Inbox - The Week's Whisky News (October 16, 2020)

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. Here is the news from this week ...

Inbox - The Week's Whisky News (January 25, 2019)

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.

New release - Laphroaig 'Select'

The Select is the latest addition to the famous Islay distillery of Laphroaig's core range.  Laphroaig is well known for its very peaty and smoky style of single malts and the Select will sit alongside the classic 10 years old, Quarter Cask, Triple Wood and 18 years old expressions. The whiskies used to create the Select have been selected by Laphroaig's Master Distiller John Campbell and come from a number of different American and European oak cask types.  However, the main difference in this release is the use of new American oak casks in the final maturation.

New release - Yamazaki Distiller's Reserve

The Distiller's Reserve is a new single malt from the Japanese distillery of Yamazaki. The whisky has been constructed to showcase the qualities of Yamazaki's young single malt, which have been matured in ex-red wine casks for three years. These have been accentuated by blending with older malts matured in ex-sherry casks (aged approximately 20 years) and Japanese oak (called mizunara) casks, which are 12+ years old. All the casks used have been hand selected by Shinji Fukuyo, who is only the fourth Chief Blender in owner Suntory's 90 year history.

New release - Hakushu Distiller's Reserve

The Distiller's Reserve is a new single malt from the Japanese distillery of Hakushu.  The whisky has been constructed to showcase the qualities and characteristics of Hakushu's young lightly peated single malts.  These have been accentuated by blending with older heavily peated malt and aged (all of which are 18+ years old) American oak matured whisky.  All the casks used have been hand selected by Shinji Fukuyo, who is only the fourth Chief Blender in owner Suntory's 90 year history.

Inbox - January 17, 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.

Inbox - September 20, 2013

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.

Distillery Visit - Glen Garioch

Situated a short distance from Aberdeen. Glen Garioch (pronounced ‘Geery’) can be found in the town of Oldmedrum slap bang in the middle of the rolling hills and fields of the Aberdeenshire countryside. The word Garioch means ‘Granary’ and the area in which the distillery is located is known as The Garioch due to the fertility of the local farmland. With such rich agricultural land perfect for growing barley it wasn’t long before someone in the area had the bright idea of having a go at a bit of whisky distilling. Two such men were brothers John and Alexander Manson and in 1797 they founded Glen Garioch distillery.

New release - Auchentoshan 1979 Oloroso Matured

This new whisky is the latest in Auchentoshan's vintage series from the 1970s.  Other expressions in the series include the 1975 Bourbon Cask and 1977 Sherry Cask, which we have previously reviewed. Auchentoshan is unique amongst Scottish whisky distilleries as they triple distil every drop of their spirit using three stills. Elsewhere in Scotland the common practice is to distil twice, whereas triple distillation is more commonly associated with Irish whiskies.

Distillery Visit - Yamazaki

When it was suggested ages ago that my girlfriend Harriet and I might go on holiday to Japan for a couple of weeks it didn’t take me long (instantaneously in fact) to start thinking about what distilleries we could visit while we were over there. Luckily Harry is quite understanding in these matters so when we flew off to Japan in September, I’d managed to arrange for us to pay a visit to Suntory’s Yamazaki distillery and have a little look around.

Have just tried - Yamazaki Bourbon Barrel

Using the government’s alcohol duty rise as a pathetic excuse to buy some more whisky (I persuaded myself I’d be saving money in the long run if I bought a few bottles before the rise!) I decided to purchase a whisky I’d had my eye on for a while. The Yamazaki Bourbon Barrel represents the latest in a number of limited whiskies Suntory release every now and then that, to date, have included heavily peated and sherry puncheon matured expressions.

Located at the foot of a mountain in a bamboo forest just outside Japan’s ancient capital Kyoto, Yamazaki distillery was founded by Shinjiro Torii in 1923. It was his ambition to make a Japanese whisky along the same lines as the Scottish whiskies that were very popular at the time. To this end he despatched his able assistant Masataka Taketsuru to Scotland to learn everything there is to know about making Scotch whisky.

Taketsuru’s time in Scotland makes for an amazing story. In 1918 he turned up alone in Scotland, determined to learn the art of brewing and distilling. A very brave thing to do at a time when people travelled such shorter distances than they do now. Britain must have seemed like a completely different world to him. He enrolled at Glasgow University and at one point travelled up to Elgin in the hope for learning first hand the skills needed for Suntory to start distilling whisky. It was at Longmorn distillery that he found someone willing to take him on and show him the ropes. His course at Glasgow also enabled him to work at Hazelburn distillery in Campbeltown. During all this he also found time to fall in love and get hitched to his landlady's daughter.

Job done, on returning to Japan with his new wife, Taketsuru’s newfound skills and knowledge were instrumental in founding Yamazaki - Japans first single malt distillery. Soon afterwards, he left Suntory to start Japan’s other major whisky company, Nikka.

