Balvenie is one of the best Speyside single malt whiskies on the market. Dave Stewart, master blender, will his 50th year at Balvenie by releasing a 14 Year Old Caribbean Cask in the UK. This will be followed by a number of other “exciting launches”.
He is quoted as saying: “I am very proud of it – this expression is a beautifully-rounded 14-year-old whisky,” he said.
To develop the Caribbean flavour they have used a blend of rums from Jamaica, Barbados and Trinidad. This is put into Balvenies own barrels for 6 months to let the rum soak in to the wood. Then the rum is moved to another barrel and the empty barrel is filled with single malt to finish for 4 to 5 months. This gives the whisky a tropical sweetness and definitely a unique flavour. and a few months of rum cask maturation complements the Balvenie single malt very well.
The new expression comes with an ABV of 43% and is now part of the established range of Balvenie Single Malts – 12 Year Old DoubleWood, 12 Year Old Signature, 15 Year Old Single Barrel, 21 Year Old PortWood and the Thirty Year Old.
“We have more news coming up,” said Forrester. “It’s a step towards constructing a taste ladder that will create clarity for our drinkers.
It’s not the first time that Balvenie has done something like this. They already have for sale a Balvenie 14 year old Cuban Selection, using Cuban rum casks.
