A Scottish distillery has launched a new limited-edition whisky ahead of the return of a famous malts festival this spring.
On Wednesday, the multi-award winning Glen Scotia distillery revealed its 2025 Festival Edition in celebration of the Campbeltown Malts Festival this May. The annual event draws whisky lovers from across the globe to the famous whisky-making town and region.
According to Glen Scotia, the Campbeltown Malts Festival 2025 release is a “charmingly unconventional dram”. The whisky is in keeping with the distillery’s yearly festival bottlings, which are known for their bold and surprising flavours.
The new nine-year-old single malt is heavily peated, with Glen Scotia dedicating only four weeks out of each year to its peated spirit production. Fully matured in first-fill bourbon barrels, the whisky was finished for five months in Ribera del Duero red wine casks from the prestigious wine-making region in Spain.
Glen Scotia states that the process has resulted in strong flavours of ripe red fruits, blackberry, and liquorice that give the whisky a complex character. The distillery’s unique maritime style is also present, with notes of creamy vanilla overlaid with rich peat smoke.
The Campbeltown Malts Festival 2025 Edition also includes an on-pack experience, allowing fans an insight into the distillery and the Campbeltown Malts Festival. By scanning a QR code, drinkers will be able to follow the journey to the ‘Wee Toon’ with three of Scotland’s top travel influencers.
Whisky lovers will have the chance to join either Chris Lawlor, Graeme Johncock, or Barbara Gajewska as they travel the Kintyre peninsula by foot, sea and road. Lawlor was previously voted Scottish Travel Influencer of the Year 2024.
Glen Scotia’s Campbeltown Malts Festival 2025 release is non-chill filtered and bottled at cask strength (54.3 per cent ABV). It is available to purchase online for £64.95 from Royal Mile Whiskies or £68 from Glen Scotia directly.
Glen Scotia master distiller and distillery manager Iain McAlister commented: “This year’s Festival Release promises a unique experience that will transport you straight to Campbeltown with your first sip. As well as delivering the maritime and salinity notes synonymous with Glen Scotia, this whisky also provides an element of surprise as it develops on the palate.
“The finish brings a bold burst of vibrant flavour from the Ribera del Duero red wine casks which is a distinctive pairing with the heavy peat.
“The virtual on-pack experience also offers something really special this year—our remote home on the Kintyre peninsula makes for a wild and beautiful journey that not everyone is able to take. Now people can experience what it’s like to make the spectacular journey to Campbeltown with a selection of Scotland’s top travel content creators.
“There’s no better way to savour a dram of this year’s limited edition single malt than by embarking on an unforgettable journey, whether by road, foot, or sea and we look forward to welcoming Glen Scotia fans who are making this journey to join us at the 2025 Campbeltown Malts Festival.”
The Campbeltown Malts Festival will take place on May 20 and 21, and will celebrate the town’s past as a ‘Victorian Whisky Capital of the World’. Glen Scotia will host a variety of both ticketed and free events that celebrate the region’s history and connection to its distilling past.
Visitors will have the chance to explore the components of the Campbeltown Malts Festival 2025 edition during a deconstructed tasting with Global Brand Ambassador Gary Mills. They will also be able to celebrate a decade of Glen Scotia’s world-famous Victoriana single malt with an in-depth tasting hosted by Master Blender Ashley Smith.
For further information about the Campbeltown Malts Festival 2025 bottling or this year’s festival, visit the Glen Scotia website.