Moray Distillery Ltd. Launches First Cask Finish Gin in Speyside

Avva Scottish Gin has launched a limited edition cask finish gin – Avva Cask Finish. It comes third in a line of bottlings from the distillery which will only celebrate its first birthday in October.

Based in the cathedral City of Elgin, the capital of the Speyside region famed for being the centre of Scotch malt whisky, Avva Cask Finish honours the region’s rich whisky heritage by blending the flavours derived from a bourbon cask with its exceptionally balanced London Dry Gin.

Officially launching the exclusive bottling at Spirit of Speyside: Distilled today (Friday 1st September), an exhibition showcasing the whisky, gin, beer and food hailing from the region, founder and Gin Master Jill Brown said, “ I am delighted to launch the Avva Cask Finish. It has been many months in the making –  starting with sourcing the perfect quality cask back in January to distilling and maturing the spirit until the complement of flavours was just right.”

The copper still in which Avva is distilled was handmade right on the doorsteps of the distillery by Speyside Copper Works. It was the first gin still crafted in Scotland to be used for the small batch gin industry – a UK first – and something that Jill is rightly proud of.

“A Scottish still for a Scottish gin was fitting. Avva is based on a strong ethos of history, provenance and family. I wanted it to be everything a small batch craft gin should be. The quality of the spirit and our still Jessie-Jean, named after my grandmothers, plays an important role in that. We do everything ourselves here – each bottle is hand filled and labelled at the distillery.”

Combining Avva’s unique combination of 11 local, native and traditional botanicals, including 5 foraged locally by Jill – rowan, red clover, mint, dandelion and nettle – the spirit was then matured in a bourbon barrel for 6 months to create the Avva Cask Finish. The barrel was hand picked by manager Malcolm Munro from the renowned Speyside Cooperage and had spent a previous life at Heaven Hill, Kentucky.  Described as ‘a wonderful complex of flavours’ with ‘juniper, floral and citrus notes, combined with vanilla and cream drawn from the bourbon cask, and a rich spiced finish’, the limited edition is already receiving rave reviews from gin and whisky enthusiasts alike.

Presented in Avva’s signature apothecary styled bottle, finished with its de-embossed wooden cork, Avva Cask Finish is bottled at 55% abv. The edition is limited to just 200 bottles which are now available to purchase directly from the distillery via its online shop at www.moraydistilleryltd.co.uk. Avva Cask Finish is priced at £50.00 for a 70cl.

Moray Distillery Ltd. was founded in 2015 and is based in the cathedral City of Elgin – the capital of the Speyside region, renowned world-over for being the home of Scotch Malt Whisky.

Avva means “a respected grandmother, a respected mother, or any other elderly woman who commands respect through experience” in the Indian language of Dravidian.