The Cairn Distillery owned by Gordon & MacPhail is inviting adventurous whisky drinkers to ‘taste the future today’, with its range of blended malts providing the flavours predicted to feature in the distillery’s single malt releases in years to come. One of the expressions – the CRN57° 70-year-old – is the world’s oldest blended malt Scotch whisky.

No date has yet been set for the release of The Cairn’s first single malts, but the CRN57° portfolio of blended malt Scotch whiskies has been crafted by the distillery’s whisky maker, Stuart Urquhart, using stock from Gordon & MacPhail’s unrivalled inventory. The distillery’s location has inspired the name, being 57 degrees north of the equator in the iconic Cairngorms National Park in the Scottish Highlands.

The CRN57° core range allows drinkers to explore flavours 12, 18, 25, 30 and 40 years into the future, with the premium expressions extending this journey to 57 and even 70 years ahead. There is also a non-age statement release: CRN57° Vision – created to align with the vision for the single malts of the future. The clear and simple tasting notes range from ‘tangy chocolate orange and banana’ to ‘toffee and strawberries and cream’. The younger blends have sweet, fruity and nutty notes, while citrus, spice and mint are more prominent in the premium expressions.