The first distillery to return to operation in Edinburgh for over a century, Holyrood opened its doors in July 2019, so we’ll have to wait at least another year before we taste their whisky.
In the meantime, as is now customary for many distilleries, we can taste their new make, offered in four different versions in the Brewers Series.
Bottlings that vary not only in the type of casks used for the (short) ageing, but also in the strains of yeast and malt used in the production process, with the latters giving their name to each individual bottle, all of them at 50%ABV.
MARIS OTTER like the malt used, made with Anchor M – DY502 yeast, fermented for 116 hours and matured for 262 days in first fill hogshead ex-Sherry Oloroso.
PLUMAGE ARCHER as the malt used, made with MG+ yeast, fermented for 120 hours and matured for 259 days in ex-Bourbon first fill barrels.
BELGIAN ALE YEAST “distiller’s malt”, made with Belgian Ale yeast, fermented for 144 hours and matured for 262 days in first fill hogshead ex-Port.
AMERICAN ALE YEAST 5% chocolate malt and 95% “distiller’s malt”, made with US05 and Anchor M yeasts, fermented for 72 hours and matured for 306 days in first fill ex-Bourbon barrels.