January 24 2025  |  Spirits & Tobacco

Kavalan expands travel retail portfolio with exclusive Lotte Duty Free offerings

By Wendy Morley

Kavalan's Grand Reserve No. 1 and No. 2, exclusive to Lotte Duty Free, feature packaging that showcases Yilan's Snow Mountain range, reflecting both the distillery's water source and the expressions' premium positioning

Taiwanese whisky producer Kavalan is strengthening its position in the Asian travel retail market with two new exclusive expressions for Lotte Duty Free, leveraging its signature Vinho wine cask aging process alongside specialty cask finishes.

The Grand Reserve series, launching January 17, represents Kavalan's first major release of 2025, featuring two distinct expressions that showcase the distillery's barrel-aging and blending capabilities. Both offerings build upon the company's proprietary shave-toast-rechar (STR) technique developed to maximize flavor extraction from wine casks.

Grand Reserve No. 1, bottled at 40% ABV, combines Vinho wine cask-aged whisky with Spanish Amontillado sherry cask maturation. The expression delivers a profile centered on apricot jam, dried berries and caramel cream notes. The deep chestnut-red spirit presents rich aromas of hazelnuts and custard on the palate, with berry jam characteristics carrying through to a spiced finish.

The complementary Grand Reserve No. 2, also at 40% ABV, introduces additional complexity by incorporating Madeira and Portuguese ruby port casks alongside the Vinho wine maturation. This bright auburn expression emphasizes candied fruits and creamy pastry notes, with blackberry and cherry flavors complemented by cardamom, pepper and subtle smoke.

Both releases feature packaging that highlights Yilan's Snow Mountain range, the water source for Kavalan's distillery operations. The mountain imagery reinforces the brand's connection to its geographic origins while appealing to the luxury positioning of these travel retail exclusives.

REGION Asia
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