The Whisky

Crabbie & Cree

The Crabbie and Cree families have long been intertwined. James Cree was a Scottish whisky maker and entrepreneur who married the legendary independent whisky bottler John Crabbie’s eldest daughter Agnes in 1853. James was the son of William Cree who, together with John Crabbie, bought a wine and spirits business from James Wyld in 1836 which became ‘Crabbie & Cree’, the precursor to ‘John Crabbie & Co.’

Crabbie & Cree is a premium blended Scotch whisky that can be served neat and works fantastically in a highball with ginger ale or soda.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Light, sweet, and delicate, icing sugar, pick and mix, a little red fruit, sugared berries

Palate: Sweet, fresh and delicious, lots of sugar, everything on the nose is on the palate

Finish: Mid-finish, with floral notes of crushed petals

Johnny Cree

Grandson to Scottish whisky maker and entrepreneur John Crabbie, whisky runs deep in the story of Johnny Cree.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Rich aromas of honey and caramel

Palate: Sweet, ripe red fruits, oak, and spice

Finish: A long finish, with oak and tannins, and gentle floral flavours

John Crabbie

John Crabbie & Co. have been purveyors of wine and spirits since 1801. An absolute pioneer in his field, John Crabbie’s involvement in the Scottish whisky industry is legendary.

John Crabbie’s legacy and passion for whisky continues today with this single malt Scotch Whisky drawn from the Bonnington Distillery in Leith and aged in 100% virgin American oak casks.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Sweet, creamy, toffee, and oak

Palate: Rich, powerful tannins and oak, lots of spice

Finish: A long, lingering finish with hints of red fruit and woody notes

James Wyld

James Wyld, the original founder and a former trading partner of Messrs Paterson & Co, established a whisky business in the Port of Leith, Edinburgh in 1801. Trading as James Wyld & Co. a wide range of goods including hemp, tallow, oil, wines and spirits, he later moved operations to “Tolbooth Wynd” and he established a family home at Bonnington Bank, near the current Distillery. In 1817, James Wyld was appointed to the Brewers, Wine & Spirit Merchants Committee and sold the business in 1836 to John Crabbie and William Cree, trading as Crabbie & Cree, the pre-cursor John Crabbie & Co.

This Single Malt Scotch Whisky is distilled in the Lowlands, with hints of sweet malt and heather honey on the nose, complemented by rich oak throughout the palate.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Rich aromas of honey and caramel

Palate: Sweet oak and spice

Finish: A long finish, with oak and tannins, and gentle floral flavours

Nor’ Loch

Nor’ Loch is steeped in the history of Old Edinburgh. This manmade lake was built in 1460, during the reign of King James III, to protect Edinburgh Castle from invaders. The Industrial Revolution rapidly expanded Edinburgh’s size and Nor’ Loch was replaced by the Princes Street Gardens.

The high malt content adds a rich sweetness to this blend. It has been hand-selected from the special reserve single malt casks held at the Bonnington Distillery, Leith, by Master Blender and Brand Ambassador, Jillian Boyd.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Rich and sweet with plum and toffee

Palate: Tannic, with ripe, sweet red fruits, cream and a little icing sugar

Finish: A long, oaky finish with a hint of ginger spice

Bonnington Inaugural Release

Our inaugural release is a rich, rose gold in colour, with notes of sweet malt combined with poached pears, creamy caramel and candied ginger. A long, sweet finish carries hints of gentle spice from the Ruby Port cask.

Enjoy neat or on ice.

All 500 bottles of this super-limited release are hand-signed by Head Distiller, Jamie Lockhart.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Sweet dessert wine notes, hints of pear, dried fruit, subtle citrus and rich oak

Palate: Sweet malt, creamy berries poached pears, creamy caramel and candied ginger

Finish: Long sweet finish with hits of gentle spice

Bonnington Sherry Cask

Matured in Pedro Ximenez Sherry Casks, this limited release from Bonnington Distillery is rich, fruity and warming with a long finish.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Sweet sugar, pick and mix, fresh oak and green wood

Palate: Fresh, subtle red fruit, lightly dusted sugar on berries

Finish: Lots of wood and tannins, some salty notes

Chain Pier – Inaugural Release

The Inaugural Release from The Chain Pier Distillery, the first distillery in Edinburgh to produce Single Malt Whisky since 1925. Located in Granton, Edinburgh.

The Chain Pier Distillery was a boutique pilot distillery where our distillers hand produced unique distillations to trial everything from malt types to custom casks. The distillery was only operational between October 2018 and November 2019 while The Bonnington Distillery was under construction. This short production window before closure yielded just 39 casks – making it some of the scarcest Single Malt Whisky ever produced. All the spirit was hand crafted using a 500 litre copper pot still.

Cask #190002 was chosen for release and produced just 234 bottles at cask strength – 57%. Drawn from a single heavily charred American virgin oak barrel and bottled without colouring or chill filtration.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Light & fruity with hints of berries, fruits of the forest, and green apples. Balanced with citrus zest, vanilla, and sweet malt.

Palate: Young and vibrant, sweet fruit, rich caramel, sweet malt, and hints of lemony crème brulee with fresh ginger spice.

Finish: Long, sweet and spicy, with lingering notes of vanilla and ginger.

