Arran Sauternes Cask

Sauternes casks have appeared repeatedly in Arran's single cask release calendar from the early 2000s through to recent years. The Limited Edition Single Cask Malt programme provides a consistent presentation format for these individual cask releases, with each bottling identifiable by its cask number and batch information. Sauternes wood at Arran reflects the long working relationship the distillery established with French wine cask suppliers during the early experimental period.

Spirit matured at Lochranza in a Sauternes barrique of French oak, with the wine residue derived from the Botrytis cinerea affected dessert wine of the Sauternes commune. Bottled at 55.9% without chill filtration and without added colour, representing the natural strength of the specific cask.

The defining Sauternes signature is the concentrated sugar and aromatic profile left by botrytised wine ageing. Sotolon, the lactone responsible for the curry leaf and aged Sauternes aroma, transfers into the cask wood and subsequently into the whisky. Elevated glycerol from botrytis affected fermentation contributes textural weight, while the polyphenol fraction from the noble rot wine adds drying tannin to the finish. The French oak substrate contributes its own finer grained spice profile underneath.