InchDairnie’s Ian Palmer talks KinGlassie whisky

Remember when InchDairnie Distillery teased its follow-up to RyeLaw with two new single malts –  KinGlassie Double Matured and KinGlassie Raw? 

Both have now arrived at Master of Malt, and we’ve spoken to InchDairnie founder Ian Palmer to get the full story behind the smoke.

InchDairnie’s Ian Palmer talks KinGlassie whisky

While RyeLaw led some to peg InchDairnie as a rye whisky distillery, the intention was always to release a peated single malt too.

“As with everything at InchDairnie, there is always a plan, and KinGlassie was part of that plan,” Palmer explains. “A peated malt can take a shorter maturation period before coming to maturity, so now was the time. Here at InchDairnie, we want to develop a portfolio of different whiskies, each with its own distinctive flavour profile, from one distillery. Our Rye and now our peated malt, KinGlassie, are part of the portfolio we are developing. More elements of that portfolio are on their way.”

Peat will remain a constant in the KinGlassie range. “We will play around with it, but at the core, it will always be peated,” he confirms.

Although KinGlassie and RyeLaw are very different spirits, Palmer says a common thread runs through them – fermentation flavours. “These are a complex mix of floral and fruit flavours,” he explains.

Peat, provenance, and process

We moved on to talk production. First up: barley. Palmer tells us that, as always, the barley is Fife-grown, using the Concerto variety.

“Provenance is important to InchDairnie – Fife grown, Fife distilled, and Fife matured,” he says.

As for barley variety, he downplays its influence on flavour. “We find the main flavour difference comes from using winter barley, as we do in our Autumn and Winter InchDairnie Single Malt seasons.”

Much of KinGlassie’s character comes from its set-up. The combination of a hammer mill, mash conversion vessel, and mash filter is key.

“The hammer mill, mash conversion vessel and mash filter all work together to give us a clearer wort, and when this ferments it leads to a more floral fruity spirit. These flavours when combined with the smoky flavours give more breadth of flavour. As with the rye flavours in RyeLaw, we wanted the smoke to be part of the story and not all the story – we want breadth of flavour and complexity.” 

Fermentation for this vintage ran to 60 hours, with no special yeast strain used, though later vintages have seen more experimentation on that front.

Building breadth of flavour

The press release reveals “unusual distillation tweaks” at InchDairnie maximise flavour and eliminate sulphurous notes. The key is the use of twin condensers. 

“The double condensers provide a lot of copper contact area. This copper takes out the heavier sulphury flavours while allowing the fermentation flavours to shine through.”

And the choice of casks? The finish in Amontillado-seasoned, heavily toasted new American oak wasn’t just about taste.

“We are always looking for each part of the process to add complementary flavours. The Amontillado casks were made from new heavily toasted American Oak, which brought in the wood flavours. The seasoning with Amontillado brought in nut, leather, and tobacco flavours. When you combine all these complementary flavours you have great breadth of flavour with a long finish. Peated whiskies can be a little short and dry sometimes, and we wanted to avoid that if possible.”

What’s next? Ian Palmer reveals…

Palmer confirms that KinGlassie production has already ramped up – but don’t expect massive volumes just yet. “We will not increase the production level beyond this level in the short term.”

Instead, InchDairnie is turning its attention to The PrinLaws Collection – a new range of one-off distillates.

“This is where we will launch a series of one-off distillates – different mash bills, oats, wheat, and pot still mash, for example. We also play with crystal malts and even sour mash and many other experimental whiskies. Also coming along will be some older expressions of what we already have, but not too many. The InchDairnie Single Malt will be released in 2029.”

The InchDairnie way

The name KinGlassie comes from a nearby village where the local coal mine was located. It seemed fitting to name a smoky whisky after it.

InchDairnie cares about Fife. Much of its marketing positions itself as a bold, methodical, science-led operation. But it’s not cold. This is a distillery that targets the future while understanding the fundamentals of whisky. It’s about people. It’s about place. And it’s about good liquid. 

“We do not seek out confrontation or challenge for the sake of it,” Palmer tells me. “We want to focus on our core purpose, and that is flavour – and flavour-driven by every aspect of the whisky-making process. We see the process not as a group of individual isolated sections but as a whole”. 

This inevitably questions some long-held opinions and what is acceptable and what is not. But Palmer is steadfast: “We are all about flavour, flavour and more flavour. This, I believe, speaks to the consumer more than arbitrary concepts of how whisky should be made. If that is challenging, then so be it.”

Thanks to Ian Palmer for talking to us. You can buy KinGlassie Double Matured and KinGlassie Raw from Master of Malt, just click the links in the product names. 

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