February Whiskies of the Month - The Six Nations
For February Whiskies of the Month, we’ve drawn inspiration from the Six Nations Rugby Championship. Played across late winter, the tournament sees Scotland compete against England, Wales, Ireland, Italy, and France.
To celebrate the tournament, we’ve selected a line‑up of whiskies, each with a unique connection to one of the six competing nations, perfect for enjoying alongside the action.
Lowland – Auchentoshan American Oak (Ireland)
Our Lowland entry for this month, is Auchentoshan American Oak. Auchentoshan was built in 1823 near Clydebank, a small town west of Glasgow. The distillery is unique in Scotland as it practises triple distillation, which is more commonly associated with whiskey made in Ireland. Passing the spirit through the stills that extra time, allows for more reflux, leading to a much lighter style of spirit. Although uncommon in Scotland, a couple of distilleries have experimented with triple-distilled expressions. Auchentoshan, however, is the only distillery currently open to have continuously released triple-distilled spirit over the last 20 years.
Highland – Glencadam Andalucia (Wales)
Representing the Highlands, is Glencadam which was established in 1825 in the town of Brechin. This distillery was one of the first to have a Porteus mill installed. Porteus mills became wildly popular with whisky makers all over the country in the late 1800s and early 1900s, as they were so well made that they rarely broke down. However, they eventually became victims of their own success. The mills were so expertly made that they lasted for decades, and the company went out of business as demand fell. Nowadays, many distilleries still have their original Porteus mills in operation.
What is fascinating is that there is only one man in the whole of the UK who is licensed to repair these engineering marvels: Ronnie Lee, who hails from Wales. Without him, the whole Scotch industry could potentially grind to a halt.
Speyside – Glen Grant 12 (Italy)
From Speyside, The Glen Grant 12 takes the spotlight. This distillery was opened in 1840 by brothers, John and James Grant in the town of Rothes. This distillery’s link to the Six Nations comes through the story of Armando Giovinetti, an Italian businessman. In 1961, Douglas Mackessack, a descendant of the Grant brothers who founded the distillery, met Giovinetti while he was visiting Speyside. Armando was aiming to import more single malts into the Italian market, which at the time was dominated by blends.
Luckily for Glen Grant and Mackessack, Glen Grant was Giovinetti’s Scotch of choice. Armando bought several crates of the spirit to export back home and, as a result, Glen Grant quickly became by far the biggest-selling single malt in Italy.
Islay – Lagavulin 8 (England)
Our Islay whisky of the month is Lagavulin 8. Lagavulin is one of the three world-famous Kildalton malts located on the southern coast of Islay, near Port Ellen. Lagavulin was also one of the distilleries visited by renowned whisky writer, Alfred Barnard. In just two years, between 1885 and 1887, Barnard visited 162 distilleries: 129 in Scotland, 29 in Ireland, and four in England. The result was his 500-page book, The Whisky Distilleries of the United Kingdom, which covered in-depth technical information on distilleries, along with sketches and engravings.
Barnard was said to be particularly fond of a Lagavulin eight-year-old at the time, which he described as being “exceptionally fine”. An eight-year-old had not been part of Lagavulin’s range for a considerable time until 2016, when the bottle was re-released to celebrate the distillery’s 200th anniversary. It pays homage to the whisky writer from England on its label.
Blend - Antiquary 15 (France)
Our blend selection is the Antiquary 15, a luxury blend released by the Tomatin Distillery. This edition combines grain whisky from the Lowlands with malt whisky from Speyside and the Highlands, before being married together in red wine claret casks from the Bordeaux region of France.
Luxury - Hirundine (Scotland)
Completing February’s line up is the Hirundine, an independently bottled Speyside single malt from Scotland rugby stars, Duhan van der Merwe and Pierre Schoeman. This whisky is named after the elegant Hirundine swallow, a bird whose migration between South Africa and the UK embodies resilience and discovery. Just as the Hirundine journeys across continents and seasons, the whisky reflects a spirit shaped by exploration and the quest for excellence.
Visit us
As the Six Nations kicks off, it’s time to get ready to cheer your team on! Scotland fans can look forward to two home fixtures at Scottish Gas Murrayfield this year: Scotland vs England on Saturday 14 February and Scotland vs France on Saturday 7 March. If you’re in Edinburgh, come and enjoy this month’s featured whiskies in our Amber Bar - or make a real day of it by booking one of our guided tours to discover the whole story of Scotch!