Whisky Books - Our Top 5 for Christmas

At this time of the year attentions begin to turn to the forthcoming festive period.  For the last couple of years we have written a beginner's guide to buying whisky as a present and recommended some of our favourite whiskies that may be considered as good options - if you want to read this, please click here.  This year we have decided to take a look at the ever growing number of whisky books that are on the market.

Have just tried - Thomas H. Handy Sazerac

Thomas H. Handy is an American rye whiskey which is made at the Buffalo Trace distillery.  It is a whiskey that has been the centre of attention during the last week, as the Batch 2011 has claimed the prestigious accolade of 'Whisky Of The Year' in Jim Murray's Whisky Bible 2013, the latest edition in the best selling series.  Traditionally, winners of this award sell out fast so it may already be too late to grab one.  However, we were lucky enough to track down a sample ...

Have just tried > Old Pulteney 21 years old

The news story of this week has seen Old Pulteney gain a major accolade for its 21 years old expression. It was named as World Whisky of the Year in the latest edition of the Jim Murray Whisky Bible. The 2012 edition is the 9th version of the book, in which whisky expert Jim Murray samples a staggering 1,500 new whiskies in an intense four month period each year.  The 21 years old topped this years list with a record equaling 97.5 out of 100.  Jim Murray has a strict set of criteria that he follows with each whisky he samples and whiskies have to be exceptional to get marks in the high 80s or early 90s.  In the nine years of the book, Old Pulteney is only the second Scottish distillery to land this prestigious accolade.

The Old Pulteney distillery, or simply Pulteney as the locals call it, is the most northerly mainland distillery in Scotland. Located in the Highland fishing town of Wick, it lies just 15 miles south of the UK's most northerly point of John O'Groats. Old Pulteney is currently owned by Inver House Distillers, which is part of the larger Thai group InBev, and has a production capacity of three million litres a year. The distillery was founded in 1826 by James Henderson and was named after Sir William Johnstone Pulteney, the herring industry's leading light of the day. It is one of the few distilleries to be named after a person.

Last year we were lucky enough to pay a visit to the distillery and for more information about Pulteney - click here to read our report. Their core range consists of a 12, 17, 21 and 30 years old. The brand has grown massively in the last three years and this has seen Old Pulteney climb into the top 20 for world sales of single malts. This 21 years old is bottled at 46% ABV and has the highest percentage of sherry cask maturation of any whisky in their core range - 30% has been matured in ex-fino sherry casks, with the other 70% matured in re-fill ex-bourbon casks. The recent new re-branded packaging is pictured above.

Our tasting notes
The award seems the perfect time to re-visit a sample that we have at home and construct some more detailed tasting notes than we have offered before.  So, here goes ...

The colour is golden amber and the nose is packed with lovely aromas - something nutty (think of almonds), vanilla, oatcakes, crisp red apples, dried fruits and caramel (the combination of the last two is reminiscent of toffee apples). Other aromas are less prominent and appear with increased time in the glass, especially hints of ripe banana and malty cereals.  On the palate, this is drier than expected and is packed with oak, cinnamon and nutmeg notes initially. It feels buttery and creamy in the mouth with pleasant toffee-like sweetness complimenting the wood spices of earlier.  The dried fruitiness from the nose is also present, with notes of sultana particularly evident, along with further elements of almonds, vanilla, burnt sugar and a hint of saltiness that cuts through the richness to give balance. The finish is again dry and delicious, if not slightly short, and becomes saltier as the flavours disappear.

What's the verdict?
This is a lovely whisky and one that deserves to be in the spotlight, although only the individual whisky drinker can judge whether it is the World Whisky of the Year for them.  Naturally to come to this conclusion, the whisky has to be to your taste and style.  What this exposure will do is bring not just the 21 years old, but the distillery and its single malt range to a far wider audience.  This can only be a good thing and it is deserved as Pulteney has long been an under-rated or overlooked distillery. If you get the chance to try it, then we highly recommend that you do.

We would like to take this opportunity to send our congratulations to Malcolm Waring, the Distillery Manager at Pulteney, and those people that we know at Inver House on this great award.  We raise a glass to you all.

Have just tried > Ballantine's 17 years old

Jim Murray's current favourite
Ballantine's is a multi award winning range of blended whiskies. The range consists of the best selling Finest, two 12 years old (one blend and one vatted malt), this 17 years old and two older versions - a 21 and 30 years old. The range is amongst the best selling whiskies in the world and is currently in third place for volume sales, behind only Johnnie Walker and J&B. This 17 years old was first released in 1930, making it the oldest premium aged whisky still on the market. The blend of over 50 single malt and grain whiskies has remained largely unchanged for 80 years and remains a closely guarded secret. It has just been awarded the best score of any whisky in the new Jim Murray Whisky Bible 2011 (97.5 in his own unique whisky marking system). The current bottling is at 43% ABV and should cost around £40 a bottle from specialist retailers.

Humble beginnings
Ballantine's whisky was first produced in 1869 by a Edinburgh grocer named George Ballantine. He had expanded his grocery business in to the area of wines and spirits, before deciding to start blending his own whiskies. The whisky business was booming at the time and many people began producing their own blends during this period, including names such as William Teacher and Arthur Bell. Ballantine's whisky became very popular very quickly and he recruited his two sons, Archibald and George Jnr, in to the business. He set up George Ballantine & Sons Ltd and by the time George Snr. died aged 83 in 1891, the company owned further production premises in Glasgow and were exporting their whiskies around the world. His sons sold the company in 1919.

