Case study: McRobert Distillery
How Queensland products are pumping up rum supply in WA
McRobert Distillery founder and operator Shane McRobert has a passion for American-style sour mashing and craft distilling. Image: Elliot Ramsay.
Molasses from Bundaberg and a gear pump from Sarina are key Queensland ingredients in a new Western Australian rum-making venture.
The family-run McRobert Distillery at Armadale, WA, produces a range of spirits but is poised to begin rum production after sourcing a molasses pump unit and pods of blackstrap molasses from Queensland.
“We’re always experimenting and trying to improve our processes,” distiller Shane McRobert said.
“I used to go to a stockfeed supplier in the middle of winter and spend hours trying to fill 15-20L buckets with molasses.
“Our new 50mm electric gear pump from Ballard Industrial pumps 800L IBCs of molasses in 10 minutes.
“The pump is set up with remote control and runs in forward and reverse, so if I’m up a ladder I can shut it off with the remote.
“Any molasses that’s in the line can be drawn back out of the pipes into the IBC to avoid any mess.”
Caribbean flavours
A vertically-mounted electric-drive molasses gear pump from Queensland transfers blackstrap molasses into the mash tun from a mobile IBC platform. Image: Shane McRobert.
Mr McRobert’s training is in traditional American-style sour mashing.
“We have the whiskies down pat and now we want to produce rum on a larger scale,” he said.
“We’re trying to emulate a Jamaican style of rum with a fruity, funky flavour.
“We’ll be producing a dark/navy style and possibly a spiced rum too.”
The Queensland molasses is used in the third boiling; it must be stockfeed-grade to ensure it’s free of preservatives.
It will be a minimum of two-and-a-half years before rum aficionados can sample a McRobert drop, based on a two-year rum.
Ageing takes place in the barrel, not the bottle, and dark or spiced varieties could take up to three years to age. Older rums will be available too.
“That’s the reason why most start-up distilleries produce vodka and gin while they’re waiting for the amber to come online,” Mr McRobert said.
“Vodka and gin don’t have to spend the mandatory two years in a barrel so they’re producing an income right away.”
Taking home-distilling to new heights
After many years of experimenting with various methods of distilling at his Riverton home, Mr McRobert’s father suggested they consider building a commercially-viable distillery on his property at Armadale.
Construction began in 2017 and was completed in 2019.
“We’re three years into production and it’s an absolute dream come true,” Mr McRobert said.
The former painter and decorator said the family placed an emphasis on compliance and consultancy.
“We soon found out there was a lot of ‘keep it to yourself’ involved in this industry but we have taken the opposite approach; we’re transparent about our methods and we like to share our experiences and learnings with other distillers wherever we can,” he said.
“In our early stages we heavily collaborated with a distillery consultant from Canada and a North American distillery design engineer, due mainly to the fact we could not find the same services in Australia at that time.
“As a part of the consultancy we were advised to purchase a Certuss steam generator from Germany.
“It's the only one of its kind in Australia and has proven to be of great benefit to the operating system.”
After 12 to 18 months of production, McRobert Distillery has its products on shelves in more than 80 bottle shops, hotels and taverns throughout WA.
The McRoberts are also exploring export options with an initial focus on the Hong Kong, Singapore and Vietnam markets.
A quest for perfection
Mr McRobert analyses results and data as part of the company’s continuous improvement strategy.
“My old man has a motto: If something gives you the ‘shites’, do something about it,” he said.
“So I constantly collect the data to work out if things can be done better, and when you do that you streamline things to a point where it’s just a joy every day to go to work.”
A number of smart design and sustainable practices have been implemented.
Instead of being dumped, spent grain is collected by a local poultry producer for feed.
Spent washes have been applied to apple orchards as fertiliser.
It is anticipated when rum production is in full swing the dunder by-product will be fed to local cattle.
The distillery’s chiller unit works on demand; the still’s columns use 40% less water due to a proportional flow solenoids set-up.
All distillery equipment is retrofitted into a compact, 1970s warehouse building that has a mezzanine level for tastings and tours.
Mr McRobert’s current routine is to mash on Mondays, handle grain and other deliveries on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, with distilling taking place on Thursdays and Fridays.
“We now have our processes finely tuned but, as with most other distilleries, we’re dealing with a world-wide barrel shortage at the moment,” he said.
“Also, we don’t have a lot of room in the existing buildings so we are planning to extend to incorporate a bottling line in the very near future.”
The ideal drop
What’s the pick of the current line?
Mr McRobert says of the 10 products currently on offer, the customer favourite is a toss up between the inaugural Single Malt Whisky and the Whiskey American Bourbon Style.
“We’ve had great feedback from international visitors from the birthplace of bourbon, Tennessee, who tried our bourbon and liked it,” he said.
“Recently I have been making up a lighter whisky; it’s the exact same product only proofed from 40% down to 10%.
“I initially made it for my Dad who has some health issues, and it was amazing how many people began enquiring about it.
"So we're now making a product that's actually called ‘Ten Percent’ — it’s perfect for those who want a lighter-strength alcohol for all sorts of reasons.”
When rum production is in full gear, a McRobert label brandy will be next on the list.
To view the current range, visit mcrobertdistillery.com.au.
For more information on molasses pumps, visit ballardindustrial.com.au.