A Most colorful October To You Fellow WhiskyLover

This weeks featured article on ForWhiskeyLovers is a terrific profile of Balvenie’s David Stewart and his 50 years(!) in the whisky industry. The article by Ian Buxton, covers David’s career from a stock-boy at William Grant, to his rise to Balvenie’s Master Distiller. It’s a great read, and well worth taking the time to check it out.

And so in keeping with honoring David Stewart and his career, this weeks featured whiskies are two of my favorite whiskies from the distillery: Balvenie Portwood 21 Year Old and Balvenie 17 Year Old Peated Cask.

The Balvenie Peated Cask is a bit of whisky hybrid. In 2001, a heavily peated batch of barley was distilled at The Balvenie Distillery and was allowed to mature until David Stewart decided it was time to rejuvenate the maturation process. So the whisky was transferred to newly prepared traditional casks.

The casks that had originally held the peated liquid had taken on much of its character. So David decided to experiment by filling them with 17 year old Balvenie for a short period. The result was an intensely peaty whisky. Marrying this liquid with 17 year old Balvenie finished in new American oak casks produced The Balvenie Peated Cask, a complex single malt that is rich and spicy with layers of smokiness.

To create Balvenie 21 YO Portwood, David took a marriage of rare Balvenie whiskies, and transferred it to 30 year-old Port pipes (port casks), which have held fine port wines. Here it was sampled regularly by David to ensure that just the right amount of character is imparted by the port casks, enhancing and developing the single malt whilst preserving its original characteristics.

This additional period of maturation in has given this aged Balvenie an extra level of depth and concentration of flavour, adding potent fruit and smoke notes to the silky-smooth full-bodied palate. This is a rich, indulgent, after-dinner Speyside at it’s best.

And so it is with immense joy that we’re offering you two of David’s great accomplishments: Balvenie 17 Year Old Peated Cask ($119.95/ bottle) and Balvenie 21 Year Old Portwood ($175/ bottle).

I hope you’ll join me in honoring David Stewart and commemorating one hell of a career, by partaking of two of the great fruits of his 50 years of labor.

Until next week…I wish you high spirits!

Doug Stone
Founder
ForWhiskeyLovers.com

BALVENIE PORTWOOD 21YO & PEATED CASK 17YO SPEYSIDE WHISKIES

DAVID STEWART’S TASTING NOTES

Peated Cask 17YO
NOSE: Gentle floral aroma with hints of violet and lavender. Delicate smoke beautifully balanced with honeyed vanilla and spicy oakiness.
TASTE: Prominent smoke softens to reveal oaky honey and vanilla. Cinnamon and nutmeg develop with time.
FINISH: Sweet and spicy with a hint of smoke

Portwood Finish 21YO
NOSE: A perfume of fruity and ripe raisin notes, backed by a nutty dryness.
TASTE: Refined with remarkable character, it’s creamy & silky with fruit, honey & spice notes.
FINISH: Long, gentle, nutty.