Richard Paterson The Master Blender

AMERICA! I’m back! I hope Boston, New Orleans and Dallas have whisky

(This was sent later Tuesday by himself)

Apparently, some of you Americans were missing me, so here I am back again for some more whisky and cigar adventures (well, in places you’re allowed to smoke anyway…) and here’s what I’m up to – hopefully get to meet a few of you…

Monday July 19
A quick blogger meet-up and lunch with Kirsten Amann, Catherine Stanton Schiff and Kenneth Kansky at Post 390 and then I’ll be at Davio’s, 75 Arlington Street, Boston in the evening for a trade dinner. Should be fun (as long as the jetlag stays off!)

Tuesday July 20
Easy day until 4pm and then it’s tastings and masterclass galore at Federal W&S and at Omni Parker House. The Omni Parker House one should be good for those who get along as everyone is getting a copy of my book and a bottle of Dalmore 15.

Wednesday July 21
A fond farewell is bid to Boston as I get to New Orleans for Tales of the Cocktail (did they check who they had invited? Do they put ice in these cocktails?) and I’ll be doing events in and around the Hotel Monteleone. One of the events, starting at 4.30pm, will see me doing a classroom style event with the drinks being poured, the Dalmore 12, 15, 18, Gran Reserva and King Alexander.

Tales of the Cocktail has a huge online presence, I’ll send the details out later for those who can’t make it along.

Thursday July 22
I’m taking the day off. I wish! Starting off at 11am I’ll be doing a book signing in the Hotel Monteleone, then having a chat with Kevin Jenkins of The Chef & the Fat Man fame. But it won’t be too long a chat as I’ll have a plane to catch, getting into Dallas at around 9pm. Someone tell me a decent place to go for a late night drink and cigar!

Friday July 23
I can guarantee I’ll be sweltering from all the running about I’ll be doing as I’ve got a bunch of private events on before a cigar event at Javier’s, 4912 Cole Ave. Dallas.

Saturday July 24
Not much on apart from  a mad dash to the airport to catch another plane and get back to New Orleans (in case they are missing me) and get ready for the Spirited Awards at The Roosevelt Hotel that night.

Sunday, July 25
Sleep. Aye, maybe if you’re another Richard Paterson. More Tales of the Cocktail fun with a presentation on Scotland’s Whisky Legends and Pacult involving myself, F. Paul Pacult and Colin Scott from Chivas. This is actually going to be a cracker as we’re discussing some terrific points about whisky – I’ll do another blog post about it later – and then I’m a guest at an event called Ahead in an Online World which apparently is going to tell us about stuff called Twitter, Facebook, blogs and so on. Never heard of any of it. All I want to know is can I put my whisky glass on the old-fashioned CD tray?

Monday July 26
Travel back to Glasgow. Might sleep, might prepare some notes for an online whisky tasting I’m doing with some guys in Australia on the Wednesday.

Anyway, that’s what I’m officially up to. There’s some spare time in most of the cities, so let me know if there’s anywhere worth popping into. After all, the last time this suggested, I popped into a little company called Twitter…

Bushmill’s Irish Whiskey Wants YOU! - Irish Whiskey News

From Matt at Bushmills;

“Thanks again for mentioning Make It At Bushmills in March; I just wanted to let you know that the voting is now open to find the lucky winner; already there’s been 2,500 votes!

To vote, all you need to do is go to the Bushmills global facebook page and click on the ‘Vote For Me’ tab.

If you’d like to know any more, please don’t hesitate to ask.

Best wishes,

Matt”

The original article;

Bushmills’ Master Distiller, Colum Egan, is offering one lucky person the chance to share in his life in Bushmills for 30 days, and if they can prove they’ve captured the Bushmills way of life, they’ll get the chance to be the first person outside of the Bushmills distillery ever to create their own blend of Bushmills whiskey. They’ll also get to stay at a luxury penthouse and be given £5,000 spending money too!

It’s a great chance to share in the experience of creating one of the world’s best loved Irish whiskeys and to show that they have what it takes to ‘Make it at Bushmills’.

It’s the chance of a lifetime to work alongside one of the world’s greatest whiskey makers, Colum Egan, Bushmills Master Distiller, and learn some of the ancient secrets that go into this great whiskey. Entrants will compete against people from their own countries for votes to win a place at the global final: Bushcamp. Social media will play a key role in helping entrants to gain votes, so I thought you might like the chance to be a part of the ‘Make it at Bushmills’ journey from the outset.

