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1257 Kensington Road NW
1 (403) 283-8000 / atyourservice@kensingtonwinemarket.com
$191.99
This 15 year old Fettercairn was bottled to mark the 25th Anniversary of Old Malt Cask at 50% from an ex-Wine Hogshead.
About the Old Malt Cask 25th Anniversary Range
“The flagship Old Malt Cask series was launched in 1998 and quickly became known amongst connoisseurs as an umbrella for whiskies of the highest quality. Twenty five years later we continue to offer the finest casks from our family cellars under the Old Malt Cask brand, still bottled at 50% alcohol and of course without artificial colouring or chill-filtration. To celebrate a quarter of a century of Old Malt Cask single malts we have selected twenty five expressions to be bottled in the brand’s original, iconic, green and gold presentation. These Twenty Fifth Anniversary releases are drawn from across Scotland’s signature whisky producing regions and reflect the varied selection of Malts which have appeared under the Old Malt Cask banner. As ever with the Old Malt Cask range we offer them to you with confidence and pride.”
700 mlProducer Tasting Note
Nose: Milk chocolate, raspberries, and vanilla.
Palate: Apples, peaches, and lemon zest.
Finish: Long, with lingering spice.
Yes, these are two separate companies, but it is difficult to talk about one without talking about the other. So, let's kill two birds with one stone, shall we? - Evan
The Hatfields & McCoys. The Montagues and Capulets. The Laings and... The Laings?
History is full of family feuds. It is also full of long-running game shows promoting the vicious rivalry. Sometimes, though, a family doesn't need to have an outside influence to struggle against because the issue lies within.
The History
Douglas Laing is an independent bottler that was founded in 1948 by Fred Douglas Laing after he acquired the rights to the King Of Scots Blend. Fred Sr. and his wife had two sons. Stewart Hunter Laing was born in 1946. Fred Hamilton Laing (Fred Jr.) was born in 1950. Both brothers eventually joined Fred Sr. working at Douglas Laing. Before that though, they both had apprenticeships at other Scotch Whisky companies; something that seems to be a hallmark of families who make Scotch Whisky their trade.
Stewart Laing joined his father Fred Sr. at Douglas Laing in 1967. He had previously apprenticed at Bruichladdich Distillery and other places within the industry. Stewart and his wife had their first son, Scott, in 1979. A few years later in 1982, their second son Andrew was born.
Fred Laing Jr's first apprenticeship was at Whyte and Mackay starting in 1968, where he learned all parts of whisky production and business, including the art of blending. From there he moved to White Horse Distillers in 1969 to further enhance his blending knowledge. In 1972, he officially joined his Father, Fred Sr., at the family business of Douglas Laing. In 1982, Fred Jr's daughter Cara was born.
Fred Sr., AKA Fred Douglas Laing; the founder of Douglas Laing & Co, passed away in 1984. It was then up to his sons to run the company on their own.
Splitting The Family Company
Brothers' Stewart and Fred Jr. quietly – or not so quietly – didn’t really get along. This eventually led the two to go their separate ways in 2013. Stewart Laing took with him some brands created at his former company such as Old Malt Cask and Old & Rare. Fred Laing Jr. kept the Douglas Laing and brands such as Big Peat, Old Particular, and of course, the exclusive rights to his fabulous moustache.
Fred Laing Jr. & daughter Cara Laing - the new Douglas Laing
Douglas Laing continued on, operating under Fred Jr's stewardship to this day. They have created some new labels since, focusing more on the Blends and Blended Malt side of things than Hunter Laing typically does. Fred Laing was joined by his daughter Cara at about the same time as the split.
Douglas Laing does bottle single casks of whisky under the Provenance, Old Particular and XOP labels. However, with Fred Jr's knowledge in blending and the brand King of Scots still in hand, the company has kept a big focus on blending, introducing an entire line of regional blended malts over the late 2010s. The company has dubbed this lineup The Remarkable Regional Malts of Scotland. These include:
The Douglas Laing company announced the acquisition of its first distillery in October 2019. The Strathearn Distillery, founded in 2013, is located near Methven in Perthshire. Technically located in the Southern Highlands, it is near the lowlands region and about an hour and a half drive from Douglas Laing's headquarters in Glasgow.
