Johnnie Walker has launched Johnnie Walker Vault in November, its first permanent prestige blend, offering the ultimate expression of its blending artistry. Blended by Master Blender Dr Emma Walker, this £1,100 blend is a love letter to Scotland, drawn from the rare-whisky library beneath Princes Street.
Johnnie Walker Vault, the first permanent prestige blend from the brand, takes its name from the underground atelier, which was a former bank vault beneath The Johnnie Walker Experience on Edinburgh’s Princes Street. It’s in this vault that Master Blender Dr Emma Walker keeps a rotating library of around 500 whiskies from Diageo’s rare and ghost stocks, hand-picked from the more than 10 million casks at her disposal.
The whisky takes its name from the Johnnie Walker Vault, the hidden atelier set in a former bank vault beneath The Johnnie Walker Experience on Edinburgh’s Princes Street. Down there, Master Blender Dr Emma Walker, the first woman to hold the role, keeps a rotating library of around 500 whiskies from Diageo’s rare and ghost stocks, hand-picked from the more than 10 million casks at her disposal. Until now, it has been best known as the setting for the Vault’s Private Blend experience, where a select few commission a bespoke whisky alongside her.
Dr Emma Walker, Johnnie Walker Master Blender, said: “Johnnie Walker Vault is what I’ve called my love letter to Scotland, a truly special country to which I hold a deep connection. The creation of this whisky, a hand-selected blend of our extraordinary whiskies from across Scotland, is my way to express that.“
The blend has been created using whisky from Brora, the distillery on the Sutherland coast. In 1983, its gates were locked, and with it the last remaining casks, earning the distillery the reputation as a sleeping giant waiting to return. It finally did in 2021. The blend a mix of whisky filled before the closure, with younger Brora from casks laid down since the revival.
On the nose, you can taste butterscotch and salted caramel, opening onto a Highland summer of wildflowers, green hills and fragrant barley, before toasted oak and a wisp of driftwood bonfire. The palate brings vanilla, chopped almonds, frangipane tart and Scottish raspberries, building to tropical fruit over subtle incense and charred oak, then malty sweetness that fades into vintage leather and tobacco. The finish is structured, with apricot, sweet raspberry and crème anglaise balanced by gentle warming spice. It is bottled at 43.8% ABV, without an age statement.
The bottle is luxurious in design, completely cubic in format, inspired by a historic Blue Label archive design and topped with a sculpted gold wave stopper. Bespoke engraving is offered at select locations.
Johnnie Walker Vault is available now at Harrods, along with The Johnnie Walker Experience in Edinburgh, priced at £1,100 for a 70cl bottle.
