Distilled in 1998, this dram was tucked away in the Glen Moray warehouse to mature in ex-bourbon casks, before being transferred to three ex-Barolo casks for a final, flavourful finish.
The team say that the resulting dram is 'autumn in a glass, bursting with flavour and perfectly marrying Glen Moray’s traditional sweet toffee and blackcurrant notes with deliciously rich hits of wood, leather, chocolate caramels and dark autumnal fruits, followed by a warming honey finish.'
Just 863 bottles are being released exclusively to the UK market, and they're available now.
Barolo Finish is the oldest release from the Warehouse 1 Collection to date and is the second of three launches scheduled this year - following on from this summer’s successful Tokaji Finish release.
This year’s Warehouse 1 whiskies all share a common theme, celebrating Glen Moray’s classic Speyside spirit matured in casks sourced from some of Europe’s oldest flavoured wine varieties.
Considered by many to be the king of Italian red wines, Barolo is produced in the Piedmont region from Nebbiolo grapes, which are high in tannin and acid. Rich and full bodied, wine will have spent at least 18 months in the barrels used for final maturation of the Barolo Finish expression.
Speaking of the new launch, Glen Moray Distillery Manager Iain Allan said: "Once again, our distillery team has bottled an absolute gem from Warehouse 1, their special place for experimentation, innovation and patience – time, as always, being one of the most important ingredients in creating our wonderful whiskies.
"Our team searches the world for interesting and unusual casks, and they’re not afraid to use them to push the boundaries of flavour, as they have done with this very special 1998 Barolo Finish release.
"It’s a joy of a dram, a superb combination of our distillery’s sweet, light, citrus style with deeper notes of wood, caramel chocolates, plums, figs, brambles and honey.
"This is one to share around a table with good friends as the nights draw in – a rich, warming and very special dram from behind our big blue Warehouse 1 doors."
Launched in late 2020 with the inaugural Sauternes Cask Matured expression, Glen Moray’s Warehouse 1 Collection promises small batch, limited release whiskies that are always non-chill filtered and bottled at cask strength with natural colour.
Crafted since 1897 in the ancient town of Elgin, Glen Moray distillers have been curious about flavour throughout their history.
Surviving ledgers show that a wide variety of casks were used to mature new make spirit back in those early days, which was an unusual practice for the time.
A deep knowledge and expertise of wood has developed at Glen Moray through generations of distillers, resulting in today’s range of whiskies.
Glen Moray Warehouse 1 1998 Barolo Finish is bottled at cask strength (52.9% ABV) and is non-chill filtered with natural colour. It is a UK exclusive, available in 70cl packs in specialist whisky shops, RRP £139.95.
