The limited-edition Royal Salute 26 Year Old Scottish Oak Cask Finish sees the exceptional blend finished in extremely rare virgin Scottish oak casks.
Luxury blended Scotch whisky Royal Salute has unveiled in Singapore its Royal Salute 26 Year Old Scottish Oak Cask Finish. Part of its Kingdom Collection, this limited-edition drop is a graceful hat tip to Scotland’s rich heritage, royal traditions and beautiful natural landscapes.
This special release is unique in that it is further finished in virgin Scottish oak casks, very rare in the Scotch whisky industry which primarily employs Spanish and American oak casks to age whisky in.
“For this unique expression, I wanted to really encapsulate and balance the robust and distinctive flavours of wild Scottish oak casks into a blend that carries all the quality hallmarks expected of Royal Salute,” shared Royal Salute Master Blender Sandy Hyslop. “Working with such precious casks was an extremely meticulous yet exciting task and adding this rare finish to the new blend has not only allowed us to release a whisky that offers a whole new dimension for Royal Salute lovers to discover, it also perfectly depicts the captivating and wondrous characteristics of Scotland.”
Hyslop personally selected the oak from a single, sustainably-managed forest in the heart of Scotland to make the casks for this expression. Royal Salute did not reveal exactly the length of time the blend spent maturing in the Scottish oak casks.
The result is a whisky unlike any other. It eschews vanilla-like characteristics of ex-bourbon American oak casks or the preserved fruit notes garnered from sherry-seasoned Spanish oak casks, instead offering honeyed and wood spice flavours. On the nose we pick up bitter orange peel, swirls of wood incense touched by subtle oak, while the palate is freshly baked pecan pie, boiled barley sweets, heather honey and more wood spice, particularly cinnamon and cassia bark. Oak and spice lingers in the drying, medium-long finish.
The Royal Salute 26 Year Old Scottish Oak Cask Finish comes in Royal Salute’s signature handcrafted ceramic flagon, but this time in an earthy green that mimics the untamed Scottish wilds, particularly the verdant forests where Scottish oak can still be found. The gift box itself also illustrates those landscapes, as well as the iconic Speyside distillery of Strathisla, where all of the most precious Royal Salute blends are kept and aged.
Royal Salute was originally conceived as a gift by Chivas for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth back in 1953, and over the years have released various expressions that pay tribute to the ideals of royalty and monarchy. This latest release – the first of Royal Salute’s new limited-edition Kingdom Collection series crafted to honour the kingdoms of the world – continues that tradition.
The Royal Salute 26 Year Old Scottish Oak Cask Finish will be released in Singapore in limited quantities on www.Le-Cercle.sg (for members) at a retail price of S$450. You can also enquire at hello@le-cercle.sg.
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