Lunar New Year whiskies are everywhere this Year of the Dragon. The Whisky Exchange has now launched its own astrological whisky range: The Zodiac Series. This time, the focus is on star signs, pairing each whisky with a personality.
The Whisky Exchange has unveiled the Zodiac Series, the follow-up to The Seasons Series, the retailer’s first themed collection. Buying Director Dawn Davies and own-label Product Manager Chris Bolton have once again joined forces for this project.
The new series will feature four releases, each containing four whiskies. For these bottlings, Davies and Bolton hand-selected casks and matched their flavor profiles to a personality and star sign.
The first four single cask whiskies have now been released.
What are the first whiskies in The Whisky Exchange Zodiac Series?
Below are the four bottles in the debut release:
- Pisces: a 10-year-old Glenglassaugh
- Aries: a 12-year-old Bunnahabhain Staoisha
- Taurus: a 5-year-old Dailuaine
- Gemini: a 16-year-old Ardmore
Each whisky sports a label designed by Jenna Morse, with illustrations referencing the astrological symbol.
What are the tasting notes for the different whiskies in the Zodiac Series?
The first four whiskies vary widely in distillery and cask maturation. Below are all four bottles with tasting notes from The Whisky Exchange:
Pisces
A single cask matured in a refill sherry butt for a well-judged balance of flavor. Bottled at 55.4% alcohol by volume (ABV).
- Nose: Notes of caramel wafers, vanilla cookies, and baked apples with porridge. Brown sugar with hints of leather and floral tones with stone fruit.
- Palate: Rich and malty with caramel sauce, treacle toffee, cinnamon toast, and speculaas biscuits. Also stewed apples and dark chocolate.
- Finish: Gentle charcoal, dark chocolate, and cinnamon spice, followed by damp leaves.
Aries
This single cask has a touch of smoke and packs a punch. Bottled at 53.7% ABV, with the following tasting notes:
- Nose: Smoked bacon with rye bread, brown sugar, and green leaves. Also grass, wet leaves, roasted hazelnuts, and sweet caramel.
- Palate: Sweet with roasted green apple, pear, and citrus. Then biscuit, shortbread, and thick peat smoke. Tar notes slowly develop alongside mint and licorice.
- Finish: Lingering notes of mint.
Taurus
A 2020 Dailuaine aged 5 years in a first-fill Pedro Ximénez cask. This whisky delivers bold fruit and nutty notes. These are the tasting notes:
- Nose: Toffee and nuts, followed by caramel, green apple, vanilla fudge, and almonds.
- Palate: Burnt toffee, cinnamon sticks, fruitcake, and Eccles cake. Then treacle and fudge with brown sugar, butterscotch, and caramel wafers.
- Finish: Persistent hints of tar, fruitcake, and stewed apples.
Gemini
The fourth and final whisky in The Whisky Exchange Zodiac Series 1 is a 2009 Ardmore. Softly smoky and bottled at 50.4% ABV, it’s smoky yet approachable, with plenty of fruit.
- Nose: Citrus peel, barbecue apples, blossom, and damp grass, followed by biscuit, caramel, and Garibaldi biscuits.
- Palate: Crisp and bright with sugar and citrus, singed grass, and gentle peatiness. Then chocolate, Granny Smith apples, and charcoal.
- Finish: Soot with sweet malt, citrus, and smoke.
Where can you buy the special Zodiac whiskies?
The first four whiskies in The Whisky Exchange Zodiac Collection are available via The Whisky Exchange website. Prices range from £79.95 to £105.
Find more details on the bottlings here.