Malt Master Kelsey McKechnie expands the collection’s profile by combining the inaugural release, a rare single cask expression drawn exclusively from a European oak refill butt filled in 1973, with an American oak hogshead, also filled that year.

“The Balvenie Fifty Collection pays tribute to the makers, craftspeople and custodians who have watched over our liquid for the past five decades,” said The Balvenie Malt Master Kelsey McKechnie. “For The Second Edition, we selected an American oak hogshead filled in 1973 to build on the legacy of the inaugural release. The time spent maturing in American oak has nurtured a beautifully balanced character, with notes of sweet honey and warming oak. This profile was chosen to complement the European oak influence of The First Edition, creating a marriage of casks that brings both contrast and continuity to the flavor thread running through the trilogy. The collection reflects our respect for tradition and our commitment to looking to the future by preserving the rare crafts of whisky making from barley to bottle.”

A trilogy celebrating half a century of the Speyside distillery, the First Edition’s debuted in 2024, this Second Edition continues the journey of three unique releases that will culminate next year with the release of the Third Edition.

Each hand-blown bottle of The Balvenie Fifty Second Edition is individually numbered and housed in a case crafted by Croglin, a bespoke workshop in Cumbria. The design features seven layers of wood in a helix structure, a darker stain than the inaugural release, and a 14-carat gold-plated brass display.

Only 97 bottles of The Balvenie Fifty Second Edition will be available globally, with only 13 bottles available in the United States for $55,000.

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Due to stock restraints, The Balvenie stopped bottling the range in 2022. Now, the brand finds itself in a fortunate position where it can run an exclusive bottling of the expression. Each barrel of Single Barrel 12 Year Old is carefully selected by Malt Master Kelsey McKechnie and yields no more than 300 individually numbered bottles. Each bottle showcases the distillery’s signature honeyed house style.

“Part of the beauty of whisky making is that no two casks are quite the same, and I am immensely proud that we can reintroduce the Single Barrel 12 Year Old,” says The Balvenie Malt Master Kelsey McKechnie. “The fact we’re able to create this expression is a testament to the vast selection of quality casks in our warehouse and the care that has been taken to ensure trust in our liquid, our barrels and our approach to whisky making. The Single Barrel bottling allows us to celebrate the character of our house style and these bottlings embody who we are at The Balvenie.”

Bottled at 95.6 proof, The Balvenie Single Barrel 12 Year Old is a non-chill filtered release, matured entirely in white American oak ex-bourbon barrels.

“Single Barrel 12 Year Old gained a loyal following when first introduced, cherished for its familiar honeyed sweetness that is quintessentially The Balvenie, and rich, fruity notes that immediately take center stage,” says Naomi Leslie, The Balvenie U.S. Brand Ambassador. “David Stewart, Kelsey’s predecessor and the man who helped shape The Balvenie as we know it, always believed American oak perfectly showcased our distinct distillery flavor. The Single Barrel 12 Year Old embodies that philosophy perfectly, and we can’t wait to share it with consumers once again.”

The Balvenie Single Barrel 12 Year Old is available for $79.99.

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Beginning with The First Edition this year, The Balvenie will release only 125 bottles globally of each edition over the next three years, with The Second and Third Editions launching in 2025 and 2026.

The First Edition is a single cask expression aged in a European oak refill butt, filled in 1973 and hand-selected by Malt Master Kelsey McKechnie. The Second Edition will introduce an American oak hogshead cask filled in 1973 to marry with the first, and finally, a third cask filled in 1974, an American oak barrel, will be added to complete the marriage for the final Third Edition.

The inaugural expression from The Balvenie Fifty, which is 1o4 proof, showcases the complexity of the spirit influenced by the European oak cask while maintaining its classic style, even after 50 years of maturation.

“Each Edition in this collection is a testament to the craftsmanship that has defined our liquid over the past 50 years,” said The Balvenie Malt Master Kelsey McKechnie. “The unique characteristics of these rare casks come together to create a truly exceptional experience and set a new benchmark for our contribution to the rare and extraordinary whisky market at The Balvenie. Using a refill butt for the First Edition provides us with a distinctive flavor thread that will run through our next two releases, demonstrating the spectrum of flavors and aromas in our aged spirit. It is a celebration of our legacy, our passion, and our unwavering commitment to producing some of the finest whiskies in the world.”

