Killik Gewurztraminer

Description

From the Heroes of Hogo, the funsters of funk, the absolute dudes of Dunder! This is Killik’s oldest release to date, and we’re proud and excited to have it EXCLUSIVELY for the Tribe – The Killik Gewurztraminer!

The Killik Gewurztraminer is a high ester new make that was first matured for 4 years in ex-bourbon before finishing for 9 months in a Gewurztraminer Cask. Gewürztraminer is an aromatic white wine known for its intensely perfumed notes of lychee, rose petals, spice, and tropical fruit, and this really comes through in the finished rum. Disgorged at 62% then cut with reverse-osmosis purified water to 50%abv for bottling. And obviously – nothing at all added other than love. Just handcrafted, pure single rum.

The Rum Tribe is no stranger to Melbourne’s Killik Handcrafted. We’ve tried a range of their products over the years and our heart is always with their matured pure single rums – and this months Gewurztraminer is an absolute doozy!

Killik don’t make rum the way most Australian distillers do. Right from the start they lean into a flavour profile that’s still largely unexplored in Australia but absolutely iconic in the Caribbean: hogo, also known as funk. Jamaica is widely regarded as the spiritual home of hogo, but a handful of Aussies – Killik and Nil Desperandum among them – are proudly chasing that same wild, fruity intensity through the use of dunder and muck in fermentation.

And Killik aren’t just dabbling. Their raw spirit is genuinely world‑class. Their unaged rum, Killik Silver, has been racking up medals everywhere, including a Gold Medal and Best in Class at the World Spirits Awards. Their rum is being hailed worldwide thanks to some indy-bottlers (like Dead Reckoning) taking their product around the globe. They’ve proven themselves as Australia’s leading producers of high‑ester rum, and we’re absolutely bloody thrilled to be part of another Killik first: a Gewürztraminer cask maturation.

Hogo began as a Jamaican hallmark – an unmistakable, hard‑to‑describe aroma and flavour created in part by wild yeast fermentation. It’s bold, funky, fruity, and often downright outrageous. In Killik’s case, hogo tends to show up as tropical fruit, overripe banana, strawberry, bubble-gum, and a creamy, almost milky note.

The secret behind that funk lies in the wild yeasts that drive fermentation. And the secret behind those yeasts? Dunder and muck.

Dunder is the leftover material in the still after a distillation run – dead yeast, water, caramelised residue, and whatever other gunk can be scraped out. Traditionally, Jamaican distillers would toss this into a literal pit in the ground. Today, most use large containers like IBCs. Killik’s dunder pit? An old dairy vat – perfectly on‑brand.

The dunder is then “fed” with whatever carbohydrate‑rich fruit or scraps are lying around the distillery or nearby farms. This sugar kickstarts a secondary fermentation driven by whatever wild yeasts happen to land in the pit. The result is a bubbling, foul‑smelling, cow‑pat‑coloured vat of microbial chaos. This gloriously disgusting brew – rich with wild yeasts and the flavour compounds they produce – is called muck, and a portion of it is added to the next fermentation to seed the rum with the local wild yeasts.

The use of dunder and muck dates back to Jamaica’s earliest rum‑making traditions, when enslaved workers discovered that reusing these by‑products provided a reliable, renewable source of yeast. As rum production industrialised, distillers shifted to commercial yeast strains for consistency and efficiency. Wild fermentation – and the funk it created – nearly disappeared, surviving only in a few traditional distilleries.

Thankfully, the modern rum renaissance has brought dunder and muck back into the spotlight. And here in Australia, Killik have been the pioneers, reviving this old‑school Jamaican technique and proving that high‑ester, wild‑fermented rum can thrive on Aussie soil.

Our Tasting Notes

Nose: The nose is massive and immediately apparent on popping the cork. An explosion of tropical fruits with pineapple leading the charge followed by a burst of Allen’s Strawberries and Cream and Milk Bottle lollies. There’s also some vanilla and candied peel there, a whiff of jasmine, a sprinkle of vanilla, as well as just a pinch of musty oakiness.

Palate: Big oily mouthfeel with a minimum of spiciness (esp for 50%abv), huge creamy fruit, reminiscent of spicy fruit roll bikkies – but sweeter. Lots of lollies from my youth come and go on the palate – more milk bottles, but also jubes, hubba bubba gum and a hint of musk-sticks as well.

Finish: As the sweet fruits of the palate fade – there is a burst of mild-menthol, some mild ginger spice, more vanilla and floral notes as it fades.

Once again Killik have really pulled out something special for us! This is a medium funk Killik with huge amounts of sweet lolly goodness. It really is a sweet-tooths rum with little to no dryness or tartness or astringency. This really is something different – sweet and oily enough to be mistaken for a liqueur at first – but this is all rum baby! Would make a sensational desert rum with a big cheese board with dried fruits. I won’t be mixing this – ever!