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24th November 2021 |
The Balvenie
continues to tell stories with the
launch of The Tale of the Dog 42 year
old and 46 year old liquids and a no age
statement The Balvenie The Creation of a
Classic.
 The Balvenie has unveiled two rather
rare aged instalments to its The Balvenie
Stories Collection - The Balvenie The
Tale of the Dog 42 Year Old Year Old a
domestic market release and
The Balvenie The Tale of the Dog 46 Year
Old Year Old a global travel retail
release, launching alongside the two
rare aged
expressions in The Balvenie Stories
line-up is a no age statement The Balvenie The Creation of
a Classic.
All three of the new expressions launch
exclusively this month, the collection has been
influenced by the stories as told by the
craftsmen at the Balvenie distillery in
Dufftown, Scotland – all have been
created to highlight and bring to life
the many unique and varied stories that
emanate from The Balvenie distillery.
The Balvenie The Tale of the Dog 46 year old is said
to be a deliciously smooth and honeyed
expression of The Balvenie. Available at
global travel retail outlets, the 46
year old variation is described as
luxuriously rich where spice and subtle
hints of liquorice are met with dashes
of bergamot. A masterful work from The
Balvenie, it offers the nose a
sumptuously extravagant aroma with
flavours reminiscent of roasted red
currants and treacle, perfectly wrapped
in flavours of eucalyptus and menthol
from toasted oak. For the taste buds, it
delights with a richness that soon
surpasses to reveal silky a honey and
toffee sweetness.
The Balvenie The Tale of the Dog 42 year
old domestic release is said to
represent a ‘beautiful classic’
proffering a soft sweet fragrance from
ripe dates with hints of toffee, and
revealing notes of geranium oil and a
subtle mint musk. The dates and toffee
coat the mouth in a light nutty spice
with toasted oak to offer the perfect
balance of flavours.
David Wilson, Managing Director for
Global Travel at William Grant & Sons
said, "The Balvenie ‘Tale of the Dog’
release, is an amazing story which has
been brought to life in this very rare
46 year old single cask offering which
is being made available exclusively for
Travel Retail. Beyond its rarity as a
single cask offering, our Malt Master
David Stewart M.B.E and Apprentice Malt
Master Kelsey McKechnie, selected this
exceptional cask, paying homage to our
long-serving coppersmith Dennis McBain
and his tireless service while revealing
a little secret found within our
distillery. This is an exceptional
whisky from Balvenie which we are
delighted to showcase to the whisky
community through several our global
partners.
The Balvenie
The Creation of a Classic is a no age
statement expression, it celebrates the
story of The Balvenie Malt Master – the
longest serving malt master in the
industry – David Stewart MBE, who
pioneered the first cask-finished whisky
in 1983, The Balvenie Classic. It was
created by transferring Balvenie whisky
matured in traditional oak barrel to
sweet Oloroso sherry casks. This new
expression in The Balvenie Stories range
brings to life the story of the Classic,
and showcases the same process - the
choice of wood, the warehousing, the
testing and tasting all playing a part
in its masterful success. As its iconic
predecessor, The Creation of a Classic
is matured in American oak casks and
finished in sweet Oloroso Sherry casks,
offering an innovative reinterpretation
of The Balvenie Classic.
Commenting on the release of The
Balvenie Stories in Global Travel
Retail, The Balvenie Malt Master David
Stewart MBE says: "The Balvenie
Distillery is built on stories. It’s
what sets us apart and makes our whisky
what it is. Each expression in the
Stories range has a distinct narrative
as to how it came to be, and each whisky
tells its unique tale in liquid form
through first-hand recollections of the
many characters involved."
The captivating story behind The Tale of
the Dog was inspired by the memories of
Dennis McBain, a long-time Coppersmith
at The Balvenie Distillery. As a young
apprentice, fresh to the world of
whisky-making, Dennis was asked by a
brewer for a copper dog, which he soon
discovered was a little copper tube used
for secretly siphoning off whisky from
the cask. The copper dog would then be
flattened and put back for his owner to
be found as a way of calling out the
illicit activity. Thus, expressions such
as ‘taking the dog for a walk’ became
common at the distillery, with whomever
the copper dog had been sent to
understanding full well that he’d been
discovered but given a second chance.
