THE NAVIGATOR | FEATURE FULL TRACEABILITY BACK TO THE GRAIN FIELDS Alongside diversity is quality. Water – arguably as influential in distilling as the grain – is sourced from Lake Michigan, and purified using natural charcoal, while the couple are firm in their commitment to farm-to-bottle traceability. Along with a dedication to single-barrel whiskeys “we work directly with farmers pretty local to the distillery, and they grow the grain for us,” says Sonat. “So we know exactly where the grain is coming from… we can trace every bottle back to the fields on which the grains were grown.” Using a diversity of grains also encourages more sustainable agricultural practices, with crop rotation promoting a more regenerative approach to farming grains. KOVAL whiskies are also certified as both organic and Kosher. THE “GRAIN BELT” OF THE MIDWEST Key to the KOVAL philosophy is a constant fascination with the potential of grain, and both Robert and Sonat are passionate about exploring the potential of the ‘grain belt’ that stretches out across the open plains of the Midwest. “We’re a very small distillery, and from the start we figured we need to do things differently,” says Sonat. “If we’re going to compete, or have some sort of element of our own identity, we want to be able to offer something unique and different.” That point of difference was a bold approach to grains. At first, the pair distilled everything – rye, wheat, spelt, buckwheat, millet – trialling them as both unaged ‘white’ whiskies as well as maturing them in the barrel. That sense of experimentation allowed them to hone their craft, but as the market grew and customers demanded more consistent availability, they had to rein in their enthusiasm. “I mean, we had more whiskies than Starbucks has coffee!” laughs Sonat. “It was a bit much. And so we narrowed it down to those that we thought were the best.” But that process of experimentation, and understanding the individual flavour profiles of different grains, showed them the complexity that can be achieved in combining complementary grains together in the mash. KOVAL’s whiskies are all single-barrel, including their remarkable Bourbon distilled from a 51/49 blend of (gluten-free) corn and millet. They also offer 100% single-grain expressions of rye, millet and oat, showing the diversity of flavours on offer. 74
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