Inbox - The Week's Whisky News (July 28, 2017)

Welcome to Inbox.  For those new to WFE, 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.

Review - Bunnahabhain 46 years old

This whisky is the latest super premium release from Bunnahabhain. The Bunnahabhain 46 years old, which also carries the Gaelic name of Eich Bhana Lir, has the prestigious tag of being the oldest ever single malt bottled from the Islay-based distillery. The whisky is from a single second-fill ex-Oloroso sherry butt that was hand selected by Andrew Brown, the Distillery Manager at Bunnahabhain. This cask was maturing in Warehouse #4 at the distillery on the windswept north eastern coast of Islay since mid-1969.

Inbox - The Week's Whisky News (July 21, 2017)

Welcome to Inbox.  For those new to WFE, 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.

Review - Jura Tastival 2017 Edition

This whisky is the annual Tastival bottling from the island distillery of Jura. They release this special limited edition each year as their contribution to the Feis Ile festival, which takes place each Spring in late May/early June on the neighbouring island of Islay. The 2017 Edition of Tastival has been matured in a combination of first-fill American oak ex-bourbon casks and ex-Port pipes from the famous Graham's vineyard in Portugal. The bottling is the first to be created by Graham Logan, the new Distillery Manager at Jura.

Distillery Visit - Spirit of Yorkshire

The Spirit of Yorkshire is a new distillery located in the village of Hunmanby, between Bridlington and Filey. It is about an hour to drive from York and is the first single malt distillery ever to be registered in England's largest county. The distillery began production in mid-2016 and was the brainchild of Tom Mellor and David Thompson. They are aided by Joe Clark, the Director of Whisky. The distillery visitor centre, shop and cafe have been opened to the public since Easter 2017.

Whisky Tourism - The Impact On A Scottish Island.

* This article originally appeared on the Huffington Post UK on 13/7/17. 

Whisky tourism is nothing new to Islay. It is home to eight distilleries that are known the world over and is relatively accessible for a Hebridean island. A two-hour ferry ride from the mainland or a short 30-minute hop from Glasgow by plane gets you there. But how does the island cope during the annual Feis Ile, a week that celebrates the island’s music, heritage and single malts?

Many malt fans see Islay as the ‘Mecca of whisky’ with large numbers visiting on their own personal pilgrimage. However, Feis Ile takes things to a very different level. Islay’s population of just over 3,000 almost trebles for a week as the whisky pilgrims flock there from all four corners of the globe to join the festivities. How does an island’s infrastructure cope with such a sudden influx?

Review - Ardbeg Kelpie

The Kelpie is this year's limited edition single malt from the cult Islay distillery of Ardbeg. Each year a special whisky is released annually to celebrate Ardbeg Day and the distillery's participation in the Feis Ile festival. The whisky is named Kelpie after the mythical shape shifting creature that legend says inhabits the sea near to the distillery and occasionally comes on to land to terrorise islanders.

Kelpie has been produced by Dr. Bill Lumsden - Ardbeg's Director of Distilling, Whisky Creation & Whisky Stocks - and some of the whisky included has been matured in rare Black Sea oak casks. The wood for these was sourced from the Adyghe Republic in Russia.  This has then been married with Ardbeg matured in traditional ex-bourbon barrels to create the final expression of Kelpie.

Inbox - The Week's Whisky News (July 14, 2017)

Welcome to Inbox.  For those new to WFE, 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.

Inbox - The Week's Whisky News (July 7, 2017)

Welcome to Inbox.  For those new to WFE, 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.

Texas - A New Whisky Star Is Rising

* This article originally appeared on the Huffington Post UK on 30/6/17.

When most people think of American whiskey, they think of two states – Kentucky and Tennessee. This is not surprising as the biggest brands are produced there and the industry has history and heritage on its side. But now a new state is staking a claim for a share of the American whiskey pie. That state is Texas.

In less than a decade Texas has risen from the whiskey wilderness to become arguably the third most important and influential whiskey state in the USA. America’s second largest state by both area and population is now home to a growing number of distilleries that are aiding and developing the craft distilling revolution in the country.