Inbox / The Week's Whisky News (August 27, 2021)

Welcome to Inbox, our weekly round up of whisky news and PR material that has found its way in to our WFE email. 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. 

Inbox / The Week's Whisky News (January 29, 2021)

Welcome to Inbox, our weekly round up of whisky news and PR material that has found its way in to our WFE email. 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. 

Allotment Drams / Jack Daniel's Old No.7 & Bunnahabhain Stiùireadair

We have two more episodes of our Allotment Dram video series for you and hope you will enjoy them. Firstly, watch as Matt tackles one of the world's biggest selling whiskeys in the form of Jack Daniel's Old No.7. Learn a bit about the brand's history, plus what the terms 'sour mash' and 'Lincoln County Process' mean. Then find out his thoughts and tasting notes.

Then on his next visit he heads back to Scotland, and the island of Islay in particular, to take a look at the sherry cask influenced Bunnahabhain Stiùireadair. Watch to discover how to pronounce the name of the whisky and some information about the distillery, before giving his thoughts and tasting notes.

To keep up-to-date with our latest videos, please subscribe to our YouTube channel here.

#AllotmentDram

 

Review / Bunnahabhain Stiùireadair

This whisky from Bunnahabhain forms the entry point in to the Islay distillery's core range of single malts. It sits alongside expressions at 12, 18, 25 and 40 years of age and a plethora of limited editions and special releases. The distillery is one that favours the use of Gaelic names for their whiskies and this is no exception, being arguably the most complicated and daunting of them all to try and get your tongue around. Stiùireadair is actually easier to say than you would think - it is pronounced stew-rad-hur and means 'helmsman' in Scots Gaelic. The helmsman in question is the one on the brand's logo.

Our Top 10 Whiskies of 2018

Another year has passed and it is time for one of our favourite blog posts - our top 10 whiskies from last year. Everyone will have a different opinion about what should and should not be on such a list. Our list is simply our favourites with no criteria, such as price or availability applied, or agenda.

2018 saw seemingly more whiskies released than ever before. New distilleries bottled their first ever products (Cotswolds and Eden Mill), established brands put new whiskies in to their core ranges (Aberlour and Glenlivet amongst others), classic whiskies were re-released (BenRiach and GlenDronach) and some distilleries celebrated landmarks with anniversary bottlings (Balcones and Benromach). The competitions that we both judge on saw record levels of entries, reflecting this vibrancy at the moment.

As with previous years it has been a struggle to narrow our choices down to just ten. We have sampled many nice whiskies, reviewing numerous of them. As with the last couple of years, we have decided to again list the final ten in alphabetical order, rather than ranking them.

Review - Bunnahabhain 20 years old Palo Cortado Finish

This whisky is part of a new annual limited edition programme for the three Scotch brands of Distell - Bunnahabhain on the isle of Islay, Deanston in the Highlands and Tobermory on the isle of Mull. The programme has been named 'The Malt Gallery' and the first set featured two expressions from Bunnahabhain and Ledaig (the peated version of Tobermory) and one each from Deanston and the classic style of Tobermory.

Inbox - The Week's Whisky News (August 10, 2018)

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.

Fèis Ìle 2018 - Goodbye, Farewell

Down on the beach at Bunnahabhain.

The annual Fèis Ìle took place last week and saw the world descend on the famous whisky producing Hebredian island of Islay for eight days of events, whisky and music. Matt was amongst them and here is his final report.

________

Thursday evening presented a moment that I had been dreading. That moment when you realise that something good is almost over. In reality, it had been slowly creeping up on my during the day that had seen me visit Islay's two newest distilleries - the soon-to-be completed Ardnahoe and Kilchoman, which became the island's eighth distillery in 2005.

Inbox - The Week's Whisky News (August 18. 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.

Review - The Feis Ile 2017 bottlings

For the last week, I have had the pleasure of being on Islay for my first taste of the annual Feis Ile festival. The festival is a celebration of the island's culture and music, but most importantly its whisky. Whisky is engrained in to Islay life and its distilleries are known the world over, mostly for their unique smoky and peaty flavours.

