InchDairnie Distillery launches first single malt whisky on the market

Many whisky lovers have been eagerly awaiting this: The InchDairnie Distillery has launched the first single malt whisky. KinGlassie Double Matured 8 Years and KinGlassie Raw 8 Years are the names of the two bottlings released, which are accompanied by RyeLaw Vintage 2018, a single grain.

RyeLaw and KinGlassie

In December 2015, ten years ago, the modern InchDairnie Distillery opened in the heart of the Scottish region of Fife. The company entered the market for the first time two years ago, not with a single malt, as you would expect from a Scottish distillery, but with a single grain whisky. This label is called RyeLaw and the name makes the character of the whisky clear: a high rye content of 53%, supplemented by 47% malted barley, characterises it. Despite this, RyeLaw is categorised as a grain whisky, as Scottish law does not accept a category rye whisky.

InchDairnie's single malts are released under the label KinGlassie, named after a neighbouring village. KinGlassie is distilled twice. Both of the single malt bottlings now released are made from heavily peated malt. Since 2017, this type of malt has only been used at 50ppm for a fortnight a year in December, so the heavily smoky whisky is not the distillery's main focus.

The three new bottlings

• KinGlassie Double Matured 8 Years, peated initially matured for five years in ex-bourbon casks before spending a further three years in first-fill Amontillado sherry casks. The actual press release gives some tasting notes: „Matured five years in Bourbon casks followed by three years in Amontillado casks, developing layers of velvet almond smoke - a refined balance of smoky depth, tobacco warmth and nutty richness that culminates in a beautifully smooth, elegantly smoky finish.”
• KinGlassie Raw 8 Years has spent its entire maturation period in ex-bourbon casks. „This limited edition delivers a smouldering fireplace intensity and a complex fusion of sweet, malty richness. Aged for eight years exclusively in American oak ex-Bourbon casks, it reveals an untamed yet precisely balanced smokiness.”
• RyeLaw Vintage 2018 is the successor to InchDairnie's first whisky and is based on the same mash recipe. “A Caramelised Spice Symphony. Distilled from 53% malted rye and 47% malted barley – both fully malted for added texture – and matured in charred new oak casks from the Appalachian Forests, Rye Law 2018 delivers a bold, spiced flavour profile with notes of caramelised dried fruit and aromatic warmth.”

All three whiskies were bottled without chill-filtering in natural colour at 46.3% vol.

State-of-the-art technology and engineering

InchDairnie, founded by Ian Palmer, can confidently be described as a high-tech distillery according to Alba Import, InchDairnie's new exclusive German distributer. The approach of using state-of-the-art technology and engineering to "tease out" the maximum flavour concentration from the single malt and single grain whisky product has received the highest recognition in Scotland and internationally. Alba Import names some of the distillery's key points:

• There is no mash tun, but a mash filter press for higher sugar concentration in the wort
• Double condensers behind the stills ensure immense copper contact
• A very sophisticated wood management system is used
• When it comes to climate protection, InchDairnie can proudly point to 30% less energy consumption than the industry average; in terms of water consumption, the target defined by the Scotch Whisky Association for 10 years has already been achieved.

Images: InchDairnie via Alba Import