They say you can choose your friends but not your family! But when your “family” continually contributes to a lifestyle of fun and joy, la dolce vita as the Italians call it, who needs friends?
Everybody’s “extended family”, Van Loveren’s Four Cousins, has always led the way in innovation, putting both family and friends first in its continued drive to provide the public with products that add value to their lives. And it’s done it again!
Van Loveren has now embarked on a new journey by adding a whisky to its already extensive range of products. And not just one whisky, but three!
Scottish Cousin is a unique marriage of malt and grain Scotch whiskies from Angus Dundee in Scotland, an independent, family-owned distillery with over 50 years experience in producing, blending, bottling and distributing top quality Scotch whiskies and other spirits.
The Scottish Cousin portfolio includes a five, eight and 12 year old blended whisky. The Scottish Cousin 5 Year Old shows sweet sultana and toffee on the nose followed by notes of soft dried fig, blackberry compote and clove spice on the palate. The finish is gentle and warming with creamy fudge flavours and mellow woody tones.
It is a medium-bodied whisky that has been aged in American oak for five years. The recommended retail price is R199 per bottle.
The Scottish Cousin 8 Year Old displays clover honey, sweet cinnamon, roasted chestnut and dark berry fruits on the nose which leads into a soft honey-nut palate with notes of toasted bagel, sugared almonds and demerara sugar. The finish is sweet, mellow and moreish with tones of honey roasted peanuts lingering in the mouth.
It is a light to medium-bodied whisky that has been aged in American oak for eight years. It is available from most retail outlets nationwide at R270 per bottle.
The range is topped by the Scottish Cousin 12 Year Old whisky with its rich nose of maple syrup, white stone fruit and roasted coffee which leads into a slick palate of crème caramel, creamy vanilla and mature, peppery oak tones. The finish is luxurious and warming with gentle chocolate and sweet spice notes dancing on the tongue.
This medium to full-bodied whisky was aged in American oak for 12 years and retails for approximately R380 per bottle. All three whiskies have an alcohol content of 43% per volume.
Neil Retief, the youngest member of the Four Cousins says: “I am a whisky lover and when the idea came up, I was very happy to be part of the project! Four Cousins is still the biggest selling wine brand in a bottle in South Africa, and as we all know, whisky is a growing market in the world and South Africa. For that reason we decided to extend our family and pick up the family ties in Scotland. I am, after all, of fourth generation Scottish ancestry! We are very excited and very positive that Scottish Cousin is going to be a huge success.
“I believe whisky lovers will be impressed by the smoothness and the drinkability of the Scottish Cousin whiskies. The Four Cousins brand is strong enough that people will be curious to want to experience our whiskies and we are confident that the quality will ensure that the Scottish Cousins whiskies will form part of their drink of choice.”
