal has always been to support Australian producers in their mission to learn and improve their brandy production skills sets, to ultimately pitch Australia as a premium brandy producer on a local and global scale, and there’s no better way to improve than to seek knowledge from the very source of global best practice in brandy production' says Holly.
Holly met with Master blenders from Remy Martin, Courvoisier and Hennessy. Conversed with the BNIC legal governing body on the challenges both the Australian and the French spirit industries face. Pumped spirit, scrubbed stills, labelled bottles, (happily!) sampled countless cognacs and eaux-de-vie, and conversed on the mechanics, as well as the art and the craft of brandy distillation for hours on end.
The trip had the objective of learning the art of brandy production from the world's leading cognac producers, so that Holly could share her findings with the Australian distilling industry.
An invaluable experience and exciting insight into the art of premium brandy production!
