Highland distillery Deanston has unveiled its latest experimental limited edition, the Deanston Orange Wine 17 Year Old Cask Finish, launching globally this spring with just 7,000 bottles available. Curated by master blender Julieann Fernandez, the single malt pairs Deanston’s signature waxy spirit with a two-year finish in Vino de Naranja casks sourced from Andalucía, Spain.
The whisky spent 15 years maturing in ex-bourbon casks before the additional two-year finish in the fortified orange wine casks, which are made using bitter orange peel. Vino de Naranja casks are rarer than skin-contact orange wine casks, and were selected specifically to complement Deanston’s flavor profile.
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Fernandez, at 34 one of the youngest master blenders in the Scotch whisky industry, drew direct inspiration from her Spanish heritage for the release. With deep family roots in the Jaén region of rural Andalucía, her personal connection to the area informed both the cask choice and flavor direction.
“My parents met in Andalucía, and some of my happiest memories are wrapped up in the warmth, generosity and flavours of that part of the world – the sights, the smell and the taste of the orange trees which surround the area,” Fernandez said. “Those experiences have stayed with me and shaped how I think about flavour and whisky.”
She added: “When I got the opportunity of orange wine casks at Deanston, it genuinely felt like bringing a piece of my own heritage into our spirit for the first time.”
Each cask purchased presented a unique flavor concentration, requiring an extensive tasting process from Fernandez and her team to achieve consistency across the bottling.
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“Whisky will tell you when it’s ready, and the two years in orange wine casks were the perfect sweet spot for this release to balance the citrus bitterness of the orange wine with Deanston’s honeyed profile,” she said. “I can’t wait for people to discover it for themselves, whether that’s neat, over ice or in a refreshing highball or spritz.”
Official tasting notes from the brand describe bold flavors of bitter citrus, sun-soaked soft stone fruit, fragrant honey, toasted nuts, citrus oils, and a malty biscuit core.
The release follows Deanston’s popular tequila cask edition, continuing the distillery’s push into unconventional cask experimentation using its waxy Highland spirit as a foundation.
The Deanston Orange Wine Cask Finish 17 Year Old is bottled at 53.6% ABV and priced at £95 for a 70cl bottle. It will be available from Thursday, March 26, 2026, through selected specialist retailers and online at deanstonmalt.com.
