There are plenty of similarities between making great whisky and building a Formula One car. Both require patience, precision and an almost obsessive attention to details most people will never notice. That connection is once again bringing Glenfiddich and Aston Martin Formula One Team together. Marking the second year of their partnership, the two brands have unveiled the Glenfiddich & Aston Martin Formula One Team 16-Year-Old Limited-Edition Release No.2 and 19-Year-Old Limited-Edition Release No.2.
The inspiration comes from two masters working in very different worlds: Glenfiddich Malt Master Brian Kinsman and Aston Martin Formula One Team Managing Technical Partner Adrian Newey. While Kinsman creates whisky that may not be ready for years, Newey designs airflow around race cars that have yet to hit the track. The common thread is an ability to anticipate how countless small decisions will eventually work together.
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Precision you can pour
The 16-Year-Old takes that philosophy and applies it across five different cask types. First-fill bourbon barrels, Port pipes, Oloroso sherry casks and wine casks are brought together before a final touch of Fino sherry butts. Glenfiddich describes the result as balancing orchard fruit and oak with a silky texture.
On the nose, expect stewed fruit, floral notes, marzipan and polished leather. The palate moves into buttery toffee, caramelized cane sugar and dry oak tannin before finishing with lingering oak sweetness. It arrives at 43 per cent ABV and will be available at local liquor stores in select Canadian provinces this autumn.
Going global
For travellers, there’s another bottle to hunt down. The 19-Year-Old Release No.2 will be offered exclusively at select Global Travel Retail locations and uses Colombian, European and American oak cask finishes. The Colombian oak is an especially interesting part of the equation. “The Colombian oak provides a distinctive point of intrigue,” says Jamie Johnson, Canadian National Brand Ambassador for Glenfiddich. “It brings brightness and lift to the whisky’s rich, structured profile, creating a single malt with notes of sherbet, baked apple, and soft cinnamon.” Also bottled at 43 per cent ABV, its official tasting notes include vanilla, crystallized ginger, candied orange and lemon peel on the nose, followed by a zesty palate with baked apple and cinnamon.
Two crafts, one philosophy
Glenfiddich and Aston Martin Formula One Team first announced their multi-year partnership in November 2024, bringing together two brands with lengthy histories and a mutual fascination with performance. For Kinsman, the connection with Newey goes deeper than simply putting two recognizable names on a bottle. “The character of a single malt is shaped by countless precise decisions over time – cask selection, balance, maturation, timing – each one subtle on its own, but transformative when brought together,” Kinsman says.
Formula One fans know that philosophy well. Races may be decided by what happens in plain sight, but performance is often created long before the lights go out. Turns out a memorable whisky isn’t all that different.
