For the majority of single malt drinkers, we are used to bottles of whisky displaying a clear age statement. By law, Scotch whisky must be at least 3 years and a day old, and if there is a number of whiskies blended together, any statement of age has to be based on the age of the youngest whisky present. Displaying the age front and centre gives the consumer confidence and reassurance in what they are drinking and helps distillers stay on the right side of the law. But in more recent times, some distillers and bottlers are foregoing the age statement and are making the decision to go with a no age statement (NAS) bottling. But what does this mean, and does it really matter?

A no age statement whisky might sound a tad confusing, but it is really quite simple. If you take the decision to not stick an age of the label of your whisky, it is a no age statement whisky. See, easy peasy. Of course, you still must abide by the law in regard to aging as set out previously, but you do not have to state anywhere on the bottle or label what age the malt is. In this case, the vast majority of NAS whisky will instead have a distinctive name, something to make it stand out. Often it will be tied to the heritage, something distinctive about the whisky or just simply represent the marketing angle of the whisky or distillery, it really just comes down to what direction each individual brand wants to take. While in the past we are used to a distillery and age, now it might be the distillery and a place name, a translation or just a simple descriptor of the whisky. Instead of the classics like Glenmorangie 12 or Laphroaig 10, now we commonly see the likes of Kilchoman Sanaig (named after a nearby coastal inlet) or Glasgow 1770 Peated Cask Strength Batch 2 (even if it is a bit wordy!).

There may be several reasons of why you would want to go down the NAS road. If you are a blend, it is pretty well accepted that you will not display the age. It is just not worth it when you have numerous different whiskies blended together, most blends do not even disclose what spirits are present, let alone the age of the youngest whisky present. The single malt scene is different but the acceptance around NAS blends has helped the eventual development of the practice in single malts. Perhaps you want to break the shackles of the establishment and shift the perceived notion that young whiskies are bad whiskies, or that age is the sole indicator of quality, so you just avoid adding the age to the product. Perhaps you have a shortage of the whisky you really wanted but you have plenty of younger stock and blending them together produces a quality whisky you want to sell, and you just want to avoid stating the age of the youngest whisky. Perhaps it’s just marketing tactic, designed to provide a unique twist to your whisky by naming your offerings rather than sticking a number on them. Or perhaps you just want to get a little crazy and play with different ages of whisky. All are perfectly valid reasons, but the view of each may be tainted by your own perspective on the subject, and those of others. Some see it as a sketchy marketing tactic, designed to confuse and blinker the average drinker. Others will view it as a way to innovate, buck the trend, take whisky to a new audience without being beholden to old traditions like displaying an age of the whisky.

Is either stance correct? As is much in life, both sides are probably right, and wrong, to a degree. There can be a certain snobbery towards younger whiskies and so removing the age statement helps lessen that bias. This is especially important as there is an influx of young (and often quality) whisky into the market currently and those newer producers want to make their whisky land onto the scene with a bang, so easier to go with a NAS. But at the same time, drinkers want to know, understand and appreciate what they are sampling and do not want to be purposely mislead. Over time, I feel like the sides are slowly moving towards each other with an increasing acceptance of NAS whisky, and with continued respect for the whiskies which do proudly display their age. Age statements are not for every brand, but for some they are central. Imagine a world without a Macallan 12 or Glenfiddich 15 available on the market. At the same time, the explosion in young exceptional whisky really shows that displaying the age makes no impact if the quality of the whisky is good enough. I do not care what age the Lagg Corriecravie is, I just know I think very fondly of it and many others like it.