Heute scheint der Tag der alten und auch preislich schwergewichtigen Whiskys zu sein. Nach der Ankündigung eines 30 Jahre alten Rosebank durch Ian MacLeod Distillers, kommt nun von Diageo die Info, dass man einen 38 Jahre alten Singleton of Glen Ord auf den Markt bringt. Der Whisky wurde mit 49,6% abgefüllt, jede der 1689 Flaschen wird 2100 Pfund kosten. Erwähnenswert am Singleton of Glen Ord 38yo ist auch, dass sein Finishing satte 26 Jahre dauerte.
Mehr dazu in der nachfolgenden Pressemitteilung:
INTRODUCING THE SINGLETON 38-YEAR-OLD
A RARE AND IRRESISTIBLY RICH SINGLE MALT SCOTCH WHISKY, FROM THE SINGLETON, TRAILBLAZING CREATORS OF EPICUREAN SCOTCH
Launching in October, The Singleton will release a new 38-Year-Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky of exceptional richness from The Singleton of Glen Ord distillery. This indulgent cask strength whisky, drawn from just eight casks, has undergone a lengthy 26-year secondary maturation – the longest in The Singleton’s history. With only 1,689 bottles available globally, this rare single malt celebrates The Singleton’s journey to push boundaries in search of whiskies with extraordinary richness and depth of flavour.
The Singleton holds a vision to create exceptional scotch whiskies, exploring numerous possibilities to create whiskies with outstanding taste, depth and harmony. Twenty-six years ago, during a time of great experimentation at The Singleton, award-winning Master of Malts Maureen Robinson discovered an elegant 12-Year-Old Single Malt with huge potential. To unlock the depth of character she envisioned, Maureen and her team decided to add a second maturation, rehousing the whisky in a number of experimental casks of ex-Bourbon, Pedro Ximenez Oloroso Seasoned casks and brand new American Oak casks. This special combination of a small batch of casks was hand-selected to seek out a perfect harmony of delectable flavours. The whisky within the matrix of casks was left to mature for over a quarter of a century, until Robinson deemed it ready. The longer she left it, the greater the richness revealed, making it the longest secondary maturation in The Singleton history, a journey presenting a new realm of taste for The Singleton.
The result of this epicurean odyssey is an irresistibly rich Scotch whisky which brings to the fore; The Singleton’s signature distillery character and depth that bursts with layers of indulgent flavour. The seductive aromas and flavours of baked apples drizzled with caramel and dusted with autumnal spices offer a delectable balance, which are both elegant and tantalizing.
Diageo’s global gastronomer Mark Moriarty has created a recipe for a brown sugar tartlet with candied kumquat and Szechuan peppercorn that entices the senses and explores the layers upon layers of flavour in The Singleton 38-Year-Old.
Maureen Robinson comments:
‘The Singleton 38-Year-Old was crafted during an era that was very exciting at The Singleton – a time of flavour experimentation and innovation across our whisky-making. Selecting new American oak casks was very new for us at that time at the distillery, and we decided on a lengthy secondary maturation to continue to unlock the decadent layers of flavour in this single malt. I remember tasting cask samples just three years into the secondary maturation and I was struck how even at such an early stage, we could identify the richness of flavour the new casks had presented. To mature those casks for more than two decades further was an exploration of how it is possible to unearth exceptional flavour within whisky, and it feels a real privilege to now share this truly delicious single malt with the world.’
The inspiration behind the design of the presentation case proudly centres on the exquisite flavours of ripe red apples, warm autumnal spices and creamy caramel that were discovered after the secondary maturation. An abstract apple, with 26 lines to represent the 26-year cask maturation that achieved these beautifully balanced flavour notes sits on the presentation case, applied to the bottle through a bold linear graphic sandblasted directly into the glass, ensuring taste was truly at the heart of the design.
By pushing boundaries in service of great taste and finishing the whisky not for months, or years but for decades in special curated casks, The Singleton has created something surprising that deserves to be savoured and enjoyed by gastronomes around the world. A unique whisky capturing a time of experimentation at The Singleton and an intriguing new addition to any modern connoisseurs’ collection. The Singleton 38-Year-Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky will be available globally with a Recommended Retail Selling Price of £2,100, available for purchase at specialty retailers from October.
Tasting Notes:
A vibrant, intensely fruity and powerfully smooth Singleton of Glen Ord, from an experimental batch matured in refill casks then double matured for more than twice that time in highly active wood, to yield a perfect harmony of flavours.
- Appearance: Rich, deep amber with copper lights. Outstanding beading and good viscosity.
- Nose: Mellow and generous overall. The immediate top notes are rich, fruity and sweet, with aromas of red apple, mango, pineapple and candied citrus fruits. These fruity tones are soon succeeded by almond oil and vanilla pod, and later vanilla fudge, on a base of sandalwood. A drop of water opens the nose a little, while keeping the same profile.
- Body: Full.
- Palate: At natural strength, a thick, creamy texture and a vibrant, sweet start in which rich opening notes of fudge lead smoothly into a lightly spicy, intense and fruity taste suggesting cinnamon-spiced baked apple, drying gently into an autumnal peppery warmth that envelopes the palate. Appreciably deeper in taste than its younger siblings, it shows the classic Singleton smoothness, being richly flavoured, well balanced and easy to drink straight. The palate opens to reveal hints of orange citrus while with a dash of water more sweet flavours of vanilla ice cream and caramel fudge are perfectly balanced by just a trace of salt, still with a light touch of that Szechuan pepper warmth.
- Finish: Really long; a sweet warmth suffuses the whole palate and leaves the palate tingling as a trace of gingery spice lingers. With water lighter and longer, still leaving the memory of that rich warmth.