This Yamazaki was released in 2011 along side a Bourbon Barrel matured expression from its sister distillery Hakushu and is bottled at a generous 48.5% from first fill bourbon barrels.

Our tasting notes
On first nosing there are lots of cereal notes - shredded wheat, malting floors, Japanese tea, mashed potatoes, Rusks. Along side all this there’s also a nice sweet citrus fruit aroma lending a nice balance, a bit like lime cordial and chocolate limes. After a while it gets fruitier and sweeter with a little breathing with aromas of apples, pears, bananas, cherries, refresher sweets, custard powder and milk chocolate.

On the palate, there’s some lovely big first fill bourbon barrel flavours. Starting with some sweet and fruity flavours - Banoffee pie, white chocolate, bubblegum, Belgian tripel beer. The palate gradually gets a little more bitter, oaky and hot with pepper and cloves. The finish is long and tannic with a nice bittersweet blackberry note. Excellently balanced. Lots of estery flavours of fruits and sweet things balanced by an equally large dollop of drying austerity from the oak.

What’s the verdict?
Well, I wasn’t disappointed with my purchase. It’s nearest to the 12-Year-old expression out of the three standard releases but much more complex and intense. An excellently balanced whisky full of character and flavour. As far as I know it is just available in Europe and Japan. It is limited to just 3000 bottles throughout Europe, 1000 of which are for the U.K. You can get if for around £65.

Inbox - March 23, 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 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.

Kilbeggan - Meets the Taoiseach!
The Irish whiskey brand was in the spotlight during the recent St. Patrick's Day celebrations. The Chief Executive Officer of Beam Global, who have recently purchased the independent Irish distillery of Cooley, met up with the Irish Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Enda Kenny.

During the meeting, at a pre-St.Patrick's Day event in Chicago, Matt Shattock (pictured, above right) spoke with Kenny about the upturn in fortunes for Irish whiskey and the take over of Cooley. To celebrate the fact that Irish whiskey is the fastest growing sprits category in the USA, Shattock presented Kenny with a bottle of their Kilbeggan whiskey.

Kingsbarns - New distillery
It is always good to hear about the development of a new distillery, so the news about Kingsbarns is no different. It will be located in Fife in Scotland. The plan is to convert the old farm buildings of East Newhall Farm (pictured)  so as to produce single malt whisky, gin, fruit liqueurs and schnapps.

The proposed distillery is the idea of Doug Clement, who has experience working in the craft distilleries of Tasmania.  The idea is to bring a craft single malt whisky back to Fife and tap in to the massive amount of tourists who visit nearby St. Andrew's each year.  Some funding is in place, but in order to help raise the £1.85 million Doug is giving everyone the opportunity to invest.  This is via the online crowd-funding platform CrowdCube.

For further information on the Kingsbarns distillery, please visit www.kingsbarnsdistillery.com.  If you are interested in investing in the project or just want to keep track of how the fund raising is going, please click the following link - click here.

Monkey Shoulder - Join the Easter Chocolate Trail
The innovative guys behind the Monkey Shoulder whisky brand have created a fun, interactive experience for London fans over the forthcoming Easter weekend.  The Monkey Shoulder Chocolate Trail is a subversive take on the traditional Easter egg hunt, but they say 'think less bunnies, more whisky'.  Sounds plenty of fun!

The idea is that if you find an Easter egg in the specially created outdoor space, then you can trade it in for bespoke Monkey Shoulder cocktails or handmade chocolates. Again, sounds fun!  The cocktails are being created by the team at The London Cocktail Club and the chocolates by renowned chocolatier Niko B.

The event will take place from Good Friday 6 April until Easter Monday 9 April and is open to the public between midday and 7pm. Entry is free.  The venue is at 63 Broadwick Street in the heart of London and has been designed by renowned artists and designers such as Bobby Peterson and Anna Garforth.

Suntory - New cocktails for Spring
The latest cocktails in Suntory's Japanese seasons series have been created - the Hakushu Semei (pictured, left) and the Hibiki Kokuu.  The traditional Japanese calendar has 24 seasons and the Semei and Kokuu are the two for April.  The 24 Seasons Cocktail Menu has been created by brand ambassador Zoran Peric, using Suntory's range of award-winning Japanese whiskies.

The Hakushu Semei is made using 50ml of Hakushu 12 year old, 12.5ml of Luxardo Maraschino liqueur, 1ml of Absinthe and lemon zest - Coat an ice cube with absinthe and stir 10 times in a mixing glass. Add the rest of the ingredients then stir 30 times. Strain into a chilled martini glass and garnish with grapefruit zest. The Hibiki Kokuu is a simple mix of 40ml of Hibiki 17 years old blended whisky and 25ml of Prucia golden plum liqueur - Stir the ingredients with ice for about 2 minutes and serve over an ice ball in an Old Fashioned glass. Garnish with orange zest.

