Johnnie Walker is launching a limited-edition blend in honour of its former master blender Dr Jim Beveridge.
The Johnnie Walker Master's Cut (40% ABV) was blended by Beveridge – who officially retired from his role with the blended Scotch brand in December 2021 – and comprises whiskies from two Scottish distilleries: Cameronbridge, one of the oldest distilleries used in the Johnnie Walker family of blends, and Roseisle, one of the country's newest distilleries.
Released to coincide with World Whisky Day (20 May), there will be just 1,000 bottles of the Master's Cut made available. It will go on sale at Johnnie Walker Princes Street in Edinburgh later in 2023, before being rolled out in select global markets.
Beveridge said: "Working in this incredible industry with Johnnie Walker has been an honour and it’s a real privilege to work with the blending team – now led by master blender Emma Walker – to create this legacy blend.
"It is my final Johnnie Walker blend, made at a turning point in the Johnnie Walker journey when the baton is passed from one master blender to another. The whisky looks to the future, while also recognising the achievements of the past.
"It’s an exercise in simplicity, doing more with less to create something which has a uniquely complex character. Ultimately, we take great whiskies and combine them in ways which create new, amazing new expressions of blended Scotch."
Having started his career with Johnnie Walker as a analytical chemist, Beveridge worked his way up the ranks to eventually become the brand's master blender. Over his four-decade career, he became one of the Scotch whisky industry's most highly respected figures, and in 2019 he was named an OBE for his services to the Scotch whisky industry.
Johnnie Walker global brand director Julie Bramham said: "During his career, Jim was renowned for his skill and dedication to quality, as well as his considered and unassuming manner. The same spirit of progress that Johnnie Walker embodies is epitomised in Jim’s pioneering work in whisky and flavour, many of which have changed the face of whisky.
"His lifetime of dedication to the craft and to Johnnie Walker has been integral to upholding the brand’s legacy. Master’s Cut truly is a celebration of Jim’s career, marked in a bottle."
The Johnnie Walker Master's Cut (40% ABV) was blended by Beveridge – who officially retired from his role with the blended Scotch brand in December 2021 – and comprises whiskies from two Scottish distilleries: Cameronbridge, one of the oldest distilleries used in the Johnnie Walker family of blends, and Roseisle, one of the country's newest distilleries.
Released to coincide with World Whisky Day (20 May), there will be just 1,000 bottles of the Master's Cut made available. It will go on sale at Johnnie Walker Princes Street in Edinburgh later in 2023, before being rolled out in select global markets.
Dr Jim Beveridge with a bottle of Johnnie Walker Master"s Cut
Beveridge said: "Working in this incredible industry with Johnnie Walker has been an honour and it’s a real privilege to work with the blending team – now led by master blender Emma Walker – to create this legacy blend.
"It is my final Johnnie Walker blend, made at a turning point in the Johnnie Walker journey when the baton is passed from one master blender to another. The whisky looks to the future, while also recognising the achievements of the past.
"It’s an exercise in simplicity, doing more with less to create something which has a uniquely complex character. Ultimately, we take great whiskies and combine them in ways which create new, amazing new expressions of blended Scotch."
Having started his career with Johnnie Walker as a analytical chemist, Beveridge worked his way up the ranks to eventually become the brand's master blender. Over his four-decade career, he became one of the Scotch whisky industry's most highly respected figures, and in 2019 he was named an OBE for his services to the Scotch whisky industry.
Johnnie Walker global brand director Julie Bramham said: "During his career, Jim was renowned for his skill and dedication to quality, as well as his considered and unassuming manner. The same spirit of progress that Johnnie Walker embodies is epitomised in Jim’s pioneering work in whisky and flavour, many of which have changed the face of whisky.
"His lifetime of dedication to the craft and to Johnnie Walker has been integral to upholding the brand’s legacy. Master’s Cut truly is a celebration of Jim’s career, marked in a bottle."
