Waterford Distillery has announced its new flagship bottling. The Waterford — Cuvée Koffi is created from 24 single farm origin Irish whiskies between six and seven years old, each distilled from Irish barley.

Mark Reynier, CEO and founder of Waterford Distillery, reflected: “Our years of natural flavour exploration with have led us to this momentous bottling. The Waterford — Cuvée Koffi is no ordinary whisky. It’s our lodestar. Made from Irish-grown barley that is harvested, malted, and distilled separately, then layered together on after another, to achieve the most natural, complex, flavoursome single malt.”

The Waterford — Cuvée Koffi has been crafted from whisky matured in four cask types: first-fill American oak, new American oak, premium French oak, and Vin Doux Naturel. Each bottle will be complete with Waterford’s ‘TÉIREOIR’ code, which allows whisky lovers to discover more about the whisky’s component parts and its journey to their glass.

The bottle’s label and outer packaging was designed by French artist Nathanaël Koffi, using a bright contrast of colours to reflect the whisky’s intricate makeup.

Reynier continued: “Our whisky has the audacity and generosity to actually taste of barley — ours is agricultural produce, not a manufactured product. Our vision from the start has always been to challenge the whisky status-quo and show how whisky’s core ingredient — the barley — is responsible for its natural flavours, and Cuvée Koffi is further proof of that concept.

“The Waterford now becomes the apogee of our portfolio and the benchmark for future cuvée concepts we will bring to market later this year.”

Tasting notes by Waterford’s head distiller Ned Gahan describe a complexity of flavours: red apple, brown bread, chilli chocolate, oyster crackers, and liquorice allsorts make an appearance.

The Waterford — Cuvée Koffi (50% ABV, RRP £73) is available now via Waterford Distillery and select retailers worldwide.