The Second Coming of Rye Whiskey

Rye whiskies are back in fashion.

There is a resurgence happening. A long forgotten and much maligned spirit is making a comeback, and in a big way. That spirit is American rye whiskey.

Long seen as the spicy and brash brother of bourbon, rye whiskey had fallen out of favour with consumers and bartenders in a big way. The spirit never properly recovered from the Prohibition period, which was from 1920 to 1933 in America, and the effect was almost terminal. It was relegated to being produced by just a few distillers for a decreasing number of drinkers.

Inbox - The Week's Whisky News (June 8, 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.

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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.

Fèis Ìle 2018 - Something Old, Something New

The one photo of Ardnahoe we can show.

The annual Fèis Ìle is upon us again. The world descends on the famous whisky producing Hebredian island of Islay for a week of events, whisky and music. Matt is amongst them and will be reporting back at various points during the week.

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The locals were beginning to tell us that Islay was always like this. It was difficult not to believe them as the sunny and warm weather continued through the annual Feis Ile week and in to the Bowmore open day on Wednesday.

Of course, those of us that have visited before knew that Islay can be a fickle beast – fine one minute and then truly wretched the next. So far, we kept our fingers crossed for the rest of the week.

Fèis Ìle 2018 - Islay's Days In The Sun

#OpinionsWelcome - Like a bright Spring day at Laphroaig.

The annual Fèis Ìle is upon us again. The world descends on the famous whisky producing Hebredian island of Islay for a week of events, whisky and music. Matt is amongst them and will be reporting back at various points during the week.

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When arriving on the island on Sunday, the weather was lovely. The plane over revealed the wonderful Scottish landscape as we flew over Loch Lomond and the Kintyre peninsula, and finally the Paps of Jura and Loch Indaal. Popping in to the Bruichladdich open day quickly upon arrival saw many with a healthy glow from the sun. Some had a much redder and more unhealthy glow. Islay, and the Campbeltown festival before it, were threatening to put on a proper show.

Fèis Ìle 2018 - The Anticipation

Watch out Islay, here we come ...

The annual Fèis Ìle is upon us again. The world descends on the famous whisky producing Hebredian island of Islay for a week of events, whisky and music. Matt is amongst them and will be reporting back at various points during the week.

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This will be my fourth visit to Islay and my second to the Fèis Ìle. I am lucky in that the world of whisky takes me on numerous trips to numerous distilleries, but few compare to Islay. The island is a true Mecca for whisky lovers and they visit in their thousands for this one week of malt and music.

Review - Balcones Texas Rye 100 Proof

The Texas Rye 100 Proof is the first ever rye whisky to be released by the Texan distillery of Balcones. It was launched to celebrate their 10th anniversary year. The 100 Proof is bottled at 15 months of age and will be a permanent product in the core range. The spirit used has been made using 100% rye grains, all of which are grown in Texas - this is unusual as the legal minimum is 51% rye - and has been double distilled through copper pot stills.  As the name suggests, it is bottled at 100 Proof (50% ABV). This core bottling was joined by the limited Cask Strength Straight Rye, which contained some of the first rye spirit distilled in 2015 and was bottled at 62.5% ABV. This has now sold out.

Inbox - The Week's Whisky News (May 25, 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.

Inbox - The Week's Whisky News (May 18, 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.

Inbox - The Week's Whisky News (May 11, 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.