Scotch

Fèis Ìle 2013. Here. We. Come. We set off for the Islay whisky festival on Thursday morning with Benedict and myself in one car, Cat and Monsieur Vachon in the Malt Mobile and a rendezvous set for that evening in Edinburgh, our port of call for the night. Successfully avoiding Ben’s extensive heavy metal collection, we were free to discuss vital musical questions such as “Exactly how many years have the ladies loved cool James for now?”. Vital, pressing questions. James Todd Smith: Rockin’ the Bells since 1985 Having travelled 450 miles from Kent, and spent a little time settling in, one of the first things we did was order a drink from... Kent. A 2007 Brut Reserve from Gusbourne Estate, utterly, utterly delicious sparkling wine. With the News Master of Malt team successfully assembled, we headed to The Bon Vivant, a superb bar and restaurant with adjoining wine and spirits store on Thistle Street. We can attest that every single one of their starters are gooood (#nomnom) and that the Negronis we ordered, made with our very own Bathtub Gin, were truly fantastic. We also enjoyed a bottle of 2008 Amon-Ra, a masterpiece of a Shiraz from Ben Glaetzer and possibly my new favourite wine. One of the best photo-bombing attempts ever, this guy flew into shot but was just too slow. By this point we were running a tad late, having agreed to meet the chaps from the Edinburgh Whisky Blog at The Last Word at around 9:30 (ish). This didn’t leave us time to visit Bramble Bar, which frankly, would have been unacceptable. We’re not big on ‘compromise’ or ‘missing out’ so we sped off to Bramble for a swift barrel and bottle aged Affinity Cocktail, their “potable zeigeist”! Potable Zeitgeist ...and so on to Bramble’s sister bar: The Last Word Saloon! Funnily enough, our friends from the Edinburgh Whisky Blog were already there when we arrived (sorry guys!), but we let them try a little preview of an upcoming release, which makes up for it, right? Good, lovely. The Last Word cocktail is a classic made with gin, Chartreuse, maraschino liqueur and fresh lime juice and they also have a chainsaw that’s powered by Hendrick’s Gin (honestly!). The Last Word cocktail Chartreuse on tap: unspeakably cool BrewDog Edinburgh would be our next stop for a couple of Dead Pony Clubs and what turned into a tasting of their limited edition Abstrakt concept beers. A handsome bunch: Chris, Lukasz, Tiger, Ben, Cat and Leighton Jake Here are my briefly scribbled tasting notes, along with what google has since told me each one actually is – happily they seem to coincide quite nicely! AB:13 – Cherry imperial stout aged in sherry barrels: “Black cherries, dog biscuits, slightly smoky, stout, biscuity finish.” AB:12 – Black Belgian IPA, Scottish Berries aged in oak casks “Fresh summer berries, raspberry, jam on the palate.” AB:11 – Black Barley Wine with ginger, black raspberries and chipotle “Gingernut biscuits, blackberries.” AB:10 – Imperial brown ale aged in Spanish red wine barrels “...” (Perhaps this one was less memorable?) The rest of the evening involved Space Invaders, some Maker’s Mark and an impromptu blind tasting of Lagavulin 16 for Tiger. He did, of course, successfully guess the expression (eventually ;-). Awaking naturally the next day and with daylight flooding into the room I had a brief panic before realising that the massive clock on the wall simply told completely the wrong time! A portion of Eggs Benedict later and we were back on the road to catch the ferry to Islay from Kennacraig. All aboard Finlaggan! (more on boats and ‘Finlaggan’ later this week) I’m on a boat and, it’s going fast and... where did I put that nautical-themed Pashmina afghan? Hello Islay... Jak

The #whiskystramash is here! It’s an absolutely stunning day for a whisky festival. The Harviestoun beer is flowing in the courtyard, there is Big Peat Bacon infused cocktails, Ancnoc, Paul John Whisky, New Zealand Whisky, Kilchoman, a Deanston time machine, a Woodford Speakeasy and more. There are still tickets available, you should come on down. [...]