Inbox > October 7, 2011

Welcome to Inbox - our weekly round up of whisky news and PR type material that has recently 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 will 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 if you want to. It's been a busy one this week, so here goes.

Chichibu > The First bottling

The first of many?

Japan’s youngest distillery has released its first single malt – The First. Chichibu started production in 2008 and was the first new distillery to be built in Japan since the 1970s. This three years old whisky follows on from occasional releases of new make spirit. The First is constructed from just 31 ex-bourbon casks, which have yielded 7,400 bottles at a cask strength of 61.8% ABV. These will be sold through selected specialist whisky retailers in Japan, the UK and France for £90/€115. The product was launched at Whisky Live, Paris a couple of weeks ago and will be launched in Japan on 10 October.

Dalmore > New visitor centre opens

The impressive tasting room

The iconic distillery in the north Highlands, which is owned by Whyte & Mackay, has opened its new visitor centre. The Dalmore Visitor Experience is a £1million investment that gives whisky fans a different type of distillery tour. It was opened by Distillery Manager Ian Mackay and Master Blender Richard Paterson. The Experience takes guests on a sensory journey - they can embrace the unique atmosphere, sounds and smells of Dalmore and will be able to smell the spirit, hear the sound of the grain being milled etc. There are numerous bespoke features and furniture, plus special lighting to change mood and atmosphere. Tours can be booked for 11am, 1pm and 3pm and can be made in advance online at www.thedalmore.com.

Glendronach > Add to core range 

Going for gold

The independently owned Aberdeenshire distillery of Glendronach has announced an addition to its award winning core range – a new 21 years old. Named ‘Parliament’, which refers to a parliament of rooks that have lived at the distillery for over 100 years (who knew that the collective name for a group of rooks was a parliament?), this single malt whisky is bottled at 48% ABV and has been matured in a combination of ex-Oloroso and ex-Pedro Ximinez sherry casks. It joins the 12, 15, 18 and 31 year olds in the core range. Sales Director Alistair Walker said, “The Parliament was released after listening to our customers, who identified the opportunity for a premium Glendronach positioned somewhere between our 18 year-old and our iconic 31-year old. It’s a major release for the distillery”.

Glenglassaugh > First cask comes of age

Cask no.1

The Glenglassaugh distillery, which sits on the north east Highland coast, has announced the first single malt bottling of whisky made by the new ownership. Previous releases have been from stock inherited from the former owners. The distillery had been closed for over 20 years before Glenglassaugh was restored and re-opened by an independent group. The first distillation took place on 16 December 2008 and the whisky will be bottled on 16 December 2011, when the spirit reaches the minimum legal age for single malt. Cask 1 is an ex-sherry cask and the whisky will retail for £90 a bottle. They expect around 650 bottles from the cask and these will be bottled at the natural cask strength. To pre-order a bottle or get more information, contact first.bottling@glenglassaugh.com.

Jameson > Celebrate London Film Festival

Jameson + BFI = cool

The world’s best selling Irish whisky have teamed up with the BFI (British Film Institute) to celebrate the 55th London Film Festival. Part of the collaboration is the opening of a pop-up 1920s speakeasy style bar for the duration of the festival, which runs from 12-27 October. The Jameson Apartment will offer film and whiskey enthusiasts the chance to sample some classic Jameson cocktails made by a selection of leading bartenders from the London scene, plus Jameson’s specialist mixologist Ed McAvoy. The Apartment will be open from 5.30pm until ‘late’ every night and further information can be found by visiting www.jamesoncultfilmclub.com.

The Whisky Lounge > Manchester Whisky Festival

One of the biggest whisky festivals in the UK, outside of London, is taking place on Saturday 15 October. The Whisky Lounge’s Manchester Whisky Festival takes place at The Lowry Hotel in the heart of the city’s rejuvenated canal side area and features an impressive list of exhibitors, including a first European whisky show appearance for Kavalan Taiwanese single malt. The event takes place over two sessions (11am-3pm and 4pm-8pm) and there are over 200 whiskies on show, plus a series of consumer master classes. Whisky Lounge founder Eddie Ludlow commented, “One of our commitments is to bring new followers to the ‘flock’ and show them that whisky is not just about lairds, tartan and stags. It’s about the moment and learning how to enjoy it – there is something for everyone at our show”. Tickets can be purchased via www.thewhiskylounge.com.

