At Naked, we don’t dress things up for the sake of it. Our packaging liberates our whisky, letting the quality shine through!

If you've been following our Blended Malt 101 series over on social, this blog post is for you. We’ll be taking a deeper dive into the extra-maturation process that makes our award-winning whisky so special.

First, what is a Blended Malt Scotch Whisky? 

Whilst a single malt whisky is made in an individual distillery, a blended malt is a blend of two or more single malts from different distilleries. Every Naked bottle contains our unique blend of the world’s finest single malts.

Convention said blended malts get their flavour from pre-used bourbon casks. This got us thinking, what if we only use first-fill Oloroso sherry casks to extra-mature our whisky and enhance its flavour? These beauties are what we call our ‘Naked’ casks! We call them Naked Casks because they have only previously held sherry and our whisky is the first they come into contact with, creating the deep layers of rich and fruity flavour we love so much.

By extra-maturing our blended malt in these Naked first-fill sherry casks for at least six months, we're able to get the most character out of the wood. This includes more sweet and spicy flavours, and aromas like vanilla and dried fruit. The use of these casks contributes to our distinctive flavour considerably because the more fillings a cask has, the less character it can give to the whisky. By only using first-fill sherry casks for extra-maturation, we always make sure we get the most out of them to complement our blend of single malts. 

We know what you’re thinking though – what happens to these Naked casks after you’ve used them for six months? Good question! Although these lovely Naked casks start their journey in the whisky world with us, it is certainly not the end. Once they have helped us achieve the flavour we want, they leave us with a lot of character still to give due to their quality. For this reason, we always ensure there is another whisky ready to make use of them.

We often get asked what the best way to drink Naked is. The simple answer is - however you want. At Naked, we don’t believe there should be rules around how you enjoy your whisky, which is why we have created a versatile blended malt for you to enjoy your way - whether that’s neat, on the rocks, or in a cocktail. 

If you’ve been following us over on Instagram or Facebook, you might know that one of our favourite ways to drink Naked is in a Whisky Sour. We’ve taken this classic cocktail and put our own spin on it, to create a series of stripped-back Naked Sours that are easy to replicate at home. From a dry, sweet Pomegranate Sour, to a fresh and juicy Berry Sour. Give one a go - you just might find the perfect serve for you!