Annandale Distillery is set to release two 10-year-old age statement whiskies on March 27, marking a historic milestone for the independent Scottish producer. The limited releases feature both peated and unpeated expressions matured in fresh ex-bourbon casks.
Located near the Scottish-English border in Dumfries and Galloway, Annandale Distillery was painstakingly restored and revived in 2014 by Professor David Thomson and Teresa Church after decades of silence.
The new releases include Annandale Man O’Words 10 Year Old Fresh Ex-Bourbon Cask #125 (unpeated) and Annandale Man O’Sword 10 Year Old Fresh Ex-Bourbon Cask #69 (peated). Both whiskies are bottled at cask strength with no chill filtration.
Historic Legacy Meets Modern Expertise
Annandale’s revival combines historical significance with modern whisky-making expertise. The distillery enlisted the late Dr. Jim Swan to design its production setup, incorporating twin copper spirit stills to maximize copper contact and enhance the spirit’s fruity characteristics.
“Our primary motivation when restoring Annandale Distillery was to reintroduce the tradition of single malt scotch whisky to the south of Scotland,” said Professor David Thomson, co-founder of Annandale Distillery. “The ambition became to not only revive the distillery but to elevate it beyond its former glory, producing world-class single cask, single malt scotch whiskies.”
The distinctive names of the whiskies honor two regional icons. Man O’Sword pays tribute to King Robert the Bruce, the 7th Lord of Annandale, while Man O’Words celebrates poet Robert Burns, who lived in nearby Dumfries.
Annandale’s Single Cask Philosophy
Annandale follows a single cask philosophy, with each barrel individually evaluated by hand and nose before being released when deemed ready.
Both 10-year-old expressions were matured in first-fill ex-bourbon casks from Buffalo Trace Distillery. The Man O’Words (58.8% ABV) offers notes of stewed apple, pears, apricot, coconut, creamy vanilla and toffee. The peated Man O’Sword (57.9% ABV) delivers subtle woodsmoke opening to Granny Smith apple, vanilla, cream soda, wood spice, and toffee notes.
The Man O’Sword name pays tribute to King Robert the Bruce, who served as the 7th Lord of Annandale. Visitors to Annan can see a statue of the legendary Scottish monarch in the town center, depicted holding a sword in his right hand and the Declaration of Arbroath in his left.
The companion expression, Man O’Words – cleverly formed as an anagram of Man O’Sword – honors Scotland’s national poet Robert Burns. The famous bard lived in nearby Dumfries from 1788 until his death and was known to frequent The Globe Inn, which he affectionately referred to as his “favourite howff”.
Each release is limited by nature, with 234 bottles available of the Man O’Words expression and 224 bottles of Man O’Sword. Both are priced at £110.
The distillery plans to continue releasing 10-year-old age statement whiskies alongside other aged expressions, though timing will depend entirely on when individual casks reach their peak flavor profiles.
“Ten years into our journey, we are incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved,” Thomson added. “Some may call single cask, single malt the simplest way of making whisky but, for us, it is the most honest. And that’s exactly how we like it.”
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