[A while back, Stephen was lucky enough to attend the launch event for this whisky. You can read his review of the HP Loki launch here.] Tasting notes: There's no nose! Some sort of trick?? WTF, Highland Park? --Oh, I hadn't yet unsealed the bottle, thus not poured it into my glass. Fine, be that way, Highland Park Loki; you pranked me already. Moving forward, the nose is an understated, dare I say, low key red velvet cupcake with green apple buttercream frosting. John, who collects ephemera of the famous and who bid on Judy Garland's Wizard of Oz shoes, wonders about the availability of Katy Perry's cupcake bra "for comparison purposes only." Well played, John. On the other hand, Stephen doubtless alluding to other Katy Perry garments detects...a "bucket of lutefisk." (He's referring to her shrimper boots!) I, the third leg of the stool, get the Beauty and the Beast ballroom after Mrs. Potts accidentally spills hybridized green hibiscus tea while tangoing with Cogsworth. That, and desalinized sand and dried coral bits crusting a lemon atoll in the North Sea. On the mouth, satyr hooves trampling red hot chili peppers into a very special red libation. Wait, what? Who's taking over my keyboard? I meant to write "rosined bowstrings made from ferret guts being drawn over Pinewood Derby entries." Provolone, rather the tang of provolone minus the cheese of provolone. Al Capone at home alone, eating provolone. It's a damped harmonic oscillator with peaks at Highland Park qua Highland Park and valleys at a marzipan sea urchin masquerading as a lily pad in a koi pond. It's like being on a see saw with a kangaroo, and you're holding the joey. It's alfresco dining tête-à-tête with Ivanka Khristova, a Bulgarian shotputter with a 40-inch vertical leap. The finish converges slowly to a Highland Park feel, giving the sense that it is protean and labile, stably eruptive. It's a silk-canopied howdah on Dumbo, a block-print Indian print cloth hanging decoratively on the wall. It's saffron wisps woven with rosemary sprigs into a Palestrini motet by Rumpelstiltskin's sweet-natured little sister, who always has to apologize for her brother's odd behavior. (Her name is "Humpelforeskin.") Loki! Quit messing with what I'm typing! Her name is "Sintastarfin," or something like that. She never sang her song loud enough for me to hear. Rating: --On the scale of tricks that teach something about ourselves-- The Highland Park Loki is the optical illusion--Our brains are fooled, but our intellects are not. With the Loki, our senses are fooled, but our hearts know the truth. --Bill --Our thanks to Steph Ridgway and Highland Park for the sample!

I had the opportunity to taste The Glenlivet standard line at a Twitter Tasting for the new Alpha last week. I've been posting notes for the 12 Year Old, 15 Year Old, and now 18 Year Old this week.The elder sibling to the 12 Year Old with "significant cask difference driven by increased sherry content and first fill bourbon" (Ian Logan). Bottled at a 43% Alc. expect to pay £50 or between $70 and $80.C: AmberN: Pear skin and crisp green apple, freshly opened box of muesli, grated dark chocolate and clean pencil erasersP: Cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg (redolent of mincemeat pies around the xmas tree) -- 18's palate is sweeter than 15's -- baked apples, dried fruit, warm toffee, subtle ginger, and toasted pecansF: Decent length, some spice appears, more dark chocolate, remains nutty with brown butter towards the end of the finishIn conclusion: A tasty drop that isn't quite as interesting as the 15 Year Old but you'd still make a lot of friends with it at a xmas party or a cigar tasting.Sincere thanks to AG and IL for the official sample.

Guid Scotch Drink receives a number of press releases every day. Rather than condense them into a separate weekly post I've decided to post the most interesting in their entirety, without editorializing.THE MACALLAN LAUNCHES LIMITED EDITION CORONATION BOTTLINGThe Macallan is celebrating the 60thanniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s Coronation with the release of a stunning limited edition commemorative bottling. The limited release comprises a beautifully designed box featuring two 350ml bottles of single malt whisky. This latest offering is expected to become a rare collectors’ item with only 1953 bottles being released for sale in the UK.The pack was designed by the acclaimed Art Director, David Holmes, who worked on the first ever advertising campaign for the brand and completes The Macallan’s trio of commemorative Royal bottlings. The two bottles each feature a different image of The Queen, one taken in 1953 by Cecil Beaton, the celebrated photographer, who is perhaps best known for his images of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, with the other featuring an image taken in 2004 by Julian Calder, one of the world’s most renowned portrait photographers.In keeping with the distinct and stylish design of The Macallan, the labels have been created to celebrate Queen Elizabeth’s reign, with the first conveying the Queen as she was in 1953, aged just 26, and the second honouring the treasured monarch she has become today.Commenting on the special commemorative Coronation edition David Holmes said: "I just felt that the box design should reflect the coronation itself. Bright and celebratory, with Gold, Windsor Red and Blue as used on the Queen's Coat of arms. The idea of the confident red box with gold florettes underlines the respectful presentation. A sort of, must have, rare Royal treasure case."The representations of the earlier and later years of Her Majesty’s reign are depicted not only by the chosen images, but also through the two whiskies chosen by our Whisky Maker. A lively expression, symbolic of the young Queen at the start of the new Elizabethan era, is complemented by a more complex malt to represent her monumental achievements of the past 60 years. The first whisky, matured in American oak sherry seasoned casks, is a vibrant gold spirit offering a lemon and orange citrus nose. Ginger and summer berries flit in the background showing the exuberance of youth while hinting at a founding level of maturity. Matured in Spanish sherry seasoned oak casks, the second whisky is a splendid mahogany sprit and presents a richly mature, elegant and refined nose. Nutmeg, ginger, rich fruits and resin soften to give a full mouth feel. There is great maturity on the palate, yet no sign of age.Ken Grier, Director of Malts at Edrington, commented: “The Macallan is honoured to pay tribute to Her Majesty the Queen on the 60th anniversary of her Coronation. This exclusive release brings together the creative talent of David Holmes, two stunning images of the Queen which further underpin our photography credentials and it has allowed us to marry these moments from the Queen’s remarkable reign with two very special whiskies. We are proud of the whiskies we have created for this special bottling. They both portray the character and nobility of the Queen at two very different stages of her life and we hope that people will enjoy the story they have to tell.”The 1953 bottles are available from The Macallan Distillery Visitor Centre for collection only and online for UK customers at www.themacallan.com at a price of £350.

