Bladnoch Liora

Where Vinaya is graceful and welcoming, Liora is the same distillery with its sleeves rolled up. The name means "gift of light" in Hebrew — fitting for a whisky that feels both illuminating and a little uncompromising. It's Bladnoch's first release at Distiller's Strength: 52.2% ABV, non-chill filtered, natural colour, and built from a marriage of first-fill bourbon casks and virgin oak.

That virgin oak is the defining voice here. It contributes a structural intensity that Bladnoch's Classic Collection doesn't usually carry — fresh-cut apple and toasted caramel on the nose, then caramelised toffee apple on the palate with peppery spice and a frank woodiness that builds through the mid-palate. The bourbon casks hold the sweetness and floral lift steady underneath, stopping the whole thing from becoming too austere. The finish is long, warming, and drying — the kind of ending that stays with you.

For a Lowland malt, it has genuine presence. If Vinaya is the Sunday afternoon dram, Liora is the one you open when the evening turns serious.