Every year at the festival each of the Islay's eight single malt distilleries have an open day. Part of this involves releasing a special limited edition bottling that are only available to those attending the distilleries during the festival.Demand is normally very high and sees whisky fans queuing up at distillery gates in the early hours of each morning to make sure they secure a bottle.

The Wood Makes The Whisky - The Examples

Last Autumn, the leading Scottish independent bottling company of Gordon & MacPhail launched a new campaign to show the importance of casks in the whisky maturation process - The Wood Makes The Whisky. It highlights the most important part of their business and is supported by a dedicated website and a selected number of whiskies, which have been bottled to demonstrate the various sections within the campaign.

In Part One of this blog post, we looked at the ideas and concepts behind the campaign.  In this part we sample some of the whiskies that Gordon & MacPhail have released to demonstrate the various points within the campaign.  These include combinations of different ages, styles, cask wood types and cask sizes to show how all can effect a whisky.

Inbox - The Week's Whisky News (September 11, 2015)

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.

Inbox - The Week's Whisky News (November 7, 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.

Islay - The whisky island

The island of Islay (pronounced eye-la) is famous for its whisky and is home to eight single malt distilleries. As a result it is seen as a 'Mecca for whisky lovers' and many undertake their own personal pilgrimages. Islay is particularly associated with the smoky, peaty style. This stems from when the only form of fuel on the island was peat. Peat is soil that has been compacted over thousands of year and is traditionally cut in April and May each year. It is then left to dry out over the Summer, before being burnt as a fuel during the Winter.

Have just tried – Bunnahabhain 40 Years Old

Burn Stewart Distillers, the owners of Bunnahabhain, have released the oldest ever expression of single malt scotch whisky from the Islay distillery at the end of 2012 - 40 years old Journey of Discovery. The whisky was a pleasant discovery by Master Distiller, Ian MacMillan, who came across it in the distillery ledgers noting that it was stored in one of their warehouses. As a result it has a limited quantity of 750 bottles available. The 40 years old will be available in specialist retailers in selected markets worldwide for around £2000.

Inbox - November 9, 2012

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 that we receive. 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.  Here is the news that has attracted our attention this week ...

New releases > Duncan Taylor Scotch Whisky Ltd.

The Duncan Taylor Scotch Whisky Ltd. were set up in Glasgow in 1938 with the plan to bottle and blend whisky for export to America following the Prohibition period there. They are now based in the town of Huntly, close to the Speyside whisky region of Scotland. Duncan Taylor are reported to have one of the largest privately held collections of rare whisky casks in the world and bottle approximately 200 different whiskies a year. Their range is extensive and has numerous branches to it, which are detailed below. For more information on Duncan Taylor, their whisky and the different ranges, check out their website www.duncantaylor.com.

We were delighted to receive a small package last week, which contained samples of some of the new releases from across their ranges - we thank Karen Law of Duncan Taylor for this. Normally, we may not write about these, as they are such limited releases, but the parcel contained a number of lesser known distilleries that we are not so familiar with and as such, therefore haven't written much about them. It's always good to try new things, right? If you like the sound of any of them, then don't hang around as none of their bottlings ever seem to stay on the shelves for long. They can be found in specialist whisky retailers.

Auchroisk 22 years old Octave
Auchroisk (pronounced ar-thrusk) is located in the eastern corner of the Speyside region. It is also one of the youngest distilleries in Scotland having been founded in 1974 and has an annual production capacity of 3.8 million litres. The whisky produced there is used within popular blended whiskies such as Johnnie Walker and J&B. Single malt bottlings are rare, so this one is a treat - it's distilled in 1988 and has been matured in an octave cask (a cask that is the eighth the size of a regular cask), before being bottled at 22 years of age and 52% ABV.

The colour is golden yellow and the nose is lovely with plenty of vanilla, brown sugar, oak and zesty lemons. It has a youthful freshness which defies its age. On the palate, the tangy lemon zest hits first and then give way to notes of robust cereal grain, honey, sweet vanilla, coconut and toffee. There are hints of dried grasses and toasted almonds. A final hit of oak grips the palate and carries on through to the finish, in which this oak gives a pleasant dryness. The toasted almonds and cereals are particularly prominent on the finish.

