Inbox - The Week's Whisky News (October 24, 2014)

Welcome to this week's Inbox.  For those that have recently discovered us, Inbox is our weekly round up of whisky news and PR material that has found its way in to our email inbox. It was created as we cannot write full articles or do justice to every piece received. It features items from around the world of whisky and is published by us each Friday.

Within Inbox we aim to write a few lines detailing each press release/piece of news/PR event that we have received and provide links, where possible, for you to find out further information.  It's been a bit of a quiet one this week, but here is the news that has caught our attention from this week ...

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Compass Box - Two new additions
Artisan blending company Compass Box have announced two new whiskies - the Great King Street Glasgow Blend and The Lost Blend.  Both have been created and blended by John Glaser, the founder of Compass Box.

The Glasgow Blend is the second permanent expression in the award-winning Great King Street range, and joins the Artist's Blend.  It is a blend of 67% malt and 33% grain whiskies, with an emphasis on rich, rounded smoke and sherry cask influence.  The whisky is bottled at 43% ABV, is non chill-filtered and of natural colour.  It is available now in the UK and Europe, and will follow to the USA and other key markets in November.  The price will be £30/€36.

John Glaser commented: “The Glasgow Blend involved the creation of over 100 recipe prototypes before we finalised it. We’ve been trying to make a blended Scotch like no other on the market today, something based on the traditional Scotch whisky styles of peat smoke and sherry cask aging, but reinterpreted for today’s drinkers who seek big flavours, complexity and fullness on the palate.” 

The Lost Blend is inspired by the O. Henry book of the same name from 1097 and also pays homage to Compass Box's own 'lost blend' - the Eleuthera.  It combines three single malts (from the Allt-a-Bhainne, Caol Ila and Clynelish distilleries) and features other 'lost' items on the packagind, including a gramophone and the dodo.  The Lost Blend is bottled at 46% ABV, is non chill-filtered and of natural colour.  There are just 12,018 bottles - these will be available in Europe, the UK and the USA, costing €100/£85/$125 respectively.

John Glaser adds, “In 2001, we created our first single malt blend which we called Eleuthera. It was an elegant marriage of approximately 80% unpeated Highland and 20% peaty Islay single malts. Alas, after 3 years, we were no longer able to obtain one of the key whiskies required so, sadly, we retired Eleuthera in 2004. Quietly, I have been looking for whiskies that we could use to bring it back, even if temporarily, but without any luck. Until now ...”

Glenfiddich - New look

The best selling single malt brand of Glenfiddich have revealed its new visual identity, which has been designed by the London based Purple Creative.  The company have been working with Glenfiddich for eight years and the current re-invention of the brand includes the creation of new brand imagery, bespoke fonts, graphics, colour systems and tone of voice.  They have also evolved the iconic stag logo (pictured, above) and classic Glenfiddich logotype.

Gary Westlake, Founder and Creative Director at Purple said; “The luxury drinks sector has always been image-led, with the competition constantly raising the bar. Understanding the brand and its history has allowed us to add real depth and rationale for our creative solutions. It has also helped having a brave client, who is looking to the future, while having a rich and authentic 125 year heritage. My personal highlight was having the chance to perfect the stag icon, one of the most famous brand logos in the world.”

LABEL 5 - Going for Gold
The popular LABEL 5 blended Scotch brand has announced a new expression for its range - the Label 5 Gold Heritage.  The new premium blend has been created by Graham Coull, the Master Blender for LABEL 5, and includes single malts up to the age of 20 years old.  The Gold Heritage will be launched shortly in the USA followed by Australia and China, and come packaged in a gold bottle.  It has been bottled at 40% ABV and has a recommended retail price of $40 USD.

Coull commented: “LABEL 5 Gold Heritage is a personal achievement for me. Building on the traditions of LABEL 5, I have hand-selected whiskies from different ages and casks which marry together to produce a wonderfully balanced blend. The result is an exceptionally smooth whisky loaded with fruit, spice, warm vanilla oak and subtle smoke, which offers a unique taste experience.”