If you’re interested in more information about this global challenge you can enter or follow the competition via the Bushmills Facebook page: www.facebook.com/bushmills1608.

Tolbooth Tavern Edinburgh

All whisky tastings take place on Thursday nights from 7:30pm until approximately 10pm at the Tolbooth Tavern, 167 Canongate, Royal Mile, Edinburgh, Scotchland. You’ll find this location on Google Maps at the bottom of the page.

Tickets : £17*/20 or when a tasting’s theme requires buying more expensive bottles the increase will be reflected proportionally in the ticket price.

At least 5 drams, cask strength being the preferred option when a choice is available and affordable.

Refunds only possible if tasting not sold out or if ticket can be resold.

The tastings aim to inform and entertain. The relaxed approach is still structured and props are used so the tastes and smells of the various influences on production can be experienced first hand, for example there will be the opportunity to smell and/or taste both malted and un-malted barley, yeast and new make spirit.

The tasting usually ends with a raffle where every entrant wins a miniature’s worth of whisky left over from previous tastings, entry to the raffle is an additional £2 and any further donations being collected for World Vision’s ‘Sponsor a Child’ scheme (we’ve collected more than £1500 to date).

All tastings include oatcakes, shortbread and chocolates. The Tollbooth offers meals up to the time of tasting.
ENTRY BY PREPAID TICKET ONLY - prices from £17* *first timers & members discount, 13 month membership = £10, 2nd year’s membership £5 then all subsequent years free. Want to taste the whiskies but can’t attend? We can bottle them for you to take away. Empty minis always appreciated.

22.7.10 Old/Sherried/Peaty/Rare/Unusual £t.b.c. including:-

Rare Ayrshire (Ladyburn) 1975 45.2% Signatory

Laphroaig Cairdeas (11yo to 19yo) 2010 Feis Ile 57.3%

Glenrothes 1990 - 02/08 17yo 46% sherry butt 395 bottles Cadenheads

Glentauchers 2006 -2009 46% barrel 921 20cl bottles Carn Mor

Potter’s Distillers, Kelowna, British Columbia 15yo Indian Corn Cadenheads

http://www.jollytopertastings.co.uk/

Four Roses, Yeasts and Mashbills
Blackfriars, Newcastle Upon Tyne 
Friday August 6th 2010, 7.30pm 
www.blackfriarsrestaurant.co.uk 

£20.00 / ticket   

Julian Howard makes his first trip to The Whisky Lounge in Newcastle - aside from the Whisky Festival of course! He is going to introduce a fascinating tasting of not only ‘bottled’ products, but also cask samples that demonstrate the amount of forethought and research that goes into putting Four Roses Bourbons together. The distillery uses a unique recipe of not only yeasts, which most Scottish distilleries could learn a thing or two from, but also mashbills. A mashbill, basically, is the recipe of grains that will make up the Bourbon - the proportion of corn, rye and barley used.

YOU are going to have a unique insight into the world of a Kentucky distiller and his secret recipes. This is bound to be a fantastic evening and tickets as always are limited.

As always each tasting is designed to be fun and enjoyable for all levels of whisky drinker, and is not a lecture. You will almost certainly learn something new every time, but if you don’t walk out with a smile on your face then we have done something wrong!

You will not be sent a ticket through the post. Your details will be added to the event register and all you need to do is print the payment confirmation page and bring it with you to the event.

http://www.thewhiskylounge.com/Events.aspx?id=134

Competition from BenRiach Distillery;

WIN A BOTTLE OF BENRIACH 25YO

We’ve got 3 bottles of the superb BenRiach 25yo up for grabs. For your chance to win, simply sign up to our e-newsletter.

Winners will be selected at random on September 1st 2010.

Good Luck!

http://www.benriachdistillery.co.uk/Default.aspx?page=competition

The “96 Isles and 5 Whiskies Cruise” dinner

Dear Whisky Friends,

A very special and exclusive dinner organized by Glann ar Mor Distillery will take place on Saturday18Th September, boarding from Lezardrieux harbour on the Northern coast of Brittany. After a visit of the nearby distillery, a magic cruise will take us from isle to isle in the beautiful Brehat archipelago on an old fishing boat, while we will be dining with rare whiskies including Celtique Connexion, Glann ar Mor and Kornog.

