Amathus unveils fast-aged Bourbon brand

UK-based distributor Amathus Drinks has launched a new Bourbon brand that uses an innovative technique to speed up maturation.

Whiskey Thief has been aged in a barrel with additional oak inserts to speed up its maturation

Whiskey Thief has been distilled at Indiana-based MGP Ingredients and matured in new oak American barrels that contain additional oak inserts to increase the whiskey’s contact with wood.

According to Amathus, it took creators two years and “dozens of experiments” to create the final taste profile of the whiskey, of which only 80 barrels have been initially created.

The “contemporary” brand is said to fuse “whiskey-making tradition with innovation”, featuring a mask-style label, modern typography and bold colour scheme.

“Whiskey Thief is very much the antithesis to most Bourbon brands that follow a well-trodden design path and apply similarly traditional themes, names and motifs,” the brand said. “Everything about Whiskey Thief reflects the ethos and independent spirit of its UK-based creators.”

Each 70cl bottle of Whiskey Thief carries an RRP of £25. Amathus Drinks will distribute the brand on an exclusive basis throughout the UK.

In August last year, Silicon Valley-based Lost Spirits Technology patented a new “ageing reactor” that it claimed could replicate the taste profile of 20-year-old rum at a commercial level.