THE EXCEPTIONAL PROFILE SCOTCH WHISKY
The Exceptional series by
Sutcliffe & Son, a subsidiary of US producer Craft Distillers, consists of
three expressions: The Exceptional Blend, The Exceptional Grain and The
Exceptional Malt, of which several editions have been released over the years.
The editions are designed to vary from batch to batch, with no two the same
owing to the variety of whiskies and casks used. Although each is bottled
without an age statement, the constituent whiskies are listed on the back of
each label.
The Exceptional is
produced on a limited basis, never exceeding 3,000 bottles per batch. The brand
is available globally, with its core markets being the US, UK, France, Germany,
Austria, Netherlands and Canada.
Don Sutcliffe, managing
director of Craft Distillers, first discussed collaborating on a whisky project
with Willie Philips – then MD Macallan – in 1987. However it took until 2010
for the duo to start seriously working on turning their dream into reality.
The first release, which
finally came in 2013, was The Exceptional Grain, followed by The Exceptional
Malt in June 2015 and The Exceptional Blend in 2016. It’s rather unusual to
make small-batch blended Scotch with the intention of having variation per
batch, as blending has long been used to keep a product adhering specifically
to a house style. With three
pillars—complex, rich and layered—and a general taste for oak over smoke, The
Exceptional began to blend, marry and finish their whiskies.
The Exceptional Grain
The first iteration of The
Exceptional Grain (43% ABV) made its debut in 2013. Inside was a six-year-old
wheat whisky from Loch Lomond, a 12-year-old corn whisky from North British and
a wheat whisky from Carsebridge whisky, aged 32 years. This last distillery has
been closed for 25 years. Sutcliffe put the blend in first-fill sherry casks
for six months. This inaugural release was highly acclaimed and tasted of
honeyed-wheat and red fruits. Sutcliffe has since produced a second iteration,
and while different, it also captivated many palates.
The Exceptional Malt
The inaugural blend of The
Exceptional Malt (43% ABV), released in 2015, featured eight single malts—many
of which were Highland and Speyside. His second edition was a blend of 11.
There’s 30-year-old Macallan inside of it, and Westport (home of Glenmorangie),
as well. It’s sherry married. Surprisingly, there was a bit of peat there, but
most consumers responded favourably.
The Exceptional Blend
In June 2019, Sutcliffe debuted
The Exceptional Blend. This was essentially 60% The Exceptional Grain, though
the third generation—and 40% of The Exceptional Malt’s second generation, with
some variance. They adjusted the blend to elicit a more specific profile, back
in May 2015. It was also married for six or so months, and the result is the
richest of the three.
Sutcliffe’s desire was not
to simply make another whisky similar to everyone else’s, or even his own.
Instead, he’s evolved a category and put out a series of worthy products that
add value to the industry, rather than adding to the noise.
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