In 1973, former Malt Master David C. Stewart MBE came together with The Balvenie’s craftspeople to fill the cask for the First Edition, starting the beginning of The Balvenie Fifty Collection’s journey. While many of those individuals still work at The Balvenie today, McKechnie continues this legacy with her approach to the marrying and remarrying of casks, creating a signature flavor profile across The Balvenie Fifty Collection.

The Balvenie Fifty Collection is enhanced further by the packaging developed by Croglin, a bespoke craft workshop based in Cumbria. Each presentation contains over 100 intricate elements, including a four-layer wood helix and beautifully crafted 14 carat gold plated brass display.

The Balvenie Fifty First Edition is now rolling out worldwide, with 16 bottles available specifically in the United States for $53,000.

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Aged for 14 years, the American Bourbon Barrel single malt Scotch is 95.6 proof. The French Pineau Cask is aged 10 years in a combination of ex-bourbon and European oak casks, followed by 8 years in casks that previously held wine from the French Charentes vineyards, which resulted in a 95.8 proof spirit.

Released as “A Collection of Curious Casks,” this pairing of Stories expressions are meant to highlight environment of The Balvenie’s warehouses. Each expression celebrates the power of close friendship and collaboration between The Balvenie’s Malt Master Kelsey McKechnie and Warehouse and Samples Coordinator George Paterson.

“This collection perfectly exemplifies the rare and limited Balvenie casks making their debut,” says The Balvenie Malt Master Kelsey McKechnie. “It is an honor to collaborate daily with talented craftspeople like George, who dedicates his time and craft to shepherding our casks to distinction and bringing our liquid to life. I am delighted to share this opportunity with him, showcasing his expertise and sharing his knowledge of our warehouses with the world.”

These single casks also take inspiration from the private warehouse tastings run by Paterson, which he uses as an opportunity to showcase the distillery’s “hidden gems,” featuring rare whiskies and unusual casks with unexpected character.

“Many would say that I have one of the best jobs in the world working in our warehouses, and drawing samples and monitoring those extra special finishes,” says The Balvenie Samples Coordinator George Paterson. “A true highlight for me is being able to identify the hidden gems, casks that are doing the unexpected and bring to life the conversations about them. It is from these moments shared throughout history and relentless curiosity at The Balvenie that brilliant ideas are born.”

A Collection of Curios Casks join other Stories bottlings, such as 12 Year Old The Sweet Toast of American Oak, 42 Year Old The Tale of the Dog and more recently, the 19-Year-Old A Revelation of Cask and Character.

The Balvenie 14-Year-Old American Bourbon Barrel and The Balvenie 18-Year-Old French Pineau Cask Finish  retail for $114.99 and $399.99, respectively.

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The extremely rare bottling also celebrates the anniversary of The Belvenie’s renowned Malt Master, David C. Stewart MBE, who is celebrating six decades at the distillery – making him the longest serving Malt Master in industry history. Throughout his time at The Balvenie, Stewart has developed knowledge and pioneered techniques that have had a profound impact on the whisky making processes.

A tribute to Stewart’s career, this single cask was selected by The Balvenie’s Kelsey McKechnie, who has been mentored by Stewart for the past four years. “I have learned so much from David at work,” said McKechnie. “His mentorship has made a profound impact on me and finding a cask to fit such an incredible character in the Distillery’s history is a great honor.”

McKechnie describes the cask as “on the nose the whisky has a mesmerizing array of autumnal aromas; lavender, heather and bracken. Whilst rich toffee, roasted coffee and beautifully layered oak dominate the palate. The flavor evolves with time revealing bursts of cloves, nutmeg, charred oak and candied orange in an exceptional long lasting finish.”

“I started at the distillery in 1962, as a whisky stocks clerk, this liquid; a new make spirit was filled into a collection of traditional European Oak Hogshead casks,” said The Balvenie Malt Master David C. Stewart MBE. “For six decades it has rested and matured, now marking quite a poignant moment for me on my journey.”

The Balvenie 60’s packaging resembles a work of art; made from glass, gold and brass. The tube casing was designed to reflect layers of memories from Stewart’s career. With five layers each etched with personal anecdotes from influential individuals along his journey. The sixth decade is the bottle itself, made from hand-blown crystal and containing a quote from McKechnie to represent this current decade, and the future generations of The Balvenie.

