Ian Macleod's Isle of Skye Range, Woodford Bonded Wheat, & More [New Releases]

Father’s Day is this Sunday, and we have plenty of cool whiskies that will make perfect gifts. In addition to those, you could consult our Summer 2023 Best Values and Editors’ Choice lists to make sure you've got all the options covered. This week, the whisky world is awash with new expressions. New scotches include Laphroaig Càirdeas and six age-statement blends from Ian Macleod’s Isle of Skye range. In addition, Woodford Reserve has a new bottled in bond wheat whiskey, and Heaven Hill offers a wheated whiskey from its microdistillery at the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience in Louisville. Meanwhile, Texas and Ireland meet, as Clonakilty has collaborated with Garrison Brothers on a new single malt that's finished in Garrison Brothers casks. Read on for more.
Laphroaig Càirdeas White Port & Madeira Casks

Style: Single malt
Origin: Scotland (Islay)
Age: Not stated
ABV: 52.3%
Price: $99
Release: June 2023
Availability: Limited, made exclusively for Friends of Laphroaig

Need to know:

Càirdeas, which means “friendship” in Gaelic, is an annual release created exclusively for Friends of Laphroaig, the distillery's loyalty club. Not to worry, however, as it's easy enough to become a Friend. Just log onto the Laphroaig website and follow the registration instructions. The 2023 edition of Càirdeas was matured in a combination of madeira and white port casks. Three-quarters of the single malt spent time in second-fill madeira casks, while the final quarter was finished in first-fill white port casks.

Whisky Advocate says:

Released in celebration of Islay's Fèis Ìle festival each spring, Càirdeas was first introduced by former distillery manager John Campbell in 2008; now it's overseen by current distillery manager Barry MacAffer, who stepped into the role last year. White port cask finishing was also used for another festival release this year, as Glen Scotia chose it for last month's Campbeltown Malts Festival release.

Woodford Wheat Bottled in Bond
Style: Straight wheat whiskey
Origin: Kentucky
Age: 4 year old
ABV: 50%
Price: $60/375 ml
Release: June 2023
Availability: Limited

Need to know:

This is the latest release in Woodford’s annual Distillery Series. For this edition, master distiller Elizabeth McCall landed on a wheater, and went one step further by making it bottled in bond—meaning it’s made in one distilling season, aged in a federally bonded warehouse for a minimum of four years, and ultimately bonded at 100 proof.

Whisky Advocate says:

While McCall takes the lead on Woodford’s distillation these days, master distiller emeritus Chris Morris is still very much in the picture, and collaborated with McCall on this release. The Woodford Distillery Series explores the creative boundaries of whiskey; past releases have included Chocolate Malt Whisper—a bourbon with some notes from Woodford’s Chocolate Malted rye that carried over into the next batch of whiskey—and Oat Grain bourbon, which finished in a heavily toasted barrel. As always, the Distillery Series is limited in nature, with a purchase limit of two bottles per person at the distillery, and available at only a handful of Kentucky retailers.

Square 6 Wheated
Style: Bourbon
Origin: Kentucky
Age: Not stated
ABV: 52.5%
Price: $90
Release: June 2023
Availability: Limited

Need to know:

Heaven Hill’s newest Square 6 whiskey is comprised of two wheated bourbon mashbills: 74% corn, 16% wheat, and 10% malted barley, and 68% corn, 20% wheat, and 12% malted barley. After aging, these two mashbills were blended together, then bottled at 105 proof—higher than previous Square 6 releases, which were at 95 proof.

Whisky Advocate says:

When Heaven Hill launched Square 6 in May 2021, it marked the long-awaited debut of a whiskey from the microdistillery at the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience, Heaven Hill's visitor facility on Louisville's Whiskey Row. The mashbill was also a departure for Heaven Hill—a high-rye bourbon made from 52% corn, 35% rye, and 13% malted barley, deviating from the corn-heavy flagship Evan Williams. All Square 6 releases are limited, given that the Evan Williams Bourbon Experience microdistillery can make just one barrel of whiskey per day.

Rabbit Hole Dareringer Founder’s Collection
Style: Finished bourbon
Origin: Kentucky
Age: Not stated
ABV: 51.1%
Price: $295
Release: June 2023
Availability: 2,444 bottles; Rabbit Hole Distillery and select retailers

Need to know:

The newest addition to Rabbit Hole’s Founder’s Collection is a bourbon (65% corn, 25% wheat, 10% malted barley) which has been finished in 60 year old American white oak barrels that once held PX sherry and brandy. It’s bottled at cask strength.

Whisky Advocate says:

Launched in 2020, the Founder’s Collection features limited-edition cask-strength expressions. Some of the bottlings are unique and created specifically for this collection, while others are cask-strength versions of core whiskeys. Unique examples in the Founder’s Collection include Nevallier bourbon, finished in French oak and named for the Nevers and Allier forests in France, as well as a mizunara-finished bourbon. Riffs on the core expressions include this one as well as Boxergrail Founder’s Collection (93 points), a higher-proof version of Rabbit Hole’s Boxergrail rye (86 points).

