INTRODUCING JOHNNIE WALKER BLENDERS’ BATCH BOURBON CASK & RYE FINISH: A LIMITED-EDITION SCOTCH BLEND IN A NEW SERIES OF EXPERIMENTAL WHISKIES FROM JOHNNIE WALKER

London, 25 April 2017:  Diageo Global Travel is proud to announce that Johnnie Walker, the world’s No. 1 Scotch Whisky Brand[1] and the biggest selling spirits brand in travel retail[2], has launched Johnnie Walker Blenders’ Batch Bourbon Cask & Rye Finish, an innovative new addition to its series of experimental whiskies: Johnnie Walker Blenders’ Batch. A limited edition, the new blended Scotch is only available in a small number of selected markets including Travel Retail. 

A bold experiment in flavour, Johnnie Walker Blenders’ Batch Bourbon Cask & Rye Finish has been drawn from over 200 whisky samples, aged in first-fill bourbon casks and finished for up to six months in former rye casks. Featuring whiskies from just five distilleries including Dufftown and the now closed Port Dundas, it’s a rich and warming Scotch Whisky with an intense honeyed sweetness.

This limited edition whisky is part of the experimental Johnnie Walker Blenders’ Batch portfolio, a series of limited edition Scotch Whiskies created as a result of hundreds of ongoing flavour experiments carried out by a small team of expert blenders at the brand’s home in Scotland.

The Johnnie Walker Blenders’ Batch range lifts the lid on the skill and never-ending pursuit of flavour that drives the blending team, led by master blender Dr Jim Beveridge, a man whose personal journey making whisky began over 40 years ago.

Johnnie Walker Blenders’ Batch Bourbon Cask & Rye Finish is inspired by the time Beveridge spent blending bourbons and ryes in Kentucky in the 1990s. He said:

“Blended from just a handful of Single malts and carefully chosen grain whiskies matured in first fill bourbon casks and finished in casks that formerly held rye whisky – Johnnie Walker Blenders’ Batch Bourbon Cask and Rye Finish is a rich, sweet, intensely honeyed and smooth Scotch Whisky, with the warming vanilla spiciness usually associated with the iconic Johnnie Walker Black Label. To my mind, it’s the best of Scotch but with an exciting twist inspired by the best of traditional American whiskey flavours.”

Dayalan Nayager, Managing Director, Diageo Global Travel said “The launch of Johnnie Walker Blenders’ Batch Bourbon Cask & Rye Finish is a welcome addition to the Scotch Whisky category in travel retail, made possible by the hundreds of ongoing flavour experiments and skill of the blending team at Johnnie Walker. This is an incredibly exciting time for Scotch Whisky and we believe the new blend will act as a signpost for those shoppers who want to explore the category.”

“Travellers are looking for brands that have discovery, authenticity, craftsmanship and real human stories behind them. Johnnie Walker has a truly unique story to tell and with the latest innovation in the Blenders’ Batch series, we are excited to offer our customers and consumers a glimpse into the constantly shifting world of flavour exploration from the biggest spirits brand in the channel.” 

The blenders at Johnnie Walker think ‘from the bar back’ when making whisky, ensuring bartenders and whisky fans at home have the perfect liquids at hand to serve neat, on the rocks, or as the foundation of a flawless Scotch-based cocktail.

The limited edition Johnnie Walker Blenders’ Batch Bourbon Cask & Rye Finish is the second release from the Blenders’ Batch series, inspired by the recent success of Johnnie Walker Select Casks – Rye Cask Finish. It is available now in selected travel retail outlets globally, retailing at $52.50/£32.00 RRSP for a 1L bottle.

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About Diageo

Diageo is a global leader in beverage alcohol with an outstanding collection of brands across spirits, beer and wine categories.  These brands include Johnnie Walker, Crown Royal, J&B, Buchanan’s and Windsor whiskies, Smirnoff and Cîroc vodkas, Captain Morgan, Baileys, Don Julio, Tanqueray and Guinness.

Diageo is a global company, and our products are sold in more than 180 countries around the world.  The company is listed on both the London Stock Exchange (DGE) and the New York Stock Exchange (DEO).  For more information about Diageo, our people, our brands, and performance, visit us at www.diageo.com/.  Visit Diageo’s global responsible drinking resource, http://www.drinkiq.com/, for information, initiatives, and ways to share best practice.

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[1] IWSR, 2015

[2] IWSR, 2015