Suntory > A cocktail for every season

The Hakushu Ritto

The Japanese whisky company of Suntory have created a series of cocktails to celebrate the change of season. Brand Ambassador Zoran Peric has produced a cocktail for each of the 24 Japanese seasons and has launched the Hakushu Ritto in the UK, where we are turning autumnal and the nights are drawing in. The Ritto is made with 50ml of Hakushu 12 year old whisky, 75ml of hot green tea, a teaspoon of honey, a pinch of powdered ginger and a squeeze of lemon juice - pour the Hakushu and green tea into a mug, add the honey, ginger and lemon juice and stir until the honey is dissolved, then add the ginger slice and serve. Sounds great for a cold, damp Autumn evening.

New releases > Auchentoshan 1999 Bordeaux Wine Cask

This whisky is a new release from the renowned Lowland distillery of Auchentoshan. The 1999 Bordeaux Wine Cask is a limited edition whisky which has spent the entire 11 years of its maturation in an ex-red wine cask from the famous French wine region. This is unusual as most distilleries that have released a wine cask matured whisky to date, have so far only used that cask to ‘finish’ the whisky (eg – it spends just a short period of time in the wine cask after maturing in something else). Therefore, to get a whisky that has been 100% matured in wine is rare and the chance to try it is exciting. It has been bottled at an alcoholic strength of 58% ABV and you should find a bottle for about £50 in specialist whisky retailers.

Auchentoshan (which is pronounced ock-en-tosh-an) is the distillery that is nearest to Glasgow. It sits to the north west of the city near Clydebank and was officially founded in 1823, although records show that a distillery called Duntocher was operating on the site as early as 1800. The current annual production capacity of Auchentoshan is 1.75 million litres and it is owned by Morrison Bowmore, which is part of the larger Japanese company of Suntory who took control in 1994. Auchentoshan translates as ‘corner of the field’ from the local form of Gaelic.

Auchentoshan is unique amongst Scottish whisky distilleries as they triple distil every drop of their spirit. Elsewhere in Scotland the common practice is to distil twice, whereas triple distillation is more commonly associated with Irish whiskies. A few Scottish distilleries do occasionally distil a third time and these include Benriach and Springbank, who release it as Hazelburn. A number of theories exist as to why Auchentoshan is the only place to continually triple distil in Scotland. The most popular is that a number of the workers at the fledgling distillery in the 1820s had come over from Ireland to escape the poverty there- they bought the practice with them and it exists to this day.

Our tasting notes
The colour of the whisky is extraordinary, being dark amber with a gorgeous reddish/pink tint, which has clearly come from the red wine cask.  The aromas on the nose are strong and powerful with plenty of initial burnt sugar, caramel and warming peppery spice.  Then comes some honeycomb and a good dose of rich, red fruit (think of dark berries and blackcurrants).  With further time in the glass, and once your nostrils have got used to the high alcoholic strength, more subtle hints start to appear - cinnamon, nutmeg, orange oil, gristy cereals and damp wood shavings.  On the palate, this is intense when taken neat!  The high ABV gives a powerful kick off and your mouth quickly heats up with plenty of peppery wood spice.  This begins to subside to reveal notes of lovely, rich caramel and dark dried fruits (imagine raisins and prunes).  The spiciness is never far away with plenty of drying cinnamon and nutmeg present.  Sweeter notes of brown sugar and honey balance this a little.  Some robust cereals, obvious spiced orange and further dried fruit add to the intensity.  The finish is very long, lasting a good 6-7 minutes after you have swallowed.  It is predominantly dry with an abundance of pleasant tannin coming from the wine cask.  The caramel/slightly burnt brown sugar is also evident, as are the red and dried fruits which fade quicker than the other elements mentioned.

The high ABV strength and the intensity of the whisky when neat ask for some water to be added.  This immediately softens the peppery spice and the alcoholic burn.  It also dampens the red and dried fruits and other wood spices, but allows the sweeter caramel and honey notes to shine through.  The majority may find it more balanced this way but, as always, it is personal taste.  We found that it could take quite a lot of water (we are talking 10-12 good drops here) and still hold together very well, where other whiskies may have fallen apart.

What’s the verdict?

This is a lovely whisky that is a successful experiment by Auchentoshan. However, to make it lovely (to our taste buds anyway!) you need to persevere with it and add plenty of water. How much water you add will depend on your own taste. The high alcohol strength, plus the intense and almost exaggerated notes from the red wine cask, make this a daunting prospect, before the water softens it to allow some sumptuous aromas and flavours through. At the launch of this whisky, it was hinted at that Auchentoshan had some other such experiments up their sleeves – it will be interesting to see what they are!

Have just tried > Bowmore Tempest Small Batch Release 2

Bowmore is the oldest of the eight distilleries currently operating on the famous whisky making island of Islay in Scotland. It was founded in 1779 by John Simpson, which also makes it one of the oldest in Scotland. The name of Bowmore translates as 'sea rock' from Gaelic. Bowmore one of only a few distilleries which still produces its own floor malted barley, hand-turned by a traditional wooden malt shovel and lots of hard back-breaking work. Water used to make their whiskies comes from the local Laggan River which runs over richly peated grounds, the same peat that is used to fire their kilns.
The distillery is currently owned by Morrison Bowmore - a subsidiary of the Japanese company Suntory, who also own the other Scottish distilleries at Auchentoshan and Glen Garioch. Bowmore has an annual production capacity of two million litres and is one of the biggest selling single malt whisky brands in the smoky, peaty style.

