Whisky Focus - The Balvenie Unveils 3 New Cask Finish Whiskies

The Balvenie distillery has unveiled three new cask finished whiskies to feature in its Cask Finishes range, two of which are launching exclusively to Global Travel Retail on April 1 the other will be available in the domestic market. Embodying the Speyside distillery’s signature honeyed character, the new expressions are a deep dive into flavour using Malt Master David C. Stewart MBE's pioneering finishing process he started in 1982, which these days is now celebrated and emulated by whisky producers across the whisky world.

The three new Balvenie Cask Finish whiskies have been inspired by flavour journeys from The Balvenie team throughout wine making regions of Europe, the new global travel retail exclusive expressions, The Balvenie 15 Year Old Madeira Cask Finish and The Balvenie 18 Year Old Pedro Ximénez Sherry Cask Finish expressions feature finishing casks from Madeira and Pedro Ximénez from Jerez, while for the first time in the distillery’s 129 years history, Pineau from the French Charentes vineyards joins the domestic offering in the form of The Balvenie 16 Year Old French Oak Pineau Cask Finish.

David Stewart MBE, The Balvenie Malt Master, commented: "It is no secret that I enjoy sweet wines like Madeira and when introduced to Pineau I was instantly impressed by the flavour profile and interested to see what these casks would bring to The Balvenie."

Charles Metcalfe, Global Brand Ambassador for The Balvenie, commented, "Pineau casks are very rarely seen in the Scotch whisky industry and they have paired with the Balvenie spirit perfectly, adding orchard fruits and a citrusy zing.

"The extra sweetness and richness from the Pedro Ximenez cask adds a lovely rich weight to the palette of our 18 Year Old, with all of those delicious dark fruits coming through."

The Balvenie 15 Year Old Madeira Cask Finish is described as a lively and summery Single Malt finished in casks which previously held sweet Madeira wine. Having used casks from the volcanic island for older expressions in the past, a recent holiday there reignited David Stewart’s passion for Madeira’s versatile dessert wine and complex casks. Throughout the cask’s journey they were exposed to the heat of the sun, naturally sweetening wine it held, leading to the creation of this light, lively yet characterful whisky.

The second sherry finish for the Cask Finishes range is The Balvenie 18 Year Old Pedro Ximénez Sherry Cask Finish. The sweet wine from the much loved Pedro Ximénez casks gets its intensity from the sun ripened vines making it the perfect sweet fusion for The Balvenie’s signature honeyed core. Whilst Sherry is a popular cask type in Scotch, this is only the second time The Balvenie has used it in their range of finishes.

The Balvenie 15 and 18 Year Old Cask finishes will be available from all major airports including Hainan, Seoul Incheon and Jeju Taoyuan in Asia. In Europe, look out for them in Amsterdam Schiphol, Frankfurt, Berlin, Budapest, Copenhagen, Vienna and Munich.

"We’re delighted to be launching The Balvenie Cask Finishes Range with two exclusive editions for Global Travel Retail," says Lindsay Hitzeroth, WG&S Head of Customer Marketing, GTR. "The channel has always been about discovery, offering consumers the opportunity to find something new and different, yet with the confidence of brand knowledge and integrity. As travel now begins to show real recovery in the aftermath of Covid, we will continue to inspire and engage consumers with The Balvenie 15yo Madeira Cask and 18 yo Pedro Ximénez Cask, both delivering the quality of liquid and iconic appeal that luxury shoppers will be searching for."

The domestic release amongst the 3 new cask finish whiskies, The Balvenie 16 Year Old French Oak Pineau Cask Finish, will be available from specialist online whisky retailers such as The Whisky Exchange, The Whisky Shop and Master of Malt
 

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