Whisky Watch: Aberlour 14 and 21 Year Old, Blue Note 17, Garryana & More

It’s a great week to be a single malt lover, with plenty of new and interesting expressions coming from both the U.S. and Scotland. Leading the charge is Speyside distiller Aberlour, which is bringing its 14 and 21 year old single malts to the U.S. for the first time. Westland brought back its annual Garryana single malt, which carries a 10 year age statement and sports finishes in beer and cognac casks. Speaking of beer casks, Virginia Distillery Co. added two new malts to its rapidly growing Brewer’s Coalition series. Hailing from New York’s Hudson Valley, grain-to-glass producer Silver Brothers has released the second batch of its flagship American single malt.

Switching gears to the world of bourbon, there’s also plenty to be excited about. Pursuit United has a new blend that celebrates Veterans Day, Blue Note brought back its 17 year old after a four-year hiatus, Woodinville has two big age-statements for its annual Harvest Release series, Frank August’s Case Study turns its focus to wheated bourbons distilled during winter, and Extinct Spirits makes its debut with an O.Z. Tyler bourbon that pays homage to the dodo bird. Also, Dierks Bentley’s ROW 94 brand gave us an early tease of a 2027 release that was aged at the Grand Ole Opry.

Aberlour 14 year old Speyside single malt

ABV: 40%
SRP: $80
Availability: Nationwide

Aberlour 21 year old Speyside single malt

ABV: 48%
SRP: $300
Availability: Nationwide

Aberlour is introducing two new malts that will be permanent fixtures in the core range. The first is a 14 year old, which is making its U.S. debut after launching overseas a few years ago. The other one is a 21 year old that the distillery teased in late September. In keeping with the house style, both newcomers use dual-cask maturation in American oak bourbon barrels and sherry casks.

Old Potrero Christmas Spirit whiskey (2026 Release)

ABV: 50%
SRP: $140
Availability: Online and California retailers

Old Potrero is releasing a fresh batch of its iconic holiday whiskey. This one was distilled from a spiced holiday ale in 2015 and aged for 10 years in first-fill casks that previously held the brand’s rye whiskey. This year’s batch has an extra year of maturation compared to the 2025 version, and it yielded 492 bottles.

Westland Garryana 11 American Single Malt

ABV: 56.8%
SRP: $150
Availability: 4,800 bottles

The 11th edition of Westland Garryana returns to the whiskey’s roots, as it's the first edition since the inaugural release to be bottled at cask strength (in this case, 113.6 proof). As with last year’s release, this one carries a 10 year old age statement, and is made from a combination of Westland’s signature five-malt mashbill and a variety of Washington pale malts, among them alba, copeland, maris otter, and golden promise. The whiskey was aged in first- and second-fill garryana oak, then moved to a variety of Seattle-sourced beer barrels (ranging from porter and stout to barleywine and triple-style) and cognac casks.

While all releases of Garryana include aging in garryana oak, their secondary maturation differs. The 10th edition of Garryana, for instance, spent time in Pedro Ximénez sherry, rum, and bourbon barrels; that release scored 93 points with our panel. We’ve been fans of Garryana for some time now, with the 8th edition deemed our No.-3 whisky of 2023.

Pursuit United Joint Operations Bourbon

ABV: 54%
Price: $75
Availability: Limited

Louisville-based Pursuit Spirits has released Joint Operations, a limited-edition bourbon created with military veterans to mark Veterans Day. Master blender Ryan Cecil worked alongside Pursuit ambassadors representing the Air Force, Navy, Army, and Marines to select five barrels of the brand’s Double Oak Bourbon, each with a distinct stave profile. Built on two low-rye bourbon recipes and a wheated bourbon, the blend incorporates American and French oak treatments, including staves seasoned at the same Napa Valley cooperage featured in the label’s recent release, Extra Special Double Oaked rye. Just 825 bottles were produced, with $5 from each sale benefiting Fisher House Foundation, which provides free accommodations for military and veteran families while loved ones receive medical care.

Blue Note 17 year old bourbon (2026 Release)

ABV: 59.5%
SRP: $175
Availability: Online and select retailers starting November 20th

Fans of Blue Note will be happy to hear that the brand’s 17 year old bourbon is coming back this year after a four-year hiatus. This one was distilled at Green River and has a mashbill of 70% corn, 22% rye and 8% malted barley. It was aged just north of downtown Memphis, at the confluence of the Mississippi and Wolf Rivers.

Woodinville 10 year old bourbon

ABV: 50%
SRP: $130
Availability: Online, at the distillery, and select retailers nationwide

Woodinville 6 year old Bottled in Bond bourbon

ABV: 50%
SRP: $70
Availability: Online and at the distillery

Washington’s Woodinville Whiskey is dropping two bourbons for this year’s Harvest Release series. The first one is Woodinville’s oldest distillate yet, a 10 year old that resulted from an experiment focusing on barrel toast, char, and seasoning. It has a mashbill of 55% corn, 35% rye, and 10% malted barley (different from the distillery’s signature 72% corn, 22% rye, and 6% malted barley) and was aged in heavily toasted, lightly charred barrels constructed from 24-month air-seasoned staves.

The other expression is a bottled in bond bourbon, marking the brand’s second bonded expression following its 10th anniversary release in 2020. It was aged in the distillery’s Barrelhouse A and features grain that was grown entirely within the same season.

Virginia Distillery Co. Boulevard Brewing Co. Rum Barrel-Aged Pecan Pie Imperial Brown Ale Cask Finish American Single Malt

ABV: 50%
SRP: $55
Availability: Limited

Virginia Distillery Co. Goose Island Beer Co. Cherries Jubilee Stout Cask Finish American Single Malt

ABV: 50%
SRP: $55
Availability: Limited

The latest beer-finished single malts from Virginia Distillery Co. come courtesy of collaborations with Kansas City, Missouri’s Boulevard Brewing Co. and Chicago, Illinois-based Goose Island Beer Co. The first is finished in five barrels that previously held Boulevard’s Rum Barrel-Aged Pecan Pie imperial brown ale, while the latter is finished in 13 cognac casks that previously held Goose Island’s 2025 Bourbon County Brand Cherries Jubilee stout. Before their secondary maturation, both whiskeys aged for 5 years in bourbon barrels.

Virginia Distillery Co.’s love affair with beer barrels forms the basis of its Brewer’s Coalition Series, which has highlighted a variety of ales, ranging from gingerbread stout to chocolate imperial stout to barleywine ale, among others. The distillery’s Hardywood Gingerbread Stout Cask Finish from 2024 was a particular favorite, taking the No.-17 spot on our Top 20 list from that year.

Frank August Case Study 08: Winter Wheated Reserve Bourbon

ABV: 54.4%
SRP: $135
Availability: Limited

For its eighth Case Study, independent bottler Frank August returned to the same Kentucky bourbon barrel lots used for Case Study 05: Wheated Reserve, though this time it only selected barrels from winter distillations. The result is eight batches, each made of eight barrels that are all 8 years old—making it 1 to 2 years older than Case Study 05. The new whiskey is available on seelbachs.com.

Silver Brothers American Single Malt (Batch 2)

ABV: 46%
SRP: $78
Availability: Limited

Silver Brothers, a grain-to-glass farm distiller operating in New York’s Hudson Valley, will launch its second American single malt batch on November 21st. This is blended from three barrels filled in October 2023 and aged for at least 3 years.

Silver Brothers is relatively new, having fired up its stills in March 2023. It’s run by the husband-and-wife team of Matthew Grietzer and Kimberly Driessen-Greitzer, who purchased a 220-acre plot of land in Old Chatham and named the operation after their twin sons, whose initials (A.G.) are the elemental abbreviation for silver. To learn more, check out our profile on the pair and their distillery.

Extinction Event I: The Dodo Bourbon

ABV: 57.1%
SRP: $200
Availability: Limited

The first release from Extinct Spirits, a new brand from industry veteran Cole Hanna, Joslyn Hanna, and Darrick Jackson, is a 9 year old single cask straight bourbon distilled in Owensboro, Kentucky at O.Z. Tyler Distillery from a 70% corn, 20% rye, and 10% malted barley mashbill. The whiskey honors the Dodo bird, an extinct flightless bird that was native to Mauritius; while that species is no more, Extinct Spirits is dedicated to supporting conservation efforts for other vulnerable species, with a future goal of supporting like-minded nonprofits through charitable donations. Presales for the new release kick off today (Friday, November 13th), with a limited number of bottles available at extinctspirits.com.

With Extinction Event I, Extinct Spirits is setting the tone for what’s to come: a collection of truly one-off single barrel releases. Each release will pair a distinctive single barrel spirit with an extinct species and original commissioned artwork. Leading the search for such unique spirits is co-founder Cole Hanna, who also co-owns H.K. Young Bourbon Co., a Kentucky-based brand that explores toasted barrel finishes.

Row 94 Trespasser’s Proof Bourbon

ABV: 47%
Price: $100
Availability: 2027

Country music star Dierks Bentley’s ROW 94 is taking its latest bourbon to the Grand Ole Opry, literally. Trespasser’s Proof is a Kentucky straight bourbon distilled at Green River Distilling Co. and aged for at least 4 years before completing its maturation at an undisclosed location on the Opry grounds. The four-barrel release is also finished with white oak and sugar maple staves, the same wood species used in the historic Ryman Auditorium stage. Slated for release in early 2027, Trespasser’s Proof joins the brand’s growing lineup, which includes Full Proof and Broken Branches. ROW 94 has also opened its first tasting room in downtown Nashville, alongside a guided whiskey tour exploring landmarks from Bentley’s music career.