Diageo’s Orphan Barrel Series Adds A Scotch To Its Line Up

The Diageo Orphan Barrel series over the years has mostly been focused on bottling rarer American whiskeys owned by this spirits giant at its properties in Kentucky and Tennessee. There was one Canadian whisky sometime ago, as well, and now it looks like a new Scotch expression is being added to the line up.

The new Orphan Barrel Forager’s Keep, according to those behind it, is a 26 year old Scotch single malt whisky drawn from barrels containing spirit from the Pittyvaich distillery. Said to perhaps be the shortest lived of all the Speyside region of Scotland distilleries, Pittyvaich closed in 1993 after having opened its doors a mere two decades earlier in 1974. The whisky from this release is thus technically older than the distillery from which it came.

Orphan Barrel Forager’s Keep (image via Diageo)

Forager’s Keep is bottled at 48% ABV, and is set to price at around $400 per 750 ml bottle. It will hit store shelves in what’s said to be early summer, 2019. There was no mention of the number of bottles which would be part of this release. You’ll find some official limited tasting notes below for your consideration. Something that’s interesting to wonder with this one is why did Diageo not release it instead as part of its annual Special Releases collection, which is all Scotch focused?

Aromas of fruit and freshly cut, crisp red apple give way to a gentle vanilla creaminess sheltering dense, but distant orange peel for a mellow, warming taste with a hint of wood spices and a sweet finish.