A protest song from 1981 became the national football team's anthem, and eventually the name of a whisky. It isn't often a bottle carries this much national pride inside it.
Expert description
Penderyn Icons of Wales No. 10 Yma O Hyd is a Single Malt Welsh Whisky matured in American rye casks and bottled at 43%. The name is taken from Dafydd Iwan's iconic Welsh-language protest song 'Yma O Hyd' from 1981, a tribute to the survival of the Welsh language and culture, since adopted as the anthem of the national football team's supporters, known as 'The Red Wall'.
The bottle launched in 2022 as the official whisky partnership with the Football Association of Wales, tied to Wales's World Cup campaign that year. The rye casks give the whisky a spiced, peppery edge that sets it apart from most of Penderyn's other releases, where bourbon, sherry and port casks tend to dominate.
Tasting notes
Nose
The nose is floral with baking spice, caramel and the scent of baked apple and pear.
Palate
The palate offers sweet caramel and sultana, spiced with cinnamon-apple, pepper and a touch of ginger and clove from the rye casks.
Finish
The finish is caramel-sweet with a herbal, peppery close that lingers.
Specifications
Name: Penderyn Icons of Wales No 10 Yma O Hyd Single Malt Welsh Whisky 70 CL 43%
Distillery: Penderyn
Region/Country: Brecon Beacons, Wales
Type: Single Malt Welsh Whisky
ABV: 43%
Size: 70 CL
Cask type: American rye casks
Non-chill filtered: Yes
Distillation method: Faraday distillation
Bottled: 2022
Edition: Icons of Wales No. 10
EAN no.: 5011594001781
Flavour profile
Spiced · Sweet · Rye-matured
Did you know?
'Yma O Hyd' means 'still here' in Welsh, and the song has served since 1981 as a defiant reminder that the Welsh language is still alive — a line sung today just as loudly on football terraces as at folk concerts.
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