Balvenie 21 Year Old - The Second Red Rose Whisky

A 2021 release in the Balvenie Stories series, The Second Red Rose harks back to a release from the distillery's history. The Balvenie Rose was finished in a Port pipes, resulting in a hue that was befitting of its name (which itself was an homage to what Margaret Douglas paid King James II as rent for staying in Balvenie Castle – a single red rose). For The Second Red Rose, the 21 year old single malt you see here, Balvenie's malt master David C. Stewart chose to finish the expression in Australian Shiraz casks, imparting a whole host of ripe fruit notes, touches of blackberry and peach, a helping of rich oak, and of course, a rosy hue.