Description
Corio Old Whisky Glass water jug
Jug marked to base ENGLAND - the jug would have been made in the UK and brought here and stencilled CORIO
Corio was a mid 20th Century Australian brand of Scotch Whisky
Approx 15cms (6") tall
The Legacy of Corio [from Nick's Wine Merchants website | The Legacy of Corio]
Many older Australians will remember Corio Whisky, a brand with a questionable reputation as the affordable Australian spirit that demanded heavy mixing. It was joked about as been 'COR-10' in reference to a petrol brand of the time, and was so rough and ready that many thought that long maturation normally associated with whisky didn't apply to Corio - it simply took place on board the truck from Geelong to Melbourne!
Corio a suburb of Geelong, Victoria, gave name to a distillery and a whisky, during a time when there was a worldwide shortage of Scotch whisky. The distillery was built with a harbour frontage and good access to rail, essential for the efficient national distribution of the new product.
To handle the barley, 60ft high hoppers were built, with 120,000 bushels of holding capacity. These hoppers were connected by conveyor belt to a rail siding, allowing the barley to be easily transported into the distillery. Another building constructed of terracotta walls with a fibro cement roof around a steel frame, housed grist, mash and stills. It was designed to minimise heat absorption and dust influence. On the other side of the railway, a large four story warehouse was built using thick, hollow brick walls aimed at minimising temperature fluctuation as the whisky matured in barrel for a minimum of five years.
Storage capacity was a staggering 1,300,000 gallons (almost 5,000,000 litres of spirit). For some perspective, Australia's present largest operating distillery has the capacity to produce 200,000 litres per annum.
Corio seems to have had a period of success in the late 1940's through to the 1960's, with a series of advertisements proudly proclaiming their status as Australia's Champion Whisky, following several trophy wins at various agricultural shows around the country. We are unable to establish what, if anything, was competing against Corio in these competitions. Based on remarks from people who remember the product, chances are, there wasn't any competition of note.
Vic Chlebnikowski from Nicks Wine Merchants, a liquor retailer for over 30 years recalls Corio being "rough as guts" and encouraged people to spend the extra couple of dollars to buy the 'genuine article' from Scotland. Tony Evans of Mayerling Cellars, retailer since the early 1970s, also recalls Corio, echoing Vic's sentiment. David Baker of Bakery Hill Distillery cringes with the very mention of Corio. Despite being off the market for many decades, it would seem Corio's legacy continues to dog the industry. Since establishing his distillery in 1999, Baker has frequently faced scepticism when presenting his product from people that have less than fond memories of Geelong's once notorious whisky.
Corio suffered a fate similar to many of Scotland's distilleries in the early 1980s, closing following massive financial losses. The stock is rumoured to have been re-distilled into Vodka. Bottles of Corio's whisky are nowadays very rare and virtually unprocurable. Yet speculation continues that someday, a cask or two may appear to threaten us again. The brand marks a watershed in Australian whisky history. It was a grand investment, that ultimately failed to capture the public's imagination, but left behind a twofold legacy: The first was proof positive that whisky could be made in Australia, and on a large scale; the second was that if it was ever to be done again, the focus would have to be on quality rather than quantity.
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Condition Descriptions
In the main we sell delicate, individually made antique and collectible items that have had a prior ownership history and prior use. We believe that we are extraordinarily exacting in our condition reports of our items – and we describe our items with knowledge and a critical eye developed over decades of experience handling an enormous quantity of similar items. We make every human effort possible to detect or disclose significant age related soiling, damage through use or misuse, or restoration to damage to items on this website. Given the age of the items we sell – minor and insignificant wear, blemishes consistent with the manufacture techniques used in the production of an item or simply evidence of age of a previously owned item (for example fine, clean crazing) is not damage - nor significantly detracting.
For further details refer Clause 2 in our Terms of Service, which you can find here.
Shipping Times
We do not guarantee shipping times - while all best efforts are made to dispatch in a timely manner, we do not guarantee shipping times. If receipt of your order is time sensitive - please contact us to discuss requirements before placing an order, not after placing an order. We cannot guarantee carriers delivery times - they are beyond our control.
Returns and Refunds
Items can be returned if not as described for a refund of the purchase price and shipping – provided that you notify us within 7 days of receipt of the item of your intention to do so. You can do this by emailing or phoning us.
We consider significantly not as described as a failure on our part to detect or disclose significant soiling, damage or restoration. Given the age of the items we sell – minor and insignificant wear, blemishes consistent with the manufacture techniques used in the production of an item or simply evidence of age like fine, clean crazing is not reason to return an item.
Order Cancellations
1.1 If for some reason we cannot supply an item you have ordered (due to our error or an item being lost), we will refund you in full. This may take a few working days for the credit to appear in your account due to banking vagaries. Please note sometimes refunds can differ in quantum due to currency conversions and exchange rate differences.
1.2 If you cancel an order (before we dispatch to you) due to change of mind or concerns about shipping times - we will refund you for the purchase price of the item LESS $25 in administration fees AND a 2.5% restocking surcharge (which is essentially what our bank charges us to receive your payments via credit cards or online payment methods, together with currency conversion fees and other ). Your change of mind incurs expenses for us - these are charges we incur and you pay - we should not lose because of your decision.
1.3 Once an order is dispatched to you, orders cannot be cancelled under any circumstances.
Buyers Remorse
Given the delicate nature of the items we sell and the practicalities of logistics of same, we do not refund for change of mind or buyers remorse. If you purchase an item and when you receive it you find that you already have it in your collection – we will exchange your purchase for other items that we have or failing that, extend a store credit, but the shipping in both directions is your cost. For exchanges and returning for store credit please notify us within 7 days of receipt of the item of your intention to do so. You can do this by emailing or phoning us.
Returning your Item to Us
On returns, the items must be well packed and returned to us in the same high quality manner in which they were sent to you.
Duties and Taxes on Export Sales
We sell our items on a delivered taxes unpaid. Taxes and duties on items ordered overseas (from us located in Australia) are your responsibility. If you fail to pay the duties and taxes on your item and it is returned to us - you WILL NOT be refunded in full.
You will be refunded your purchase price LESS:
(1) the reasonable shipping charges in both directions; and
(2) a $50 as an administration and cancellation fee for receiving the order, packing the order and processing the sale; and
(3) a 2.5% restocking surcharge (which is essentially what our bank charges us to receive your payments via credit cards or online payment methods, together with currency conversion fees and other).
Your failure to pay legal taxes and duties incurs expenses for us - these are charges we incur and you pay - we will not lose because of your decision.
We do not refund taxes and duties if the item has been exported and you desire a return. These are your costs, not ours.
AUSTRALIAN PURCHASES
All Australian purchases are professionally packed to the the highest possible standard and are sent fully Insured Australia Post Signature on Delivery (this is not an option - it is done for your security, and ours). This is a fully trackable service. In some cases with extremely valuable or large items we may deliver personally.
Full details of how we pack are shown in the blog article The All Important Packing Process.
INTERNATIONAL PURCHASES
All International purchases are professionally packed and when Shipping Internationally we use a combination of Australia Post Pack and Track and Australia Post Express Post International (EMS Courier, depending on package size, destination and value of items). All parcels are able to be tracked on line. Full details of how we pack are shown below.
Rest assured, in every transaction, customer satisfaction is paramount and we pack to the highest possible standard.
Full details of how we pack are shown in the blog article The All Important Packing Process.