Puni, the first Italian malt whisky, was born from a paradox. Its home in the Vinschgau valley, a place of snow-capped peaks and crisp alpine air, felt a world away from the misty glens of Scotland, yet its founders, the Ebenspergers, had a profound respect for the Scottish tradition. They built their distillery as a striking red brick cube, a modern homage to the region's ancient barns, and inside, they installed Forsyths pot stills, handcrafted in Rothes. But their whisky, a triple-grain spirit using local rye, was a product of its unique place—the "Italian Highlands." Jonas Ebensperger, the master distiller,