Strathearn Distillery Releases Its First Whisky Under Douglas Laing Ownership

Scottish independent bottler Douglas Laing & Co. has announced the release of the inaugural single malt whisky from Strathearn Distillery under its ownership. The company acquired the distillery in 2019, and the new whisky includes spirit laid down by Douglas Laing Distilling as well as the previous owners. The whisky was matured in a combination of bourbon, sherry, and new oak casks. This debut release comes from a batch of 32 casks and is bottled at 50%, a strength favored by Douglas Laing for many of its independent bottlings. Available in the U.S. beginning in mid-May, with a suggested retail price of $110.

Strathearn was founded by Tony Reeman-Clark in 2013 in Methven, Perthshire. It’s a Highland distillery located not far from Glenturret and Aberfeldy Distilleries. Although this microdistillery only produced tiny volumes of spirit in the early years, it took a highly experimental approach to production. While this new whisky is the first single malt release under Douglas Laing & Co.’s ownership, the inaugural Strathearn single malt release was in 2016 when 100 bottles from a single cask were sold in a dedicated auction at Whisky Auctioneer, setting a trend for new distilleries to use whisky auctions to manage the demand for their debut bottlings that continues today. A special one-of-one bottling of triple cask Strathearn single malt, with the same three cask types as the new release, was auctioned early this month as part of the Demeter Collection.

In 2017, Douglas Laing & Co. announced its plans to build a distillery in Glasgow. Then in 2019, it acquired Strathearn Distillery and invested in larger stills, a new mash tun, and additional washbacks. Lead distiller Angela Brown has kept the traditional elements important to Strathearn intact, such as handcrafted production techniques without automation, a commitment to using the Maris Otter barley variety for its creamy, malty flavor, and lengthy fermentation times of 144 hours. Strathearn Distillery produces the equivalent of one barrel of whisky a day, meaning this will always be a rare malt compared to other scotches.