Details of Bowmore Tempest
The Tempest is a small batch bottling that is released approximately twice a year. Batch 1 was released in early 2010 (read our review) with this second release coming out late 2010. The third batch is planned for release mid to late 2011. Similar to the first release, this whisky is aged for 10 years in first fill ex-Bourbon casks. It comes bottled at 56% alcohol volume and retails in the UK at around the £40-£45 mark.

Our tasting notes
Bowmore Tempest is a warm golden colour. On the nose there is bracing and warming woodfire smoke, sugary sweetness or honey comb (something like a Crunchie Bar sweet), wildflower florals, sweet caramel vegetal notes (we thought of roasted red peppers or red chillis), freshness in way of Bowmore’s characteristic citrus notes plus an added pinch of saltiness. Adding water brings out more of the floral notes and sugary sweetness and dulls down the smokiness and general bracing hit on your senses that you get from a high ABV whisky.
On the palate this is feisty dram. The alcohol volume does kick your taste buds around a bit, and the first sensation is of spicy pepper, which is something the nose really didn’t prepare you for. This is followed by some tangy saltines then that sugary sweetness combined with citrus (we though of lemon sherbert). Adding water tones down the initial fiery hit a notch while leaving the spiciness. This whisky has a very long dry finish with vegetal and citrus notes laced with fiery hot ashy smoke.

What's the verdict?
We were anticipating this release with a combination of excitement and apprehension. For us the first release was an exceptional dram, so how would the second compare? We immediately got the impression that this is a very different whisky to the first release. Our overall impression was this second release of Tempest is a feisty and complex dram. Its freshness and smokiness is met head on by a peppery fieriness. This is a complex whisky that reveals itself more over a period of time. This is a whisky to go back to and appreciate at leisure.

Have just tried > Bowmore Tempest

One of Scotland's oldest
Bowmore distillery is located on the western Scottish island of Islay, which is famous for producing the smoky, peaty style of whisky. It was founded in 1779 by John Simpson - this makes it the oldest of the eight distilleries currently operating on the island and one of the oldest in Scotland (only Glenturret in the Highlands is older, having started production in 1775). It is located on the shores of the large inland sea loch of Loch Indaal and the name of Bowmore translates as 'sea rock' from Gaelic. The distillery in currently owned by Morrison Bowmore, a subsidiary of the Japanese company Suntory, who also own the other Scottish distilleries at Auchentoshan and Glen Garioch. Bowmore has an annual production capacity of two million litres and is one of the biggest selling single malt whisky brands in the smoky, peaty style.

Details of Bowmore Tempest
The Tempest is a small batch bottling and it is planned that a new batch is released approximately twice a year – Batch 1 (of which our sample is from) was released in early 2010, with Batch 2 coming in mid 2010 and the next batch penciled in for release in early 2011. Batch 1 was matured exclusively is specially selected first fill ex-bourbon casks and a small amount of these were mixed together to create the final whisky. It is bottled at 10 years of age and has an alcoholic strength of 55.3% ABV. Both Batch 1 and 2 retailed in specialist whisky stores for around the £40-45 mark. We thank Cara Laing of Morrison Bowmore for our sample of Tempest and for her time spent talking about the bottling with us.

Our tasting notes
The colour of the Tempest is vibrant gold and the nose is a wonderful combination of sweet and smoky aromas. The sweetness has elements of caramel, butterscotch, marshmallow, malty cereals and dark dried fruit (think of raisins especially) to it, while the smokiness is a mix of a bonfire and damp, earthy moss. There are also hints of vanilla, dried orange peel and a woody spiciness that becomes more vibrant with time in the glass. On the palate, this feels instantly creamy and rich with a prominent sweet butterscotch note hitting first. Then come more savoury notes of the mossy smoke, wood spice and a hint of salt. Further sweetness is introduced as other characteristics develop – some vanilla, honey, toffee – but these are balanced by the smokiness, spiciness and tangy citrus (more like orange zest this time). The finish is very long and particularly smoky, with a distinctly bitter hit of iodine adding further complexity to the many other notes present from the palate.