22 Year Old Orkney Single Malt Scotch Whisky

Just 253 bottles of this special dram are being released under the signature of renowned master blender Dr Kirstie McCallum. After spending 21 years in ex-bourbon casks, this peated Orkney single malt was transferred to a highly coveted hand-selected Palo Cortado sherry cask to rest for a final six months at Crabbie’s warehouse in Edinburgh’s port of Leith area.

Bottled at 47.5%, the influence of this unusual sherry – described as Amontillado on the nose and Oloroso on the mouth – gives a wonderfully complex and rounded quality to the spicy smokiness of the finished whisky.
A nose of dried fruit, vanilla fudge, forest berries and a hint of peppery smoke lead to flavours of sweet berries and cream, caramel toffee, dried fruit and hints of dark chocolate and coffee, followed by a long, smoky finish.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Hints of raisins, dried fruit, vanilla fudge and berries, balanced with peppery smoke.

Palate: Layers of sweet berries and cream, with soft coffee caramel toffee. Dried fruit develops to a sweet, balanced peppered smokiness, with hints of dark chocolate and coffee.

Finish: Long, lingering and smoky.

Crabbie 12 Year-old – Speyside Edition

Our Crabbie 12 Year Old Speyside single malt whisky has been drawn from specially selected bourbon casks from the heart of Speyside.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: tart apple with hints of cinnamon, rich vanilla, fresh pine, and candied walnuts

Palate: Juicy apple with vanilla, orange oil and lemon peel. Warming flavours of cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice develp giving a rich depth.

Finish: Sweet vanilla and apple notes carry through with a medium warming finish.

Crabbie 15 Year-old Highland Single Malt

Our 15 year old limited edition Highland single malt was distilled at a unnamed distillery and aged in ex-sherry casks from the Jerez region of Spain.

There are subtle notes of smoke which gives depth to this beautifully complex Scotch whisky.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Beach Campfires, salted caramel with subtle notes of citrus and fresh sea air.

Taste: Dark Chocolate, delicate smoke, grilled stone fruits with an undercurrent of savoury sea salt.

Finish: Long buttery finish with delicate smoke, comples mineral and coastal notes all wrapped up in luxurious chocolate.

Crabbie 8 Year-old

Crabbie 8 Year old single malt whisky is a modern day interpretations of a beloved classic John Crabbie & Co blend.

Bottled at 46% and un-chilfiltered, this is a beautiful highland whisky – full fruity floral notes with a deliciously smooth and well-balanced finish

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Sweet and delicate floral notes with subtle hints of ripe apricots.

Palate: Delightfully balanced with honey, malty notes at first followed by warming layers of vanilla and ripened summer fruits.

Finish: Long and light finish with a malty finish.

Awards: Double Gold San Francisco Spirits Awards 2019

Crabbie 12 Year-old – Island Edition

Crabbie 12 year old is a complete island malt and the perfect introduction to the peated whisky category.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Intensely malty and fresh with light notes of green grass and juicy citrus.

Palate: Rich full flavour with a fabulous bitter-sweet balance, followed by a touch of sweet honey, poached pears, grilled orange and green tea.

Finish: long, delicately smoky with a touch of pepper spice.

Awards: Gold IWSC (96 points)

Crabbie 30 Year-old (2018 bottling)

Bottled at cask strength of 48.6%, this 30 year-old Speyside single malt is a truly rare expression.

Matured in the finest sherry butts, only a very limited number of these casks remain. 330 bottles have now been released in the UK. Its release celebrates the dedication and contribution of John Crabbie, a true pioneer in the Scotch whisky industry.

Tasting Notes:

Color: Golden amber
Nose: Sweet notes of spice, light smoke and dark chocolate
Palate: Velvety on the palate
Finish: Long honey finish

Crabbie 28 Year-old

This beautifully balanced limited edition 28 year-old single malt, is from a single cask, non chill-filtered, and bottled at cask strength (52.7% ABV).

Tasting Notes:

Colour: Golden amber
Nose: Superbly composed, sweet with a hint of smoke on the nose
Palate: Creamy with a hint of spice balanced with aromas of fruits, nutmeg, hints of honey and dark chocolate
Finish: Sublimely enduring on the palate

Crabbie 30 Year-old (2019 bottling)

Single cask bottling from a presidious Speyside distillery drawn from a single ex-sherry cask. Distilled in 1988 using peated malt and bottled at 53.5% at natural colour and without chill filtration.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Honey and caramel sweetness, sumptuous dates, and spiced baked apples

Taste: Rich honey and candied ginger, raisin, heather smoke, buttery shortbread

Finish: Long, linger moreish sweetness with subtle smoke and a warming spiced finish.

Crabbie 40 Year old Speyside Single Malt

This 40 Year Old Speyside single malt whisky has been bottled from an exceptionally rare single cask. Bottled at 44.5%, it is presented in a glencairn crystal decanter and comes with two engraved glasses.

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Sugar coated Turkish delights, strawberries and cream, treacle with a hint of spice to round out the nose. Szechuan pepper, dry spice. Sweet straw.

Taste: Smooth mouth coating warmth with a hint of treacle sweetness and a dash of dry wood spices plus a special tang of orange pithy, black tea and extremely dark chocolate. Chocolate covered raisins.

Finish: Medium and light bodied that leaves you wanting more.