Latest news with #TheLastDropDistillers
Forbes
22-04-2025
- Business
- Forbes
The Last Drop Distillers Unveils Its Very Limited 2025 Collection
The 2025 Collection from The Last Drop Distillers is available now The Last Drop Distillers has just released its much anticipated 2025 Collection. As part of an annual drop, this year's Collection features three whiskies that have each undergone unique maturation methods by some of the most prestigious distilleries around the world. In this new release you'll find a 27 Year Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon from Buffalo Trace Distillery (Release No. 37), a 55 Year Old Single Malt Scotch from the Tomintoul Distillery (Release No. 38) and a 22 Year Old Japanese Blended Malt Whisky (Release No. 39). Founded in 2008 by two icons of the spirits industry, Tom Jago and James Espey, The Last Drop Distillers has one main mission: to seek out and collect remarkable spirits from around the globe regardless of their spirits category and blend them in a seamless way to be enjoyed right down to the very last drop. Jago was in the spirits industry for over 50 years and is responsible for globally recognized brands such as Baileys Irish Cream, Malibu Rum, and Johnnie Walker Blue. Throughout his career he worked closely with Espey and the two built these beloved brands together, so it was a no brainer in 2008 when they decided to start the aptly named, The Last Drop Distillers. With decades in the spirits industry, the connections these two men made were endless which is something that's helped the brand grow into what it is today. Under the watchful eye of The Assembly, a carefully selected panel of experts who survey the barrels available to The Last Drop, nearly 90% of offerings are rejected due to the brand's high quality standards. 'We are very fortunate in that now we've moved from the early days where it was very much about us hunting for these old barrels and now people are approaching us,' says Drew Mayville, Master Blender at The Last Drop Distillers. While they have more supply he says they are still very picky and exact with which ones they will use. 'It goes beyond curating and finding the right barrels, now we have to create exactly what will have the right taste.' This year's release showcases the art of blending and maturation while focusing on best-in-class American, Scotch and Japanese whisky management techniques. The 2025 Collection features everything from the innovative aging experiments taking place at Buffalo Trace Distillery, to the exceptional cask program used to age the Tomintoul, and the time-honored art of Japanese distilling, blending, and maturation. 'One Collection is released a year, each vastly different from the last. 'It's never the same categories and will never be the same quantities,' says Rebecca Jago, Director of Brand Experience and daughter of Tom Jago 'This year's Collection includes three really remarkable spirits. They're all very different and they are all really sublime.' Read on to learn more about the 2025 Collection. Only 508 bottles are available with a suggested retail price of $10,500 The Last Drop 27 Year Old Kentucky Straight Bourbon from Buffalo Trace Distillery As one of the oldest bourbons yet to be released, this special creation features three of Buffalo Trace's oldest barrels – distilled in 1995, 1996 and 1997. These barrels were hand selected and then married together by Mayville and Master Distiller Harlen Wheatley. The resulting whiskey showcases the depth and character that can only come from decades of careful aging under expert supervision at the distillery's state-of-the-art maturation facility, Warehouse P. It consists of a bright bronze-gold liquid that catches in the light, with aromas of seasoned oak, cherry, and medjool dates. Baking spices and dark fruit notes intertwine with an emerging peppery rye influence that adds a layer of complexity. Perfectly aged, the finish is long and satisfying. The dried fruits and caramel are lengthened by the tingling oak spice, producing a smooth and warming sipping whiskey. Only 430 are available with a suggested price of $6,950 The Last Drop 55 Year Old Single Malt Scotch from the Tomintoul Distillery The sister cask to The Last Drop Release No. 36, which debuted in the 2024 Collection as the brand's oldest single malt release to date, this rich, ultra-aged single malt is comprised of three casks of single malt Scotch Whisky matured in ex-sherry butts and refill sherry hogheads, all distilled in April 1969. To preserve the character and quality of the whisky, these casks were married together and placed into an ex-Matusalem Sherry butt to finish for an additional two years before bottling, bringing a multi-faceted flavor profile to the liquid. With a deep amber-tinged appearance there's a bit of dusky pink that reflects its extended aging. It smells rich like red fruits and has soft notes of ripe peaches, enhanced by toasted almonds and warm toffee. Tasting like juicy stone fruits and warm baking spices, underpinned by a grassy dryness and liquorice sweetness. The spirit opens up with the exotic flair of a pineapple upside down cake and rich caramel. It's a smooth, deeply satisfying spirit with a complex sweet, yet spicy, finish. Only 319 bottles available with a suggested retail price of $5,500 The Last Drop 22 Year Old Japanese Blended Malt Whisky Though Hanyu Distillery has been closed for nearly 25 years, it's still known for its elusive whisky. This rare bottling encapsulates the artistry of Japanese distilling. Featuring malt whiskies distilled and laid for maturation in the year 2000 (the year Hanyu ceased operations) this release features a special marriage of 100% Japanese whiskies derived from two casks, both made from the coveted Mizunara oak. Known for its porous, temperamental nature, Mizunara imparts a distinctive flavor profile with floral, herbal and nutty characteristics. This rich deep gold whisky smells immediately like sandalwood, warming nutmeg and all-spice with further green wood earthiness leads to vanilla and marzipan notes. Taste a sip for surprising flavors of tropical fruits such as banana and coconut combined with red berries that create a silky smooth mouthfeel, while spiced incense and wood briefly return briefly to create a perfectly-balanced and not overly sweet liquid. 'It gives me great pride, as custodian of the brand's legacy, to see the tradition of curating remarkable spirits continue with these three exceptional whiskies,' says Jago. 'My father and James would undoubtedly be proud of how The Last Drop has flourished, and I look forward to sharing this collection with our friends and customers." Every bottle from The Last Drop 2025 Collection is wax-sealed and individually numbered, and packaged in a bespoke bottle suspended in an oak frame, held within a signature green case. Each case also includes a 50ml miniature bottle, a pocket-sized tasting book, and an engraved stopper cork. The Last Drop 2025 Collection is now available in limited quantities and can be found at high-end retailers, restaurants, and bars.