What's the verdict?
This Bowmore Tempest is an exceptionally good whisky that is way too easy to drink! It is very accessible and this is demonstrated by comments from two people that we have shared a dram of it with. The first is just starting to try ‘proper’ whiskies (as he describes it!) and said that it was the best whisky that he had ever tasted. The other, who doesn’t like the smoky style of whisky, confessed that he really enjoyed it and that it was the sort of smoky whisky that could make him change his mind. This is one of our favourite whiskies of the year - we highly recommending finding a bottle and parting with your hard earned cash. We can’t wait to see what the next release of Tempest will be like …

New releases ... Bowmore 1981 & Bowmore 40 years old

Last week, we were delighted to be invited to a special evening that was hosted by The National Geographic Society and Bowmore single malt whisky. The event was held at The National Geographic’s flagship retail store in Regents Street, central London and was to launch two very special whiskies from Bowmore. The reason for these two iconic companies coming together in central London was that both have just announced a partnership where Bowmore are one of the main sponsors of The National Geographic’s new photographic competition.

The National Geographic Society is more than just an iconic and pioneering magazine. The Society was founded in 1888 and its magazine was one of the first to bring photographic images and reports of little-seen foreign lands in to the homes of the late Victorian era. The Society has long been an advocate of innovative photography and some of their historic images are world famous. The iconic magazine with its yellow border on the cover forms the backbone of the organisation to this day but they also fund geographical expeditions, educate people worldwide and have a massive retail branch to their business. For further information, go to http://www.nationalgeographic.com/.

Bowmore distillery is located on the western Scottish island of Islay. It was founded in 1779 by John Simpson - this makes it the oldest of the eight distilleries on the famous whisky island and one of the oldest in Scotland (only Glenturret in the Highlands is older, having started production in 1775). It is located in the centre of the island and the distillery walls back on the shores of the large inland sea loch of Loch Indaal. The name of Bowmore translates as 'sea rock' from Gaelic. The distillery in currently owned by Morrison Bowmore, a subsidiary of the Japanese company Suntory, who also own the other Scottish distilleries at Auchentoshan and Glen Garioch. Bowmore has an annual production capacity of just two million litres and is one of the biggest selling single malt whisky brands in the smoky, peaty style.

The initial three whisky samples of the evening were each paired with an item of food. The idea was that the food complimented and enhanced the characteristics present in the whisky and vice versa. We started with the Bowmore Tempest – a small batch, cask strength (55% ABV) whisky from ex-bourbon casks – and this was paired with orange peel dipped in dark chocolate. We had never sampled the Tempest before and our full review will appear shortly. Next was the Bowmore 12 years old, which is the cornerstone and biggest selling whisky in the core range. This was splashed over some fresh oysters. Finally, we sampled some Bowmore 15 years old ‘Darkest’, a whisky that has its final three years of maturation in an Oloroso sherry cask. This was paired with some venison steak, with the final sips being taken with some dark chocolate truffles. Then it was on to the launch of the two new whiskies, both of which will be available from later this month ….

Bowmore 1981
To sample this whisky, we were taken down to The National Geographic’s ‘climate control box’. This device is for testing out their range of thermal and outdoor clothing and trust us when we say that it is pretty cold inside, especially as we weren’t wearing any of the ‘thermal or outdoor clothing’ that it was designed for. Karen particularly enjoyed it (not!) and was left standing holding her dram to try an extract some heat from it! The new 1981 has been bottled at 49.6% ABV and will retail at approximately £270 each. There are only 402 bottles and it has been maturing in ex-bourbon casks for 29 years. An interest fact that we were given was that by this age over half of the contents of the cask has already evaporated as ‘angel’s share’.

The colour of the Bowmore 1981 is light considering the age and is a lovely golden yellow. The nose has a remarkable freshness for an old whisky, with tons of vanilla and honey backed up by plenty of floral notes (think of orange blossom and honeysuckle) and a hint of salty sea water. On the palate, this had more surprises. The intense vanilla and honey were present and complimented fantastically by more floral notes. These are more evident that on the nose and seem to have different levels – there is something reminiscent of dried pot pourri, the honeysuckle and blossom from the nose, a distinct hit of parma violet sweets and the merest hint of an earthy, peaty smoke. This may sound like an odd combination but the high strength of alcohol really helps to bring each note out and show itself at its best. The freshness is also very welcome. The finish is a little more peaty but remain refreshing with a touch of woody dryness at the very end. This is a cracking dram!

Bowmore 40 years old
For the grand unveiling of this new 40 years old, we moved back upstairs to the warmth. The packaging is unlike anything we have seen before - each bottle is individual and made of hand blown crystal glass adorned with images of rocks from Islay and sitting on a thick plinth of Islay slate. The age of the whisky and extravagance and bespoke nature of the packaging mean that this isn't going to be cheap. It is going to retail for £6500 a bottle and there are only 53 to be released to the world. The whisky has been taken from a single specially selected ex-bourbon cask and has been bottled at 44.8% ABV.