We will be sailing on the “Nebuleuse”, a former Dunde tuna boat of 89 tons, 19 meters long and 6 meters wide built in 1949.

To join us for this exciting event, you will find full details and booking form on the distillery’s webpage dedicated to this event at http://www.glannarmor.com/dinerwhiskyEN.htm.
Price for the full afternoon and evening program is 225 € per person, and in order to guarantee optimum comfort aboard there are only 24 bookings available.

Place and time : 18 September at 02:00 PM at Glann ar Mor Distillery, then boarding at 04:15 PM in Lezardrieux (22740 Brittany, France).

Yech’ed Mad !

Martine and Jean DONNAY
Contact : info@glannarmor.com

Glann ar Mor
The Celtic distillery with a Breton Heart

Maltstock

Compass Box Breakfast Whisky & Stuart Thomson at Maltstock   
  
Fellow whisky enthusiast,

Only 7 weeks until Maltstock! And it promises to be a great weekend again. Already we have people coming over form seven different countries. We are also very proud at the program we are able to offer this year. No less than three distillery managers will be present, as well as some other representatives and independent bottlers. There are a couple of very unique tastings. But most importantly it will be a very relaxed weekend.

Compass Box Breakfast Whisky
The terrific, innovating team of Compass Box is creating a breakfast whisky especially for Maltstock. This will accompany the Highlander Inn Scottish breakfast. It will be the world’s first ever specially created breakfast whisky. The breakfast whisky will be produced in a very limited quantity and will only be available at Maltstock 2010. Will this be a serious cereal whisky? A bowl of fruit? Will it be as black at the pudding? The “Ben Bacon & Beans”? We will find out in September.

Stuart Thomson at Maltstock
I think most of you remember Stuart Thomson, former Ardbeg distillery manager. He has been out of the whisky scene for a while, but he is back! We are very happy and proud to announce he will be present at Maltstock!

Tickets need to bought in advance
Please note it is necessary to buy your Maltstock tickets online. There will be no tickets sales at the Maltstock gates. We need to know in advance how many people will be present. This because we have limited number of beds and diner and breakfast is included. Many of you have already bought their ticket. If you haven’t done so yet, please visit our online shop and get your Maltstock tickets. After you have ordered your tickets you can also book the free tastings.  Maltstock costs just 150,- euro’s for the whole weekend. Including two nights accommodation, Scottish breakfast, diner, BBQ, quiz, campfire, lot’s of whisky to taste with no extra charge. Full program and extra information can be found at our website www.maltstock.com. Or click here to go straight to the online shop.

See you in September, see you at Maltstock!

Slainte!

Arthur, Bob, Eline, Rogier & Teun
www.maltstock.com

Win a bottle of Glenfarclas 40 Years Old Scottish Classic

To mark the 125th Annual Show of the Dufftown Horticultural Society, in conjunction with the society, we are offering a bottled of Glenfarclas 40 Years Old Scottish Classic, as a raffle prize.

The Dufftown Horticultural Society was originally established as the Dufftown Horticultural, Dairy and Industrial Society in 1872, and the Show has become one of the main events in Dufftown each summer. This year the extended show will run over the 11th and 12th of September in the Memorial Hall Dufftown, and will showcase members produce across more than 300 different categories, including the Rotary Shield prize for the Best Hanging Basket in the burgh of Dufftown.

Glenfarclas 40 Years Old Scottish Classic, is a limited edition of 600 bottles, with 30 different label designs inspired by works of Scottish Literature. The prize, bottle number 179, features a label inspired by Robert Burns’ work ‘The Jolly Beggars’. The whisky has been described by whisky journalist Jim Murray as ‘Quite outstanding for its age’.

When George Grant, Director of Sales for Glenfarclas, gave the prize to Arthur Rugg, Show Manager, an extra twist came to light. Arthur Rugg installed the wooden panelling from the Empress of Australia in the Glenfarclas visitor centre in 1973, which continues to be admired by the distillery’s many visitors today.

Commenting on the donation, George Grant, said, ‘Like the Dufftown Horticultural Society, we to have a long history, and we hope this prize will help the show prosper long into the future’. As John Fleming, Hon. Secretary & Treasurer explained, ‘It’s a great prize, spend £1 on a raffle ticket and you could win a bottle worth £1500.’

Raffle tickets will be available during the show, with the draw on the 12th of September. In advance, tickets are available from Costcutter in Dufftown, The Whisky Shop Dufftown, and the Glenfarclas distillery visitor centre, as well as from Society members during the Dufftown Games.

