Strathearn Distillery is one of the smallest distilleries in Scotland, located in Perthshire in the Highlands. The name comes from the Scottish Gaelic word strath meaning ‘wide valley’ and the local river Earn – the Strath of the River Earn.
The distillery’s slogan ‘From Small Acorns, Great Oaks Grow’ is a nod to their quality-over-quantity approach. Strathearn Distillery will always produce at small volumes with the focus on maximising flavours and the quality of the single malt. Every drop of their single malt is hand-crafted. This is also captured in their unique acorn bottle design.
The distillery has been in Douglas Laing’s ownership since 2019, and it brought out their first single malt whisky in April 2024. They have now released their second batch (see below for my tasting notes).
Production
Strathearn Distillery is one of the very few distilleries to use Maris Otter malt, the ‘Rolls Royce’ of heritage barley varieties. The two-row variety is better known in beer making than in distilling and is commonly used for IPAs, stouts, porters and pale ales. Maris Otter is a sweeter-style malt with notes of baked bread, butter biscuit and soft toffee, flavours also found in Strathearn whiskies. The malt contributes to a smooth, velvety texture.
For the mashing, the distillery uses a 400kg copper-clad mash tun. Sixteen bags (25kg each) of malted barley are used for each mash. The yeast is Pinnacle MG+, which helps to create a lighter, fruitier new make. Fermentation takes place over 144 hours to allow the raw ingredients more time to work their magic. The distillery has three Hoga pot stills from Portugal, two 1000 litre wash stills and one 1000 litre spirit still.
The three-person production team are said to only use their senses and analogue monitors to analyse all parts of the process and to determine when they are ready for the next stage of production. For example, the cut points are decided by taste, not by the strength of the alcohol. Each production shift only makes enough to fill a single cask. It really is a small-batch distiller.
Strathearn spirit is matured in a selection of ex-bourbon, ex-sherry and virgin oak casks. The single malt is bottled at 50% ABV for maximum flavour. When it comes to the classic Highland style, Strathearn whisky doesn’t fit the mould. Their single malts are buttery and malty with notes of spice and dried fruits, making me think more of a Lowland-style than the Highlands. No caramel colouring or other artificial ingredients are used in production.
Strathearn Single Malt
Strathearn Batch 02 single malt release sees the same three-cask composition – ex-bourbon, virgin oak and ex-sherry – being used. This time, however, the emphasis is more on ex-bourbon, with the amount of virgin oak lowered to create a creamier, fresher and overall rounder whisky compared to Batch 01. This release is a marriage of 31 casks from both inherited stock and casks filled under Douglas Laing’s ownership. Strathearn Batch 02 demonstrates the distillery’s journey and highlights how they are crafting their spirit character.
My tasting notes:
Nose: Citrus peel (orange, lemon), wine gums, malty biscuit, prunes, sekametelisoppa (Finnish sweet dish made with dried fruits, sugar and cinnamon, often added on top of porridge), subtle toffee, tart berry like rowanberry, sea buckthorn or similar. Water added nutty coffee cake aromas
Palate: A bit of spice, warming ginger, mellow caramel, waffle, dried blueberries, cloudberry, denim jacket, outdoorsy/forest green notes
Finish: Oaky spices, nutty crumbs
Overall, I recommend giving it some time in the glass to allow the aromas and flavours to open. I also found that a couple of drops of water added balance to the palate and the nose became slightly sweeter. This is a light and mellow whisky, although that doesn’t mean it lacks flavour. I found Batch 02 offers more than the previous one, so perhaps the change in cask composition really has improved the balance.
It will be interesting to see how the flavours evolve over the years, especially once they run out of the old stock (no idea how much they have left or which cask types, ages, etc.) and will be solely relying on the new whisky.
Have you tried Strathearn whisky yet? What did you think?
I would love to hear what kind of berry notes everyone else is getting as there was some fruity freshness but not your usual berries.
Disclaimer: This blog has been created in collaboration with Douglas Laing. Some of the links used are affiliate links. If you buy through the links, I may receive a commission for the sale. This has no effect on the price for you.