Bunnahabhain 32 years old Rare Auld
Bunnahabhain (pronounced bunna-ha-ven) is located on the north eastern coast of the famous whisky island of Islay. It is the lightest of the Islay malts, which are known for their peaty and smoky nature, and commonly is not peaty at all. The distillery was founded in 1881 and has a current production capacity of 2.5 million litres per year. Most of the whisky produced is used as the base in a variety of blends, including Black Bottle. This bottling was distilled in 1979 and is 32 years old from cask no. 1774, with an alcoholic strength of 46.9% ABV.

The colour is golden yellow and the nose is complex and pleasant. First up are aromas of dusty cereal grains, followed by toffee, something floral (honeysuckle maybe?), wood spices (especially cinnamon) and some salty brine. On the palate, this is soft and buttery but with an initial salty and slightly citric tangy (imagine orange rind). Then come notes of toffee, sandalwood, vanilla and heavy and yeasty malted barley, all of which are backed up by further brine. The finish is sweet and full of barley, with the toffee and brine never far away.

Craigellachie 11 years old NC2
The Craigellachie distillery is located in the village of the same name in the heart of the Speyside region. It sits at the point where two famous rivers meet - the Spey and the Fiddich. Craigellachie was founded in 1891 and was designed by famous architect Charles Doig. It currently produces 3.5 million litres per year with most contributing towards the popular Dewar's range of blended whiskies. Single malt bottlings are extremely rare - this one is 11 years of age, was distilled in 1999 and has an alcoholic strength of 46% ABV.

The colour is a pale lemon yellow and the nose is very light and delicate. The subtle aromas take time to evolve and include dry, gristy barley, honey, vanilla and toffee. There are also hints of lemon zest and dried grass or hay. On the palate, this is again light and delicate. It is initially very grainy, before this subsides and the other subtle notes come through - honey, vanilla, lemon sherbet, plus the tiniest hints of toffee, damp earthy smoke and hay. The finish is a little bittersweet and is deliciously fresh, vibrant and mouth watering.

Invergordon 1972 Rare Auld Grain
Invergordon is a large grain distillery which is located on the shores of the Cromarty Firth in the northern Highlands, near the town of Alness. It was built in 1961 and now occupies a huge 80 acre site. Invergordon produces grain whisky which is used a the base for the popular range of Whyte & Mackay blended whiskies. Releases as a single grain whisky are very rare and this one was distilled in 1972 and has been maturing in cask no.85255 ever since. It has been bottled at the cask strength of 45.5% ABV. We have never tried any whisky from this distillery.

The colour is a dark golden yellow and the nose is expressive and vibrant for a whisky of this age. With time, it reveals aromas of sweet honey, vanilla, robust cereals, orange oils, chocolate and plenty of wood spices (think sandalwood, cinnamon). On the palate, this really comes out of its shell. A fantastic combination of coconut, honey and oranges hits your taste buds, followed up by the robust grains, vanilla and drying, slightly tannic wood spices. The orange and vanilla notes carry through to the finish, which is otherwise deliciously dry, woody and spicy.

Have just tried ... Single Casks from Royal Mile Whiskies

Royal Mile Whiskies is one of the UK's leading independent whisky and spirits retailers. The company was established in 1991 and has seen it reputation grow and establish a worldwide customer base. They currently have two shops - one on Edinburgh's Royal Mile and one in London's Bloomsbury Street - with a third shop in Edinburgh specialising in cigars. Royal Mile Whiskies have one of the best whisky retail websites on the net and in addition to an expansive range of whisky, whiskey, bourbon and other spirits, the website is home to in depth distillery profiles, whisky history and staff tasting notes. Check it out at www.royalmilewhiskies.com.

Royal Mile Whiskies carefully select and bottle their own whiskies from time to time and the latest of these have just been released. Each of the three whiskies are bottled from a single cask and offer excellent value for money as they are all priced under £30 and bottles are limited. They can be purchased from either of their shops or from the website. Below are the details and tasting notes for each of the three new whiskies.

