For whisky enthusiasts who keep an eye on the travel retail shelves, Glenfiddich’s latest collaboration with the Aston Martin Formula One Team offers a new bottle to look for. The brands have unveiled two limited-edition single malts for the second year of their partnership, including a 19-year-old expression reserved for selected travel retail locations.
Joining it is a 16-year-old release arriving in selected Canadian provinces this autumn. Both carry the designation Limited-Edition Release No.2, and both explore how cask selection and maturation can build layers of flavor around Glenfiddich’s fruit-led style.
The connection to Formula One centers on precision: the small decisions that shape a finished whisky, and the engineering details that determine how a racing car performs.
Whisky Craft Meets Formula One Design
The releases draw inspiration from Glenfiddich Malt Master Brian Kinsman and Aston Martin Formula One Team’s Adrian Newey. Their work operates on very different timelines, but the collaboration finds common ground in anticipation, refinement, and the relationship between individual elements and the finished result.
For Kinsman, that means choosing casks, monitoring maturation, and bringing whiskies together in balance. A subtle change in any of those decisions can influence the character that eventually reaches the glass.
The new expressions build on the Glenfiddich and Aston Martin Formula One partnership, announced in November 2024. Here, the shared design philosophy takes two distinct forms: a 16-year-old whisky drawing on five cask types and a 19-year-old expression exploring three types of oak.
The 16-Year-Old: Five Cask Types, Layers of Fruit and Toffee
The Glenfiddich & Aston Martin Formula One Team 16-Year-Old Limited-Edition Release No.2 combines the influence of first-fill bourbon barrels, Port pipes, Oloroso sherry casks, wine casks, and a final touch of Fino sherry butts.
That combination gives the release its defining story. Different cask influences contribute to a profile intended to bring fruit, sweetness, oak, and texture into balance.
According to Glenfiddich’s tasting notes, the nose opens with stewed fruit and floral aromas, followed by hints of marzipan and polished leather. The palate is described as mellow and silky, with buttery toffee and caramelized cane sugar offset by dry oak tannins. The finish carries a lingering oak sweetness.
Bottled at 43% ABV, the 16-year-old is scheduled to reach local liquor stores in selected Canadian provinces during autumn 2026. Distribution will vary, so readers interested in this particular edition should check with their local retailer and specify Release No.2.
The 19-Year-Old: A Travel Retail Exclusive
The Glenfiddich & Aston Martin Formula One Team 19-Year-Old Limited-Edition Release No.2 takes a different approach, combining Colombian, European, and American oak cask finishes.
Colombian oak is a particular point of interest. Glenfiddich’s Canadian National Brand Ambassador, Jamie Johnson, describes its contribution as bringing brightness to the whisky’s richer, more structured character, with notes of sherbet, baked apple, and soft cinnamon.
The brand’s tasting notes expand that picture with vanilla, crystallized ginger, candied orange and lemon peel, and warm oak spice on the nose. On the palate, citrus brightness accompanies a waxy texture, baked apple, and cinnamon, followed by a lingering sweet finish.
Also bottled at 43% ABV, the 19-year-old will be available exclusively through selected Global Travel Retail locations. Specific outlets are not identified in the announcement, so travelers should confirm availability with retailers on their route.
A Partnership That Extends Beyond the Bottle
The collaboration has already connected whisky with the hospitality surrounding Formula One. At the 2025 Canadian Grand Prix, Glenfiddich hosted Club 1959 at Four Seasons Hotel Montreal, pairing a dinner at MARCUS with whisky tastings and appearances connected to the Aston Martin team.
DRIFT’s coverage of the Glenfiddich and Aston Martin Montreal Grand Prix experience offers a look at that earlier chapter.
These new releases bring the focus back to the whisky itself. For readers comparing the two, the distinction is clear: the 16-year-old emphasizes a five-cask composition with fruit, toffee, and oak, while the travel retail-exclusive 19-year-old explores oak finishes with a brighter citrus and spice profile.
Further product information is available from Glenfiddich.
