Monkey Shoulder
About the brand
Monkey Shoulder is a blended malt launched in 2005 by William Grant & Sons (owners of Glenfiddich and Balvenie) with one goal: to strip the snobbery from malt whisky. It opened the whisky world to bartenders and a younger generation and became a global cocktail-bar phenomenon.
The odd name honours the maltmen — floor-maltsters whose heavy, one-sided shovel work left one shoulder drooping (a "monkey shoulder"). The three copper monkeys on the bottle stand for the three Speyside distilleries that make up the blend:
- Glenfiddich — freshness, green pear and apple.
- Balvenie — honeyed sweetness, smoothness and vanilla.
- Kininvie — a rare, oily, nutty backbone.
Everything matures in first-fill American bourbon casks and is married in Small Batches. The profile is creamy and sweet — toffee, vanilla, baked apple — which makes it a bartender favourite (great in an Old Fashioned). In 2021 the smoky Smokey Monkey joined the range. Browse it in the Monkey Shoulder catalogue.
Timeline
- 2005 William Grant & Sons launches Monkey Shoulder — a clear bottle with metal monkeys instead of the usual tube.
- 2012 Entry into the US market through direct partnership with leading bartenders.
- 2016 Drinks International names Monkey Shoulder the top trending Scotch in the world's best bars.
- 2021 Launch of Smokey Monkey — a variant with added smoky Speyside whisky.
