Review / Glenturret 35 years old

The Highland distillery of Glenturret, which is the oldest currently in operation in Scotland, has revealed the line-up of its core range for 2023. Several of the releases have appeared in previous years but each has a different recipe. The Glenturret 2023 Edition also features this Glenturret 35 years old for the first time, which is the oldest to appear in the range since the new format changed in 2020. There are eight whiskies in total - the Glenturret Triple Wood, 7 years old Peat Smoked, 10 years old Peat Smoked, 12 years old, 15 years old, 25 years old and 30 years old. 

Review / Dalmunach 6 years old

This new whisky is the inaugural bottling from the Speyside distillery of Dalmunach that is available for general release. The Dalmunach 6 years old will form part of a trilogy of whiskies from the distillery in a series named Mythical Creatures. All will be inspired by Scottish mythology. The first features the wulver, a mysterious beast said to hunt and fish around the coast of the remote Shetland isles. The whisky has been matured in American oak ex-bourbon casks and will be exclusive to The Whisky Exchange. The Dalmunach 6 years old Mythical Creatures 'Wulver' is bottled at 60% ABV and will cost £59.95 per bottle. To purchase - click here.

Review / Ardbeg Heavy Vapours (Ardbeg Day Edition)

This is the annual Ardbeg Day release, which celebrates the final day of the Feis Ile festival on the famous whisky island of Islay, from the cult distillery of Ardbeg. Ardbeg Heavy Vapours is the result of an experiment conducted by Dr. Bill Lumsden, the Director of Whisky Creation at Ardbeg, several years ago. For the first time ever at Ardbeg its whisky was distilled without a purifier – the apparatus on the still responsible for maintaining balance between extreme peat and floral fruitiness at the distillery. This allows the heaviest alcohol vapours to rise up the still to be condensed back to a spirit. 

Review / Glendronach Cask Strength Batch 11

This new whisky is the latest bottling in the popular annual cask strength series from the east Highland distillery of Glendronach. The Glendronach Cask Strength Batch 11 is a celebration of both natural strength whisky and of Glendronach's heavily sherried style. It has been created by Dr. Rachel Barrie, the Master Blender for Glendronach, using a combination of spirit matured in Spanish oak ex-Oloroso and ex-Pedro Ximenez sherry casks. 

The Batch 11 has been bottled at 59.8% ABV and is limited in number, although the exact quantity has not been revealed. It is both non chill-filtered and of natural colour. It will be available in specialist whisky retailers in selected global markets. A bottle will cost £68/ $78 US. 

Inbox / The Week's Whisky News (November 25, 2022)

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. 

Review / Kilchoman 100% Islay (2022 Edition)

This new whisky hails from the family-owned farm distillery of Kilchoman, which is on the famous whisky island of Islay. It is the 12th edition of their award-winning annual 100% Islay bottling, which uses barley grown on the family farm and local water from a nearby loch. This is then distilled, matured and bottled at the distillery. The new limited edition has been created from 35 casks - 29 ex-bourbon barrels and 6 ex-Oloroso sherry butts. The whiskies were all distilled in 2011, 2012 or 2013 and matured for a minimum of 8 years. Each cask was selected for the bottling by Kilchoman's founder Anthony Wills.

Review / Talisker 44 years old : Forests of the Deep

This whisky is the latest release from the famous Talisker distillery from the isle of Skye. It is their oldest ever single malt to date. The Talisker 44 years old : Forests of the Deep is a partnership with ocean conservation charity Parley For The Oceans.  The collaboration saw wooden staves from Talisker whisky barrels taken on a research trip to kelp forests located off the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa. 

The staves were then returned to Talisker and casks reconstructed before being 'marine charred'. This involved toasting the inside of the barrels with dried seaweed smoke. The whisky, which had previously been maturing for over four decades in ex-bourbon casks, was then finished for a few months in these special maritime barrels. For further information on the work Parley For The Oceans do or to donate - click here. 

Review / Jameson Remastered 15 years old Single Pot Still

This whiskey is the first in a new series created by Jameson, the world's biggest selling Irish whiskey brand. The Jameson Anthology series will see new whiskeys put down one of two tracks - Remastered will be old classic expressions reinvented, while Remixed will have a more innovative and experimental edge. The first bottling sits within Remastered - the Jameson 15 years old Single Pot Still. This was an expression that last appeared in Jameson's range in 2000. The whiskey is constructed of three different pot still styles, all made at Midleton distillery in Co. Cork, that have been matured for between 15 and 17 years in either first-fill ex-bourbon barrels or first-fill ex-Oloroso sherry butts.

Review / Mackmyra Limousin

This whisky is the latest seasonal limited edition release from the Swedish single malt distillery of Mackmyra. The Mackmyra Limousin is a limited edition that features ex-Cognac barrels from Pierre Ferrand. Ferrand is one of France's oldest Cognac houses and was founded in 1702. These barrels are made of the renowned Limousin oak, a sub-species of European oak that is often used to mature Cognac eaux-de-vie and Bordeaux wines. Ferrand barrels are made to a specific size of 270 litres for the brand. Other casks featured in the recipe include ex-bourbon, ex-Oloroso sherry, virgin American oak, plus Swedish ex-cherry wine and ex-forest raspberry wine.

Inbox / The Week's Whisky News (March 25, 2022)

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. 

Review / Cotswolds Madeira Single Cask

This whisky is the latest limited edition from the English distillery of Cotswolds. The Cotswolds Madeira Single Cask is a single malt that represents the inaugural release into their new Single Cask Series that is planned for 2022. The whisky was made using locally grown and malted barley. It was filled to a single French oak cask (Cask #621) that had previously held Madeira, a fortified wine from the Portuguese island, in April 2016. It was bottled in February 2022 at the natural cask strength of 59.5% ABV, and is both non chill-filtered and of natural colour. The Cotswold Madeira Single Cask is a distillery exclusive - it is only available from the distillery shop or Cotswolds website. A bottle will cost £95.

Review - Tamdhu Batch Strength No.004

This new single malt is the fourth expression in the limited edition high ABV series from the increasingly prolific Speyside distillery of Tamdhu (pronounced tam-doo). The Tamdhu Batch Strength No.004 has been created using only ex-Oloroso sherry casks, some made from American oak and some from European oak. These have been hand selected by Sandy McIntyre, the Distillery Manager at Tamdhu, and is designed to reinforce the brand's commitment to the use of top quality ex-sherry casks. This fourth version is released at the natural strength of 57.8% ABV and is non chill-filtered and of natural colour.

Review - Highland Park Valkyrie

Valkyrie is the first in a new trilogy of single malts from Highland Park. Named as the Viking Legend series, the packaging has been created by renowned Danish designer Jim Lyngvild. He is a 21st century Viking and lives in a traditional wooden Viking house that he constructed himself near Faaborg in Denmark. He also lives as an ancient Viking for two months of each year and his designs pull on the brand’s Viking routes. Valkyrie was created by Gordon Motion, the Master Blender of Highland Park, and will be followed by two further editions, named Valknut and Valhalla, in 2018 and 2019.