A couple of weeks back you might remember me waxing on about the Keys to the Clan minis program (programme, for my friends on the other side of the pond). Here’s the link to the post, just in case you missed it. In short, there have been 48 different Clan minis released into the US market and our friends over at ImpEx were kind enough to send me three minis.  All from a different clan. Thanks to ImpEx, SF and EK for the samples! Being a New Englander and basically growing up knowing this and that person who knew or was related in some way to the Kennedy family (as in JFK, RFK and Teddy of the famous Chappaquiddick incident) and having a life-long crush on Jackie Kennedy Onnassis… I decided to open the Kennedy mini. Note: all of the minis contain the same juice, I just wanted to drink a Kennedy under the table.   Here are my notes: On the nose –  Young yet pleasant.  I know it says single malt but it almost has the vibrancy of a nicer high-malt-content blended Scotch whisky; orange creamsicle, pears, sherbet and the slightest hint of smoke.  (The smoke could be my imagination playing tricks on me.) A bit of pineapple cake in here as well and then some sugary angel food cake.  This is quite the dessert-like dram so far. All this fruit makes me think of Balblair a bit, to be honest. On the mouth – As to be expected with 40% ABV, there’s very little attack upon entry which is just fine for the newbie whisky drinker as it’s quite fruity and very approachable (no burn). That touch of smoke returns, yet the fruit doesn’t go away.  But now there’s something sour in here that I can’t quite place my finger on.  Not offensive, just sour-like. Oat cakes lead us in to the finish… Finish – Shortish finish with slight pepper and that sour element I caught on the palate. In sum – While this is not really a “sit and ponder” sort of whisky, it holds it’s own well enough. All I can picture is 200 Kennedys at a wedding or something like that and toasting to the husband and bride. Mazel Tov, I mean, Kampai, I mean Slainte!! Tweet#call_to_action h4{padding:0px 6px;}The post Keys to the Clan – 50ml mini bottles of Single Malt Scotch Whisky – and now, to taste the whisky! appeared first on JEWMALT WHISKY ? REVIEWS.

Glen Grant 37 yo 1975/2012 (49.6%, Exclusive Malts for Whisky.com.tw, hogshead, cask #5477, 140 bottles) - Glen Grant 11 yo 1969/1980 (75 proof, Averys, sherry wood) - Glen Grant 1959/1999 (47.3%, Samaroli, sherry, cask #3790) - Glen Grant 1949 (40%, Gordon MacPhail, +/-1980) - Johnny Heartsman

Benromach 10 yo (43%, OB, +/-2012) - Benromach-Glenlivet 17 yo 'Centenary' (43%, OB, 3500 bottles, 1998) - Benromach 1968 (40%, Gordon MacPhail, Connoisseurs Choice, +/-1985) - Benromach 27 yo 1966/1993 (53.5%, Cadenhead, Authentic Collection) - MUSIC: June Tabor

Glenlivet 30 yo 1981/2012 (53.4% Signatory, sherry hogshead, cask #9457, 186 bottles) - Glenlivet 1973/2012 (48.6%, Berry Bros Rudd, cask #10658) - Glenlivet 21 yo 1960/1981 (54%, Gordon MacPhail for Nadi Fiori) - Glenlivet 27 yo 1955/1983 (46%, Cadenhead, black dumpy) - MUSIC: Don Byron

Glenrothes 18 yo 1994/2012 (50.7%, The Maltman) - Glenrothes 24 yo 1988/2012 (49.3%, Whisky-Doris, sherry hogshead, cask #7317, 288 bottles) - Glenrothes 41 yo 1970/2011 (43.5%, Duncan Taylor for Whisky Shop Dufftown, Octave, cask #491630, 69 bottles) - Glenrothes 42 yo 1969/2012 (42.6%, Adelphi, cask #2, 297 bottles) - Glenrothes 1969/2008 (43%, Gordon MacPhail, MacPhail?s Collection) - MUSIC: Albert Mangelsdorff