Starward Taps Glasgow Blender for Whisky That ‘Encompasses the Best of Both Scottish and Australian Traditions’ — With a UV Label That Glows in the Dark

Starward and Turntable released a collaboration, a blend of whiskies from Australia and Scotland. (Photo: Turntable)

On Tuesday, Scotland Food and Drink reported that Australian whisky producer Starward Whisky had joined forces with the Glasgow-based blender, Turntable, as part of a collaboration that features new and old-world whiskies. The collaboration was helmed by the Scottish blender, who chose the Australian whisky brand to participate in its inaugural offering.

“From the moment we started Turntable, we had an idea about working with New World whiskies in the pursuit of flavor,” Turntable co-founder Ally Stevenson said, according to Scotland Food and Drink. “Our friends at Starward Distillery in Melbourne have been producing outstanding Australian single malt whisky for over 15 years, and for this blend, we wanted to create something that showcased their style — ex-Australian wine casks — but gave it a new dimension.”

Starward ages almost all of its whiskies in wine barrels and recently turned to beer for a change, releasing a stout cask-aged whisky as a part of a collaboration with a local Melbourne brewery, Brick Lane, in October. True to Starward form, the whisky matured in the Australian brand’s signature red wine and Apera barrels before resting for 18 months in Brick Lane’s stout barrels.

The collaboration between Starward and Turntable is a blend of whiskies from the northern and southern hemispheres. Named Collaboration Drop 01, the blend will be available for purchase in the United Kingdom at specialized retail shops. It will also be available in the markets of Germany, France, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Canada, Japan, Korea and Hong Kong.

“Whisky drinkers can look forward to a characterful blend that hopefully encompasses the best of both Scottish and Australian traditions,” said Turntable’s other co-founder, Gordon Stevenson.

The bespoke bottle features a glow-in-the-dark design that depicts constellations from both parts of the globe, which was a choice meant to celebrate the origin points of both whiskies in the blend.

3,300 bottles are available with a suggested price of £85 ($107.) Turntable describes the whisky as possessing “bonfire smoke on a sea breeze harmonized with red berries, cigar box spices and coconut.”

“Combining the sweeter wine casks with the smoke and salt of Islay, and working with some older grains and Speyside single malts to provide additional depth and complexity, has been a lot of fun. We cannot wait to hear people’s reaction,” Stevenson concluded.

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