Scarabus launched at music and whisky festival

Scotch whisky distiller, blender and bottler Hunter Laing & Co revealed a new dram in time for this year’s Feis Ile 2019.

Scarabus Specially Selected was unveiled at the weekend, at the Islay Festival of Music and Whisky. The Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky is bottled at 46% ABV and will be available worldwide from mid June. In the UK it has an RRP of £38 (70cl).

The first drams of Scarabus will be poured at a number of tours and tastings throughout the festival at Hunter Laing & Co’s newly opened distillery on the island, Ardnahoe. It will also be available exclusively for purchase there until next month.

Scarabus, meaning ‘rocky place’ in Nordic, is named after a mystical area of Islay and is described as a whisky for those with a curious mind and an eye for detail.

The Scarabus Specially Selected tasting notes read: ‘Aromas of Islay peat smoke and sea salt, followed by warming leather notes, stewed rhubarb and a wonderful vanilla sweetness on the palate, leading to a rich lingering finish.’

The whisky creates a sense of mystery and discovery through the mantra ‘Only those who seek shall find’, with the symbols found on the bottle being intentionally ambiguous.

The look and feel drew inspiration from the work of Islay born John Francis Campbell, who created the sunshine recorder, a device that tallies the hours of sunshine in a day, as well as creating a vast collection of Celtic folklore tales.

Stewart Laing, managing director, said: ‘We’re extremely proud of the Scarabus whisky and the Feis Ile Festival is the perfect place to release the first bottling. We aimed to produce an expression that showcases a traditional Islay whisky style, and the unmistakable Islay smoke matches wonderfully with the rich, sweeter notes that linger on the finish.’

Adding to his father’s comments, Andrew Laing, export director said: ‘Our new brand is mysterious, which we know will create intrigue with the ever-loyal following of Islay whisky fans.’

Scott Laing, business development director, added: ‘Our new release is bottled at 46% and will be available in 70cl, 75cl & 1L in the UK and international markets as well as in selected travel retail and duty free stores. We are very proud of the first release from the Scarabus range.’