Glengoyne Highland single malt Scotch whisky has unveiled the first in their exclusive single cask ‘Solstice Series’ comprising two beautiful single cask bottlings inspired by the movement of the sun. 

Glengoyne Summer Solstice came to life following a project true to the distillery’s reputation of being Scotland’s slowest distilled whisky. Over a year in the making, 12 pinhole cameras were installed at Glengoyne Distillery to track the sun’s path through the sky and watch its influence on the maturation of the casks. 

After patiently waiting, the cameras captured imagery of Glengoyne through sun, wind, ice and snow and created beautiful solargraphy to show the path of the sun over Glengoyne, inspiring the creation of the new series.

Launching Glengoyne’s Solstice Series is Glengoyne Summer Solstice, a limited edition expression of only 168 bottles available to purchase, with an ABV of 59%. The bottling is the first to be exclusively available to Glengoyne Family members. 

To create the expression, Single Cask Bourbon Barrel no. 294 was hand-selected by Distillery Manager Robbie Hughes, as he believed the cask perfectly reflected the light and fruity flavours that encapsulate a Scottish summer. The cask, which had been maturing since 2008, delivers a deliciously fruity expression that offers notes of vanilla, strawberry coulis, banana, apricot and white chocolate.

On the nose, the Glengoyne Summer Solstice presents a combination of raspberry, desiccated coconut, white grape, lime, soft oak, Swiss meringue and dark coffee beans. The palette reveals a fruity and syrupy taste before revealing a beautiful finish with notes of toffee and biscuit, paired with refreshing notes of citrus and gooseberry.

Robbie Hughes, Glengoyne Distillery Manager, said:

“I’m so pleased to unveil the first expression in Glengoyne’s Solstice Series, with our Summer Solstice expression. Inspired by a solography project that took place at our distillery over 12 months, the expression celebrates the movement of the sun between the summer solstices, signifying long summer evenings and the journey we’ve travelled from darkness to light. 

“Everything we do at Glengoyne, we do with patience, dedication and the understanding that perfection takes time. We’ve a wonderful community of whisky lovers who appreciate and understand Glengoyne’s unhurried philosophy, so sharing this special release exclusively with our Glengoyne Family members is our way of thanking them.”

Glengoyne’s Solstice Series celebrates both the longest and shortest days of the year and the second expression, Glengoyne Winter Solstice, is set to launch this December. 

Glengoyne Summer Solstice is an exclusive release available only to Glengoyne Family members and will be available to purchase online from 13:19 on the 20th of June, to celebrate when the sun reaches its meridian point - the highest point in the sky.

Glengoyne is part of Ian Macleod Distillers, one of Scotland’s leading independent family-owned distillers. With family at the heart of the brand, Glengoyne invites whisky aficionados who enjoy and celebrate Glengoyne all over the world to become part of the Glengoyne Family. Joining the family allows exclusive first access to rare bottlings, such as the Solstice Series and invitations to unique events. Members of the Glengoyne family can expect exclusive access to the Winter Solstice expression, coming in December. 

Glengoyne Summer Solstice has an RRP of £260 and is available to purchase https://www.glengoyne.com/glengoyne-summer-solstice

For more information on Glengoyne see: www.glengoyne.com. To join Glengoyne’s Family, visit: glengoyne.com/join-our-family