This recollection went on to inspire
McBain’s suggesting of using dogs
instead of unwieldy valinches for
distillery tour tastings, a protocol
which remains today.
Storytelling is carried through every
aspect of The Tale of the Dog, with its
tale depicted on the whisky’s packaging.
The bottle is presented with a replica,
flattened copper dog and encased in a
wooden tube wrapped in leather, printed
with a bespoke illustration, specific to
the liquid, from British artist and
printmaker Andy Lovell. Andy’s work,
which draws its inspiration direct from
the distillery, can also be seen across
the labels and tubes for the entire
Balvenie Stories range. It uses bold,
hand-made gestural marks to build up
images that capture the evocative light
and atmosphere of the distillery’s
landscape. The texture and tactility of
Andy’s work emphasises the importance of
human creativity in the production of
The Balvenie whiskies and the
exceptional products that can be made
when Makers pour their heart into what
they do.
Malt master David C. Stewart M.B.E,
says: "The Tale of the Dog is one of the
stories people most love hearing about
The Balvenie – from a time when you did
used to wonder sometimes if the dogs
were taking their share, as well as the
angels! These two casks, from 1978 and
1974, are wonderful liquids chosen to
represent the story."
Whisky drinkers can hear the story of The Tale
of the Dog and The Creation of a Classic
via a specially recorded podcast series,
featuring the craftspeople behind the
expression, as well as The Balvenie
Global Ambassador Gemma Paterson. This
podcast will be available through
Spotify and iTunes and via a QR code tag
inside the pack, that drinkers can scan
using their smartphones.
Gebr Heinemann Director Purchasing
Liquor, Tobacco and Confectionery
Ruediger Stelkens says: "We are
delighted to work closely with William
Grant & Sons to be the exclusive
European airport retailer to offer this
remarkable interpretation of The
Balvenie Stories. We have always taken
great pride in curating an assortment of
some of the world’s finest Single Malt
Scotch whiskies and bringing the stories
behind it to life, giving our clients an
opportunity to own a piece of The
Balvenie’s storied history."
The Balvenie The Tale of the Dog 46 year old will
launch globally this month, November 2021,
it will be available in 10 exclusive Travel Retail
locations with a RRP of £16,500. Only 34 bottles
of The Tale of the Dog 46 Year Old will
be available for sale exclusively in
Global Travel Retail, drawn from an
exclusive single cask.
The Balvenie Creation of a Classic has a more drammable price for
most of us with a RRP
of £57, it will launch globally this
month, November
2021, exclusively in Global Travel
Retail across all markets.
If you have no plans to travel in the
near future you will find the current
Balvenie domestic whisky range including
The Balvenie The Tale of the Dog 42 year
old available to
purchase from specialist online whisky
retailers such as
The Whisky Exchange,
Amazon
and
Master of Malt
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The Balvenie The Tale of The Dog 46
Year Old Review
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Bottled at 54.7% ABV.
Producer's Tasting Notes:
Nose:
Luxuriously rich, with flavours
reminiscent of roasted red currants and
treacle, perfectly wrapped in aromas of
eucalyptus and menthol from toasted oak.
Taste:
Spice and subtle hints of liquorice are
soon met with dashes of bergamot. This
richness soon surpasses to reveal silky
honey and toffee sweetness. A masterful
Balvenie.
Finish:
Everlasting smooth sweetness.
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The Balvenie The Creation of a Classic Review
|
Bottled at 43% ABV.
Producer's Tasting Notes:
Nose:
Aromatic and lively, aromas of vanilla
and spice evocative of dried clove and
chai are layered on a base of earthly,
malty undertones reminiscent of
Balvenie’s own barley loft.
Taste:
A perfect complement of light oatmeal
syrupiness and brittle toffee are
followed by delicate hints of spice and
a rich drying sensation from European
oak.
Finish:
Lingering, lasting dry oak.
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