PUNI

Type: Distillery and brand

On 24 February 2012, PUNI’s wash still was heated for the first time beneath a lattice-fronted cube in Italy’s South Tyrol. The family-founded distillery near Glorenza, also called Glurns, would bottle its first whiskies, NOVA and ALBA, in 2015. Their recipe brought together three malts: barley, rye and wheat, rather than barley alone. [1][2][3][5]

What PUNI is known for

PUNI brings barn-inspired architecture, a three-malt beginning and a repertoire of wine and whisky casks to the Venosta Valley. Its name comes from the river Puni, which flows through the valley, and the distillery stands beside the Ortler range and Stelvio National Park. [1][6]

The grain recipe marks a clear change in its production history. The first whiskies combined malted barley, malted rye and malted wheat; the producer now describes its production as 100% barley malt whisky. The early bottles therefore belong to a different grain tradition from the production PUNI describes today. [1][5]

A family project with a builder’s eye

PUNI began with a family whose experience lay in building. The producer names master builder Albrecht Ebensperger as founder, an account also reported by Whisky Magazine. The interest in whisky came earlier: Wallpaper traces it to sommelier courses taken by Jonas Ebensperger’s father in the early 1990s, long before the distillery was established. [2][3][4]

Story box: A family project built around whisky

• Founding story: The producer’s account places Albrecht Ebensperger at the start of the family project. [1][2]
• Turning point: Two years of construction led to the first heating of the wash still. [1][3]
• Key person: Jonas Ebensperger heads the family business and is master distiller. [4][5]
• Documented record: NOVA and ALBA were the first bottled whiskies. [1]
• Last checked: November 2026.

The choice of architect grew from an existing working relationship. Albrecht Ebensperger and Werner Tscholl had collaborated before, including on the renovation of Firmiano Castle near Bolzano. Tscholl was engaged for PUNI in 2010, bringing that shared experience to a building designed around whisky production. [2][4]

The cube above the distillery

A 13 by 13 metre cube gives PUNI its unmistakable outline. Its lattice façade takes its cue from local barns, where openings let air circulate to dry grain. Below ground level, beneath this architectural reminder of grain storage, the production rooms hold the equipment that turns malt into spirit. [2][4][7]

Christian Zanzotti was entrusted with bottle and packaging design, extending the attention to design beyond the building itself. [2][4]

Construction took two years. The visitor centre opened in autumn 2012, following the first heating of the wash still that February. [1][3]

From three malts to barley malt

Barley, rye and wheat shaped PUNI’s first four years of production. That was the main mash bill, or grain recipe, according to The Whiskey Wash, before a barley-malt-only recipe was introduced in 2016. All three cereals in the original recipe were malted. [1][5]

The rye gave that early spirit a direct connection to its surroundings. South Tyrol’s tourism account describes it as an old farmer’s variety grown in the Vinschgau, tying one part of the recipe to the valley around the distillery. [7]

PUNI does not malt its own grain. The Whiskey Wash reported that unpeated malt came from maltings in Bavaria or near Rome. The producer’s current account says its barley malt comes mainly from Italy, with peated malt supplied from Scotland. These are separate accounts of sourcing, rather than a single fixed recipe covering the distillery’s whole history. [1][5]

The same trade report gives a peat level of 50 parts per million, or ppm, for the peated malt. That measurement applies to the malted grain, not to the finished whisky. [5]

Scottish stills, a different heating system

Two traditional copper pot stills made by Forsyths of Rothes, Scotland, sit at the heart of PUNI’s production. The Whiskey Wash describes a 2,000-litre spirit still and a somewhat larger wash still of the same shape. Those capacities describe the equipment, not annual output. [1][4][5]

The heating system takes a different approach. PUNI says it uses overheated water rather than steam, chosen for precise temperature control. The Whiskey Wash also reports slow operation of the wash still at relatively low temperatures. [2][5]

Scottish expertise arrived alongside the copper. Trade accounts describe a team of Scottish whisky specialists helping to install the stills and advising on the production process. [4][6]

