Whisky Magazine – August 2019

Insight

Issue 161 | Whisky Magazine 7

New Highland two

Family run whisky makers Wemyss Malts

have released two additional bottlings into its

Family Collection range of blended Scotch malt

whiskies and have named them ‘Blooming

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found in each whisky.

Both malt whiskies have been crafted from

the family’s private collection of maturing whisky

casks which were sourced by Isabella Wemyss

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Years later, the mature whisky casks were

selected by famed whisky writer Charlie Maclean

and the Wemyss Malts team, only when the

spirit and casks had reached absolute balance

and harmony, ready for crafting into exceptional

blended malt whiskies.

A maverick approach

Balcones Distilling and That Boutique-y Whisky

Company have announced the launch of four

limited single cask spirits.

Texas’ most trailblazing distillery has created

four whiskies exclusively for That Boutique-y

Whisky Company.

The range of single casks showcases the

ever-experimental side of Balcones Distilling,

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cask strength drams and maverick approach to

whisky producing. Of the four, three single malts

have been specially bottled, all made using

the retro Golden Promise malted barley sourced

from Scotland, each one is then aged for

various timescales in unique wood from around

the world.

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in a Balcones Brimstone cask, imparting

notes of smoky bacon, hickory, mesquite and

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Batch 2: a single malt that has been matured

in a Tequila cask for 24 months, giving it a bold

vegetal, yet dried fruit sweetness.

Batch 3: the third single malt - has been

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it takes on a ton of plum fruit notes with spicy

treacle characteristics.

The fourth spirit is perfect for those wanting

a treat of a blue corn spirit that the distillery is

well known for. The spirit is made from 100 per

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giving the signature blue corn popcorn notes

a level of unctuous richness that has not been

found in any Balcones drams ever before.

Glenfiddich’s new clothes

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a new package design for its 12 and 15 years
old whiskies.
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nings and family-run heritage and combines it
with a more sophisticated and elegant design,
according to the brand team.
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Ž‡β‹††‹…Š ‰Ž‘„ƒŽ „”ƒ†
director said: “We wanted to emphasise prov-
enance and heritage, drawing cues from the
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sions are some of the world’s best-selling and
most awarded single malts, so it was important
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Š‡ͳʹ‡ƒ”•Ž†Šƒ•„‡‡‰‹˜‡ƒƒ‡‘˜‡”
ƒ†‹•‘™‘™ƒ•–Š‡Ǯ—””‹‰‹ƒŽ™‡Ž˜‡ǯǤ
Š‡”‡ƒ•–Š‡ͳͷ‡ƒ”•Ž†‹•”‡„”ƒ†‡†ƒ•–Š‡
Ǯ—” ‘Ž‡”ƒ ‹ˆ–‡‡ǯǡ ƒ• ƒ …‡Ž‡„”ƒ–‹‘ ‘ˆ –Š‡
Solera system.

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River Spey and surrounding landscape. It’s
great to honour this provenance and the historic
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BenRiach’s limited release

Founded in 1898, BenRiach Distillery has
released a series of limited bottlings that will
give consumers an insight into the distillery’s
approach to maturation.
The release of BenRiach Cask Bottling Batch
16 offers a rich insight into the eclectic cask
collection from around the world residing
in the warehouses of this north Speyside
distillery. Master blender, Dr. Rachel Barrie, has
hand-selected 24 different casks to feature in
this limited edition batch release, showcasing
an exceptional range of hand-crafted cask
bottlings, in both unpeated and peated styles.
Batch 16 includes 16 unpeated and eight
peated cask bottlings from a selection of cask
types sourced from around the world: Tokaji
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claret, madeira, sauternes, virgin oak, South
African red wine, Jamaican rum, rioja, Sicilian
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one of these individual cask types.
Dr. Barrie said: “There is no better insight into

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Cask Bottling Batch 16. Featuring 24 different

casks, this release provides a rare opportunity to

explore the many facets of BenRiach maturation

in one batch, something us whisky makers are

lucky to do every day. Batch 16 offers the sweet

side of Sicilian Marsala wood, smoked plum of

the Rioja cask and a dark manuka honey palate

of the Tokaji; there is a journey and a story

behind each to be enjoyed by whisky explorers.”