Why did the collaboration become a one-off release?
The original plan was to take some barley from Arbikie on an annual basis, but the logistics of getting the first delivery malted proved to be much more difficult than we expected. We didn’t have the infrastructure for malting barley back then that we have now. We were also able to develop other relationships that have been able to provide different varieties of barley from different regions of Scotland. As a result this will be a one-off release, but there will be future release with different barley varieties from different areas of Scotland.
Why was Arbikie chosen as a collaboration partner?
John Stirling spoke to me back in 2017 when we were still building the distillery – his plan was to grow some older heritage varieties of barley, but starting with a commercial variety first. I thought it would be an interesting collaboration given John’s plans. We do have similar philosophies with our interest in different grains and barley varieties. We have focused on how different varieties and geographies affect flavour, and Arbikie have focused on making a Scottish Rye Whisky. The traceability of our spirit is key to what we do and I think this is highlighted by this collaboration; Arbikie is renowned for their sustainable practices and so to partner up with them has meant a great deal given our shared vision, passion and ethos.
Why was Concerto barley selected for this release?
Concerto was used as that was the commercial variety of choice at the time and was how John wanted to start the collaboration. It also brings some consistence as it was the variety that we used for our iconic signature single malt recipe, The Draam.
What were the biggest challenges in bringing this joint project to life?
(E.g., logistics, aligning distilling methods, cask management, etc.)
The biggest challenge was toll malting the barley and removing the stones from the field! So definitely the logistics of bringing it all together. Collaborating across coasts and producing from an island only accessible by ferry requires a lot of planning and I’m so pleased to see this end result after years of hard work.
What was the selection process like for narrowing down from 23 to 15 casks?
We had two tasting panels with our team, one Raasay and one in our Edinburgh office. Both panels nosed all of the casks available to highlight any outstanding casks or any cask with atypical characteristics. Based on the collective results of the panel 15 casks were selected. It was a great collaborative exercise to bring everyone together!
Why use ex-Woodford Reserve Rye casks?
These are casks that we use for our six cask recipe for The Draam, so we’re bringing some consistency as we use this cask type already. Not all distilleries use Rye Whiskey casks for their single malt and we love the unique, peppery spice they bring to our whisky.
How does this release differ most noticeably from Isle of Raasay Distillery’s core expressions?
This release is plain malted barley, so not peated; it is much more typical of a Highland whisky rather than our Hebridean single malt as it’s lighter and slightly sweeter than The Draam. Using unpeated spirit is a detour from our signature house style of lightly peated with dark fruit flavours, and this whisky celebrates the innovation in our whisky making and our love of trying new things.
Are there any tasting notes or flavour surprises that emerged unexpectedly during development?
Banana, pine sap and mint chocolate are all vibrant flavours that make this release very different from our other Isle of Raasay single malt whiskies. Having the whole team take part in our sampling panels was a very interesting insight into how everyone’s senses are different and also how no two casks will produce the same flavours, even if they’re the same cask type.
Why make this a UK-exclusive release?
Both brands are now well recognised in the UK and with such a limited release of 4000 bottles it’s a very good fit, and also is great for brand exposure in our home market. We have built excellent relationships with our UK partners and this release further fosters that support within our customers and communities. We also value our international community greatly and there will be other market exclusive releases available globally coming soon.
What message do you hope this release sends about the future of Scotch whisky, and how does this collaboration reflect a larger trend in the Scotch whisky industry?
I think this showcases how different barley varieties and geographies have an impact on the flavour development of single malt scotch whisky. When we built our distillery we were given a blank sheet of paper to do things our own way, and releases such as this one celebrate going against the grain and not following the herd. Scotch whisky has always been a very collaborative industry, and this has continued with the newer smaller distilleries. We believe in partnering up with others in the industry to bring out the best in each other, and we certainly have other collaborative projects that we are working on which we will share soon…
As this is a UK market exclusive whisky, here are all of the stockists that you can find this release at!
