Sullivans Cove French Oak, the first whisky outside Scotland and Japan to win world’s best single malt at the coveted World Whiskies Awards, is an Australian craft whisky deity.

The moment I step into the storied Tasmanian brand’s expanded distillery and new visitor centre, I spy a single bottle, displayed reverentially in a glass case and glinting – rather appropriately, given its $25,000-plus price tag – like a rare amber-gold jewel.