June 6 2022  |  Spirits & Tobacco

Distell cheered by festival-inspired whisky activation

By GTR Magazine Staff

Bunnahabhain’s Islay Festival promotion at Glasgow Airport gives travelers the opportunity to get their picture taken in a space that mirrors the whisky festival

Distell-owned whisky brand Bunnahabhain is bringing Scotland’s Islay Festival, a gathering of whisky fans from across the globe, to Glasgow Airport with two new limited-edition releases and a maritime-themed activation.

The promotion gives travelers the opportunity to taste the whisky and get their picture taken in a space that mirrors the festival.

The Islay Festival, known as Feis Ile, takes place in the last week of May every year and whisky super-fans from all over the world attend events held at all the island’s distilleries.

Visitors can visit the Bunnahabhain distillery to taste whiskies directly from casks.

The brand’s Feis Ile experience at Glasgow Airport showcases two new limited-edition 23yo whisky releases, Feis Ile Abhainn Araig and Feis Ile Calvados Cask.

Available in a 700ml bottle, non-chill filtered and bottled at 50.8%abv, Abhainn Araig takes its name from the Araig River on Islay. The Bunnahabhain spirit has been matured in ex-Pedro Ximenez sherry casks.

The bottling has a velvety rich texture, with notes of chocolate, powdered ginger and cigar box on the nose and dark toffee and spicy cinnamon on the palate.

Bunnahabhain Calvados Cask Finish 1998 whisky

The sweet 1998 Calvados Cask Finish is also available in a 700ml bottle, non-chill filtered and bottled at 49.7%abv. Finished in Calvados brandy casks, this bottle matured for two decades on Bunnahabhain’s shores before spending the last two years in casks that once held fine French Calvados.

Tawny in color, this dram contains notes of barley sugar, pear drops and toffee apples on the nose, and green apples, pear candies and toffee on the palate with a lingering floral finish.

Launched in markets across the globe, only 850 bottles of Abhann Araig are available for travel retail, while 140 bottles of Calvados Cask can be purchased through the channel.

Travelers who buy two Bunnahabhain products at the activation and join the Coterie Club will get a free maritime mug with their purchase.

The Coterie Club is a free to join community of Bunnahabhain fans who receive first access to new releases, updates from the distillery and exclusive offers.

Distell International Head of Europe & Global Travel Retail Luke Maga said: “Feis Ile is a coming together of like-minded, passionate individuals who journey to taste exclusive drams, share in conversation and meet new people from the global whisky community.

“We know not everyone is able to make this pilgrimage, and so these limited-edition whiskies allow us to share Feis Ile with the world. We are also proud of the fact that Bunnahabhain’s distillery, which forms part of the festival’s attractions, is currently on track to become Islay’s first distillery with a net zero emission distillation process.”

Dufry UK’s Liquor Product & Promotions Manager Paul Martin said: “Dufry is proud to debut the Bunnahabhain Feis Ile activation at Glasgow Airport and we look forward to expanding to other sites. It has been an honor to see many travelers stop to participate and engage with the activation and revel at the chance to in some way experience the excitement and culture of Feis Ile.”

REGION International
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