Whisky Focus - Diageo Special Releases 2018

Eagerly anticipated annually by whisky enthusiasts and collectors, the Diageo Special Releases are always a talking point every autumn, whether your pockets are deep enough or not to sample everything in the line-up, and I am sure that the Diageo Special Releases 2018 will be no different.

What is different this year is Diageo have decided to reveal 9 out of the 10 forthcoming releases for 2018 now, in the early spring, although they wont be on shelves until later in the year and they haven't yet revealed the exact pricing yet but it will vary from approximately £80 to £1,000 depending on the rarity of the bottle. The final 10th bottling will be revealed later this year.

Why has Diageo done this? Well it is probably due to the fact that it is impossible to keep the releases a secret due to the labelling requirements in the USA where they have to register the label of each new release in in advance of the launch which means the details of each bottle in the annual Diageo Special Release outturn becomes public knowledge long in advance of the release.

Notably for 2018 there is no Port Ellen or Brora amongst the releases, which sadly wont effect me as my pockets stopped being deep enough for these two outstanding mature single malts more than a few releases ago but none the less they are two whiskies which whisky fans have become accustomed to seeing amongst the Special Releases but following a year where it has been announced that these two closed distilleries are to be resurrected it looks like Diageo has decided to remove them from the 2018 release menu, or is it possible Diageo's old stock is now very limited or even exhausted, time will tell. Of course there is always a chance that the mystery 10th whisky in the 2018 releases originated in one of these distilleries, again, time will tell.

So what are the the nine Diageo Special Releases which have been announced, I hear you ask, well they are as follows:
 

• Carsebridge 48 Year Old
  Distilled 1970 and bottled at 43.2% ABV. Matured in Refill American oak hogsheads. Limited to 1,000 bottles worldwide.
  Recommended Retail Price: Yet to be revealed.
   
• Caol Ila Unpeated 15 Year Old
  Bottled at 59.1% ABV. Matured in Refill and rejuvenated American oak hogsheads and ex-bodega European Oak Butts. Limited quantities worldwide.
  Recommended Retail Price: Yet to be revealed.
   
• Coal Ila 35 Year Old
  Bottled at an impressive 58.1% ABV after 35 years in the cask. Matured in refill American oak hogsheads and refill European oak butts. Limited to 3,276 bottles worldwide.
  Recommended Retail Price: Yet to be revealed.
   
• Inchgower 27 Year Old
  Bottled at 55.3% ABV. Matured in Refill American oak hogsheads. Limited to 8,544 bottles worldwide.
  Recommended Retail Price: Yet to be revealed.
   
• Lagavulin 12 Year Old
  Bottled at 57.8% ABV. Matured in Refill American oak hogsheads. Limited quantities available worldwide.
  Recommended Retail Price: Yet to be revealed.
   
• Oban 21 Year Old
  Bottled at 57.9% ABV. Matured in Refill European Oak Butts. Limited quantities worldwide.
  Recommended Retail Price: Yet to be revealed.
   
• Pittyvaich 28 Year Old
  Bottled at 52.1% ABV. Matured in Refill American oak hogsheads. Limited to 4,680 bottles worldwide.
  Recommended Retail Price: Yet to be revealed.
   
• The Singleton of Glen Ord 14 Year Old
  Bottled at 57.6% ABV. Matured in Refill American oak hogsheads and ex-bodega European oak butts followed by a unique maturation and marrying process. Limited quantities available worldwide.
  Recommended Retail Price: Yet to be revealed.
   
• Talisker 8 Year Old
  Bottled at 59.4% ABV. Matured in First fill ex-Bourbon American oak hogsheads. Limited availability worldwide.
  Recommended Retail Price: Yet to be revealed.
   

Donald Colville, Diageo’s Global Malts Ambassador, commented on the 2018 Special Releases saying: "The Special Releases launch is a highlight in our whisky calendar year. It’s a collection that allows both knowledgeable whisky fans and those new to Scotch to hunt out truly unique limited editions. The range delivers memorable taste experiences unlike any other and the exceptional variety and quality of whiskies in this year’s collection will not disappoint."

The Diageo Special Releases 2018 will be available later in the year from specialist whisky shops, meanwhile you can still find some earlier releases available from online whisky shops such as The Whisky Exchange and Master of Malt
 

• UK Shops
   
• USA Shops
   
• European Shops
  

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