We are also offering you the chance to discover a very old rye whiskey from Canada — a category that remains largely unknown despite its history dating back to the early 19th century. Moreover, some of the first whiskeys sold by La Maison du Whisky in the 1950s were Canadian whiskeys. So being able to off er this 22 Year Old is for us a real return to our roots.

The range is inspired by a literary universe that aims to act as a counterpart to the Artist range’s very visual approach. The labels echo the covers of the great literary classics and each single cask is named after a key work from its country of origin.

Thus the Irish whiskeys pay tribute to the novels of Ireland’s most famous poet, Oscar Wilde, and the Canadian whiskeys make reference to the novel Son of a Smaller Hero, by Anglo-Canadian author Mordecai Richler. We contacted both authors’ descendants before launching the project and are deeply grateful to them for taking so well to the idea of their ancestors’ work being featured on the bottles in this new collection.

And we have travelled to Tennessee to visit the distillery on many occasions, a truly incredible experience for any bourbon lover. In 2016, to celebrate our 60th anniversary and the release of our On The Road catalogue, we selected ten barrels of Jack Daniels bottled at 47%.

This year, the distillery has offered us fifteen barrels spread equally across three different styles: Sweet Forward, Flavorful & Balanced, and Full-Bodied & Robust. Additionally, in an extremely rare move, Jack Daniel’s has agreed to bottle all these expressions at 64.5%, almost at cask strength, specially for La Maison du Whisky. Whisky lovers, take note!

Leaving nothing to chance, Ichiro also built his own cooperage just a few meters from the distillery and an additional warehouse. Incidentally, it is in this warehouse that Ichiro stocked hundreds of barrels of Karuizawa — another whisky imported by La Maison du Whisky — after the distillery was dismantled in 2012.

Finally, Ichiro surrounded himself with young enthusiasts who saw Chichibu as the next generation of Japanese whisky. In 2008, the distillery began to release its new-make spirit, which was still too young to legally be called “whisky” but had already caught the eye of many aficionados. It was during this period that we discovered the brand at La Maison du Whisky. Chichibu’s reputation has remained strong ever since and Ichiro Akuto is now considered one of the greatest distillers of his generation. He was notably behind the Paris Edition, which we have featured again for the fourth year running. Finally, for our 65th anniversary, we have had the privilege of selecting four casks whose labels pay tribute to the four elements used to produce whisky: fire, water, earth and wood.

For five years, La Maison du Whisky primarily sold limited editions from Shinshu dubbed Komagatake. In 2016, a second distillery opened in Tsunuki, in the very south of Japan, in Kagoshima Prefecture, a region also renowned for its shochu. Right from the start, a young Tatsuro Kusan was put in charge of this new production line. The very inventive Kusan has continually experimented with new methods, boosted by the incredible opportunities for innovation offered by Mars, which has access to three different locations for ageing spirits in three different regions of Japan. We have been lucky enough to be able to select three single casks of Tsunuki, aged respectively at Tsunuki, Shinshu and on the island of Yakushima. A first for this young distillery!

To aid the endeavour, he recruited Dr Jim Swan, a Scottish consultant and leading whisky expert who had helped many other distilleries set up and optimize their production facilities (including Kilchoman, Penderyn, Warenghem, Cotswolds and Milk & Honey.). It was Jim Swan who perfected the methods for maturation in a tropical climate. He also trained Master Distiller Ian Chang on selecting highquality casks—sherry, of course, as well as wine, bourbon and port casks. In just three years, Kavalan’s bet had paid off and it was producing rich, amber-coloured, sherry cask whisky that was a huge hit with the Taiwanese public.

It would not be until 2012 that these arrived in Europe. After receiving a few bottles by plane, La Maison du Whisky organized a blind tasting at the chocolate maker Jacques Genin and told participants they were tasting a scotch that had been aged for more than 50 years. The intensity of the Taiwanese sherry cask after just fi ve years’ maturation was enough that no-one questioned the assertion at all! In 2013, we launched Kavalan in Europe and in just eight years it has become the most decorated malt in the world.

The sherry cask we have selected this year is one of the oldest still available from the distillery and was distilled in 2008. It is accompanied by a Port Cask 2011, a Virgin Oak 2009— one of the distillery’s specialities—and a Peated Malt 2015. Four single casks that reflect the different aspects of a distillery that is unique in more than one respect.

The only distillery to use a Faraday still (a combination of a pot and column still), it produces a very fruity spirit immediately identifiable on the first nose. Although Wales is perhaps best known in France for its rugby team, its whisky has garnered a name for itself among a growing number of enthusiasts. La Maison du Whisky has distributed Penderyn in France since 2004 and it is now the brand’s leading market outside the UK. In 2021, to meet growing local and international demand, Penderyn opened a second distillery. The single cask selected for our 65th anniversary is a malt distilled in 2012 and aged for nine years in an Amontillado cask.

Geographically and culturally close to the United Kingdom, Brittany is the natural birthplace of French whisky and has a strong Celtic influence. In Plomelin, in 2002, former maths teach and informed whisky lover Guy Le Lay launched Eddu (Breton for “buckwheat”), the first whisky produced from buckwheat in a fitting tribute to the Breton terroir. La Maison du Whisky has supported Eddu in its journey since 2002 and Armorik since 2009.

For our anniversary catalogue, both distilleries offered us access to some of their oldest casks: a 12 Year Old 2009 Sherry Cask from Armorik and a 17 Year Old 2004 100% Buckwheat Cognac Cask from Eddu.

Glann Ar Mor was the third distillery to be created in Brittany, founded in 2005 in Pleubian, in the Côtes-d’Armor region by Jean Donnay, owner of the Celtic Whisky Company. It produces an unpeated single malt named after the distillery as well as a peated whisky named Kornog (Breton for “westerly wind”) and a rye whisky name Only Rye. Its warehouses are less than 200 metres from the sea, giving its expressions a slightly salty feel. In 2020, Glann Ar Mor was bought by Maison Villevert, who renamed it Celtic Whisky Distillerie. In spring 2021, they launched Gwalarn, the first Celtic blend, which uses Kornog as its base malt and is designed to appeal to new markets.

The recent partnership between La Maison du Whisky and the distillery’s new owners enables us to offer the first official single cask from Glann Ar Mor distilled in 2014 and bottled at cask strength.

For our Creation Catalogue, six single casks have been added to the range. Some are even from distilleries that produced only a handful of casks, further adding to their appeal. The Dauphiné brewery in Saint-Martin-d’Hères, for exa – mple, produced only two casks of whisky under the Man – drin name before moving into cask finishes and then closing the business. It is the second and last cask of Man – drin that joins Version Française this year. Other exclu – sives have also been added to the collection, including a single malt from La Mine d’Or, a Breton whisky produced in partnership with the Lancelot brewery, and an Aikan, whose casks are matured in the tropical climate of Marti – nique. For sourcing and selection, La Maison du Whisky re – lies on a team of enthusiasts, including Matthieu Acar, a re – nowned French whisky expert and founder and manager of one of the leading websites in the field (whisky-francais. com). As the range’s main aim is to promote exceptional French spirits, this year Version Française has also added a new category: Armagnac (cf page 131-132).