Islay 9 years old (Bunnahabhain)
Bunnahabhain distillery is located on the north eastern coast of the western Scottish isle of Islay. This whisky was distilled in 1999 and is light and straw like in colour, with a fresh and lively nose. It is full of sweet cereal grains and even sweeter fresh green fruits (think of pears, apples and white grapes). There is also a whiff of saltiness (imagine sea air). On the palate, this is sweet and sugary (think of icing sugar). The sweetness is again coming from the grains and fresh fruit elements but there is also a zingy citrus quality (imagine lemon zest). This combines with the salty note (think of brine) to give a mouthwatering feel. The finish is fresh and reasonably long with just a hint of some earthy smoke coming through.
(46% ABV/415 bottles/£24.95)

Orkney 11 years old (Highland Park)
Highland Park is a distillery on the Orkney islands that lie to the north of the Scottish mainland. Distilled in 1997, this whisky is golden in colour with a slight amber hue. The nose feels rich with a combination of caramel, cereal grains, something floral (think of dried heather) and some lovely earthy peat smoke. On the palate, this feels soft and smooth with the caramel particularly prominent (this has a slight burnt sugar quality). There is also some sweet honey, that dried heather again, a citrus note (think of candied orange peel), a hint of saltiness and rounded, light peatiness that has a spicy edge (think of pepper). The finish is medium to long and particularly sweet and earthy.
(46% ABV/330 bottles/£26.95)

Islay 10 years old (Bowmore)
Bowmore is a distillery famous for its smoky style of whisky and is located in the centre of the western Scottish isle of Islay. This whisky was distilled in 1999 and the colour is a pale gold amber. On the nose, there is an immediate smoky hit (think of bonfire smoke) and then some sweet cereal grains, vanilla and caramel notes start to come through. There is also a lot of alcohol spirit that attacks your nostrils as this is bottled at 62.7% ABV, and this calms when water is added. The palate is robust and intense with the elements from the nose being joined by some dried fruits (imagine sultanas) and some spiciness (this appears especially when water is added). The finish is very smoky, long and slightly bitter and woody. It begins sweetly before becoming very dry.
(62.7% ABV/291 bottles/£29.95)

The Boutique Bar Show 2009, London

The Boutique Bar Show in London's Royal Horticultural Halls is one of the UK's biggest shows for the spirits industry. The two day show is now in its third year and boasts a fine collection of products, including new releases, aimed at both the on and off trades. Whisky For Everyone was in attendance for the first day of proceedings and sampled a number of whiskies that we had not tried before. The list below looks long we know, but it has to be pointed out that each one was served in a thimble sized sample glass (honest!). We are also writing another post highlighting some of the other quality spirits that we tried during the day and this will be available shortly.

Bunnahabhain 25 years old
This is the oldest release from the core range of the non smoky Islay distillery of Bunnahabhain. The colour is dark and golden and the nose is rich with a mix of caramel, nuts (think of almonds) and dried sherry fruits (imagine sultanas and raisins). On the palate, these are replicated and are joined by some spices (cinnamon and nutmeg), a slightly bitter woodiness and a distinct salty tang (think of sea water). The sweetness is counteracted by this bitterness and saltiness. The finish is soft and slightly dry, being of reasonable length with the dried fruit and spices prominent. Very nice and a rare treat to try something of this age at such a show.

Chivas Regal 18 years old
This 18 years of version of the famous blend contains over 20 different single malts from all over Scotland. The colour is a dark amber and the nose is rich and sweet with elements of dried fruit (imagine raisins and candied orange peel), butterscotch and just a whiff of chocolate (think of cocoa powder). The palate is rich and creamy with the fruitiness and butterscotch predominant and some woody spice (imagine cinnamon) and honey coming through. The finish is long and fruity with maybe just a hint of peat smokiness appearing at the end. A very pleasant dram.

Cutty Sark
This world famous blended whisky is named after the tea clipper ship 'Cutty Sark'. The brand is one of the biggest selling around the globe, selling a staggering 14 million bottles per year. Cutty Sark was served to us chilled over ice like a bottle of white wine. The colour was light and golden yellow with a lovely nose packed with vanilla and cereal grains. On the palate, it feels richer than the nose suggests and is refreshing, with lots of vanilla and grains again. These are joined by a pleasant woodiness, some sweetness (imagine honey) and some buttery toffee. The finish is light, crisp and uplifting. Enjoyable.

