The Living Cask

In 1920, renowned connoisseur, Professor George Saintsbury, published Notes on a Cellar. In it he described an old method of drinking a mix of whiskies from a cask that is constantly topped up and never emptied. He wrote “thus you establish what is called, in the case of sherry, a ‘solera’ in which the constantly changing character of the old constituents doctors the new accessions, and in which these, in turn, freshen and strengthen the old.”

The Living Cask takes its inspiration from this long abandoned practice. Carefully selecting a used bourbon cask with tight staves and good heritage, we created a marriage of what we considered to be the ‘the best’ Islay single malts. Respecting our Inveraray roots, we christened it The Living Cask 1745 in a nod to the year the town was founded by The Duke of Argyll. The Living Cask 1745 became an award-winning expression and the heart of our blended malt offering.

Building upon these strong foundations, we created another Living Cask. This time we found a cask of equal quality, part-filled it with The Living Cask 1745, and topped it up with a selection of carefully chosen Highland single malts. Named The Living Cask Batch 1, this limited edition became the first in our ever-evolving series of batched releases.

As the series progressed, our limited batches became just as popular as the original The Living Cask 1745, with awards from prestigious competitions, including a silver medal from Scottish Field magazine’s Whisky Challenge for Batch 6, and a gold medal for Batch 7 at the Scottish Whisky Awards. Every batch we craft uses a different selection of single malts, all built upon the base of the previous edition, meaning each intriguing expression is a limited release, and part of an ongoing series which is as collectable as it is delicious.

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