Scotland’s Wolfburn Distillery Debuts its First Peated Whisky

Young Scottish distillery Wolfburn, one of the most northernly in Scotland, has slowly been putting out new releases as its whisky ages. We last saw a new permanent addition to their core range last year around this time, and now they are back once again with a new bottling, this time in the form of their first peated whisky.

Wolfburn Morven, according to those behind it, is made from lightly peated malted barley and looks to be around three or so years in age. It is bottled at 46% ABV and is named after the highest peak in Caithness, a mountain surrounded by open moors and wetlands, from where peat has been harvested for hundreds of years.

“For almost five years we’ve been asked to produce a peated whisky,” said Shane Fraser, Wolfburn distillery manager, in a prepared statement. “And here it is! A very exciting day for all the team at Wolfburn. Judging by the early reaction from distributors and retailers globally, Morven is going to be a significant step forward for the distillery. People seem to absolutely love it.”

The original 19^th Century Wolfburn Distillery was fired by peat. So for us, producing a peated whisky is a reflection of history. The link with our heritage is hugely important – our whisky is all made by hand in the traditional way, with a focus on quality throughout the entire production process.”

Wolfburn, for those unfamiliar with it, was once a working distillery in the early 1800s. The reasons for its closure are lost in time, but by 1877 it was pretty much in ruins. In 2011 plans were laid to resurrect the old distillery. Construction began in 2012 and in January 2013 the new Wolfburn Distillery commenced production around 300 meters from the site of the original facility.

Below you’ll find some limited official tasting notes for your consideration:

• Nose – Crisp sea air meets rich dark earth
• Palate – Cereal, vanilla and warm spices are all present. The whisky has an oily completeness which coats the palate, with rich sweet tones being augmented by light peaty flavours
• Finish – Malt and warm cereal leads to a long smokey finish