
There's no better way to say cheers than with a great whisky. (Photo by iStock/ipopba)
New Compass Box, Jura Single Malt, Glendalough Mizunara Finish & More New Whisky
March 10, 2018 –––––– Susannah Skiver Barton
Compass Box Hedonism, The Muse
Style: Blended grain whiskyOrigin: ScotlandAge: Not statedProof: 53.3% ABVPrice: $275Release: March 2018Availability: 3,060 bottles
Need to know:
Compass Box is releasing a special-edition expression of Hedonism, its blended grain scotch, that celebrates the fact that its blending team now includes more women than men—a situation that remains unusual in the scotch industry.
Whisky Advocate says:
Compass Box claims that Hedonism was the first scotch label to feature a woman's image. We won't argue with that, nor with the fact that Hedonism's past special-edition bottlings have been extremely well received, with Hedonism Maximus scoring 90 points and Hedonism Quindecimus scoring 92 points.
Glendalough Double Barrel Single Grain Whiskey
Style: Single grain whiskeyOrigin: IrelandAge: Not statedProof: 42% ABVPrice: $30-$35Release: March 2018Availability: Widely available in CO, CT, DE, GA, IL, MA, MD, NJ, NY, RI, and Washington, D.C.
Need to know:
This single grain Irish whiskey aged for three years in bourbon barrels before being finished in 500-liter oloroso sherry casks for six months.
Glendalough Black Pitts Finish 7 year old Single Malt
Style: Single maltOrigin: IrelandAge: 7 years oldProof: 46% ABVPrice: $55-$60Release: March 2018Availability: 12,000 bottles in CO, CT, DE, GA, IL, MA, MD, NJ, NY, RI, and Washington, D.C.
Need to know:
Aged for seven years in first-fill ex-bourbon casks, this single malt whiskey was finished in barrels that previously held Blackpitts Porter from Dublin's 5 Lamps Brewery.
Glendalough Mizunara Finish 13 year old Single Malt
Style: Single maltOrigin: IrelandAge: 13 years oldProof: 46% ABVPrice: $110-$120Release: March 2018Availability: 6,000 bottles in CO, CT, DE, GA, IL, MA, MD, NJ, NY, RI, and Washington, D.C.
Need to know:
A 13 year old single malt, this whiskey was initially aged in first-fill ex-bourbon barrels, then finished in virgin mizunara casks, sourced from Japan.
Whisky Advocate says:
Located in Ireland's County Wicklow, Glendalough Distillery has been making whiskey (and poitín and gin) since 2015. That liquid is still aging, however (due for release in late 2018), so the whiskey in these bottles was made elsewhere. (Glendalough was able to purchase casks "before a big distillery buy out," according to a spokesperson...There's only been one of those in Ireland in recent history, so take an educated guess.)The distillery's aim with these new expressions is to create different flavor profiles than expected for Irish whiskey. So even though there have been beer barrel-finished whiskeys before, like Jameson Caskmates, putting a single malt into a porter barrel is fairly unique. And Glendalough is the only Irish distillery to have used the rare Japanese mizunara oak as a finishing wood. The results are sure to be interesting!
Jura Seven Wood
Style: Single maltOrigin: Scotland (Islands)Age: Not statedProof: 42% ABVPrice: $75Release: March 2018Availability: Widely available
Need to know:
Initially aged in first-fill ex-bourbon casks, this non-age statement single malt then undergoes finishing in six types of French oak: Limousin, Tronçais, Allié, Vosges, Jupilles, and Les Bertranges.
Jura 18 year old
Style: Single maltOrigin: Scotland (Islands)Age: 18 years oldProof: 44% ABVPrice: $125Release: March 2018Availability: Widely available
Need to know:
This single malt spent 18 years in ex-bourbon casks before a finishing period in Premier Grand Cru Bordeaux red wine barriques.
Whisky Advocate says:
Jura Distillery announced a total rebrand and relaunch in 2017, starting with Jura 10 year old in the U.S. At the time that whisky was released, the company stated that it would add more expressions in the future, and here we get a double whammy. There's a 12 year old and something called Journey also rolling out in the UK, but no word on if or when those whiskies will be hitting U.S. shores.
Fusion Whisky The Winter Queen
Style: Blended maltOrigin: Scotland (Speyside) and the NetherlandsAge: 9 years oldProof: 52.7% ABVPrice: £125Release: February 2018Availability: 866 bottles
Need to know:
A blend of single malt from Glenrothes and Longmorn distilleries in Speyside and a single malt from Zuidam Distillery in the Netherlands, this whisky is named for Elizabeth Stuart, the daughter of King James VI of Scotland and Queen Anne of Denmark. She was queen of Bohemia for a brief period before spending most of her life in exile in The Hague.
Whisky Advocate says:
Fusion Whisky blends single malt scotch with single malt whiskies from around the world. Its first release, The Glover, combined Longmorn and Glen Garioch with Hanyu single malt from Japan, while its second release, The E&K, was a blend of Ardmore and Glenrothes and single malt from Amrut Distillery in India. Alex Bruce, managing director and master blender for independent bottler Adelphi, blends Fusion Whisky's different offerings. Unfortunately, these whiskies are not for sale in the U.S.