The colour is a dark amber and the nose is rich and fresher than expected, considering the age. There is butterscotch and dark dried fruits present (think of raisins, dates and prunes) but also some surprising notes of tropical dried fruits (imagine mango, pineapple and a hint of banana). These are supported by the merest hint of some peat smoke, although this has a slight tobacco-like edge, and some damp woody spices (cinnamon and nutmeg especially). On the palate, this whisky remains as pleasantly fresh as on the nose but is rich with plenty of deep characters fighting each other - dark dried fruits, candied orange peel, tobacco smoke, a whiff of peat, some salty brine, caramel, spices (add some clove to the cinnamon and nutmeg of the nose) and those vibrant dried tropical fruits. It is a cracking combination and the finish carries on and becomes increasingly dry and tannic with plenty of those wood spices. A lovely dram but only you can decide if it is worth spending £6500 on! We may have to pass on that one ....!

We thank DK Cheung of Margaret London for inviting us to this innovative event and Cara Laing, the UK's Brand Manager for Morrison Bowmore, for her time spent talking with us after it.

Have just tried ... Yamazaki 18 years old

Japan's oldest whisky producer
The story of the Yamazaki distillery is essentially the story of the whisky industry in Japan. Yamazaki is the country’s oldest and first whisky distillery. Shinjiro Torri was the Japanese whisky industry's pioneer and founder. His idea was to found a distillery and corner the potential market for whisky sales in Japan in 1923. The distillery is located in the rural village of Yamazaki, which lies between the cities of Osaka and Kyoto. The current distillery has a capacity of seven million litres per year, making it one of the largest whisky distilleries in the world and beating most in Scotland. It also has the busiest visitor centre of all Japanese distilleries and this includes a bar that contains over 120 different Yamazaki whiskies of differing ages and cask types!

The birth of Suntory
Shinjiro Torri's Kotobukiya Company funded the building of Yamazaki and production started in 1924. Masetaka Taketsuru, who was Torri's protégé and the man who had visited Scotland to learn production techniques and traditions, was appointed as distillery manager. Kotobukiya changed its name to Suntory in 1929, with the new name being derived from Torri-san, the Japanese title of Shinjiro Torri. The first whisky, a blend of their single malt and grain whiskies, was released in 1932. Interestingly, this blend also included some imported single malt from Scotland. Shortly afterwards, Taketsuru left to start Yoichi, which started production in 1934. The first purely single malt whisky from Yamazaki (the 12 years old) was not released until 1984 and was followed by this 18 years old in 1994. The core range also currently includes the popular 10 years old and these are joined by occasional limited releases.

For further information and history of Yamazaki and other Japanese distilleries, please visit the Japanese section of our website - whiskyforeveryone.com.

Our tasting notes
The Yamazaki 18 years old has started to pick up awards around the world in the last two years and should cost approximately £70 a bottle. This whisky has been matured in a complex mixture of casks including ex-bourbon, ex-sherry and Japanese mizunara oak. The colour is deep amber and the nose is rich, expressive and very tempting. It is full of dried fruits (imagine raisins, sultanas and dried apple), burnt dark sugar/caramel, malty cereal grains and an almost overwhelming but very pleasant citrus note (think of candied peel or orange marmalade). On the palate, the richness is joined by more sweetness than the nose suggests and has a complex mix of notes - distinctive citrus peel (oranges again), dried fruits (sultanas especially), lots of cereal grain, vanilla, caramel, oak and woody spiciness (this is quite bark-like, think of cinnamon). The finish is long, soft and enjoyable with the orange citrus notes, caramel and grains particularly prominent. There is maybe just a hint of some peat smoke in the background also and this seems slightly musty and mossy.

What's the verdict?
Yamazaki 18 years old is a top quality dram. We have sampled it on a number of occasions now, and it seems to be better than we remembered each time. The whisky demonstrates the interesting products that are currently coming out of Japan and it is easy to see why this continues wins multiple awards. The balance between sweetness, richness and spiciness is very good and creates an excellent, complex dram that allows you to discover new aromas and flavours each time you drink some.

Have just tried ... Glen Garioch 1990 Vintage

Scotland's most easterly
Glen Garioch (pronounced glen-geery) was founded in 1797 by Thomas Simpson. This makes it one of Scotland's oldest whisky distilleries that is still in operation. Glenturret is the oldest having been opened in 1775. The original name was Glengarioch (the Garioch being a fertile strip of local farmland that is well known for producing top quality barley) before changing to Glen Garioch in the 1930s. It is located in Oldmeldrum, a small town in the Highlands, which is close to Aberdeen. The distillery is Scotland's most easterly and has an annual production capacity of approximately one million litres.

A change of style
Glen Garioch is currently owned by Morrison Bowmore, which is a subsidiary of the Japanese company Suntory. They took control in 1994 and one year later, they decided to temporarily close the distillery (this is called mothballing - the process where a distillery is closed but all the equipment remains intact and ready to go again, when required). Until then, Glen Garioch had produced a lightly peated style of whisky but when it reopened in 1997, Suntory decided to stop this practice and go for a non peaty style. The range of whisky is small and has just been completely revamped. The Founder's Reserve and a 12 years old form the main part of the range and these are joined by two vintage expressions, 1978 and this 1990 (both of which are in the previous lightly peated style). These were only released in Autumn 2009.

