The first distillery to blend three malts, Monkey Shoulder is made from a trio of fine Speyside single malts-Glenfiddich, Balvenie, Kininvie. Once selected, the malts are left to mature in bourbon casks for a length of time only the "malt master" knows. This process lends the whisky subtle, but distinct smokey notes of oak that compliment the spirit's naturally sweet vanilla and brown sugar flavors. Each batch contains just 27 individually taste-tested casks to keep quality consistently up to grade.