Cutty Sark 12 years old
The older sibling of the world famous regular bottling of Cutty Sark contains whisky from some of Speyside's most famous distilleries. It is packaged in a black box and is slightly darker in colour with a richer, sweeter nose. There is a pleasant mix of vanilla, woody spice (think of nutmeg), cereal grains and some sweet honey. The palate is rich, sweet and silky with the vanilla and grains prominent and the spiciness and a slight woodiness balancing this. The finish is long, sweet and smooth. A more exaggerated version of the regular Cutty Sark really, that is very good and enjoyable.

Glenlivet Nadurra
The 'Nadurra' appears in a number of forms. We have previously tried the lower strength Duty Free bottling, so the comparison with this cask strength (57.7% ABV) UK market version was interesting. The colour is golden and the nose has a mixture of vanilla, some toasted nuts (think of hazelnuts) and some wood spices (think of nutmeg and cinnamon). On the palate, this Nadurra is quite dry and full of vanilla oak, yet powerful and complex. The elements from the nose are present. Upon adding water, the palate becomes a touch sweeter and more floral (imagine honeysuckle). The finish is long, rich and dry yet very refreshing. Very very good stuff.

Glenrothes 1991
Glenrothes is a Speyside distillery and they use vintages for its single malts rather than a fixed age, as they believe in bottling the whisky when it has reached peak maturity rather than a certain age. This 1991 is golden brown in colour with a nose that combines vanilla, coconut, dried fruits (think of sultanas and candied orange peel) and butterscotch. The palate is sweet and packed with malty cereal grains that combine with those elements stated for the nose. The finish is long, rich, fruity and spicy (imagine nutmeg) with the butterscotch at the forefront. Classic stuff.

Glenrothes 1994
The younger housemate of the 1994 is a slightly different beast. The colour is similar (golden brown but slightly lighter) but that is where it ends. The nose is uplifting due to a prominent citrus element (think of lemon zest especially, although there is also some orange peel in there) and this combines with some lovely dried fruit (imagine raisins and sultanas) and sweet toffee. On the palate, this feels lighter with that definite zingy citrus present and a balanced combination of toffee, woody spice (think of cinnamon) and cereal grains. The finish is long and fruity with a nice tangy quality. A lovely dram.

Longmorn 16 years old
Longmorn is a Speyside distillery that is situated close to the town of Elgin. This 16 years old is golden yellow in colour with a classical bourbon cask matured nose. There is vanilla, coconut, woody oak and a touch of a herbal note (imagine dried grasses). The palate is light and enjoyable, again with a lot of vanilla, some toffee style sweetness, honey and some malty, almost yeasty, cereal grains (think of digestive biscuits). The finish is reasonably long with sweetness being balanced by some spices (think of nutmeg) and the returning grassiness.

Macallan Fine Oak 15 years old
The Macallan distillery is located in Speyside and is one of Scotland's largest and most famous distilleries. The Fine Oak series combines Macallan's traditional sherry cask maturation with some time in a bourbon cask. The colour is golden with a lovely nose that combines vanilla, dried fruits (think of sultanas), sweet honey and some toasted nuts (imagine almonds). This is warm and sumptuous on the palate with a lovely combination of the elements from the nose, malted cereals, caramel and spice (think of cinnamon with a hint of star anise). The finish is complex and fruity with the vanilla and spices coming through well. A superb, smooth and well balanced whisky.

Mekhong Whiskey
Although Mekhong is marketed as a whiskey in its native Thailand, it is actually made from a secret traditional recipe combining sugar cane, rice and local Thai herbs and spices. It is produced at the Bangyikhan distillery and is being officially launched in the UK for the first time (this version is bottled at 35% ABV rather than the Thai version which is closer to 60%!). The colour is a reddish amber with a nose that is much more reminiscent of a rum. The sugar cane is particularly evident with lots of caramel, spices (think of ginger) and some citrus cutting through (especially lemons). These notes are replicated on the sweet palate that is sugary (think of honey and toffee) and smooth. The finish is long and rounded. It maybe too sweet for some people but would be ideal to use with a mixer or cocktail. Interesting to try.

The Whisky For Everyone 'Dram of the Day' - a tough choice but it goes to the Macallan Fine Oak 15 years old.