A reserve-cask malt that rewrote the McDowell’s story.

To mark 125 years of heritage, Diageo set out to do the unthinkable: release a limited-cask single malt under the MacDowell’s banner, the world’s largest-selling whisky but never a by-word for craft. They needed a launch that felt more atelier than mass market.

Inside Diageo’s machinery this was a true zero-to-one moment, so we partnered shoulder-to-shoulder with their brand studio. Our brief: shape a narrative of Indian terroir and modern luxury, then build a digital stage that could pour that story neat.

The site took its cue from the Sahyadri mountains where the spirit matures. Mist-laden video, mineral textures and slow-reveal scroll states pulled visitors out of the browser and into the hills. Micro-animations hinted at cask char and copper stills; a fluid path let collectors reserve bottles before the liquid ever left the barrel.

The launch won industry kudos and, more importantly, proved that a global conglomerate can move with start-up agility when the right creative pod plugs in. More than a microsite, it was an immersive bridge between place, process and palate—staking Diageo’s claim to the next chapter of Indian single malt.