Amathus to distribute Michel Couvreur whiskies in the UK

By Mathew Lyons

Published: 29 March, 2016

Amathus Drinks is set to distribute Michel Couvreur's range of premium hand-crafted French-aged Scottish whiskies in the UK.

The five-strong range includes Couvreur's Blossoming Auld Malt Whisky, Candid Malt Whisky, Overaged Malt Whisky, Special Vatting Peaty Malt Whisky and Very Sherried Over 27 Year Old.

Burgundy winemaker Couvreur first encountered Scotch in the 1950s and in 1964 moved to Scotland to learn about whisky production.

Returning to France the following decade, Couvreur built his own bespoke cellars in the hills above Bouze-Les-Beaune in the Côte d'Or.

Couvreur matures his whiskies in two cellars, one of which is dry and another which is very damp.

The different humidities offer him considerable flexibility and control in the ageing process, with the dry cellar creating whiskies that are spicy and intense

with an abv of up to 60%, while the humid cellar lowers the alcohol and allows the whisky to mellow and soften.

All his Scotch matures in rare ex-sherry oak casks.

Michel Couvrer Blossoming Auld Malt Whisky

Each bottle is hand-labelled and sealed with a cork and wax.

The Michel Couvreur range is available from Amathus at the following prices for 70cl bottles: the Blossoming Auld Malt Whisky retails at £186.20 and has an abv of 45%; the Candid Malt Whisky is bottled at 49% abv and retails at £96.19; the Overaged Malt Whisky carries an abv of 43% and is priced at £66.36; and the Special Vatting Peaty Malt Whisky will retail for £119.93 and has an abv of 45%.

A 50cl bottle of Very Sherried Over 27 Year Old, which is 48% abv, will retail at £382.14.

France leads the world in whisky consumption, with an average of 2.15 litres per person being drunk each year.

Whisky accounts for 38.7% of all spirits drunk in France, with Scotch contributing some 90% of that total.

"Within 15 years the world's best whiskies will be French," Nicolas Julhès, head of the Distillerie de Paris, recently claimed.

"We will be able to stop copying the Scots to bring a real French style. We have the greatest specialists on ageing [alcohol] who have always worked in wine and cognac."

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