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Introducing
the new MacNair’s Boutique House of
Spirits range which encompasses their
new-look Lum Reek Blended Malt Scotch
Whisky, and a brand new small-batch rum
line named Exploration Rum.
Independently owned and managed whisky
firm, The GlenAllachie Distillers
Company, led by industry stalwart Billy
Walker, has unveiled its first-ever rum
as their MacNair’s brand is repositioned
as a Boutique House of Spirits.
Going forward MacNair’s Boutique House
of Spirits will encompass their new-look
Lum Reek Blended Malt Scotch Whisky, and
a brand new small-batch rum line named
Exploration Rum.
The Lum Reek whisky sub-range will
continue to feature
MacNair's Lum Reek Peated 21 Year Old,
which scooped World’s Best Blended Malt
at the World Whiskies Awards 2020 and
Best Blended Malt Scotch at the San
Francisco World Spirits Competition
2021, as well as
MacNair's Lum Reek Peated 12 Year Old,
which won Double Gold at the same San
Francisco competition.
To create Lum Reek, experienced Master
Blender Walker sourced the finest
vintage Speyside and Islay single malts
to be blended with aged GlenAllachie in
pursuit of the perfect balance between
gentle peat and rich, fruity character.
Once expertly blended, the whisky
underwent a secondary maturation period,
highlighting Walker’s passion for
innovative wood management.
The 12-year-old was laid to rest for
over 12 additional months in premium
American oak barrels, sherry casks, and
French oak barriques, whilst the
21-year-old enjoyed secondary aging in
Spanish sherry casks, French oak, and
virgin oak casks. This supplementary
maturation period allows the flavours to
marry and extract additional depth from
the wood.
Both small-batch whiskies are proudly
offered at high alcohol strength, and
without added colouring or chill
filtration.
The new Exploration Rum sub-brand sees
Walker search out the world’s finest
rums to be further enhanced by
superlative blending and world-class
maturation, assured by an almost half
century’s experience.
This first instalment of Exploration
Rums were sourced from Panama, renowned
for its volcanic soil which provides the
ideal growing environment for rum’s key
ingredient, sugar cane. The range
features a 7 year old Peated (UK RRSP
£46.99), 7 year old (UK RRSP £42.99),
and 15 year old (UK RRSP £64.99)
bottling.
Each expression was initially matured in
American oak in the tropical Panamanian
climate, before being transferred to the
cooler maturation environment at The
GlenAllachie Distillery in Speyside to
be elevated by Walker.
The innovative 7 year old Peated rum
underwent secondary maturation in casks
that previously held heavily peated
whisky distilled at GlenAllachie, whilst
the 7 year old and 15 year old were
filled to red wine, virgin oak and
ex-Bourbon casks for over 2 years.
The rums are each presented at 46% ABV,
with no added colouring or chill
filtration. This first batch is limited
to approximately 400 cases per
expression.
Commenting on the brand repositioning
and landmark move into rum, Walker
comments:
"I’ve long held a desire to explore and
apply my expertise to a new spirit
category, curious as to what the outcome
could be. Rum was an exciting prospect
as, in a similar vein to whisky, it
allows for greater scope of innovation
and experimentation, particularly in
regard to maturation.
"I’ve spent a great deal of time
sampling and tracking down what I deem
to be the finest rums from across the
world to bring to my lab at The
GlenAllachie Distillery and put my own
distinctive twist on. The result in this
first batch of Panama experiences is
what I believe to be a trio of really
exciting and unique rums which explore
the influence of wood, but also the
impact of maturation in a cooler
climate.
"I’m also delighted to see the Lum Reek
blended malts be presented in a more
contemporary and eye-catching pack with
an intricate hand-drawn illustration,
reflecting the quality of the
award-winning spirit within. Blended
Malts are widely underrated within the
whisky world; however, I truly believe
MacNair’s Lum Reek can sit proudly
alongside even the best single malts."
MacNair’s Boutique House of Spirits
products are
available
from specialist online retailers
such as
Master of Malt
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