Tasted: Crabbie Chain Pier Single Malt Whisky Worth a 100 Year Wait?

John Crabbie & Co isn’t a name that many of us associate with single malt whisky, but the release of Chain Pier Single Malt – the first single malt whisky to be distilled in Edinburgh in almost 100 years – is set to take the company back to its roots. 

First established in 1801 by Miller Crabbie, and later taken over by his son John, John Crabbie & Co became most well known for the production of ginger wine. More recently, Crabbie’s alcoholic ginger beer has been the focus, but in a move that has seen the first single malt whisky produced in Edinburgh for almost 100 years, the brand has announced the inaugural release from its Chain Pier Distillery. 

The release is limited with only 234 bottles entering the market from the yield of just 39 casks. The spirit has been distilled on-site using a single 500-litre copper pot still, and matured in heavily charred virgin oak casks, before being bottled at 57% abv. Chain Pier Distillery itself was created as a temporary measure to produce this particular expression while the much larger Bonnington Distillery was under construction. Future batches will be created at the new site, using the new, much larger stills. 

James Stocker, Marketing Director at Halewood Artisanal Spirits who own John Crabbie & Co comments: “The Chain Pier distillery was operational for just a year (between 2018 and 2019), yet it gave our team a great opportunity to continue John Crabbie’s legacy of innovation – handcrafting unique distillations and trialling everything from malt types to custom casks. 

“The launch of the Chain Pier Single Malt is an incredibly exciting step in the John Crabbie & Co journey, as the Malt Whisky that we have crafted from start to finish at a site of our own. The quality of the liquid is really testament to our distilling team and Master Blender Dr Kirstie McCallum, and a great preview of what’s to come from the Crabbie whisky brand.”

Tasting Crabbie Chain Pier Single Malt Whisky

Crabbie says that the Chain Pier Single Malt is light and fruity on the nose with hints of berries, forest fruits and green apples, boasting rich caramel, sweet malt and ginger spice on the palate, rounded off with a long, sweet and spicy finish.

Those forest fruits came through, with more cereal and vanilla than I was expecting. Adding a drop of water brings out sweeter flavours, with a touch of smoke as well, with those virgin oak casks providing a lot of flavours.

In the mouth there’s a definite waxy texture, giving an unexpectedly smooth sensation. The sweet caramel shines through, with the promised malt and singer. There’s also a layer of pepper and chilli, giving the dram a surprisingly complex flavour.

There’s a long finish, the sweetness shining through again as the spiciness fades away.

Despite its youth – it just qualifies as a whisky, being three years old – there’s no burn from the high alcohol content, and the rough edges you find on some other young drams are happily missing. This is a bold drink, with a depth that you wouldn’t expect, but there’s nothing overpowering. It’s been judged beautifully and bodes well for the future of Edinburgh’s revived single malts.

What: Crabbie Chain Pier Lowland Single Malt
Where: Specialist whisky stores including The Drop Store
How much: £65

Sam Huff
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