Yahoo
11-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
The Most Anticipated Whiskeys of the Year Have Just Arrived. Here's How They Taste
Securing exceptionally rare spirits is, by definition, an arduous task. If everybody could get their hands on the stuff, it wouldn't exactly be rare. But ever since The Last Drop Distillers came on the scene in 2008, it's been a tad easier for connoisseurs to encounter rarity in the wilderness—or at their local bottleshop, at least. The London-based independent bottler specializes in sourcing precious, often forgotten, troves of liquid—stuff that can never be replicated—and making it relatively accessible to the masses in one final globally-distributed hurrah before it's gone forever. In a typical year, this constitutes maybe a handful of labels, each one scant enough in supply to fill only several hundred bottles. Indeed, up until this point there's been about 15,000 total bottles worth of liquid through a grand total of 36 releases. Now, the brand is ready to bring volumes 37, 38, and 39 to the world. I tasted the three newcomers: a trio of ultra-aged whiskies from Kentucky, Scotland and Japan, respectively. Included in the mix are some of the best liquids I've sipped all year. The theme this year is mastery in maturation. For Release No. 37, The Last Drop has unveiled a 27-year-old Kentucky straight bourbon from Buffalo Trace Distillery. It comes from the award-winning distillery's three oldest casks, laid down between 1995 and 1997. Under normal bourbon-making conditions, this constitutes way too much time in the barrel. But master blender Drew Mayville has a secret weapon at his disposal: an experimental, refrigerated warehouse in which barrels are kept at a steady 45 degrees specialized environment enables extended aging. It's an ambitious project, but one that resulted in a vibrant, 121.8-proof whiskey that's brimming with seasoned oak and simmering cherry. The underlying wood note never overpowers but instead forms a solid anchor upon which tobacco, cedar, and sandalwood flow into a slinking allspice finish. Uncut and unfiltered, the tongue-tingling juice will set you back $10,500 a bottle, with only 508 of them in total shipping out globally this month. Joining it is Release No. 38, a 55-year-old single malt from Tomintoul in Scotland's Speyside region. The liquid was originally distilled in April 1969 and has a supernatural sort of viscosity and richness. These deep almond- and date-driven complexities are owed to the cooperage. It's a union of whiskies that spent all their lives maturing in sherry-seasoned casks. Sip it slowly and methodically, and you might discern tropical pineapple notes around its golden edges. You won't need to add any water to aid in the pursuit. Bottled at an easy 43.1 percent ABV, this is a calm and gentle dram. Just 430 bottles will be available worldwide at a suggested retail price of $6,950. Rounding out the 2025 collection is Release No. 39, a 22-year-old blended malt that incorporates whisky from a now-shuttered Japanese whisky maker. Back in 2000, the Hanyu Distillery in Saitama Prefecture, northwest of Tokyo, was mothballed. Four years later, most of its campus was destroyed by fire. The dwindling stock that remains in existence is rapidly becoming collector catnip. This particular offering fuses a sole barrel from the ghost distillery with another cask from an unnamed Japanese producer. Both whiskies matured exclusively in Mizunara oak. After two decades of aging, the resulting blend flaunts creamy spice and incense notes typical of the cooperage. Bottled at an unusually high proof point for Japanese spirit, this 59.1 percent ABV belter is assertive on the palate, nodding to toasted tropical fruit. The finish resolves in an overture of cinnamon and brioche. It's the rarest release of the bunch, though not the priciest: only 319 decanters in total, set to retail at $5,500 per bottle. As with all The Last Drop releases, they each come packaged in a 700ml decanter alongside a 50ml miniature. It affords collectors the opportunity to sample the interest without dipping into the principal. But those banking on exclusive pours ought to consider a journey to coastal California this weekend. For those in the know, the Pebble Beach Food and Wine Festival is the Pebble Beach Rare Whisky Extravaganza. Master blender Drew Mayville and Rebecca Jago, director of brand experience for The Last Drop, will be hosting a tasting on Friday, April 11. In addition to previewing the latest releases, expect to sip Buffalo Trace whiskeys you'll likely never get anywhere else. Tickets to the exclusive event are still available at $350 per person.
