A very good question indeed and one that is handy to know the answer to - independent bottlings or ’indy bottlings’ are terms that often crop up. An independent bottling is whisky made by a distillery but sold under a different brand. Independent bottlers buy whisky casks, bottle them, and offer unique or special editions that often can’t be found from the distillery itself.
ALL ABOUT INDEPENDENT BOTTLINGS
Finishing a creative project can be tough. Adding the last brushstroke to a painting, completing the final mix of a song, or the ultimate dress rehearsal before curtain up, this is where the creator prepares to release their work to the world – there’s to be no more changes before the audience make their judgement.
At Nc’nean, each project takes years to come to fruition. When we’re ready to release our finished whisky, the spirit we distilled three, four or five years earlier is sampled, casks are selected and vatted, and the whisky is carefully packaged ready for shops and bars around the world.
Each whisky we present offers the best of Nc’nean. Our core whisky is bright, fruity and approachable for both seasoned and novice whisky drinkers, while the annual Huntress and Quiet Rebels bottlings are an outlet for our passion for experimentation and exploration.
In each case, it’s the Nc’nean team, led by our Blender Matt, that decides when a whisky is ready for the world. But we’re not the only ones with taste buds and an idea of what kind of whisky the world wants to drink. Sometimes, like a new interpretation of a classic song, it’s good to let someone else run free with your creation.
This is where independent bottlers come in. For most of whisky’s history, distillers would sell their wares to merchants, grocers and blenders rather than selling directly to the consumer. Oftentimes these characters would become more well-known than the distillers, with a reputation built on their ability to select whiskies their customers will come back to again and again – think John Walker, James Buchanan and Gordon & MacPhail. Until the 1960s, it was rare to see a distillery-bottled single malt on the shelf of even the most well-stocked bottle shop. Things today are different, and most consumers looking for single malt will gravitate towards whiskies bottled by the distiller. It seems a safer bet. True, in the bottle you will find the whisky the distillery wants to present, but you could be missing out on a dram which suits your taste perfectly.
For instance, our core whisky is a marriage of bourbon, STR and sherry casks. Deep red fruits from the STR are balanced by the firm oak of the bourbon, with a hint of spice and body from the sherry. But an independent bottler might want to capture our spirit’s white fruit and citrus notes, enhanced but not overwhelmed by maturation in a bourbon barrel, and put that front and centre, or perhaps they’ll hone in on the richness that comes from our STRs and let it shine.
Working with great bottlers like Berry Bros, Whiskysponge, That Boutique-y Whisky Co. and Thompson Bros means we’re always excited to see what they’ll choose from among our casks, to see their interpretation of our spirit.
It’s an opportunity to collaborate and, importantly, learn from others who are just as passionate about whisky as we are but approach it from a different angle, with different goals and a different audience. It’s a chance for you, and us, to see Nc’nean from another perspective.
INDY BOTTLINGS WITH NC'NEAN
The Heart Cut: ex-Madeira cask finish - "classic and refined, with a super juicy fruit taste, a long finish, and a lovely amber hue"
Berry Bros: first fill ex-Bourbon cask "Lucious green fruit aromas" (sold out on BBR but available on some resale sites)
Whiskysponge: "a surprisingly mature and rather lusciously fruity young whisky"
That Boutique-y Whisky Co: first fill ex-Bourbon cask "Vanilla ice cream, zesty limes and a herbal, leafy spring hedgerow note with some freshly cut green oak"
Thompson Bros: blended Scotch with Dornoch distillery - "Nc'noch" (sold out)
Michel Reik: (Germany) "an exceptional flavor profile that ranges from red fruits to herbs and cane sugar"
Little Brown Dog: STR red wine cask "It was the texture that really stood out on this one" (sold out)
Blog written by Roberto Nicchitta, Distillery Operator
