Gleneagles Hotel releases whisky range

Scottish hotel Gleneagles has unveiled a single malt whisky collection called Pursuits, inspired by four countryside activities offered at the estate.

The hotel, located in the Ochil Hills in Perthshire, has sourced ‘exceptional’ casks from four whisky distilleries in Scotland. Each whisky is unique and limited to one cask per expression.

The launch is in anticipation of the hotel’s centenary, which it will celebrate this year.

Daniel Baernreuther, Gleneagles general manager, said: “Our highly anticipated exclusive collection of hand-picked whiskies are all from distinguished Scotch whisky distilleries. The range is a true celebration of single malt whisky and the exceptional experiences Gleneagles has to offer.”

The four activities represented in the Pursuits range are fishing, falconry, shooting and horse riding.

The Fishing bottling is from the Royal Brackla Distillery in the Highlands, and was matured in a single hogshead cask for 11 years. The spirit is said to offer a creamy texture, with hazelnuts and almonds balanced against delicate crème caramel, with a touch of lemon oil.

The finish offers a hint of white pepper along with chilli spice, which plays against the citrus oil and cereal notes.

Caol Ila is the source distillery of the Falconry expression. The whisky was matured in a single hogshead for 14 years. It is described as a dense whisky, rich with flavours of black pepper studded salami and rich smoked Gruyère, while lime citrus plays against dark chocolate. Notes of black pepper, charcuterie and lime zest linger on the finish.

Shooting is the most limited whisky of the range, with only 191 numbered bottles available. This single malt was made at the Imperial Distillery in Speyside, which is no longer in operation.

Matured in a single barrel for 26 years, tasting notes include red berries with freshly cut mint leaves, combined with oily citrus and vanilla. Delicate vanilla and light ginger with hints of eucalyptus and white chocolate can be detected on the finish.

The final expression, Horse Riding, is from the Tobermory Distillery on the island of Mull. It was matured in a single hogshead for 27 years.

The single malt is said to be ‘wonderfully full’, and is described as having flavours of salted butter and clear runny honey ‘spread liberally over toasted rye bread’, with a hint of almonds.

Each limited edition whisky has been individually hand-engraved and numbered, and all four expressions were bottled in December 2022.

The Pursuits range will be displayed and available to purchase at the hotel’s Still Room, which is home to a collection of more than 200 whisky bottles.

The full Pursuits collection of four bottles is available to purchase for RRP £1,200 (US$1,491).