Those great bottlers at Hunter Laing have rounded up 6 whisky brothers from across Islay and the Orkneys for their 2020 Kinship Collection. You can tour the whole region without ever leaving your chair as each of these 6 bottles showcases the different styles from across the area. Each one bears the signature of Scott, Stewart or Andrew Laing who had the enviable job of sifting through the Hunter Laing warehouses and finding these gorgeous drams for us. This is their fourth release, commemorating the Virtual Feis Ile of 2020.
Highland Park 30 Years Old The Kinship 2020
Straight from the wind whipped and rainswept Orkney Isles, this dram has been aged for 30 years. Up in Orkney the wind is so fierce that most trees can’t survive, so the peat there is less woody and much more heathery. Distilled back in 1980 and bottled in 2020, this dram comes to us at 43.1% ABV.
Ardbeg 28 Years Old The Kinship 2020
Founded by John MacDougal in 1815, Ardbeg has had a great run over the last 200 years. By 1887 it was already pumping out 1.1 million litres of whisky every year. That means a lot of happy whisky fans! Since then they’ve reached for the stars…literally. Ardbeg was the first distillery to blast its product into space, running experiments to see how the space environment would affect the flavour of the whisky. This bottle though is firmly planted on earth. Aged for 28 years and bottled at 50.1 ABV.
Bowmore 30 Years Old The Kinship 2020
Bowmore is the oldest licensed distillery on Islay and it’s fair to say that since 1779 they’ve picked up a few things about whisky making. It is still handcrafted and made using the traditional techniques that ensure top-notch quality. Aged for 30 years and bottled at 58% ABV.
Bunnahabbain 30 Years Old The Kinship 2020
Bunnahabbain means ‘mouth of the river’ and that’s right where the distillery is perched, overlooking the Sound of Islay. Often Islays are known for their peated style, but at Bunnahabbain they are a little different. Unpeated and using the tallest stills on the island with only natural spring water, Bunnahabbain tends to have a lighter style compared to its Islay brothers. Aged for 30 years and bottled at 45.5 ABV.
Caol Ila 30 Years Old The Kinship 2020
Caol Ila looks out over the strait between Islay and Jura, in fact its name is actually derived from the Gaelic name for the Sound of Islay, ‘Caol Ile.’ It’s well known as one of the constituent whiskies in Johnnie Walker blends but here you can sample it on its own as a 30 year old single malt, bottled at 42.4% ABV.
Laphroaig 30 Years Old The Kinship 2020
Laphroaig actually began as a plot of land for rearing cattle. But the good thing about cows is they eat‘feed’ barley. And what do you do if you’ve got leftover barley? You make whisky of course! That’s exactly what brothers Donald and Alexander did in 1815. But it turns out that whisky was more profitable than cattle, so the moo cows got moooooved on and the stills stayed. And we’re glad they did because now you can sample this great 30 year old bottled at 53.6% ABV.
