Maverick Drinks takes on Finland’s Kyrö Distillery in the UK

Maverick Drinks has taken on the exclusive UK distribution of rye-focused Finnish gin and whisky producer Kyrö Distillery.

Founded in 2012 by a group of five friends after a night in a sauna, Kyrö is an all-rye distillery, working exclusively with the grain to produce a range of gins and now single malt whiskies. As part of the partnership, Kyrö Distillery will also be teaming up with independent bottler That Boutique-y Gin Company – a fellow Maverick Drinks brand.

“We just love how Maverick handles its booze,” said Kyrö Distillery Company CEO Miika Lipiäinen. ” When we started making rye spirits in Finland, we saw ourselves partnering with people who feel strongly about how spirits taste and equally how they are made and who makes them.”

Joining its its rye-based Napue gin, last year Kyrö Distillery released what was the first Finnish rye whisky, with only 360 bottle of Kyrö Single Malt Rye Whisky released, with just 46 available in the UK.

The whisky is matured for just over three years in new American oak casks before being transferred to first-fill Bourbon casks, and finished in Marsala casks.

Kyrö Distillery makes cask-aged gin Koskue, new-make whisky spirit Juuri and long drink LongKyrö.

“Kyrö Distillery is recognised across the world for creating exceptional spirits, but more importantly, they’re our kind of people,” said Michael Vachon, head of brand development at Maverick Drinks. “They’re incredibly hard-working, love what they do, and care deeply about their products and their team. We’re absolutely thrilled to be working with them to spread the word in the UK.”

Last year Maverick Drinks launched its  #ForwardDrinking campaign, which aims to encourage the UK on- and off-trade to rethink their approach to alcohol while tackling industry taboos such as ‘retros’, when brands pay for bar listings, and ‘pay-to-play’ schemes, when brands offer monetary incentives, or otherwise, to gain a retail listing.

The distributor is currently engaging bar communities throughout the UK with the first in a series of seminars, The Relationships Between Brands and Bars is Broken, to stir up conversation and “drive meaningful change”.