Our tasting notes
The colour of this 1990 Vintage is golden and the nose is sweet and rich. There are plenty of caramel, honey and cereal notes initially and these are backed up by further aromas of woody spices (think of cinnamon and nutmeg), dark dried fruits (imagine raisins and prunes) and some soft peat smoke. There is also something darker lurking in the background that is reminiscent of a high percentage chocolate and ground coffee. On the palate, this is soft yet sweet and the full bodied nature coats your mouth. The sweetness is very honey-like. The characteristics from the nose are all present - caramel (although this is more like treacle/molasses now), cereal grains (this has a more bread/yeasty/biscuit quality than before), wood spices, dried fruits and the subtle, soft peat smoke (imagine damp moss or earth). In addition, there are hints of nuts (think of almonds), vanilla and eucalyptus/menthol. The finish is very sweet, fruity and full of caramel - it's rich with some nice subtle smokiness, becoming spicy (that cinnamon and nutmeg again) and drier (imagine oak wood) at the very end. The addition of water gives it a more creamy, buttery feel but with much less of the interesting wood spice and cereal notes.

What's the verdict?
This 1990 Vintage is bottled in small batches (this one was bottled in 2009, making it 19 years old), at cask strength (54.6% ABV) and will be available through specialist retailers for around £65-70. It is a lovely and rich dram that offers a lot of complex characteristics, plus the pleasant surprise of that soft peaty smoke. The whisky is very sweet but well balanced and is enjoyable and easy to drink, even at its cask strength. A good whisky from an under rated distillery.

Have just tried ... Glen Garioch Founder's Reserve

One of Scotland's oldest
Glen Garioch (pronounced glen-geery) was founded in 1797 by Thomas Simpson. This makes it one of Scotland's oldest whisky distilleries that is still in operation. Glenturret is the oldest having been opened in 1775. The original name was Glengarioch (the Garioch is a fertile strip of local farmland that is well known for producing top quality barley) before changing to Glen Garioch in the 1930s. It is located in Oldmeldrum, a small town in the Highlands, which is close to Aberdeen. The distillery is Scotland's most easterly and has an annual production capacity of approximately one million litres.

New expressions
Glen Garioch is currently owned by Morrison Bowmore, which is a subsidiary of the Japanese company Suntory. They took control in 1994 and one year later, they decided to mothball the distillery (mothballing is the process where a distillery is closed but all the equipment remains intact and ready to go again, when required). Until this point, Glen Garioch had produced a lightly peated style of whisky but when it was reopened in 1997, Suntory decided to stop this practice and go for a non peaty style. The range of whisky is small and has just been completely revamped. This Founder's Reserve and a 12 years old form the main part of the range and these are joined by two vintage expressions, 1978 and 1990 (both of which are in the previous lightly peated style). These were released in Europe in Autumn 2009 and will be introduced to the north American and Asian markets shortly.

Our tasting notes
The Founder's Reserve is amber gold in colour and the nose is initially intense and punchy. There is strong malty cereal and some raw spirit, before the nose begins to soften and reveal some lovely aromas - caramel/burnt sugar, vanilla, coconut, dried fruits (especially sultanas), some woody spicy nutmeg and just a hint of citrus (think of orange oil). On the palate, this feels thick and coats the inside of the mouth, starting off sweetly before becoming drier. The sweetness has butterscotch, vanilla and dried fruits (imagine sultanas, raisins and candied peel) notes to it and these are joined by the drier elements - lots of malty cereal grains, a distinct spiciness (think of black pepper and nutmeg) and the tiniest hint of some peaty smoke. The finish has a decent length which has the butterscotch and dried fruit sweetness but also has some peppery spiciness, more maltiness and a tart, sharp spirity nature to it, which is slightly unpleasant (to be fair this become much more palatable and softer when we revisited this whisky the next day).

What's the verdict?
This Founder's Reserve is bottled at 48% ABV, which is a slightly higher alcoholic strength than most 'standard' whiskies in any distilleries range. A bottle should cost £30-35 from specialist retailers, although there are also plans to introduce it to the travel retail/Duty Free sector. Having never tried any whisky from Glen Garioch before, this was certainly interesting to see what the distillery has to offer. The higher than normal ABV led us to add some water but this made it flatten out and lose its vibrancy and intensity. At 48% ABV, it is more rounded and well balanced than expected. This was great to try but may not have the broadest appeal due to the strong maltiness throughout - as a beginner, it would be a good whisky to try once you have sampled some others and want to step up to something different.