Two new single malts, both matured for 50 years, have been unveiled today by The Balvenie.
Filled from the same distillation into the same type of cask on the same day in 1963, the two new releases of The Balvenie Fifty are markedly different in character despite identical origins.
They are both bottled at cask strength – at 45.4% ABV and 45.9% ABV – and are non-chillfiltered. Available through Whisky Shop, they will have a recommended retail price of between £25,000 to £30,000 per bottle.
Both expressions have been handfilled at The Balvenie distillery into hand-blown glass bottles and are presented in wooden cases handmade by Scottish craftsman Sam Chinnery.
The cases consist of 49 layers of wood and a closing layer in brass, which echoes the fittings of the distillery’s stills and spirit safes.
It is rare for a scotch to be left in a cask to mature for 50 years as there is no guarantee it will turn out to be a good single malt.
The Balvenie’s malt master, David Stewart, said: “The effect of maturation on the final character of a whisky is widely known and becoming better understood, yet it still has an air of mystery around it.
“It’s rare that one 50-year-old whisky has aged beautifully over time, but for two that were distilled on the very same day to mature into such exceptional expressions is something very special.
“Although beginning with the same origins, cask number 4567, given that it is a single malt, has a deep reddish hue and a beautifully full taste characterised by dark fruits and spice, expected of the European oak cask in which the whiskies were matured.
“The 50-year-old from cask number 4570 is different, with a rich golden hue and a remarkable
elegant oak and vanilla sweetness.
“Both are among the most complex, elegant and fine whiskies ever to be released from Warehouse 24, the home of our oldest and rarest whiskies.”
The whiskies have lain in European oak hogsheads since being filled on May 28, 1963, the year after David joined the company.
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