The News
Glengoyne Highland Single Malt Whisky has announced the U.S. release of Glengoyne Mizunara Oak, the third expression in its Oak Masters' Series. The limited batch includes 150 bottles with an SRP of $399 USD. The whisky is a 16-year-old expression that was initially aged for 10 years in first-fill sherry casks and then finished in Japanese Mizunara oak, which adds notes of sandalwood, spice, and incense.
The Takeaway
Oak Innovation: Glengoyne’s Mizunara Oak is part of a long-term effort to explore how rare casks like Japanese Mizunara affect flavor, structure, and identity. This third expression in the series follows White Oak and White Oak 24-Year-Old, showing the brand's commitment to oak experimentation.
Ultra-Limited Release: The whisky is an extremely scarce offering with just 150 bottles available nationwide. At $399 each, it’s a high-end collectible aimed at serious whisky enthusiasts who value rare and distinctive cask finishes.
Flavor Profile Focus: The expression uses 16-year-old Glengoyne that was first aged in sherry casks before being finished in Mizunara oak. This process adds notes of sandalwood, spice, and incense to the brand’s signature orchard fruit and sherry richness, creating a more complex and layered whisky.
Original Press Release
The Third Release of the Oak Masters' Series Arrives With Just 150 Bottles Available Nationwide
Glengoyne Highland Single Malt Whisky announces the U.S. release of Glengoyne Mizunara Oak, the third expression in its Oak Masters' Series – a long-term platform dedicated to oak innovation and craftsmanship.
Glengoyne Mizunara Oak builds on the foundation established by White Oak and White Oak 24-Year-Old, further advancing the distillery’s exploration of how rare and distinctive casks shape flavor, structure, and identity within the Oak Masters' Series. An extremely limited release with only 150 bottles coming to the American market with an SRP of $399 USD, this bottle is a whisky lover’s dream.
“This is the kind of whisky that stops you in your tracks. Mizunara oak brings these beautiful layers of sandalwood, soft spice, and incense that wrap perfectly around Glengoyne’s signature orchard fruit and sherry richness. We went to extraordinary lengths to find the right casks because we knew this wood could elevate our spirit in a completely new way,” says Gordon Dundas, Brand Development and Advocacy Director. “After the success of White Oak, Mizunara felt like the bold next chapter – rarer, deeper, more expressive. And like everything we make at Glengoyne, we gave it the time it deserved. When you taste it, you can feel that patience in every sip.”
Bottled at 53.4% ABV, the 16-Year-Old expression begins with 10 years of maturation in first-fill sherry and refill casks, establishing Glengoyne’s hallmark fruit-forward richness. It is then transferred to rare virgin Mizunara oak casks for an additional six years – a significantly longer secondary maturation for this scarce Japanese oak. Such extended aging in Mizunara is almost unheard of, allowing the wood’s distinctive character to integrate with exceptional depth, balance, and precision.
Native to Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido, Mizunara oak is one of the world’s rarest, and most demanding oak for coopers. Its high moisture content and porous, interlocking grain make it exceptionally difficult to craft into casks. The result is a whisky layered with sandalwood, incense, floral notes, and subtle exotic spice, while maintaining Glengoyne’s signature elegance. This is a deliberate meeting of Scottish patience and Japanese oak tradition.
Prior to its U.S. release, Glengoyne Mizunara Oak earned a Double Gold Medal at the 2025 International Spirits Challenge. It then went on to receive the prestigious Trophy Award at ISC 2025. Out of more than 450 entries, only nine trophy medals were awarded in the category, reinforcing its standing among international critics.
Tasting notes
Nose: Soft vanilla and sweet toffee laced with sandalwood and hints of Japanese incense.
Palate: Warming spices, coconut, crisp green apples, and a whisper of licorice.
Finish: Long, luxurious, and floral; like cherry blossom carried on a spring breeze.
The bottle comes in an elegant gift box, and the packaging pays homage to Japanese aesthetics and Scottish nature with a bespoke Japanese-Sumi-e style illustration evoking the whisky’s influence, featuring a serene sunset, Mizunara Oak Tree, and Glengoyne Geese – the brand’s namesake, which is employed as a symbol of the distillery’s commitment to the environment. For more information, please visit Glengoyne's website and on Instagram @glengoyne.
Source: BevNET