Four Roses Chestnut Bourbon, Laddie Rye and Texas Bottled-in-Bond Lead Whisky News
GLOBAL WHISKY & SPIRITS NEWS | Saturday 31 October 2026 | Reporting cutoff: 08:46 GMT | Whisky Clan editorial
Four Roses is experimenting with Japanese chestnut wood, Bruichladdich is bringing Islay-grown rye to American whisky drinkers and Garrison Brothers has confirmed the next date for its six-year Bottled-in-Bond. Montana distillers have bottled a rare collaborative whiskey, D'YAVOL is expanding into US spirits retail, and North Wales has a whisky festival beginning today.
The principal whisky announcements arrived on 29–30 October; most bottles are scheduled for November rather than being sold this morning. This edition separates announcement dates, forthcoming availability and genuine Halloween-weekend activity.
In today's edition
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Kentucky and Texas: two newly detailed bourbons
Four Roses No. 003 experiments with Japanese chestnut
Four Roses' third Experimental Series release uses the six-year-old OBSK bourbon recipe, transferred for an additional maturation in Japanese chestnut wood. The distillery selected 250-litre casks after testing several woods and toast levels, with individual finishing periods reported at roughly five to eleven weeks. Experimental Series No. 003 Chestnut is bottled at 104 US proof (52% ABV), the same strength as earlier experiments using Mizunara and honey-seasoned casks.
Reported on Friday 30 October, this is not a bottle newly available on Halloween. Four Roses intends to sell 375ml bottles from 20 November at its Lawrenceburg and Cox's Creek visitor centres, at a reported $55 suggested price. Chestnut is an unusual finishing choice alongside the standard oak barrel tradition. The distillery's flavour descriptions focus on vanilla, stone fruit and spice; these are producer notes, not an independent Whisky Clan tasting.
Explore the producer's background: Four Roses Distillery guide
Garrison Brothers names 14 November for Bottled-in-Bond
In an official announcement dated 29 October, Texas distillery Garrison Brothers confirmed a six-year-old Bottled-in-Bond release made from whiskey distilled during autumn 2020. The bourbon is bottled at the legally prescribed 100 US proof (50% ABV). Garrison Brothers says this edition was made with Texas-grown grains and Hill Country rainwater. The company has set a suggested retail price of $89.99 for a planned total of 19,500 bottles.
The first 1,000 bottles are scheduled for sale at the Hye distillery on Saturday 14 November alongside its Red, White & Bourbon fundraiser for the National Museum of the Pacific War. Remaining on-site bottles are expected from 16 November, with wider online and retail distribution by late November. These are release plans, not confirmed current stock. The six-year maturation and single-distilling-season provenance make this a particularly informative example of what the Bottled-in-Bond designation means.
Learn more about the maker: Garrison Brothers Distillery guide
From Islay: Bruichladdich's locally grown rye
The Laddie Rye 2026 is an American exclusive with Islay roots
Bruichladdich's latest The Laddie Rye 2026 is a six-year-old single grain Scotch whisky built from 49% locally grown rye and 51% Islay-grown malted barley, according to its official US listing. The spirit is bottled at 50% ABV in a 750ml format priced at $59.99 on the producer's US website. The second edition follows a 2025 debut. Coverage published 30 October highlighted the new expression; the existence of an online product page is not proof that the whisky first went on sale that day.
The whisky matured in first-fill bourbon barrels and second-fill virgin American oak, including some bourbon casks that were de-charred and re-charred. Bruichladdich links its grain programme to Islay farmers, including rye grown at Coull Farm. It describes rye as a valuable rotation crop as well as a flavouring ingredient. The resulting style is a grain whisky with spice and an unpeated character, not a peated Islay single malt.
Read the distillery's farming and production history: Bruichladdich Distillery guide
Montana's craft distillers unite for TrailBlazer
Twelve producers contribute to a locally made blend
On Friday 30 October, Headframe Distilleries in Butte hosted bottling for TrailBlazer, a collaboration coordinated by the Montana Distillers Guild. Reporters on site say the project took around five years and commemorates Robin Blazer, the late co-founder of Willie's Distillery in Ennis. Whiskey from 12 Montana producers went into a mixture of bourbon, wheat whiskey and American single malt aged on average around four and a half years. The bottled blend is 100 US proof (50% ABV).
