It seems quite a few new independent bottlers have appeared in the past year or so. One8Nine is one of them. Founded in 2024 but the names behind the project may ring a bell. James Woodhead was responsible for a few Asian projects, like organising the complete Ichiro’s Malt Card series auction.
So far One8Nine has bottled a Benriach 1997, Macallan 1988 and this 38 year old Blair Athol 1986. Small outturns, high age, no funny cask types… it seems they’re heading towards the premium segment, with a concept similar to Halcyon Spirits for instance. This highly curated way of bottling, with merely a handful of releases each year, is a fairly new development in the whisky scene.
Blair Athol 38 yo 1986 (51,5%, One8Nine ‘The Eternal Cycle’ 2025, first-fill Oloroso sherry hogshead #20078, 122 btl.)
Nose: gorgeous and totally immersive sherry. Beautiful polished furniture and library aromas, a lot of juicy raspberry jam, prunes in armagnac and soaked raisins. Sour berries, orange oils and some dried herbs in the background. Then also brown sugar, cedarwood and hints of cigar leaves, along with a faint earthy / meaty note and drops of coffee. Highly aromatic, it’s the kind of whisky that jumps out of your glass.
Mouth: more tobacco leaves and herbal notes up front, against a backdrop of black pepper and chocolate. Cherry Coke and blackberry jam. Mid-palate a brighter wave appears, a mix of orange peels and pink grapefruit, which mingles with bitter wood, cloves and some floral notes that give it an almost perfumed edge. It’s the kind of resinous oak that is bordering Parma violets, which you probably love or hate.
Finish: long, on dark chocolate with mint filling, more resinous notes, walnuts and red berries.
Adelphi and Ian Maclead bottled sister casks of this Blair Athol many years ago, and they already had this floral / fragrant side. Now this one adds at least a decade of glorious first-fill sherry influence, taking away most of the complaints. A tiny flaw in an otherwise lovely whisky. Available from Hedonism Wines or Master of Malt among other retailers.