New to Clink*

Introducing… The Balvenie 17 Year Old The Week of Peat

We are delighted to announce our latest exclusive, The Balvenie 17 Year Old The Week of Peat Single Malt. The expression is an evolution of our previous The Week of Peat 14 Year Old, having been matured for an additional three years to further enhance the complexity of the flavour profile.

This new addition to the Stories range, The Balvenie 17 Year Old The Week of Peat is linked to a tale of human endeavour and character at The Balvenie distillery. It all started with a gap in the distillery’s schedule. Ian Millar, Distillery Manager, was eager to use his learnings from a trip to Islay to experiment with The Balvenie flavour profile. He ordered a batch of Speyside peat for the distillery’s kiln, built a peat burner on the side of the kiln, and the rest is history.

There is an initial aroma of gentle smoke on the nose of this unique peated whisky, alongside heather, orange peel and tropical fruit, with light butterscotch and sweet vanilla. This soon gives way to a round, velvety taste that balances citrus, mango and passionfruit. The Balvenie The Week of Peat 17 year old leaves you with a finish of ashy sweet peat and light lingering floral oil.

Distillery Manager, Ian Millar, reminisces on how The Week of Peat came to be: “In a way, The Week of Peat [is] nothing new. In fact, arguably, it’s the only week of the year we make whisky the way it used to be made – using smoke from a heavily-peated furnace, like in the very old days when every farm burned peat from the land.

“The first time we did it, there was a real buzz on-site – engineers, coppersmiths and other team members came and had a look as they had never experienced the production of peated, malted barley before. In the mash house there was a beautiful smell of porridge, sweet honey and gentle smoke; it was good enough to bottle!”

Though there have been other The Week of Peat whiskies before, this is the first to be aged 17 years – three years longer than its peated predecessor. The Balvenie Malt Master David C. Stewart MBE says: “I’m quite proud of the way it’s turned out. As with the 14 year old, it’s clear that [the 17 year old] is distinctly The Balvenie, but with a gentle, sweet peat smoke that means it’s different to an Islay malt.”

The Balvenie 17 Year Old The Week of Peat is a unique addition to the distillery’s range of whiskies. The product of a simple story, and a short gap in a hectic distilling schedule but a whisky of unique character and complexity. The Weak of Peat is an experiment that has undoubtedly paid off, creating a rich, delicately smoky single malt with honey, vanilla and citrus notes. This limited release is another exciting addition to our range, available exclusively from Clink*.

 



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