Newcomer Scotch Brand Holyrood Releases Experimental Whisky Made With… Passion Fruit Wine Yeast?

Holyrood unveiled its second single malt, and it was made with passion fruit wine yeast. (Photo: Holyrood Distillery/Instagram)

Whisky Magazine reported on Tuesday that Holyrood Distillery unveiled its second whisky, named Embra, which is set to release Friday. The whisky is the brand’s first peated single malt and is made from a creative mixture of ingredients including chocolate malt, heavily peated malt, and passion fruit wine yeast.

“At Holyrood Distillery, we are relentlessly focused on experimentation and innovation to produce exceptional, interesting and flavorful spirits,” Holyrood Distillery Manager Calum Rae said, according to Whisky Magazine.

Holyrood Distillery was founded in 2019 and after distilling a series of new makes, the brand released its first aged whisky, Arrival, in 2023, according to Whisky Magazine.

Holyrood claims it focuses on small-batch offerings instead of implementing a core program to enhance the brand’s creativity.

The bottle design is inspired by St. Leonard, the patron saint of barrel makers, according to Whisky Magazine.

Winemaker Magazine reports that passion fruit wine is pretty popular, even though this tangy and tart fruit often gets overshadowed by… well… grapes. The outlet claims that pitfalls winemakers often run into with passion fruit wine tend to involve the ph levels, and if poorly made, passion fruit wine can taste too acidic.

As for Embra, Rae explains that accessibility was key to the production process.

“Edinburgh is a gateway to Scotland for many people and this is the idea at the heart of the first of this series,” Rae explained, according to Whisky Magazine. “Embra is triple cask matured with a variety of yeasts and malts including chocolate malt, heavily peated malt and passion fruit wine yeast. This combination creates the perfect balance of bold smoky flavors and textures of a peated whisky, while still being accessible to a new whisky drinker.”

According to the brand, Embra possesses aromas and flavors of lemon zest, hickory smoke, stewed pears and dark chocolate mousse.

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