Bruichladdich, Glencadam, and Dewar’s bring new releases to the market in early 2024, including an experiment with Mizunara oak, sherry and Madeira cask finishes, and higher age statement whiskies.
Dewar’s 21 Year Old Mizunara Oak Cask Finish
Dewar’s has unveiled a new offering as part of its Double Double series: a 21 year old whisky finished in Mizunara casks. This marks a unique fusion of Scottish distillation and Japanese whisky making.
The whisky, aged for a minimum of 21 years, undergoes a secondary maturation period in Mizunara oak casks sourced from Hokkaido, Japan. The rare and precious Mizunara oak adds a distinctive layer to the whisky’s flavor profile. Mizunara is a tricky wood to work with, but it imparts a flavor like no other on the maturing spirit.
“Creating this expression was a fascinating journey,” said Stephanie Macleod, Master Blender at Dewar’s. “The Mizunara cask finish enhances our whisky with unique notes of sandalwood and incense.”
The Double Double series, of which the Mizunara expression is the most recent entry, sees the whisky matured in the cask four separate times. This allows complex taste profiles to develop. In this case, the whisky was finished in a Mizunara oak cask, representing a fusion of Scottish and Japanese flavors.
The 21 year old Mizunara-finished whisky is bottled at 46% ABV and is set to retail for around $149.99.
Glencadam Pedro Ximenez & Madeira Cask Finishes
Glencadam Distillery has announced the launch of two limited-edition cask finishes. These new offerings include a 15-year-old whisky finished in Madeira casks and a 17-year-old whisky finished in Pedro Ximenez casks.
The 15 year old expression, bottled at 46% ABV, is first matured in American oak ex-bourbon casks before being transferred to Madeira casks for finishing. The process imparts rich, fruity flavors to the whisky, with notes of caramelized pecans and pineapple. The 15 year old was distilled in 2008 and is limited to 5,826 bottles.
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The 17 year old, also bottled at 46% ABV, undergoes a similar maturation process with initial aging in American oak ex-bourbon casks. It is then moved to Pedro Ximenez sherry casks for further maturation. Its flavor profile includes notes of black cherries and sticky toffee pudding. This release is limited to 4,188 bottles.
Both whiskies are non-chill filtered and have no added coloring. The limited-edition releases will be available for purchase from select retailers worldwide.
Bruichladdich 18 & 30 Year Olds
Bruichladdich Distillery has launched an 18 year old and a 30 year old single malt whisky as part of their Luxury Redefined series.
The 30 year old was bottled from some of the last casks of Bruichladdich to be filled before the distillery was mothballed between 1994 and 2001.
As such, the whisky pays tribute to the progress of the Bruichladdich brand over the last two decades. Adam Hannett, Head Distiller, said “[t]he future of Bruichladdich was uncertain in the early 1990s. From the brink of permanent closure to now the largest private employer on Islay, Bruichladdich Distillery and the local community has slowly rebuilt and flourished over the past three decades – all while this spirit has quietly matured.”
The 30 year old whisky was matured exclusively in ex-Bourbon casks, with a re-racking into fresh bourbon for its last 10 years of maturation.
Having been bottled at 43.2% ABV, the Bruichladdich Thirty is now available for $1,892 (£1,500) on Bruichladdich’s website.
The new 18 year old in Bruichladdich’s range was matured in a mixture of ex-Bourbon, port, and sauternes wine casks having been distilled following the distillery’s reopening in the early 2000s. It was bottled at 50% ABV, and has a suggested RRP of $196 (£150).
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