What’s a celebration without some spirits? Royal Salute’s latest offering serves up the perfect crowning moment for a Platinum Jubilee
The year was 1953 and Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation, held 16 months after the passing of her father King George VI, was the main event of the year. At the Coronation State Banquet, guests were served a delicious menu that included Délices de Soles Prince Charles (poached sole), Carré d’Agneau à la Windsor (rack of lamb) and the queen’s favourite dessert, the Bôite de Fraises Reine Elizabeth (strawberry jelly on a sablé biscuit).
Accompanying this delectable dinner was a rigorous selection of wines—Château Lafite 1934 and Château Yquem 1928, among others—and ports. Of particular note was a royal tawny port that inspired Royal Salute’s latest offering, the Platinum Jubilee Edition. This unassuming entry on the menu was the Promethean spark for Sandy Hyslop, Royal Salute’s director of blending and inventory, who was immediately drawn to its rich, fruity flavour. “I saw tawny port and I was like, we’re going to do that. We’ve never finished whisky in tawny port before, so it’s a first,” he shares.
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The creation process of the Platinum Jubilee Edition whisky started almost four years ago, Hyslop says. From looking at the different spirit stocks the company had at the time to mix together for the all‑important blend (he eventually settled on high‑aged whiskies from more than seven silent stills), to getting the right port casks (tasting and then shipping the freshly emptied casks to Scotland within 48 hours), and sampling the product every eight weeks for the two years and 10 months it took to finish the whisky, it was a veritable labour of love to create.
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The result? A deliciously dark elixir boasting gorgeous fruity notes on the nose, a sweet, caramel palate and a spicy finish that lingers long after your first sip. “I wanted it to be sweet, I wanted it to be syrupy, I wanted it to have a viscous character. And that’s what the port casks brought,” Hyslop says. “They brought a real sweet jamminess to the whisky. You get that sweet, fruity, orchard fruit distillery character, but with a texture that I thought was amazing.”