The Alexandrion Group kick-started the world tour of their ‘Carpathian Single Malt’, the first ever single malt whisky produced in the history of Romania. A lavish event at the Romanian Embassy in Washington, USA on the 25th May was attended by 200 guests. Next stop will be London and a glittering event in central London on the 12th July, 2022.
This refined drink will place Romania on the global map of producers and its continued success will forge closer links between the UK and Romania, whilst also contributing towards the humanitarian efforts of the ‘Foundation Alexandrion’ (the philanthropic arm of the business) in helping Refugees and Students affected by the war in Ukraine.
Alexandrion Group, the largest Romanian spirits and wines producer and distributor, introduces to the world Carpathian Single Malt. The first single malt whisky ever produced in the history of Romania, will tour the world in a very exclusive limited edition of 930 bottles, starting from this May. The first stop of Carpathian Single Malt’s global journey will be in USA, where the product will be showcased in a lavish event organized at the residence of the Romanian Ambassador to the USA in Washington, on the 25th of May. The tour will continue with another event organized in UK, in the first half of this year. This will be followed by a commercial launch in Romania, featuring 10,000 bottles, in the last quarter of 2022.
Under the stewardship of Alexandrion Group’s Founder & Chairman Mr. Nawaf Salameh and his master distiller with Irish and Scottish heritage, Allan Anderson, the group has produced a high-quality product, which single malt aficionados will soon discover is world-class.
Made using 100% malted barley produced in Romania, the single malt is distilled, matured and bottled at the Alexandrion Saber 1789 Distilleries, located near the Carpathian Mountains. Carpathian Single Malt is made with pure sub-Carpathian water, is natural coloured, unchill filtered and bottled at 46% Alc.
Three expressions of the first Romanian single malt will be presented to the world during the tour: Feteasca Neagra & Pinot Noir, as part of the Romanian Wine Cask Selection, and Madeira, as part of the Spanish & Portuguese Wine Cask Selection. Feteasca Neagra and Madeira finishing were initially matured in first-fill Bourbon casks, while the Pinot Noir expression was exclusively matured in Romanian Pinot Noir casks.
“We have been quietly distilling and maturing the single malt whisky liquid since 2017, sourcing casks from all over Europe and the USA. This is the first chance single malt enthusiasts will have to enjoy a Carpathian whisky”, said Nawaf Salameh, the Founding Chairman of the Alexandrion Group.
Carpathian Single Malt was matured in Romanian wine casks, a world premiere in terms of single malt production, as well.
Romania has more than 2,000 years of wine production history and is one of the largest wine producers in the world. Alexandrion Group, through Alexandrion Rhein Domains 1892, its wine division, produces some of the best award-winning wines in Romania and has been a supplier of the Royal House of Romania for the oldest sparkling wine produced in Romania, Rhein, since 1904. The Group’s vineyards are located within the Dealu Mare region, on the 45th parallel similar to the Bordeaux region.
Earlier this year, the Feteasca Neagra variety was awarded the Double Gold medal in one of the most prestigious international competitions, Concours Mondial de Bruxelles, and is considered the best red Romanian wine, exhibiting spicy, smoky fruit characters and good tannin structure. Alexandrion Group becomes therefore one of the few companies in the world that uses casks from its own wine production facilities to age single malt whiskey, a unique collaboration that will be further enhanced in the coming years.
The malted barley for this inaugural edition was harvested in 2016, distilled in 2017. The first maturation was done in first-fill Bourbon casks, wine casks and a range of finishing casks.
The Master Distiller of the Carpathian Single Malt is Allan Anderson, with both Scottish and Irish heritage, who has more than 30 years of experience in producing both Scotch whisky (Loch Lomond, White & Mackay, Aberargie) and Irish whiskey (The Great Northern Distillery). He also designed the distillery of Slane Castle Ireland.
“This whisky perfectly showcases our distillery terroir. The huge flavor impact of our malted barley, the pure sub-Carpathian water combined with the unique flavors of Romanian and Portuguese wine casks make Carpathian Single Malt an exquisite whisky, which without doubt will become one of the best in the world as it further matures. The maturation in warmer climate regions vs Scotland (+5⁰C on average) might explain the unique, milder character of this superb whisky” Allan Anderson.
Carpathian showcases this great potential and the clear quality advantage that we have vs other single malt whiskies of the same age, and we wanted to share our enthusiasm with whisky connoisseurs worldwide. The mash was double distilled in our distillery’s custom-made stills” added Allan Anderson.
The design of the Carpathian Single Malt bottle was made in Paris by the luxury design agency.
The combination of Irish and Scottish know-how, Romanian malt pure sub-Carpathian water and superb wine casks make Romania a perfect country to produce high-quality single malt, that single malt aficionados will soon discover.
Carpathian Single Malt will launch its commercial edition of 10,000 bottles on the Romanian market in the final quarter of 2022. This edition will feature up to 11 finishings some of them in world premiere.