Wine casks, whisky casks and the bunker story

PUNI’s cask repertoire reaches from American bourbon to Sicilian Marsala. Its published choices include ex-bourbon casks from the United States, ex-wine casks from Italy, ex-sherry casks from Spain, ex-peated casks and virgin oak. Trade and tourism accounts also document Marsala casks from Sicily. These records do not mean that every release uses every type. [1][6][7]

Warm summers and cold winters frame maturation here. PUNI says these conditions speed the process, although that comparison with maturation elsewhere remains the producer’s explanation rather than an independently established finding. [2]

The most unusual maturation setting in the record is a converted Second World War military bunker. The Spirits Business described whisky maturing there behind four metre walls. The Whiskey Wash, meanwhile, reported experiments with bunkers and different maturation climates. [5][6]

That latter account also supplies the important limit to the story: the master distiller said no whisky had yet left the bunkers, and that PUNI was concentrating on above-ground dunnage warehouses. Bunkers therefore belong to its documented maturation experiments, not to a blanket description of where all PUNI whisky matures. [5]

Understanding the early releases

NOVA and ALBA were first bottled in 2015. Whisky Magazine places the first release in October. Both came from the distillery’s original three-grain recipe, so neither should be recast retrospectively as a barley-only single malt. [1][3][5]

The Spirits Business’s 2017 account described NOVA as three years old, matured in ex-bourbon barrels and finished in European virgin oak, at 43% ABV. ALBA, in the same account, spent three years in Marsala casks before finishing in casks from Islay. These descriptions belong to those historical releases, rather than setting specifications for bottles carrying the names today. [6]

A later account of the range offered in the United States listed Gold, Vina Marsala Edition, Sole and Alba, and discussed the special releases Arte and Aura. It provides a further view of the developing range, not a verified current catalogue. [3][5]

PUNI’s production timeline

Visiting and placing PUNI in context

South Tyrol’s tourism account describes family-run tastings and tours, including a “Whisky and Chocolate” tour. Before travelling, check directly with PUNI for current booking arrangements, accessibility, visitor age rules and the programme being offered. [7]

The wider Italian whisky scene has grown beyond any single distillery. Decanter reported in 2025 that 12 Italian distilleries had released their own malts. PUNI is best understood on its own terms: through its architecture, its family history and the changing grain recipe behind its whisky, rather than as a stand-in for every Italian producer. [9]

Where to go next

• St. Kilian: continue exploring continental European distilleries.
• Armorik and the Warenghem Distillery: follow another European distillery profile.
• Stauning: broaden the comparison with a further distillery story.

Sources

1. PUNI Distillery. Our story. Producer’s account, undated. https://www.puni.com/en/story/
2. PUNI Distillery. Our elements. Producer’s account, undated. https://www.puni.com/en/elements/
3. Whisky Magazine. Italian whisky is living la bella vita. Trade feature, publication year not supplied in the fact sheet. https://whiskymag.com/articles/italian-whisky-is-living-la-bella-vita/
4. Wallpaper. Team spirit: one Italian family has produced a malt distilled with flair. Trade feature, publication year not supplied in the fact sheet. https://www.wallpaper.com/design/the-passion-of-one-italian-family-has-produced-a-malt-whisky-distilled-with-flair-puni
5. The Whiskey Wash. A Visit To Italy's PUNI Destillerie Reveals This Nation's Single Malt Specialist. Trade feature, publication year not supplied in the fact sheet. https://thewhiskeywash.com/whiskey-styles/world/puni-revisited/
6. The Spirits Business. Puni's Nova and Alba malt whiskies enter UK market. August 2017. https://www.thespiritsbusiness.com/2017/08/punis-nova-and-alba-malt-whiskies-enter-uk-market/
7. South Tyrol tourism. PUNI Distillery: Whisky from the Vinschgau Valley. Tourism feature, undated in the supplied fact sheet. https://www.south-tirol.com/blog/whisky-distillery-in-south-tyrol
8. Decanter. Italian whisky: A rising industry influenced by wine history. 2025. https://www.decanter.com/wine-news/italian-whisky-a-rising-industry-influenced-by-wine-history-555166/

This article is desk research based on the supplied verified fact sheet TOP-A359, distinguishing the producer’s accounts from trade and tourism reporting.

Last checked: November 2026