Harrogate Entrepreneur Launches Caskd – A New Way for Whisky Enthusiasts to Trade Directly and Avoid Costly Auction Fees

New platform enables whisky enthusiasts to buy and sell directly with one another, reducing fees while providing a trusted digital home to manage collections, track provenance and connect with fellow enthusiasts.

HARROGATE, NORTH YORKSHIRE – 25 June 2026 – Harrogate entrepreneur Jonathan Yates has launched Caskd, a premium digital platform that gives whisky enthusiasts a smarter way to buy, sell and manage their collections.

As whisky collecting continues to grow, many enthusiasts are questioning the high costs associated with traditional auction houses. Seller commissions, buyer’s premiums, shipping costs and lengthy settlement times can make buying and selling both expensive and frustrating.

Caskd offers an alternative by removing unnecessary middlemen and enabling enthusiasts to trade directly with one another through a trusted community. Members pay a simple 3% platform fee, helping both buyers and sellers retain more value while enjoying a more transparent trading experience.

Alongside its peer-to-peer marketplace, Caskd provides a digital cellar where members can catalogue bottles, record tasting notes, preserve provenance and showcase their collections in one secure place.

Jonathan Yates, Founder of Caskd, said:

“Whisky enthusiasts shouldn’t have to pay excessive fees simply to trade with one another. We built Caskd to remove unnecessary middlemen and create a trusted community where people can buy, sell and manage their collections with confidence. Every bottle has a story, and Caskd is the place to keep those stories alive.”

Early users are already recognising the benefits of a collector-first marketplace.

“I’ve picked up some real bargains on Caskd. I’d much rather pay a 3% fee than the high commissions and premiums often associated with auctions.”

Another member commented:

“It feels like trading with fellow enthusiasts rather than buying through a business. That’s exactly what the whisky community has been missing.”

Unlike traditional retailers or auction houses, Caskd is focused entirely on whisky enthusiasts, combining collection management with a trusted marketplace designed to make buying and selling simpler, fairer and more rewarding.

As more enthusiasts seek alternatives to traditional sales channels, Caskd aims to become the trusted digital home where whisky lovers can manage their collections, discover exceptional bottles and trade directly with confidence.

https://caskd.app 

About Caskd

Caskd is a premium digital platform built for whisky enthusiasts. Members can manage digital cellars, catalogue collections, record provenance, discover rare bottles, buy and sell directly with fellow enthusiasts, share tasting notes and connect with a growing community. Caskd is built on trust, transparency and a shared passion for whisky.

Highland Park 8 Year Old 2016 Milroy’s Soho Selection 55% 70cl

£79.50

An accomplished, well-put together whisky, this vibrant Highland Park expression tastes far older than its years. Distilled back in 2016 at the iconic Orkney distillery, it was filled into brand-new oak, where it spent its full maturation.

The release offers an array of hay, elderflower and orchard fruit notes, nestled in with the subtle floral peat smoke that’s become a distillery signature. Even at just eight years old, this is an assured, confident single malt Scotch.

Nose: Beautifully and elegantly smoky, a gentle bonfire smoke rises from the glass alongside hay, cinnamon, elderflower, apples, and floral incense. Monster Munch crisps build in a more savoury element.

Palate: Initially warming and tangy with citrus peel and chilli notes, complexity soon builds with the arrival of rosewater, milk chocolate, Danish pastries, rhubarb and a dandelion and burdock element. Hints of the mineralic come through with the subtle peat smoke and a splash of petrichor.

Finish: Long and meandering with a lingering floral smoke.

Ardnamurchan 2018, TyndrumWhisky Exclusive PX Octave Cask #1437

Bottled exclusively for TyndrumWhisky, this single cask Ardnamurchan was distilled in 2018 and bottled in 2026 at 7 years old. Matured in a peated refill American oak ex-Pedro Ximénez sherry octave, this exclusive release yielded just 55 bottles. Bottled at natural colour and without chill-filtration, it is a rare single cask expression created exclusively for Tyndrum Whisky.

