GlenAllachie has unveiled the last bottling in its Past, Present & Future Series, The GlenAllachie Billy Walker 50th Anniversary Future Edition 4-year-old Peated Single Malt Scotch Whisky. This is the first ever distillate produced under their ownership, and the distillery’s first peated whisky.
The Past, Present & Future Series, which launched in May, pays tribute to whisky maker Billy Walker’s 50-year-long stint in the Scotch whisky industry. Each installment in the trilogy has been selected to reflect a key milestone in the expert blender’s career.
The Future Edition, a young and punchy 4-year-old peated single malt, offers whisky enthusiasts the chance to sip and speculate on possible subsequent bottlings from The GlenAllachie Distillery following Walker’s takeover in 2017.
The release represents the first whisky bottled by the distillery to have been created under Walker and impacted by his production modifications. These include an 80% production drop, which allows for greater supervision throughout the maturation journey, and facilitates an increase in fermentation duration to 160 hours creating an ester-rich spirit with thicker mouthfeel.
Since spearheading The GlenAllachie, Walker began producing peated spirit for around six weeks annually to diversify the distillery’s offering and launch new opportunities for innovation and experimentation.
Matured in former rye and bourbon barrels, as well as virgin oak casks, the 4-year-old Scotch whisky selected for The Future Edition remained under careful supervision within one of the distillery’s 16 on-site warehouses in Speyside.
Made with mainland peat from St Fergus, the flavor contribution is sweeter with distinguishing oaky tones in contrast to the more medicinal or maritime notes anticipated of a coastal peat. The barley was kilned to 80ppm (parts per million) offering up distinctive smoky yet sweet flavor characteristics: smoldering oak, cinnamon apple,s and chocolate-covered hazelnuts, alongside puffs of earthy peat smoke.
The momentous release is limited to 10,000 bottles worldwide; each proudly presented at cask strength of 60.2% ABV, natural color and non chill filtered.
“It’s beyond exciting to release our very own whisky distilled since we took over this hidden gem of a distillery in 2017,” said Walker. “I eagerly await the reaction amongst whisky fans to this first glimpse at both our own distillate, and our peated work. The response will unquestionably influence where we take things next.
“The timing of the launch is apt as we celebrate our fifth anniversary of ownership next month. We are so very fortunate to be steering this great distillery into the future. I think the best is yet to come.”
The Future Edition joins the two other expressions in the range; The Past Edition, a 16-year-old 100% Sherry Matured single malt released in May, and The Present Edition, a 16-year-old Mizunara Virgin Oak Finish, announced in July.
The GlenAllachie Billy Walker 50th Anniversary Future Edition is available via global specialist retailers, and is priced at £80 per bottle in the UK. For more information, head over to the brand’s official website.
In July, The GlenAllachie Distillers Company unveiled the two latest additions to its Macnair’s Exploration Rum Range, Exploration Rum Jamaica Peated and Exploration Rum Jamaica Unpeated.
