Origin: Lowlands (Scotland)
Type: Single Malt Scotch Whisky
Strength: 43.6%ABV
Ageing casks: Ex-Bourbon, ex-Islay and new
Chillfiltered: No
Added colouring: No
Owner: Holyrood Distillery
Average price: € 75.00
Official website: holyrooddistillery.co.uk
Vote: 83/100
On the long wave (not sure how long) of the whisky renaissance, the Lowlands are also slowly repopulating with distilleries, and among them from 2019 is Holyrood, which has brought whisky production back to Edinburgh after almost a century.
Founded thanks to the will of David Robertson, Kelly and Rob Carpenter and the money of 60 other investors, Holyrood immediately distinguished itself for its willingness to play with barley varieties and above all yeasts, well represented by the new makes released when maturations were underway and still available, re-proposing that attention to raw materials that is now increasingly widespread among new producers.
Following a policy of total transparency on the composition of its whiskies, the first single malt was released in late 2023 under the name Arrival, followed by another the next year with two single casks.
And since starting with the first single malt seemed trivial to me, I debut this distillery on the blog starting with the second, from March 2024, which unlike Arrival is a peated one.
Mash composed of 56% Highland peated malt, 41% distilling malt and 3% Chocolate variety, no less than seven different varieties of yeast in varying proportions and triple maturation: a large majority of first-fill ex-bourbon casks, a small portion of ex-Islay quarter casks (therefore peated by hetero-direction) and a residual portion of new American wood casks.
Tasting notes
The nose begins with a distinct freshness of youth, lots of pear juice, coconut, pineapple, dried apricot, propolis and a lively balsamic and menthol streak. Sweetness well present with custard, vanilla, toffee. The peat is strongly mineral, with even some coastal vagueness, with smoke evident but slight in length.
In the mouth, it has a good creaminess with lively spices (chilli, ginger, cinnamon), while the smoke becomes thicker, veering towards burning wood to impregnate white fruit (apple, pear, peach), lemon zest, acacia honey, custard, malted biscuits, hazelnut cream. The mineral vein is always present, the balsamic one is more muted, with some tannic and woody notes along the length.
Not very long finish of toasted nuts, cooked pear, dull embers, mineral and earthy peat, malt.
Young but with personality, you can feel and appreciate all the work they did despite still being a little basic, a good alternative to the ‘usual’ Islay peats that might appeal to those who shy away from them.