First Scottish-Japanese whisky launched

Two malt whisky expressions blended from liquid produced in Scotland and Japan have been released, the first of its kind, named after the 19th century industrialist Thomas Blake Glover who was known as the “Scottish Samurai”.

The Glover is a blend of Japanese and Scotch malt whisky

Commissioned and produced by the Adelphi Distillery in Scotland, the two whiskies were launched simultaneously in Aberdeen and Tokyo on Monday 26 October as part of The Glover whisky range.

The first bottling – The Glover 22 Year Old – was produced from three single casks: one refill ex-Sherry hogshead distilled at the Hanyu Distillery in Japan, which closed in 2005, one American oak ex-Sherry hogshead distilled at the Longmorn Distillery in Scotland, and one Spanish oak ex-Sherry butt from Scotland’s Glen Garioch Distillery. Just 390 bottles have been produced, which are expected to retail for up to £1,100 a bottle.

The second bottling – The Glover 14 year Old – is also blended from Scotch and Japanese malt whiskies and is limited to a run of 1,500 bottles, priced at £100 each.

Alex Bruce, managing director of Adelphi, the firm which blended The Glover, said: “We wanted the final whisky to present the unique flavours of both casks, but also to be even more than the sum of its parts. We added a drop of whisky from Glen Garioch Distillery in homage to Thomas Glover’s home in Fraserburgh to complete the flavour profile.”

Glover was born on Fraserburgh, Scotland, in 1838 and played a key role in the modernisation and industrial development of 19th century Japan.

Both expressions will be available from mid-November.

Earlier this year Bowmore released a limited edition luxury single malt matured in Japanese mizunara oak. Limited to a run of just 2,000 bottles, Bowmore Mizunara Cask Finish is the first Scotch whisky to be matured in mizunara casks, with each bottle set to retail at £650.