Isle Of Arran Illicit Stills Whisky Comes In Fun Hollowed Book

In what very well could be some of the most cool packaging I’ve seen to come to whisky in awhile that’s not super expensive, Isle of Arran Distillers out of Scotland has revealed plans for a trilogy of new limited edition Scotches known as The Smuggers’ Series. The first of these, “The Illicit Stills,” is a bottle housed in a fake book with a cut out slot in the middle of it.

The Illicit Stills bottling, according to the distillery, is a single malt which is a blend of their “classic un-peated Arran Malt in combination with Arran produced from medium & heavily-peated malt.” The peated portion clocks in at 50 ppm, and at least some of the malt within was fully matured in Port Pipes.

Technical specifications of this non-age statement, multi-vintage whisky indicated it is non-chill filtered, of natural color and bottled at a natural cask strength of 56.4% ABV. The Smuggler’s Series of which it is part is said by Arran to pay homage “to the rich history of whisky distillation on our home island.”

Illicit Stills, pricing around £85, or about $131 USD, is limited to 8,700 bottles worldwide and will be released at the end of September. Official tasting notes for it are below, courtesy of Isle of Arran. It definitely looks to be a fun release, if but for the creative book bottle housing alone.

NOSE: Subtle peat reek rising from a distant fire hints at a robust character to come. Floral notes bring elegance, sweetness is shown in the form of fresh madeira cake with a maritime oiliness promising rich mouthfeel.

PALATE: Juicy plums, spiced with white pepper. Wood smoke of freshly sawn pine. The palate develops with gripping tannin as white grapes begin to show. Pink wafer biscuits and a blast of spicy ginger appear before the finish.

FINISH: The flavour of dried apricots fades before salty, maritime notes take over – the dying embers of smugglers’ signal fires on windswept beaches. An Arran dram of true unbridled character, reminiscent of the illicit makes which gave rise to the illustrious reputation of “the Arran water”.