Clonakilty Garrison Brothers Finish
Style: Single malt
Origin: Ireland
Age: 7 year old
ABV: 58.8%
Price: $70
Release: June 2023
Availability: 1,100 bottles; Texas exclusive

Need to know:

This 7 year old Irish single malt is matured in bourbon barrels before undergoing an additional 7-month finish in barrels used for Garrison Brothers' Balmorhea bourbon that were sent to Clonakilty Distillery in County Cork, Ireland. This expression will be exclusive to retailers in Garrison Brothers' home state of Texas.

Whisky Advocate says:

The whiskey makers at Clonakilty Distillery have an affinity for cask finishing their sourced single malts, with its flagship Double Oak and Port Cask Finish as two of many examples. The distillery is also renowned for niche collaborations similar to this one. Previous examples include its Revival Brewing “Are You Thirsty?” IPA Cask Finish, Pelican Brewing “Mother of All Storms” Barley Wine Cask Finish, Manor Hill “Baltic Porter” Cask Finish, and Catoctin Creek Quarter Rye Cask Finish.

Isle of Skye
Style: Blend
Origin: Scotland
Age: 8–30 years
ABV: 40%
Price: $21–$322
Release: June 2023
Availability: Widely available

Need to know:

Ian Macleod Distillers has announced the release of its Isle of Skye blends in the U.S., following last week’s launch of the King Robert II range. The full range includes:

• Isle of Skye 8 year old, 40%, $21
• Isle of Skye 12 year old, 40%, $28
• Isle of Skye 18 year old, 40%, $65
• Isle of Skye 21 year old, 40%, $115
• Isle of Skye 25 year old, 40%, $207
• Isle of Skye 30 year old, 40%, $322

The labels feature the Cuillin Ridge mountains on the Isle of Skye, and the range is available in 700 ml.

Whisky Advocate says:

Isle of Skye is a malt-rich blend range of expressions from 8 to 30 years old, which is built around a well-known single malt made on the island, name undisclosed. Understanding that of Skye's two working distilleries, Talisker was founded in 1830 and Torabhaig began distilling in 2017, then the founding dates provide a pretty big clue to solving the mystery. This is the current Isle of Skye range, but Ian Macleod has released limited edition Isle of Skye 50 year old blends this century, which still occasionally appear at auction. Reached by crossing the Skye Bridge, this island off the west coast of the Highlands is one of the most popular Scottish islands to visit, with its miles of coastline, spectacular mountains, soaring eagles, and delicious Scottish cuisine to enjoy. For whisky lovers, the island has distillery visitor centers, tastings, and tours at both distilleries, while the Isle of Raasay Distillery and the Isle of Harris Distillery are only a ferry ride away.

Copperworks American Single Malt Single Cask No. 7-2
Style: American single malt
Origin: Washington
Age: 6 year old
ABV: 65.6%
Price: $90
Release: June 2023
Availability: 192 bottles; Copperworks tasting room, copperworksdistilling.com

Need to know:

The newest American single malt (ASM) from Copperworks is matured for 6 years and 10 months in the same cask that previously held its debut expression—Copperworks Release 001—and is bottled at cask strength.

Whisky Advocate says:

Copperworks is among the proponents of using refill barrels for its American single malt whiskey. It's a pioneer of the style and a founding member of the American Single Malt Commission, whose proposed guidelines permit used barrels for maturation. Not everyone is fully on board with the idea, however. Last month, Freddie Noe of Beam Suntory expressed disagreement with the idea, stating that Beam’s new single malt, Clermont Steep, will be aged in new casks.

Heaven’s Door Decade Series II
Style: Straight rye
Origin: Not stated
Age: 10 year old
ABV: 50%
Price: $100
Release: June 2023
Availability: Limited

Need to know:

Following on the heels of the first Decade Series release (a 10 year old straight bourbon), this 10 year old straight rye is made from a mashbill of 95% rye and 5% malted barley.

Whisky Advocate says:

The Decade Series highlights small-batch whiskeys all aged 10 years or older. Unlike the first Decades Series release, this one doesn't detail its origin or how many barrels were used in the final blend. Heaven’s Door has been busy as of late—the distillery announced plans to open a new distillery in Pleasureville, Kentucky last month. Located on 160 acres, the site is set to open its doors to the public this September. Additionally, Heaven’s Door will have a brand experience in downtown Louisville in a fully renovated church, offering a more centrally located experience for brand fans already on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail.

Clyde May 9 year old Cask Strength
Style: Rye
Origin: Canada
Age: 9 year old
ABV: 56.5%
Price: $65
Release: June 2023
Availability: 20,400 bottles

Need to know:

This cask-strength rye comes from Canada, and is aged for a minimum of 9 years in bourbon barrels with an additional 4-month finishing process. Instead of barreling the liquid in a second cask, Clyde May opted to steep American oak, French oak, and cherrywood chips in it.

Whisky Advocate says:

Though this woodchip finishing technique is not the usual route, it’s also not entirely unprecedented. Back in October 2022, Jack Daniel Distillery released a similarly high-proof entry to its Distillery Series, which was finished using toasted pecan wood chips. More recently two of Lebanon’s debut single malts, the Riachi Athyrs, were matured using a similar method that involved steeping Lebanese oak branches. Oak & Eden also performs what it calls “in-bottle finishing”, placing a spiral-cut piece of wood in all of their bottles as a means of achieving the same shift in flavors resulting from a full recasking while the whiskies sit on shelves. Only time will tell if this wood-steeping technique will catch on with other distillers, and what innovative new form it may take on.