EDINBURGH brewer Innis & Gunn has launched its 2023 Whisky Cask Beer, made in collaboration with Laphroaig.
First released in 2021, it has been Innis & Gunn’s fastest-selling limited edition. The 2022 version had the highest rate of sale of any craft 330ml bottle beer in Scotland.
The beer, a 7.4% Scottish red ale, is matured in Laphroaig casks. In 2021, the beer was matured solely in Laphroaig 10-year=old casks. A switch was made in 2022 to rare Laphroaig “quarter casks” which are smaller and allow a greater interaction between cask and beer.
Barry McAffer, Distillery Manager at Laphroaig said: “Our collaboration with Innis & Gunn is as natural as it is exciting. At Laphroaig, we’ve spent over two centuries perfecting our unique and bold flavours. It requires an uncompromising and original brand to match it - enter Innis & Gunn!
“I’ve always been a fan of Innis & Gunn, and this latest release does not disappoint. You’ll taste a whisper of peat along with a distinctive toasted malt note that comes from the Laphroaig cold smoking kilns, along with rich fruits and a long-lasting sweetness from the double matured port casks.
"The unmistakable refreshing citrus and orange rind flavours from the beer are followed by a warming finish with hints of oak and that classic understated bitterness that Innis & Gunn create so well. It’s a superb combination of cask, whisky and beer all perfectly balanced in flavour.”
For 2023, the larger Laphroaig 10-year-old (second-fill Bourbon) casks were used for the initial 10 weeks, followed by three in second-fill Port casks, used for finishing the whisky.
Dougal Gunn Sharp, founder and master brewer at Innis & Gunn, said: “This is my favourite expression of our collaboration with Laphroaig yet. Both our brewing team, and the distillery team at Laphroaig really understand how to balance flavour and have pushed themselves this year to make something really special.”
Innis & Gunn Islay Whisky Cask in its specially designed gift carton by Scottish artist, Scott Naismith, is available from April 17 via the Innis & Gunn online shop, priced at £6 per 330ml bottle; and for the first time appearing on shelf from June at Waitrose and Sainsbury’s nationwide, plus in Booths Supermarkets and in Tesco in Scotland at £5-6 per 330ml bottle.
