The Whisky Exchange has dropped three new exclusive bottlings to mark the start of 2026, spanning Scotch whisky, American bourbon and Jamaican rum.
The limited collection comprises an experimental single-cask Torabhaig from the Isle of Skye, a punchy single-barrel bourbon from Bardstown Bourbon Company, and a sherry-cask-aged Hampden Estate rum that leans fully into the distillery’s famously characterful style.
Each is bottled at high strength, ideal for slow, winter-warming sips…
While Hampden is best known for its exuberant, high-ester Jamaican rums, sherry cask maturation is a relatively recent avenue of exploration for the distillery.
This single pot-still rum, bottled at 64.6% ABV, was aged in a sherry cask from Bodegas Fundador, secured specifically for the retailer. The influence of the cask is an intriguing counterpoint to Hampden’s unmistakable house style, layering dried fruit richness over a base of tropical fruit, sugarcane grassiness and that unmistakable Jamaican funk.
The most overtly experimental of this trio is the Torabhaig 2018 Scottish Oak Single Cask, limited to just 251 bottles, at 58.7% ABV. Distilled at Torabhaig, Skye’s second licensed distillery, the whisky was finished for 16 months in a rare Scottish oak cask.
Scottish oak is rarely used in whisky making, largely because it’s difficult to work with. Unlike the tall, straight American oak favoured for bourbon, Scottish oak tends to be shorter, knotty and irregular. That challenge is part of the appeal here, adding a further layer of local identity to a distillery already rooted firmly in its island home.
The result is a peated whisky with well-integrated smoke, complemented by baked apples and the suggestion of well-worn leather.
From Scotland to Kentucky, the Bardstown Bourbon Co 8 Year Old Single Barrel is bottled at a formidable 64.6% ABV, with just 144 available.
On the palate, winter flavours take centre stage – brown sugar, stewed fruit and a thread of spicy, herbal rye. Underpinning that flavour is a mashbill of 78 per cent corn, 10 per cent rye and 12 per cent malted barley, sour mashed and fermented for three days in open-top fermenters. Distillation took place in a 36-inch column still with a doubler, before the spirit was filled into a single 53-gallon new American white oak cask with a #3 char.
“It’s perhaps the best whiskey we’ve tasted from Bardstown to-date,” enthuses The Whisky Exchange.
All three bottlings are available exclusively from The Whisky Exchange, both online and in-store, while stocks last.
Just in time for Burns Night, Orkney-based Highland Park has announced a limited-edition cask strength single malt whisky. The new release, Cask Strength: Heather, is made using 100 per cent Orkney peat-smoked barley, with peat sourced responsibly from Hobbister Moor, just a few miles from the distillery. Given Orkney’s northern latitude, trees struggle to grow,…
January may feel long and grey, but one undoubted bright spot is Burns Night, the annual celebration held on January 25, marking the birthday of Scotland’s national poet, Robert Burns. For whisky lovers, it’s one of the most convivial fixtures of the year: a night where poetry, food and Scotland’s greatest export meet in cheerful,…
Sumo fans visiting Tokyo have a new attraction to add to their itinerary. Opening January 7 is a 150-seat show restaurant that brings together Japan’s national sport, sumo, and traditional kaiseki cuisine. The Sumo Live restaurant, located in Ginza, features a full-size sumo-ring stage, where wrestlers will perform demonstration bouts for diners. The opening follows…
The Luxe Review 
The Whisky Exchange has dropped three new exclusive bottlings to mark the start of 2026, spanning Scotch whisky, American bourbon and Jamaican rum.
The limited collection comprises an experimental single-cask Torabhaig from the Isle of Skye, a punchy single-barrel bourbon from Bardstown Bourbon Company, and a sherry-cask-aged Hampden Estate rum that leans fully into the distillery’s famously characterful style.
Each is bottled at high strength, ideal for slow, winter-warming sips…
Hampden Estate HLCF 2023 Sherry Cask, £150
While Hampden is best known for its exuberant, high-ester Jamaican rums, sherry cask maturation is a relatively recent avenue of exploration for the distillery.
This single pot-still rum, bottled at 64.6% ABV, was aged in a sherry cask from Bodegas Fundador, secured specifically for the retailer. The influence of the cask is an intriguing counterpoint to Hampden’s unmistakable house style, layering dried fruit richness over a base of tropical fruit, sugarcane grassiness and that unmistakable Jamaican funk.
Torabhaig 2018 Scottish Oak Single Cask, £99.95
The most overtly experimental of this trio is the Torabhaig 2018 Scottish Oak Single Cask, limited to just 251 bottles, at 58.7% ABV. Distilled at Torabhaig, Skye’s second licensed distillery, the whisky was finished for 16 months in a rare Scottish oak cask.
Scottish oak is rarely used in whisky making, largely because it’s difficult to work with. Unlike the tall, straight American oak favoured for bourbon, Scottish oak tends to be shorter, knotty and irregular. That challenge is part of the appeal here, adding a further layer of local identity to a distillery already rooted firmly in its island home.
The result is a peated whisky with well-integrated smoke, complemented by baked apples and the suggestion of well-worn leather.
Bardstown Bourbon Co 8 Year Old Single Barrel, £125
From Scotland to Kentucky, the Bardstown Bourbon Co 8 Year Old Single Barrel is bottled at a formidable 64.6% ABV, with just 144 available.
On the palate, winter flavours take centre stage – brown sugar, stewed fruit and a thread of spicy, herbal rye. Underpinning that flavour is a mashbill of 78 per cent corn, 10 per cent rye and 12 per cent malted barley, sour mashed and fermented for three days in open-top fermenters. Distillation took place in a 36-inch column still with a doubler, before the spirit was filled into a single 53-gallon new American white oak cask with a #3 char.
“It’s perhaps the best whiskey we’ve tasted from Bardstown to-date,” enthuses The Whisky Exchange.
All three bottlings are available exclusively from The Whisky Exchange, both online and in-store, while stocks last.
New Cask Strength Highland Park whisky puts Orkney heather front and centre
Just in time for Burns Night, Orkney-based Highland Park has announced a limited-edition cask strength single malt whisky. The new release, Cask Strength: Heather, is made using 100 per cent Orkney peat-smoked barley, with peat sourced responsibly from Hobbister Moor, just a few miles from the distillery. Given Orkney’s northern latitude, trees struggle to grow,…
Toasting the Bard: Where to eat, drink and celebrate Burns Night 2026
January may feel long and grey, but one undoubted bright spot is Burns Night, the annual celebration held on January 25, marking the birthday of Scotland’s national poet, Robert Burns. For whisky lovers, it’s one of the most convivial fixtures of the year: a night where poetry, food and Scotland’s greatest export meet in cheerful,…
Live Sumo meets classic Japanese cuisine at new Tokyo show restaurant
Sumo fans visiting Tokyo have a new attraction to add to their itinerary. Opening January 7 is a 150-seat show restaurant that brings together Japan’s national sport, sumo, and traditional kaiseki cuisine. The Sumo Live restaurant, located in Ginza, features a full-size sumo-ring stage, where wrestlers will perform demonstration bouts for diners. The opening follows…
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