What initially sounds like the result of a succession of increasingly specific fever dreams after a long night drinking way too much Scotch whiskey is actually anything but. As part of its Beyond the Cask product series, Glenmorangie (which has been making Highland, single-malt Scotch whiskies since 1843) has paired with Oregon-based bicycle company Renovo to create something truly special: a wooden bike made from Glenmorangie barrel staves.
This partnership is the second in the series, following last year’s sunglasses — the world’s first Scotch whiskey sunglasses — designed by Finlay & Co.
Named the Glenmorangie Original, the Renovo bike not only looks like the manlier, woodsier cousin to anything steampunk, but it also falls in line with the distillery’s commitment to wood management. Each frame is made from about fifteen staves (or planks). The individually designed bike frames are trapezoidal in shape, which embraces the form of the staves themselves. In addition, the natural curves from the cask are utilized in the frame’s down and top tubes.
The bike technology is some of the best of the best. It comes with Shimano Ultegra 6800 mechanical shifting and hydraulic braking systems, a full-carbon thru-axle fork, highly versatile Velocity wheels, and a lightweight Full Speed Ahead cockpit. Under the hollow frame tech that Renovo pioneered, you’ll find 700 mm by 28 mm wheels that are perfect for your everyday road exploits. Want a little more adventure? You can swap out the tires (up to 40 mm in width) to conquer even the bumpiest Scottish countryside road (although bike tires are hardly as high-tech as today’s crazy car tires). All of that may sound like a lot, but the bike still weighs less than 22 lbs.
You can own one of these testaments to whiskey and innovation (dare we say genius?) for a cool $6,950. Available in small, medium, or large, each bike will be delivered fully-tuned and 98 percent assembled (they give you the tools to do the final 2 percent); you’ll be on your way in 15 minutes or less.
