Pick of the Launches
Here is the pick of the launches from last month, as featured in Drinks International Magazine May edition.
Wood’s Old Navy Rum
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Brand owner William Grant & Sons
RRP £25.59
Markets UK
Contact wgrantpr@saltlondon.com
Before dark rum became trendy, Wood's was one of the go-to rums for aficionados. It is said to be the only demerara Navy rum still bottled at 57%. The rum is made in Guyana from blackstrap molasses and distilled in the only working single wooden pot still in the world, claims Grants. Made of greenheart, a local hardwood, it is said to impart complex flavours that can’t be recreated in copper stills.
The new look is apparently inspired by the liquid’s Navy-enriched past, the redesigned bottle is simpler, sturdier, with thicker glass and a traditional cork. The recipe has remained the same, says Grants, and it tastes of: Rich punchy notes of brown sugar, Christmas pudding and thick syrupy toffee.
Highland Park Ice Edition
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Brand owner Edrington
RRP £190, €240, US$270
Markets Global
Contact enquiries@highlandpark.co.uk
Maxxium UK has released a new expression of Highland Park, the scotch whisky from the Orkneys with its Viking roots.
Ice Edition (53.9% abv), is a 17-year-old single malt scotch whisky which has been matured only in former bourbon barrels. It is limited to 30,000 bottles.
Graceful Vodka
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Brand owner Poetic License
RRP £32.50
Markets UK only, with plans to expand internationally
Contact Luke Smith, +44 (0)191 5103564, luke@poeticlicensedistillery.co.uk
Described as a smooth spirit to be sipped and savoured, this vodka is made from British wheat and is distilled seven times for purity. It is named after Poetic License’s on-site still, Gracie, which in turn was named after the owner’s daughter.
Bruichladdich The Laddie Eight/Port Charlotte 2007
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Brand owner Bruichladdich Distillery
RRP £45, €59
Markets Global travel retail/duty free
Contact christy.mcfarlane@bruichladdich.com
Two new single malts from the Islay scotch whisky distiller, Bruichladdich, are destined for travel retail.
The first is The Laddie Eight, its first official eight-year-old, matured by the shores of Loch Indaal, Islay.
Port Charlotte 2007 is said to be heavily peated and matured in ex-eau de vie casks.
Freixenet Ice Cava
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Brand owner Freixenet RRP €16, £12.99
Markets EU
Contact freixenet.com
Ice Cava is said to be a premium cava created using the traditional method and made with Macabeo, Xarel.lo and Parellada grape varieties with a touch of Chardonnay to “create the taste experience of icy freshness and powerful aromas, with a palate that is creamy yet sweet, with a long finish”.
The end result is described as: “Fine bubbles combined with a nose of peaches, ripe pears, flowers and nuances of tropical fruits. The palate is creamy yet sweet with a long finish.”
The Glenrothes Bourbon Cask Reserve
Brand owner Berry Bros & Rudd Spirits
RRP £45
Markets UK
Contact Johnny Roberts at Berry Bros & Rudd, johnny.roberts@bbrspirits.com
Berry Bros. & Rudd Spirits has rebranded its kosher single malt scotch whisky The Glenrothes Alba Reserve as the Bourbon Cask Reserve. The name has been changed for the sake of simplicity and to aid consumer understanding.
The first certified kosher whisky from the Speyside distillery, Bourbon Cask Reserve is matured exclusively in American oak refill bourbon.
The Glenrothes developed an expression to satisfy orthodox Jewish whisky enthusiasts as well as other aficionados of The Glenrothes.
Bourbon Cask Reserve was authenticated by Rabbi Padwa of the London Beth Din in March 2009 and annually thereafter.
Laphroaig Lore
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Brand owner Beam Suntory
RRP £75, €100, US$107
Markets Germany, UK, south east Asia, US, Canada and Nordics
Contact fergus.mccarthy@whitelabeluk.com
Beam Suntory has launched a new expression of its Islay single malt whisky, Laphroaig Lore (48% abv). It is said to be its richest single malt whisky to date. Made by distillery manager John Campbell, Lore is drawn from a variety of casks including first-fill bourbon barrels, quarter casks and oloroso sherry hogsheads. Legend has it the Laphroaig lore began around 1800 when brothers Alexander and Donald Johnston invented a recipe for an extraordinarily rich single malt, even before the Laphroaig distillery officially existed in 1815. The recipe was refined in the 1920s by distillery manager Ian Hunter, who pioneered the use of ex-bourbon casks. Further chapters were added by the 20th century’s only female scotch whisky distiller, Bessie Williamson, and by luminaries such as Iain Henderson.
Zacapa Edición Negra
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Brand owner Diageo
RRP US$80, €70, £55
Markets Global travel retail/duty free
Contact Jodi.doherty@smartscommunicate.com
Zacapa Edición Negra (43% abv) is described as a rum inspired by the natural elements of Guatemala and the dark fire of its volcanoes. It is said to showcase a different Zacapa palate, stepping away from the sweet butterscotch notes identified in Zacapa 23 to create a bolder flavour with chocolate notes. Edición Negra, made by master blender Lorena Vasquez, is aged in double charred American oak casks, said to create “revealing accentuated woody and spicy notes in the liquid”.
Disznókö Dry Furmint 2015
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Brand owner Disznókő
RRP €10, US$20, £13.99
Markets Global
Contact UK Gonzalez Byass UK Arthur Boulgaris, +44 (0)7880 200106), arthur.boulgaris@gonzalezbyassuk.com
France Compagnie Médocaine des Grands Crus, Vincent Gournac, +06 12 55 37 70), gournac.v@medocaine.com
US VINTUS, +1 (914) 769-3000, amichas@vintuswines.com
Disznókő has opted to change the bottle of its fruity dry Tokaj Dry Furmint 2015 white wine from the Tokaj in Hungary.
Disznókő director László Mészáros said: “There is no other white wine anywhere in the world that resembles a dry Tokaj Furmint. Our aim is to highlight the very singular character of our grapes and terroir among consumers.
"We were genuinely delighted about the recent project by designer Géza IPACS to come up with a new Tokaj bottle, and we are pleased to be taking part in this regional initiative.”