Massive growth potential
The Canadian drinks firm Hiram Walker took control in the 1930s and immediately purchased two Speyside single malt distilleries - Glenburgie and Miltonduff - as well as building the Dumbarton grain distillery to help with consistency of production. At the time of construction, Dumbarton was the largest whisky distillery in Europe. Between the mid 1960s and mid 1980s, Ballantine's grew in popularity throughout Europe and around the world. This popularity has been maintained today. In 2005, the Ballantine's brand became part of the large multi-national drinks company Pernod Ricard, who remain the current owners.

Our tasting notes
The colour of Ballantine's 17 years old is a bright gold and the nose is very pleasant with a comforting feel. Initially, there are plenty of vanilla, honey and cereal grain notes and the combination is softening and promising. Through these come some fresher characteristics - some zingy lemon zest, sharp green fruits like apples and especially grapes (almost reminiscent of vermouth) and dried grass (think of hay). These are almost instantly softened by further notes of toffee, dried fruits (imagine sultanas) and the tiniest lick of sulphury coal smoke. On the palate, this is so soft and creamy that its richness seems to coat the inside of your mouth. The distinct cereal grains are first up again and they are quickly joined by the vanilla, honey and toffee. Then come some soft dried fruits (think of sultanas and apple), a hint of citrus (imagine candied lemon and orange peels) and some wood spiciness (think of cinnamon and nutmeg especially). The finish is again very soft and rounded with plenty of cereals, vanilla and toffee. There are also the wood spices and a hint of that coal smoke from the nose right at the end, which gives some bitterness and further balance to the future.

What's the verdict?
This is one of the softest that we have sampled for a long time. This would make it ideal for a beginner being introduced to whisky, although it has enough complexity and balance to keep the whisky enthusiast interested too. It is very easy drinking, well constructed and well priced considering the age of the whiskies involved in the blend (in blended whisky, the age stated is the age of the youngest that is present in the blend. Therefore, here the youngest whisky is 17 years old but it will also include older whiskies). A lovely dram. Whether you agree with Jim Murray that it is the best whisky of the year, only you can decide!

Inbox > October 15, 2010

Inbox is a weekly round up of whisky news and PR type material that has found its way in to our email inbox. Sadly, we cannot write full articles or do justice to every piece that we receive, so Inbox has been born! It will feature items from around the world of whisky and will be published by us each Friday. Within Inbox we will write a couple of lines about each press release/piece of news/PR event that we have received and provide links, where possible, for you to find out further information if you want to. So grab a dram and we hope that you enjoy ...
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Benriach Distillery Co – new executive member
The independent company that own the Speyside distilleries of Benriach and Glendronach have announced the appointment of Donald MacLellan as International Market Development Executive. He joins the innovative Benriach Distilling Co from another independent distillery – Bruichladdich on Islay. He will be responsible for developing business in new markets such as Central and South America and Eastern Europe, as well as raising Benriach and Glendronach’s profile on social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter.

Danny Boy – new product launched
There will shortly be an Irish cream liqueur added to the range of Danny Boy Irish whiskies. The range currently consists of a premium blend and a 15 years old single malt, both of which are made under license at the Cooley distillery and both of which have recently started to pick up industry awards. Danny Boy is owned by Peter Lavery, a former bus driver who won £10 million on the UK’s National Lottery in 1996. For further information, go to www.dannyboywhiskey.com.

Jim Murray Whisky Bible 2011 – results released
The new version of the iconic whisky book has now been released and the whisky world has the answers to what he has rated as the ‘best whiskies in the world’. This year influential whisky writer Murray has voted the Ballantine’s 17 years old blend as his number one, commenting that it is “one of the most beautiful, complex and stunningly structured whiskies ever created”. He gave Thomas H. Handy Sazarac Rye second spot and W. L. Weller 134.8 Proof third - both of which are American whiskies made at the Buffalo Trace distillery in Kentucky. For more results and whisky info, go to www.whiskybible.com.

The Whisky Show 2010 – taste Dalmore Trinitas 64
Dalmore Trinitas 64 has captured the whisky headlines this week for becoming the most expensive whisky ever sold. There are only three bottles in existence, with each worth £100,000 and two have been sold already! The third will be sold at the forthcoming Whisky Show 2010, held in London at the end of the month. The organisers have announced that one lucky ticket holder will also get the chance to taste this rare whisky. For further information about this or to buy tickets for the show, go to www.thewhiskyshow.com.

Jim Murray's Whisky Bible 2011

Here we offer you a sneak preview of the cover design for the forthcoming version of Jim Murray's Whisky Bible 2011. We thought it was interesting, as it marks a fairly radical departure from previous designs that have followed a slightly more traditional route. It is understood that the contents and layout of the book will follow the same format as in previous editions, but with a more contemporary feel. Matt discovered this while looking on the BBC Northampton website. They recently featured an article on Jim Murray and the forthcoming book, as it is printed in a town in Northamptonshire (a little tenuous we know, but that's local news for you in small town UK!). Matt found this on one of his regular checks of the site, as he was born and grew up in the county.

To read the full article about Jim Murray and the forthcoming Bible - click here.

The Jim Murray's Whisky Bible series is arguably the most comprehensive guide to whisky on the market. The 2011 edition will be the 8th version of the book. Each edition contains almost 4000 tasting notes of single malts, blends, vatted malts and grain whiskies from around the globe. Approximately 900 of these are new whiskies that have been released since the publication of the previous edition. Each whisky is assessed by Jim Murray, who writes tasting notes in his unique style and marks each one out of 100 using his own criteria for the nose, taste, finish and balance. The Bible has amassed a cult following around the world and Murray's opinion holds significant weight both in the consumer market and the whisky industry.