Stewart Laing & sons Scott and Andrew Laing form Hunter Laing
Hunter Laing was founded in 2013 by chairman Stewart Hunter Laing and his sons Andrew and Scott. Hunter Laing came to being from a dividing of assets owned by the company Douglas Laing & Co, which Stewart and his brother Fred Laing Jr. had operated together since Fred Laing Sr. – their father passed away in 1984.
The new company has more of a focus on Single Malt Whisky and often single casks than Douglas Laing, with new releases under Old Malt Cask, Old & Rare, Sovereign, The First Editions, and Hepburn's Choice hitting store shelves periodically. Regular releases as well as the mystery peated Islay Single Malt under the name Scarabus are also consistently available. Oh, and Hunter Laing also bottles rum under the wonderfully silly moniker Kill Devil.
Three years after the split, in 2016, Hunter Laing announced plans to build a distillery on Islay. The company’s Ardnahoe Distillery officially opened in 2019. The first Single Malt whisky releases from Ardnahoe hit shelves in 2024.
It is now more than a decade since Stewart and Fred Laing split the business and their progeny joined them in earnest. The brothers and their respective companies of Hunter Laing and Douglas Laing still show much of the whisky DNA that their father built into it, and them.
Did you know that Scotland’s national animal is a unicorn? You might have been tempted to guess it was a noble stag, but you’d have to guess again. In Celtic mythology, the unicorn symbolizes power, purity, and innocence. It first appeared on the Royal Coat of Arms of William I (a.k.a. the Lion) in the 12th century and was first used as a symbol for Scotland during the reign of King Robert III (1390-1406). Over the centuries it became an increasingly common feature in Scottish heraldry, and by the mid-1500s unicorns had become a key component of the Scottish Coat of Arms.
Today it is the country’s national animal, and some Scots even mark National Unicorn Day every April 9. But why all this talk of unicorns? Because the unicorn is also the emblem of the Fettercairn Distillery - adopted for the facility by its founder, Sir Alexander Ramsay. The unicorn is the dominant symbol in the Clan Ramsay crest.
Fettercairn Distillery was founded in 1824 on the outskirts of a village by the same name where the foothills of the Cairngorm Mountains meet the barley fields of Scotland’s east coast. In 1830, Sir John Gladstone, father of the future British Prime Minister William Gladstone, purchased the distillery and the estate it sat on. While the family would own the distillery for nearly 100 years, it would mostly be run by tenants.
Although William Gladstone never got his hands dirty with respect to distillation, during his time as Chancellor of the Exchequer (1859-1866) he did pass the Spirits Act of 1860. This law cemented and extended the rights of merchants to blend and store both malt and grain whiskies under bond. These rights were further extended in 1863, allowing spirits dealers to retail their whiskies to the public in small quantities. Gladstone’s legislation effectively gave birth to the Blended Scotch Whisky trade. In time, this paved the way for the likes of Andrew Usher & Co., John Walker & Sons, Chivas Brothers, and dozens of other world-famous brands.
Fettercairn is a rather traditional distillery in most respects, with one key difference: both of the spirit stills (used for the second distillation) have a ring of pipe near the top which drizzle cool water down the neck of the stills. The effect cools the copper neck - both internally and externally - increasing reflux and producing a lighter spirit than they would have otherwise been expected to.
As with most Scottish single malts, Fettercairn’s whisky has primarily been produced as a component for blends. It features most prominently in the blended scotch brands of Whyte & MacKay, who acquired the distillery in 1973. The first official bottlings of single malt from the distillery began popping up in the 1970s, but it has only been consistently available as a single malt since the mid-1990s. Fettercairn was also an early proponent of whisky tourism, opening a visitor center in 1989, well before many other better-known distilleries.
