CHINA. Bacardi Global Travel Retail has unveiled an extension to the Dewar’s Double Double series with the release of a 36 Year Old edition, in partnership with China Duty Free Group (CDFG). The new expression will be released in China travel retail on 1 January, before rolling out to other locations in Asia Pacific.
The new release is a ‘prestige plus’ addition to the award-winning Dewar’s Double Double range. Finished in a rich Madeira cask, Dewar’s Double Double 36 Year Old is created using the special ‘quadruple ageing’ process pioneered by Master Blender Stephanie MacLeod.
The whisky is presented in an opaque black glass bottle with the same four-point star bottle design as the rest of the series, that mirrors the four-stage ageing process. The blend features notes of vanilla, coconut oil and ripe peaches. The recommended retail price for a 50cl bottle (46% ABV) is US$1,800.
The inspiration for the ageing process “is rooted in history and the skill of the Master Blender past and present”, according to the brand owner. After he pioneered ‘double-ageing’ in 1881, Dewar’s first master blender, A.J. Cameron, spent the next 20 years trying to create an even smoother whisky, adding further steps to the ageing process in 1901.
120 years later, inspired by this process, Stephanie Macleod, Dewar’s seventh Master Blender, introduced a four-stage ageing process for this product. In the first, the individual malts are aged separately for 36 years. Then the Speyside malts are blended and aged together and the Highland and Islay malts are blended and aged together. In stage three, the Speyside and Highland/Islay malts are blended and aged together. Finally, the Speyside and Highland/Islay malts are finished in Madeira casks.
Bacardi Global Travel Retail Global Head of Marketing Ignacio Vazquez said: “We are very proud of the continued award success of the Dewar’s Double Double series since its launch in 2019. The introduction of the 36 Year Old further elevates its status and represents our ambition and commitment for Dewar’s to be rated as the most progressive whisky by new appreciators and tastemakers, especially in Asia Pacific.”
The Dewar’s Double Double range won the World’s Best Blended Whisky for the 21 Year Old in the 2021 World Whiskies Awards. The 32 Year Old won the World’s Best Whisky at the 2020 International Whisky Competition (IWC). In 2021 Stephanie Macleod was awarded the title of Master Blender of the Year by the IWC for the third year running.
