24th September 2018 |
Chivas
Brothers launch the first ever official
Allt-A-Bhainne bottling, a sweetly
peated Speyside single malt whisky.
You
can be forgiven for not recognising
Allt-A-Bhainne Single Malt Whisky as it
has never been officially bottled as a
single malt by its owners Chivas
Brothers, well that is until now.
Chivas Brothers has just launched the
first official distillery bottling,
simply named
Allt-A-Bhainne (pronounced "Alta-Vayne"),
which they describe as "The Sweetly
Peated Single Malt"
Chivas
Brothers tell me that the new
Allt-A-Bhainne expression intends to shake up the single
malt category by mixing the smokiness of
peat with the fruity sweetness of the
Speyside region in Scotland. They say
the
challenger whisky will push conventional
boundaries in a bid to attract a whole
new generation of drinkers.
Allt-A-Bhainne was originally established back in 1975 to supply
malt whisky as a component of the Chivas
Brothers blends such as Chivas Regal and
100 Pipers blend which had launched in
1966 and had become more popular than
they had anticipated.
During the last few years 50% of the
production at
Allt-A-Bhainne has been lightly peated
spirit with the phenol content of the
malted barley being 10PPM. With an
annual output capacity of 4,200,000
litres at the distillery most of this
lightly peated output has continued to
feed the Chivas Brothers blends because
as you know the company does not own any
peaty whisky producing distilleries on
Islay or elsewhere and this lightly
peated
Allt-A-Bhainne spirit helps to meet
their need for for peated whisky in
their portfolio of blends.
Being a peated single malt whisky, the new Allt-A-Bhainne expression
certainly
goes against the grain and stands out as
different from the more traditional Speyside
whiskies. Launched at a time when peated
malts are growing globally by 7.6%, Allt-A-Bhainne is
Chivas Brothers offering for those
seeking a touch of peat in their single
malt whisky.
Bottled at 40% ABV, it is
aimed at active single malt explorers
looking to experience something a bit
different, while it should also appealing to new
single malt drinkers with its
sweet peated Speyside style.
Capturing its bold personality, the
clean bottle design features strong,
geometric shapes to create an energetic
look that resonates with the 70s style
of the Allt-A-Bhainne distillery on the
label. The clean, uncluttered design of
the bottle shows off the liquid and
screams confidence in what’s inside. The
wooden stopper is a gesture towards the
craftsmanship at the heart of the brand.
There is no box or presentation tube.
Richard Clark, Allt-A-Bhainne Master
Distiller, comments: "We know that
whisky drinkers have evolved. They are
becoming more adventurous with their
repertoire and want to try something
new. That’s why we’ve decided now is the
perfect time to launch Allt-A-Bhainne.
"Convention said we shouldn’t mix peat
with Speyside and that smokiness and
sweetness wouldn’t work together. But we
followed our nose, distilled the whisky
in the way we know and trust, and Allt-A-Bhainne
is the result. It’s a match that might
go against traditional Speyside
conventions, but that’s something we’re
not afraid to challenge."
Allt-A-Bhainne is now available here in the UK at an RRP of £37.00
and will also be rolling out in
Australia. I suspect it will be an easy
drinking lightly peated Speysider but as
I haven't had the chance to taste it yet
I cant comment on its quality but if you
fancy trying it for yourself and ticking
another Scotch whisky distillery off
your list on your whisky journey you
will find it available from specialist online whisky
retailers such as
Master of Malt |
Allt-A-Bhaine Review
|
Bottled at 40% ABV.
Producer's Tasting Notes:
Nose: Notes of soft red apples,
sweet runny honey, delicate smoke
(bonfire embers) and toffee.
Taste: The smoky flavour comes
through much more markedly on the taste
and gives a delightful mix of citrus
fruits (sweet orange and ripe melon),
toasted marshmallows, smoke and gentle
peaty flavours.
Finish:
Long, smoky, slightly dry and spicy.
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