£85.00

TyndrumWhisky.com
The Green Welly Stop
Tyndrumwhisky, Tyndrum
Crianlarich, Perthshire FK20 8RY
United Kingdom

Limited-Time Savings on Japanese Whisky

Some of Japan’s most sought-after whiskies are now available at exceptional prices, but only for a limited time. Enjoy exceptional savings on the Chichibu London Edition 2023 alongside two acclaimed Ichiro’s Malt expressions.

SHOP NOW

Thompson Bros. Highland Park 22YO

THE VIDEO REVIEW

A bottle purchased on an idea of it being interesting. It turns out that it was even more interesting than I even thought. A 22YO Highland Park matured in a refill sherry cask, producing 336 bottles. The nose is umptuous and reminds of all of those classic Highland Park notes.

Then you taste it and things become deeper, darker, more robust and less of those classic sweet notes we associated with official bottles of Highland Park.

This is a darker, brooding, deeper style of single malt that is so forward and intense with its flavours that you just can’t ignore it. Simply excellent and remarkably complex.

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Isle of Harris Distillery marks the start of an exciting new chapter with  Isle of Harris Whisky:  a signature single malt to anchor its whisky portfolio

After more than a decade of distilling, Isle of Harris Distillery is announcing the launch of a new signature single malt Scotch whisky that captures its distinctive island character and is aptly named Isle of Harris Whisky.

Proudly made entirely on the Isle of Harris, the new core expression encapsulates the lightly peated, fresh and vibrant island style created by the team of local distillers behind Isle of Harris Gin and The Hearach Single Malt Whisky.

Priced at £50 RRP, Isle of Harris Single Malt Whisky offers a super-premium yet approachable single malt, inviting a more relaxed way of enjoying the distinctive island spirit without compromising quality or character.

With notes of butterscotch, floral sweetness and gentle spice, Isle of Harris Whisky is lightly peated and matured in a combination of ex-bourbon and ex-Oloroso sherry casks for a smooth and complex profile. It can be enjoyed equally as a sippable dram for quiet moments of appreciation, or shared with friends in a simple, refreshing serve.

This permanent addition to the range marks a significant strategic milestone in the distillery’s journey. Since opening in 2015, Isle of Harris Distillery has grown from a single spirit to a globally recognised brand rooted in community and place. With 10 years of whisky distilling and maturation now behind it, the distillery has built the stock reserves required to support consistent global supply, future innovation, and the development of a broader, more structured whisky portfolio.

The launch of Isle of Harris Whisky marks the evolution of the distillery’s whisky offering from a single signature product into a more varied portfolio with distinct flavour profiles, price points and occasions for enjoyment. Alongside The Hearach and The Oloroso, the new expression creates a clearer portfolio architecture designed to support both domestic and international growth.

Ron MacEachran, Executive Chairman of Isle of Harris Distillery, said: “The Isle of Harris Single Malt Whisky emphasises how far we’ve come as a distillery over the last 10 years. From the outset, our ambition has been to create spirits that share the story of our island with the world. Made to pour, share and savour, this new expression has been crafted with moments of relaxed enjoyment very much in mind and with a desire to introduce our spirits to a wider community.

“The Isle of Harris Whisky joins The Hearach – the distillery’s inaugural single malt and defining North Star – and The Oloroso to create a more complete and balanced range. Together, these whiskies offer different flavour profiles, price points, and occasions for enjoyment, while staying true to the same uncompromising standards.

“This launch also gives us a stronger platform for long-term international growth. By aligning our whisky more closely under the Isle of Harris name, we’re building on the global recognition already established through Isle of Harris Gin and creating a clearer identity for consumers discovering the brand for the first time.”

Shona Macleod, Distillery Blender at Isle of Harris Distillery, said: “From the very beginning, we’ve been shaping a whisky portfolio that reflects the character of Harris. With Isle of Harris Whisky, we wanted to create a spirit that feels both distinctive and approachable, without losing any of that sense of place.

