Buchanan's Special Reserve 18 Year Old Blended Scotch Whisky
Buchanan's Special Reserve 18 Year Old Blended Scotch Whisky is a 750mL blended Scotch in which every whisky — single malts and grain whiskies alike — is aged a minimum of 18 years, matured in ex-sherry oak barrels. It is the sherry-cask step up in a range James Buchanan founded in 1884, and it took a Gold Medal at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition in 2024. It is available to order online at Del Mesa Liquor.
- Size: 750mL
- Age: Minimum 18 years for every whisky in the blend
- Origin: Scotland
- Maturation: Ex-sherry oak barrels (European sherry casks)
- Style: Blended Scotch whisky — single malts and grain whiskies
- Award: Gold Medal, San Francisco World Spirits Competition 2024
Eighteen Years in Sherry Oak
James Buchanan started blending in 1884 with a simple brief — a whisky smooth enough to share and serious enough to gift — and the house he founded has worked that brief for over 130 years. The Special Reserve is where the range slows down: instead of a youthful house blend, each component malt and grain whisky waits a full 18 years, matured in ex-sherry oak, before the blend is assembled. That patience is the product. Explore the rest of the house on the Buchanan's vendor page and in our whisky collection.
Tasting Notes
Per Diageo's producer copy: dark chocolate, caramel and honey over a rich, silky texture. The fuller producer note set carried by retailers adds cocoa and toffee on the nose; red plum, orange and roasted nuts on the palate; and a finish of honeyed oak, coffee and vanilla — the sherry casks speaking at the end.
How to Enjoy
Neat or on the rocks, per the producer — or in their suggested Reserve Old Fashioned, where the chocolate and honey notes do the sweetening work. More aged blends wait in our whisky collection and across our spirits collection.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does "Special Reserve" mean for Buchanan's 18?
It is the range's 18-year expression: every whisky in the blend is aged at least 18 years, matured in ex-sherry oak barrels — a step above the 12 Year Old DeLuxe in both age and cask character.
Has Buchanan's Special Reserve 18 won any awards?
Yes — a Gold Medal at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition 2024, announced in Diageo's own press release.
What casks is Buchanan's 18 aged in?
Ex-sherry oak barrels — European sherry casks — which account for the dark chocolate, red fruit and honeyed-oak character in the producer's notes.
Eighteen years and a sherry-cask finish, ready when you are — order Buchanan's Special Reserve 18 Year Old Blended Scotch Whisky online from Del Mesa Liquor in San Diego, CA.