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Fundamentally we believe in natural whisky - no chill-filtration or colouring, two commercial processes (in widespread use in the mainstream Scotch whisky industry) that we feel lack authenticity and detract from the integrity of the spirit. The former removes flavour and texture, the latter adds artificial sweetening and darkening.
Our preferred whisky strength is 46% - diluted down from natural cask strength with our treasured Islay spring water.
We have a natural curiosity. We are fascinated by the many influences on maturing spirit – oak, air, humidity, cask size and particularly cask origin. For too long the industry has compromised on barrel quality; we have put in place a comprehensive new wood policy with no expense spared.
We are unashamedly experimental in our cask use. What many critics of wine barrel maturation forget is that the use of Bourbon casks, and before that the now revered sherry butts, was once also considered a radical departure and no doubt “dangerous experimentation”. The Scottish whisky producer only turned to sherry butts when supply of his favourite Gascony wine barrels was interrupted by (frequent) war with France in the 19th century. For our part we have (re-) introduced the subtle integration of French oak from the best wine estates in the world. Simply, these winemakers use the very best oak in the world, so the contribution of this extra maturation on our single malt is more complex, profound and nuanced than many give it credit for.
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We have a natural curiosity. We are fascinated by the many influences on maturing spirit – oak, air, humidity, cask size and particularly cask origin