The Balvenie Sixty is 84 proof and retails for $145,000.

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The selected Spokesfist will be signed to a contract with Fistful of Bourbon and will star in the brand’s future campaigns in print, video, across social media and more. The Spokesfist will also receive a custom designed bottle featuring their fist, top-notch perks like hand spa treatments and workouts and tips from a top Hollywood hand model to keep the prized fist looking good, fit and ready for the spotlight, just in time for awards season!

“Here at Fistful of Bourbon, we’re looking for a new leading star, someone that can truly wow us with their panache,” said Anthony Bohlinger, U.S. National Brand Ambassador at Fistful of Bourbon. “Fistful is a blend of five straight American bourbons – literally a fistful – that together delivers the best bourbon has to offer and so, it’s only natural we want to find the best fist around these parts to be our Spokesfist.”

Launched April 13 nationwide, Fistful of Bourbon is a brand born from ingenuity and with 130 years of whisky-making prowess from Scottish family distiller, William Grant & Sons. Applying the art and science of Scotch blending to American whiskey, Master Blender Brian Kinsman and Whiskey Blender Kelsey McKechnie combine five straight bourbons to create Fistful of Bourbon, the first from-the-ground-up American whiskey from the William Grant & Sons portfolio.

Fistful of Bourbon takes inspiration from the cowboy spirit and Hollywood’s action-packed spaghetti Westerns, cult classics or laugh-out-loud cowboy comedies, its smoothness and superior drinkability took home double gold medals at the International Spirits Challenge in 2019 and took gold at the 2020 San Francisco Spirit Awards. Fistful of Bourbon is now available in retailers and bars nationally.

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The three expressions, The Sweet Toast of American Oak, The Week of Peat and A Day of Dark Barley, are accompanied by a narrative that explains how and why they were made. Aged to 12 years, The Sweet Toast of American Oak tells the story of what can happen when ancient technique meets fresh ideas, as newly appointed Apprentice Malt Master Kelsey McKechnie experimented with twice-charred white American oak from Kelvin Cooperage in Louisville, Kentucky to produce an even fruitier, sweeter tasting Balvenie. The Week of Peat, aged 14 years, is an evolved expression of The Balvenie Peat Week Aged 14 Years, which launched globally in 2017. This expression tells the tale of Malt Master David C. Stewart MBE and former distillery manager Ian Millar using a week’s gap in the distillery’s production schedule to experiment with the use of peat in the barley drying process, having sampled various ages since 2002. Finally, A Day of Dark Barley, which is aged 26 years, was inspired by Stewart and The Balvenie’s malt men experimenting with a heavily roasted dark barley in 1992. The resulting liquid was originally released in 2006 as the 14-Year-Old Balvenie Roasted Malt, however casks were retained for extra maturation.

“Stories are the lifeblood of The Balvenie distillery. They make up the fabric of who we are and what we do,” says The Balvenie Malt Master David C. Stewart MBE. “The Balvenie Stories collection tells these tales in liquid form, giving whisky drinkers across the globe a special glimpse into the unique and very human nature of how we produce our whisky. Each expression in the collection reflects this by telling its own story via first-hand accounts and recollections of the many people involved.”

This same storytelling is evident in the design of The Balvenie Stories packaging, with each story represented visually on the whisky’s canister and label in bespoke illustrations from British artist and printmaker Andy Lovell. Lovell’s work draws its inspiration direct from the distillery, where he spent time listening to the stories first-hand, before using his bold, hand-made gestural technique to build up images that capture the essence of each tale.

Whisky fans have the unique opportunity to hear these stories in full, as told by those involved, via audio conversations recorded between them and The Balvenie Global Ambassador Gemma Paterson. These conversations were recorded at locations significant to each story’s narrative, including at The Balvenie distillery and Kentucky’s Kelvin Cooperage. This audio and guided audio whisky tastings of each expression with Stewart and McKechnie are available via an NFC-enabled tag on the bottle that drinkers connect to using their smartphones.

The Balvenie Stories collection is available in now. The Sweet Toast of American Oak retails for $59.99, while the The Week of Peat is $99 and A Day of Dark Barley is $799.

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