William Grant & Sons has unveiled a new elegant whisky under the House of Hazelwood name – inspired by family luminary Janet Sheed Roberts.\u00a0It will launch exclusively in Global Travel Retail from February 2016 until September 2016.<\/p>\n
It was the decade F. Scott Fitzgerald released The Great Gatsby,\u00a0women gained the right to vote, the glamour and exuberance of the art deco movement began flourishing\u00a0through the great cities of the world, and it was the heyday for elegant Scotch whisky drinking.<\/p>\n
William Grant & Sons is proud to launch House of Hazelwood, an elegant and vivacious new blended Scotch\u00a0whisky inspired by family luminary Janet Sheed Roberts (1901 to 2012) and expressed through the spirit of\u00a0the great Art Deco cities that influenced the world in her heyday. During her rich and vibrant life, Janet\u00a0Sheed Roberts lived in Hazelwood House, a house close to the Glenfiddich Distillery in Dufftown, Scotland. It\u00a0was from Hazelwood House that she revelled in learning and progress, spending considerable time after her\u00a0studies travelling the world, attending shows, parties and company ceremonies. In fact, inside Hazelwood\u00a0House you can still find the beautiful art deco artefacts, pictures and stories from those days.<\/p>\n
Janet Sheed Roberts was a rare and extraordinary woman whose spirit inspired five generations of one\u00a0of Scotland\u2019s most famous private distillers, right back to its founding father, William Grant. When Master\u00a0Blender Brian Kinsman set out to create a range of whiskies to pay tribute to its family doyenne, it was natural\u00a0that he might first look to the two distilleries closest to her heart: Kininvie and Girvan, as well as the family\u2019s\u00a0private collection.<\/p>\n
\u201cJanet Sheed Roberts was an elegant woman, and I wanted to create a whisky that would celebrate her\u00a0extraordinary spirit,\u201d says Master Blender Brian Kinsman. \u201cThe journey of creativity which led me to this\u00a0unique whisky was one of distinction, challenge and utter delight. I am deeply proud of House of Hazelwood\u00a025 year old. It has allowed me to create an exquisitely rare blended whisky, rich in Scotch tradition, combined\u00a0with all of the inventive artistry which Shanghai in the 1920s inspires.\u201d<\/p>\n
House of Hazelwood is composed of three exquisite expressions, each blended to perfection, with its own\u00a0inimitable story to tell. All inspired by the 1920s, the most distinguished is the 25 year old expression, which\u00a0is a particular source of pride for its creator Master Blender Brian Kinsman. Followed by two other variants,\u00a0House of Hazelwood 21 year old (inspired by the sultry beauty of Mumbai), and House of Hazelwood 18 year\u00a0old (inspired by the classic elegance of Paris).<\/p>\n
The packaging takes its inspiration from three of the most mesmeric cities at the forefront of the Art Deco\u00a0movement: Paris, Mumbai and Shanghai. The design focuses on the creation of a distinctive visual leitmotif\u00a0associated with the luminosity of each city.<\/p>\n
It will launch exclusively in Global Travel Retail from February 2016 until September 2016. From then, it will\u00a0launch in a few select markets around the world.<\/p>\n
Tasting notes:<\/strong><\/p>\n HOUSE OF HAZELWOOD 25 YEAR OLD:\u00a0<\/strong>House of Hazelwood 25 Year Old was inspired by\u00a0the classic elegance of Shanghai, a city which stood\u00a0at the centre of Cathay elegance in the 1920s. NOSE: Caramelized brown sugar leads, accompanied by vanilla,\u00a0maple, soft spice and hints of fresh sawn wood. Citrus\u00a0notes and orange blossom linger in the background. HOUSE OF HAZELWOOD 21 YEAR OLD:\u00a0<\/strong>House of Hazelwood 21 Year Old is inspired\u00a0by the sultry beauty of Mumbai in the 1920s. NOSE: Dried fruits and spice dominate, alongside a sticky\u00a0sweetness reminiscent of rich fruit cake. A splash\u00a0of water alters the balance and adds complexity with\u00a0a subtle hint of tobacco leaf. HOUSE OF HAZELWOOD 18\u00a0YEAR OLD:<\/strong>\u00a0House of Hazelwood 18 Year Old is inspired by the\u00a0classic elegance of Paris in the 1920s. This release\u00a0reveals an elegant and classic whisky, perhaps the\u00a0purest expression of Kininvie and Girvan spirits in\u00a0the range, and married in tuns of Portuguese oak.<\/p>\n NOSE: Vibrant vanilla sweetness dominates the nose.\u00a0Delicate oak adds complexity.
\nThis release represents the Master Blenders\u2019 most\u00a0prized expression. Each rare single malt earned\u00a0its place in Kinsman\u2019s final selection, and the\u00a0blend was then married in American oak, allowing\u00a0sufficient time for the complex and diverse flavours\u00a0to infuse and mellow. The resultant majestic whisky\u00a0is unique, rare and very special.<\/p>\n
\nTASTE: An elegant combination of vibrant spice and\u00a0vanilla sweetness on the palate. A long dry finish\u00a0from the new oak.
\nFINISH: Caramelized sugar, and Soft spice.<\/p>\n
\nThis release represents a bolder, somewhat spicier\u00a0and more robust whisky balanced to perfection by\u00a0the ageing of some of its malts for 21 years in sherry\u00a0casks made of European oak.<\/p>\n
\nTASTE: Cinnamon, cloves and woody spice, with a dry finish.\u00a0Water accentuates the sherry cask influence, bringing out\u00a0the sweet oiliness of treacle, dates and polished leather.
\nFINISH: Spice, Molasses, and Resin.<\/p>\n
\nTASTE: Creamy toffee enhanced by soft oak undertones.\u00a0A long and elegant finish. Approachable, yet\u00a0refined by age.
\nFINISH: Vanilla, Creamy toffee, Soft oak.<\/p>\n