“The combination of bourbon and Oloroso casks brings warmth, sweetness and gentle spice, while the light peat adds depth without overpowering the spirit. Made, matured and married in the Isle of Harris, it’s a whisky designed to be enjoyed with family and friends, perfect in a highball or a simple serve, and always with a deep sense of connection to the island it comes from.”

As with everything produced by Isle of Harris Distillery, this launch will share the story of Harris with the world. Expanding the whisky portfolio will also help bring more visitors to the island, support continued investment, and create new opportunities for the future.

Isle of Harris Whisky will first be available for purchase exclusively from the distillery shop in Tarbert from 14 July, with a ceilidh hosted at the distillery that evening to celebrate the momentous occasion.

Over the following days, the celebrations will continue at the HebCelt festival in Stornoway on 15-18 July. Islanders and visitors will have the chance to purchase bottles from the HebCelt shop and sample the new whisky neat or in a highball at the Isle of Harris Distillery tent.

The whisky will then be available online from 22 July via harrisdistillery.com. A wider roll out will begin in August across UK speciality retailers and key international markets including the US, Germany and France from August onwards.

The Hearach and The Oloroso will continue to be available under the umbrella of the Isle of Harris Single Malt Scotch Whisky, with updated labelling, new gift boxes and an updated naming structure aligns the whisky range more closely with Isle of Harris Gin and the wider distillery brand as the business continues its international expansion strategy.

Key info

• Product: Isle of Harris Whisky
• Style: Single Malt Scotch whisky
• Maturation: First Fill Ex-bourbon and ex-Oloroso sherry casks
• Flavour profile: Butterscotch, floral, spice
• RRP: £50
• Availability: Distillery shop and Western Isles on-trade from 14 July; online and wider retail from 22 July

Inchdairnie (Strathenry) 10 Year Old 2016 Unicorn

£49.00

Ledaig 2001 – Aged 24 Years

£195.00

This one is a bit special. Distilled at Tobermory on the Isle of Mull way back in February 2001, this Ledaig is a true example of the distillery’s famously bold, peated variant. Matured for an impressive 24 years in just one single ex bourbon HHD, the whisky has developed the raw, maritime smoke of its youth and now mellowed and interwoven itself with layers of oak and sweetness. With only 189 bottles being disgorged from the original cask, and only 24 making it through to general release, this offering sits right next to our other very limited edition gems.

Nose: Coastal smoke, sea spray, and briny peat.

Palate: Bold and oily, with waves of peaty smoke, seaweed, and charred oak. Hints of lemon peel, white pepper and ever so slight salted caramel.

Finish: Long and warming. Lingering bonfire smoke, sea salt, and gentle sweetness leave a lasting impression.

Dan Crowell on the EWA Diploma

After more than 20 years in the whisky industry and a long list of respected qualifications to his name, Dan Crowell could be forgiven for thinking he’d seen it all. As Glenmorangie Ambassador – US, Dan has spent decades helping others understand whisky. In this blog, he shares his view on our flagship course: “On the journey of discovery of single malt whisky, EWA Diploma represents a quantum leap.”

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Mark’s Whisky Ramblings 610: Glenmorangie Signet

Mark Dermul, Belgian whisky blogger, tries a luxurious dram. The Glenmorangie Signet is pretty much the pièce de resistance of this distillery (at least, for the ordinary mortal like you and me). It’s their luxury showpiece, their exception that proves the rule. Signet is a malt conceived and developed by whisky maker Rachel Barrie, under the supervision of Dr Bill Lumsden. It’s a mix of 20% so-called ‘chocolate malt’ and 80% ‘crystal malt’, which is roasted barley. In addition, it’s a vatting of various cask types – sherry, bourbon and wine, but naturally also virgin oak from the Ozarks. And despite the absence of an age statement, we know that even 35-year-old whisky is included in the mix. We’re curious.

https://youtu.be/6PhHNU-03Mc