In 2009, with the tide rising for single malt, an increasing focus was put on marketing the distillery as a single malt brand. The range was revamped again in 2018, in the lead-up to the distillery’s 200th anniversary, which they are celebrating this year.
Fettercairn’s spirit is generally fruity and nutty in aroma and taste, often showing with a lighter floral edge thanks to the cooling rings on the spirit stills. The whisky is primarily matured in American oak, though its owners do love a Port Cask Finish, or Matusalem Sherry Finesse. Official Fettercairn bottlings are generally available in most good whisky shops around the world, and with a core range of expressions from 12-50 years of age.
To mark the anniversary, Fettercairn has released a set of six vintage whiskies aged 3-60 years of age (which cleverly add up to 200 total). These sets are almost as rare as unicorns, with just 10 being made available for sale worldwide. Each set is housed in a unique cabinet made by a master craftsman, and - as they say - if you have to ask the price, then you probably can’t afford it. But you can see one by visiting the distillery, which is located roughly halfway between Dundee and Aberdeen. Fettercairn offers tours and tastings year-round, though you are always best to book in advance.
$234.99
This 19 year old Benrinnes is from a Canasta Cream Sherry Cask, bottled at 50% as part of the Old Malt Cask 25th Anniversary Range. Exclusive to KWM
About the Old Malt Cask 25th Anniversary Range
“The flagship Old Malt Cask series was launched in 1998 and quickly became known amongst connoisseurs as an umbrella for whiskies of the highest quality. Twenty five years later we continue to offer the finest casks from our family cellars under the Old Malt Cask brand, still bottled at 50% alcohol and of course without artificial colouring or chill-filtration. To celebrate a quarter of a century of Old Malt Cask single malts we have selected twenty five expressions to be bottled in the brand’s original, iconic, green and gold presentation. These Twenty Fifth Anniversary releases are drawn from across Scotland’s signature whisky producing regions and reflect the varied selection of Malts which have appeared under the Old Malt Cask banner. As ever with the Old Malt Cask range we offer them to you with confidence and pride.”
$179.99
This 2011 vintage Caol Ila was bottled from a single sherry butt at 50% and 12 years of age as part of the Old Malt Cask 25th Anniversary Range. Exclusive to KWM!
About the Old Malt Cask 25th Anniversary Range
“The flagship Old Malt Cask series was launched in 1998 and quickly became known amongst connoisseurs as an umbrella for whiskies of the highest quality. Twenty five years later we continue to offer the finest casks from our family cellars under the Old Malt Cask brand, still bottled at 50% alcohol and of course without artificial colouring or chill-filtration. To celebrate a quarter of a century of Old Malt Cask single malts we have selected twenty five expressions to be bottled in the brand’s original, iconic, green and gold presentation. These Twenty Fifth Anniversary releases are drawn from across Scotland’s signature whisky producing regions and reflect the varied selection of Malts which have appeared under the Old Malt Cask banner. As ever with the Old Malt Cask range we offer them to you with confidence and pride.”
$144.99
This Old Malt Cask Bottling of Fettercairn was englassed at 50%, as is tradition, after 14 years in a Refill Hogshead cask.
$234.99
Distilled in 2008, this 18 year old Blair Athol was bottled from an ex-Wine Hoghead at 50% as part of the Old Malt Cask 25th Anniversary Range.
About the Old Malt Cask 25th Anniversary Range
“The flagship Old Malt Cask series was launched in 1998 and quickly became known amongst connoisseurs as an umbrella for whiskies of the highest quality. Twenty five years later we continue to offer the finest casks from our family cellars under the Old Malt Cask brand, still bottled at 50% alcohol and of course without artificial colouring or chill-filtration. To celebrate a quarter of a century of Old Malt Cask single malts we have selected twenty five expressions to be bottled in the brand’s original, iconic, green and gold presentation. These Twenty Fifth Anniversary releases are drawn from across Scotland’s signature whisky producing regions and reflect the varied selection of Malts which have appeared under the Old Malt Cask banner. As ever with the Old Malt Cask range we offer them to you with confidence and pride.”
