Macaloney Canadian Single Malt - Peat Project - Moscatel Barrique

Volume: 0.7 litres | Alcohol content: 50% | Chill filtration: No | Colouring: No

Special Features:

Maturation entirely in a Portuguese Moscatel barrique sets sweet wine and fruit notes against the pronounced peat smoke of this Peat Project single malt. The barley comes from British Columbia; Macaloney's smoked the malt at its own distillery with peat from the Olympic Peninsula to 54 ppm. The whisky was distilled, matured and bottled in Victoria. This European single-cask release appeared in 2025 at 50% alcohol in a 0.7-litre bottle. It is non-chill-filtered, contains no added colouring and comes in gift packaging.

The Moscatel cask adds rich fruit and nut notes to the interplay with dry coastal smoke. This Moscatel release was named Canadian Whisky of the Year at the 2025 Canadian Whisky Awards. The Peat Project Single Cask Series received the Canadian Whisky Award of Excellence in Product Innovation in 2026; the distillery also reports a bronze award for the Moscatel release at the 2026 World Whiskies Awards.

Tasting Notes:

• Nose: On the nose, moderate peat smoke and campfire mingle with cigar, dry hay, vanilla pod and white Moscatel. Juniper and coastal pine join white chocolate, hazelnut, marzipan and walnut; a sea breeze accompanies the smoke.
• Palate: On the palate, the peat feels velvety and powerful. Sweetish burnt heather, malt extract, hemp rope and a maritime note accompany pineapple, sultanas, pear, fig and stewed apple. Heather honey, chocolate orange and a hint of key lime and banana pie follow, alongside clove, white pepper, liquorice, marzipan, hazelnut and walnut. Rum-and-raisin toffee rounds out the sweet impressions.
• Finish: The medium-long to long finish turns dry and lightly salty. Smoke lingers, with mild spice and oak in the aftertaste.

Distillery/Bottler:

Macaloney's Island Distillery, on Vancouver Island near Victoria, made this single malt and bottled it there. The distillery is wholly Canadian-owned and operated in Canada. Founder Graeme Macaloney continues to work at the distillery on distillation and cask combinations. It uses Canadian barley, island water and copper stills made by Forsyth's for its whiskies.

Through the Peat Project, the distillery explores how peat from different places shapes whisky. It has a facility on Vancouver Island built specifically to moisten and smoke the malt. The peat for this release comes from the Olympic Peninsula in neighbouring Washington State; the whisky, however, matured entirely on Vancouver Island.

Facts: