Spirits retailer and independent bottler Master of Malt has launched a new range of single-cask and small-batch whiskies. The announcement coincided with celebrations for the brand's 40th anniversary. The release also marks the first time Master of Malt's bottlings will be available via wider retail.

Among the collection is a 40-year-old grain whisky distilled at Girvan, a 29-year-old Tobermory, a 16-year-old Dailuaine, and a selection of "secret" single cask bottlings from Speyside and Highland distilleries.

Alongside the collection, Master of Malt are planning further anniversary bottling. The bottler also announced a "cheeky" new limited-edition series named Badly Drawn Dogs, which matches dog sketches with whiskies including a 21-year-old Loch Lomond and a 25-year-old Invergordon.

Other forthcoming releases from Master of Malt include a 50-year-old Scotch whisky, new-world rye whiskies, and "experimental" cask-aged spirits. 

Sam Simmons, head of whisky at Master of Malt, commented: “This new range is a love letter to everything Master of Malt has stood for over the past 40 years. This isn’t whisky for vaults or portfolios. It’s whisky for people who actually want to drink it, talk about them, argue over them, research them, and then pour another dram”.

He added: “These casks have been sitting quietly at the back of the warehouse for years and now we finally get to share the ‘holy shit!’ moments we’ve had discovering them. We’re just getting started. We’ve been building this inventory for decades. Now we’re bottling it our way and for the first time, we’re sharing these bottles with the wider retail world for grocery and the on-trade”

Master of Malt began in 1985 as a mail-order physical catalogue. Its first website was developed in the 2000s by Justin Petszaft, who is now managing director of the brand's parent company Atom Group, which also owns That Boutique-y Whisky Company.

Master of Malt’s new 40th anniversary independent bottlings are available now via Master of Malt.