Approximately 1,200 bottles of 750ml are expected, at around $65 each. Distribution to Montana agency liquor stores is forecast over the following two to three weeks, not necessarily today. The guild says proceeds will support its advocacy and marketing. In a market dominated by individual distillery brands, this collective project is an unusual demonstration of smaller producers cooperating on both the product and the business infrastructure behind it.
Global whisky trade: D'YAVOL reaches the United States
Inception blended malt joins the brand's American debut
D'YAVOL Spirits, associated with Shah Rukh Khan, Aryan Khan's D'YAVOL Luxury Collective, Radico Khaitan and Nikhil Kamath, has announced its entry into the US market. Coverage published 30 October describes two products in the launch: Inception Blended Malt Scotch Whisky and Single Estate Vodka. Inception combines eight single malts from Scotland, while the companion vodka is produced from winter wheat in Poland. The brand had already made a UK entry.
This is a distribution and market expansion story, not a claim that the Scotch is made in India or that a new distillery has opened. There was no single confirmed nationwide price or precise all-store availability date in the reporting consulted, so readers should not assume the products are stocked everywhere. The move illustrates how Indian-backed luxury branding is extending its footprint within international Scotch and other premium spirits.
Halloween weekend: Wales Whisky Fest opens in Llandudno
Today's tastings lead into Sunday's distillery sessions
Wales Whisky Fest is scheduled to run in Llandudno on Saturday 31 October and Sunday 1 November. The official organiser programme advertises hundreds of whiskies available to sample during Saturday's sessions, with ticket benefits including festival glassware and Penderyn Llandudno Distillery tours. Sunday is devoted to distillery sessions, with a charity auction and festival bottlings also highlighted by the organisers.
This is a genuine event date today rather than a newly issued press announcement. The festival brings an international whisky selection into a Welsh setting, while Penderyn's local outpost offers a practical connection to the town's whisky story. Availability, itineraries and ticket conditions should be checked with the organisers; their published programme does not establish that every session has already taken place.
Explore Welsh whisky at Penderyn Llandudno Distillery and in our Penderyn whisky history guide
What to watch next
Four Roses Chestnut is scheduled to reach its Kentucky visitor centres on 20 November. Garrison Brothers' initial Bottled-in-Bond release is planned for 14 November, with broader availability later in the month; Montana's TrailBlazer is expected in state stores within a few weeks of its 30 October bottling. Wales Whisky Fest continues into Sunday 1 November. These are published plans, not guarantees of remaining stock or attendance.
Explore more from Whisky Clan
Catch up on the 30 October whisky news and the previous seven-day whisky roundup. More producer histories and release information are available in the growing Whisky Clan distillery and bottle libraries.
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Sources and image credits
View original reporting, image credits and editorial notes
Source publication and event dates are distinguished. Producer flavour descriptions are attributed, and the photographs illustrate actual distilleries rather than newly announced bottles.
Four Roses Experimental Series No. 003 Chestnut, official product page (checked 31 October 2026)
Four Roses timing, 375ml format and pricing, The Whisky Wire (30 October 2026)
Garrison Brothers six-year Bottled-in-Bond, official press release (29 October 2026)
Bruichladdich The Laddie Rye 2026, official US product page (checked 31 October 2026)
Bruichladdich The Laddie Rye coverage, Beverage Information Group (30 October 2026)
Montana TrailBlazer production and planned retail arrival, NBC Montana (30 October 2026)
D'YAVOL Inception and vodka US market entry, The Whiskey Wash (30 October 2026)
Wales Whisky Fest's official 31 October–1 November programme (checked 31 October 2026)
Featured Four Roses Distillery photo, King4120 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
Four Roses photo licence, Creative Commons CC BY-SA 4.0
Bruichladdich Distillery 2019 photo by Andrew Abbott, Geograph / Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 2.0
Bruichladdich photo licence, Creative Commons CC BY-SA 2.0
Penderyn Distillery archive photo, JTreg62 via Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0
Penderyn photo licence, Creative Commons CC BY-SA 4.0
Editorial note: Future visitor-centre releases and projected retail arrivals are not verified completed sales. Wales Whisky Fest is described from its advertised programme, not as an attended or completed event. Historic photographs are credited and subjects have not been changed.
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