from the Windsor Star
Now the official home of Wiser’s Whisky and owned by Pernod Ricard, Walkerville’s 150-year-old Hiram Walker Distillery still produces Canadian Club but its future lies in finding more varied products to ensure its viability as the largest distillery in Canada.
A year after embarking on an ambitious three-year plan to cut costs by $17 million, a spokesman said “the fog is lifting and I think we have a clearer view of where we’re going and how we’re going to get there.”
Jim Stanski, vice-president of Canadian production for Corby Distilleries, which operates the distillery, said “the business has changed and we have to be quicker and more efficient.
“This distillery was built for one product — Canadian Club — but now we have to be able to transform it into a facility capable of producing multiple products at smaller volumes, all at competitive costs….
…”This is the largest distillery in Canada and you have to have volume otherwise you get crushed by your overhead,” said Stanski….
…When Pernod Ricard acquired the Walker distillery, it embarked upon a comprehensive assessment of its new production facilities as well as its existing distilleries.
Once the assessment was complete, Pernod Ricard decided to close an existing distillery in Lawrenceburg, Ind., and keep its Walker plant open.
Williams said “it was confirmation of the quality of this site when Pernod decided to close one of their own to keep this one open.”…
…But perhaps the biggest symbolic change was the recent replacement of the Canadian Club sign across Riverside Drive with one advertising Wiser’s Whisky.
While the distillery will always be known locally as the home of Canadian Club, the fact is it’s now the official home of Wiser’s Whisky, which has been distilled here for the better part of three decades.
Kelly Gregoire, manager of communications for Hiram Walker & Sons, said “while we acknowledge the importance of Canadian Club in this community, Wiser’s is also a true Canadian brand and it’s been a true Windsor brand for three decades. In September, Wiser’s will mark its 150th year of production with a celebration here in Windsor.”
While CC is still distilled, blended, matured and bottled here for Canadian consumption, it’s done so under a co-packing agreement with Canadian Club Whisky, which is a division of Fortune Brands.
Bottling of CC for U.S. and overseas consumption is now done in the U.S.
Fortune bought the CC brand off Pernod Ricard when the French liquor company acquired Allied Domecq, which owned the local distillery, two years ago…
complete story
Hiram Walker, from a painting in Willistead Manor, Windsor, Ontario
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