Ex-bourbon casks, finished in Spanish Rioja red wine casks
Tasting notes
Nose
Turkish delight, rose petals and red grapes, with leather, pepper, chocolate and soft peat smoke
Palate
Creamy and peppery, with almond, sweet malt, black raspberry, vanilla, cocoa and cinnamon
Finish
Long and smoky, with red fruit and sea spray
About this whisky
Ledaig Sinclair Series Rioja Cask Finish is a heavily peated single malt from Tobermory Distillery, the only whisky distillery on the Isle of Mull. It takes Ledaig’s bold, smoky, coastal spirit, matures it in ex-bourbon casks, then finishes it in hand-selected casks that once held Spanish Rioja red wine.
The result is a whisky that tastes like two worlds in one glass: peat smoke and sea spray on one side, red berries, rose and chocolate on the other. It’s bottled at 46.3% ABV, non-chill filtered and with natural colour, and the wine casks give it a striking ruby-red hue. If you enjoy smoky whisky but want something richer and fruitier than a classic Islay malt, this is a bottle worth trying.
Ledaig Rioja Cask Tasting Notes
Colour: Ruby red.
Nose: Turkish delight, rose petals, candied fruit and red grapes, followed by leather, pepper and a hint of chocolate, all wrapped in soft peat smoke.
Palate: Creamy and peppery, with almond, sweet malt, black raspberry, vanilla, cocoa and cinnamon, plus a touch of freshly cut grass.
Finish: Long and smoky, with lingering red fruit and sea spray.
Tobermory sums it up in three words: creamy, peppery and berried. At 46.3% it has enough strength to stand up to a few drops of water, which opens up more of the fruit.
What Makes This Whisky Different
Heavily peated Ledaig spirit
Tobermory makes two styles of whisky. Tobermory itself is unpeated and light. Ledaig (pronounced “letch-ick”) is the peated side, made from malted barley peated to at least 35 parts per million of phenols. That puts it firmly in smoky-whisky territory, but Ledaig’s smoke is more earthy and peppery than medicinal.
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Ex-bourbon casks, then Rioja
The spirit spends most of its life in American oak ex-bourbon casks, which add vanilla, sweetness and a creamy texture. It then moves into Rioja wine casks for a finishing period. Rioja is Spain’s best-known red wine region, and its casks bring red berries, plum and a gentle drying tannin. Red wine and peat aren’t a common pairing in Scotch, and it’s what gives this bottling its unusual sweet-and-smoky balance.
Bottled the natural way
Like the rest of Ledaig’s core range, the Rioja Cask Finish is bottled at 46.3% without chill filtration or added colour. That keeps more of the natural oils and texture in the whisky, and the ruby colour you see comes straight from the wine casks.
Award-winning
This bottling has picked up a string of medals, including Gold at the International Spirits Challenge 2024, Gold at the International Wine & Spirit Competition 2024 and a category win at the World Whiskies Awards 2022.
Who Was John Sinclair?
The Sinclair Series is named after the distillery’s founder, John Sinclair. He was a kelp merchant from Lochaline who, in 1797, applied to lease a piece of land on Mull called Ledaig, a Gaelic name meaning “safe haven”. The following year, 1798, he founded a distillery there, and the planned fishing town of Tobermory grew up around the harbour. Sinclair also built a pier, still remembered as Sinclair’s Quay.
The Rioja Cask Finish was the first release in the Sinclair Series when it launched in 2020, and it has since become a permanent part of the Ledaig range.
Tobermory Distillery: Mull’s Only Whisky Maker
Tobermory Distillery sits at the head of the bay in Tobermory, the town famous for its brightly painted harbour-front houses (and as the setting for the children’s TV show Balamory). It’s one of Scotland’s oldest distilleries, and its history has been anything but smooth:
1798: founded by John Sinclair as Ledaig Distillery.
1837: production stopped, and the distillery was put up for sale several times.
1879: distilling restarted under new owners.
1930s: closed again, with its equipment moved away.
1972: reopened, followed by more stops and starts through the 1970s and 1980s.
1991: bought by Burn Stewart Distillers, bringing a long period of stability.
2013: bought by Distell.
2017 to 2019: closed for two years for a full refurbishment, then reopened with new packaging inspired by Tobermory’s painted houses.
Today the distillery splits its year between unpeated Tobermory and peated Ledaig. Its stills have an unusual S-shaped kink in the lyne arms, which sends more vapour back into the still and helps keep the spirit clean and fruity, even when it is heavily peated.
How to Enjoy Ledaig Rioja Cask Finish
Neat: the best way to find the interplay between smoke and red fruit. Give it a few minutes in the glass first.
With a few drops of water: at 46.3% it opens up nicely, bringing out more berry and rose.
With food: try it with dark chocolate, a smoked cheese, charcuterie or a slow-cooked beef dish. The peat and red-wine notes suit rich, savoury flavours.
As an evening dram: its warmth, smoke and fruit make it a great choice for a cold night by the fire.
Who Is It For?
This is a great bottle for peat lovers who want something a little different, and for wine drinkers curious about smoky whisky. If you already enjoy Islay malts, it offers a fruitier, more rounded take on peat. If you’re new to smoky whisky, the red berry sweetness makes the smoke much easier to get to know. Its ruby colour, award-winning reputation and story also make it a memorable gift.
Similar Whiskies You Might Enjoy
If you like peated whisky with a rich, fruity cask influence, try these:
Bowmore 12 Year Old: a gently peated Islay single malt from bourbon and Oloroso sherry casks, with honey, citrus and soft smoke.
Yes. Ledaig is the heavily peated whisky made at Tobermory Distillery, using barley peated to at least 35ppm. The Rioja finish adds red fruit and sweetness, but the smoke is still clearly there.
Is Ledaig an Islay whisky?
No. Ledaig is made on the Isle of Mull, so it belongs to the Islands region rather than Islay. It shares Islay’s love of peat but has its own earthier, peppery style.
How do you pronounce Ledaig?
It’s pronounced “letch-ick”. The name comes from the Gaelic for “safe haven”, the original name of the land where the distillery was built.
What is the difference between Ledaig and Tobermory?
Both are made at the same distillery. Tobermory is the unpeated style, while Ledaig is the heavily peated style.
What does a Rioja cask finish add?
Rioja casks held Spanish red wine before the whisky went in. They add red berries, plum, a hint of rose and a light drying tannin, along with the whisky’s ruby colour.
How old is Ledaig Rioja Cask Finish?
It has no age statement. The distillery hasn’t published an exact age, so the blend is chosen for flavour rather than a set number of years.
What is the ABV and bottle size?
It’s bottled at 46.3% ABV in a 70cl bottle, non-chill filtered and with natural colour.
Why is it called the Sinclair Series?
It’s named after John Sinclair, the kelp merchant who founded the distillery in 1798. The Rioja Cask Finish was the series’ first release.
