Holyrood Distillery Custom Cask Programme

Given our proclivity and admiration for Ron Swanson here at The Coolector, we’re always doing our utmost to enhance our whisky credentials and experiences and this led us squarely to the door of Holyrood Distillery and their awesome looking Custom Cask Programme. This top notch idea will undoubtedly appeal to whisky aficionados the world over and represents the chance to create your own bespoke whisky with Holyrood Distillery – Edinburgh’s first city centre single malt whisky distillery for nearly a century.

We’ve been to a few whisky distilleries in our time here at Coolector HQ and there is something almost mythical about stepping foot on these hallowed terrains but we’ve never been to one situated in a city centre – as Holyrood Distillery in Edinburgh is. Better still, this Custom Cask Programme knocks things up a notch for whisky lovers and will be an essential stop on any visit to the Scottish capital. With a limited run of casks, Holyrood are offering the widest breadth of flavour of any distillery in the country, as well as a unique fully customisable option.

Flavour Sensation

The Custom Cask Programme from Holyrood Distillery allows you to take the reins and craft a unique whisky which is tailored exactly to your flavour preference. The distillery’s in-house whisky and distilling experts, David Robertson and Dr Jack Mayo, will help identify your flavour in a guided tasting experience. Then, by using their vast experience, they will explain how they create the flavour using the best raw materials in a one to one consultation under current Government social distancing guidelines.

In order to help narrow down your choice when creating your own unique whisky, Holyrood Distillery have come up with seven options that explore the parameters of their four key flavour profiles. These are Fruity & Floral, Sweet, Spicy and Peaty and each has their own unique profile and will appeal to different types of whisky enthusiast.

These different flavours offer the chance to be really creative with your Custom Cask. The Fruity & Floral option, for example, lets green, citrus and tropical fruits be developed by leaving the new make spirit to slumber in American oak (ex sherry wood) hogsheads. A red fruits profile can be crafted by maturing in port barrique casks. Sweet tones like milk chocolate or vanilla/treacle toffee can be introduced into the new spirit by using roasted malted barleys and filling American oak (ex bourbon) barrels.

Dare to be Different

Any whisky lover is sure to jump at the chance to partake in this Custom Cask Programme from Holyrood Distillery but you’ll need to move fast as they’ve set aside just 50 casks to be used as completely bespoke casks crafted by you. You could pick a rare wood like a Japanese oak or a cask that previously contained dessert wine, or beer, to flavour and finesse your whisky – the choice really is yours.

Whatever the request, the knowledgeable team at Holyrood Distillery in Edinburgh will work with you to design a distinctive and one of a kind recipe and a whisky that really is unique to you. Looking for the perfect experience for the whisky lover in your life? Look no further because you’ve just found it.