Saturday 28th August

Launching its inaugural festival in August 2009, Auchentoshan opened its doors to the connoisseurs and novices of the Single Malt Whisky world! Returning in 2010, the festival promises to build on last year’s success proudly presenting an array of entertainment including fantastic live music, comedy, cookery demonstrations and mixology shows plus much much more…

Whats On? Hosting a jam-packed programme this year, Auchentoshan is proud to welcome you to enjoy a wide variety of entertainment, locally produced food and most importantly single malt whisky.

Master Classes Don’t miss this rare chance to learn from the experts. Auchentoshan will be hosting a variety of master classes in the distillery.

Last Year The first ever Auchentoshan Whisky Festival took place last year on Saturday 29th August 2009 and the team were thrilled to welcome 2,600 visitors to the day.

The Auchentoshan Introduction to Whisky
with Tom Jones in the Kilpatrick Suite
Participants will have the chance to taste the Auchentoshan core range as well as being given a demonstration of the effect various casks selected have on the new make Auchentoshan spirit. Hosted by Auchentoshan’s European Brand Ambassador Tom Jones.

From 11.30am – 12.30pm and 4pm – 5pm
£20 per person

A Match Made in Heaven
Auchentoshan and Chocolate
with Martine Nouet in the Kilpatrick Suite
Hosted by Martine Nouet, the editor of the French edition of “Whisky Magazine”. Martine’s area of expertise lies in both food and whisky, making her the ideal tutor to take you through this Chocolate and Whisky pairing class. Participants will sample a selection of the Auchentoshan range, all matched individually with handmade Scottish chocolates from the Islay Chocolate Company.

From 1pm – 2pm
£35 per person

Vintage Master Class
with Iain McCallum in the Blenders Room
A unique opportunity to sample some of the finest limited editions from Bowmore, Auchentoshan and Glen Garioch under the guidance of Morrison Bowmore’s highly acclaimed Senior Blender Iain McCallum. Such archive whiskies will include Gold Bowmore, Auchentoshan 1957 and the most recent edition to Auchentoshan’s limited edition collection, a Sherry Matured 1977 a rare release of only 240 bottles.

From 3pm – 4pm
£100 per personbuy tickets

2010 Festival Bottlings
 
1998 Limited Edition
£50.00
Auchentoshan’s Head Distiller Jeremy Stephens has hand selected the first two hundred bottles of this year’s limited edition release. A 1998 cask strength, Sherry Matured expression, bottled specially for the 2010 festival. Each bottle is hand numbered and comes with a certificate of authenticity signed by Jeremy.

Bottle Your Own
£70.00
A visit to this year’s festival will offer you chance to bottle your own Auchentoshan straight from the cask. Your bottle will be filled from a cask which has been specifically selected due to its excellent quality, exceptional flavours and to commemorate this years festival. The ultimate souvenir.

 Visit the Auchentoshan Festival at  http://www.auchentoshan.co.uk/festival/ 

Dalmore Tasting
Tuesday July 20
Pourings at 5:00 and 6:00
Demand has been so strong for the Dalmore That Richard Paterson has agreed to do a small instore tasting berfore the Masterclass. We’ll taste

Reg. Sale Tasting or Pre Arrival

12 Y.O. Deep golden mahogany in color with orange, marmalade and aromatic spice on the nose. Elegant and rich on the palate with intense citrus and hints of sweet vanilla pod to finish enhanced by increased sherry wood for an aftertaste of great complexity. $57.99 $51.99 $44.99

Gran Reserva Elegant and refined with hints of citrus and autumn fruits on the nose. marmalade and Christmas cake tantalize the palate with subtle hints of roasted coffee and chocolate. This is followed with ripe oranges and lemon peel, giving delicate, zesty top notes.
$74.99 $67.99 $60.99

15 Y.O. A rich and aromatic heart full of dried spices, cloves, cinnamon and ginger with a concentrated citrus mouth-feel to tantalize your tongue and an abundant aftertaste of spice to reward the palate.
$89.99 $84.99 $84.99

18 Y.O. Aged aromatic Oloroso butts and Madeira drums provide citrus orange, spice and nuts, whilst redolent Bourbon barrels deliver warm, vanilla notes. Rich port and Marsala woods add hints of wild berries and fleshy plums, enhanced with red fruitsfrom vintage Cabernet Sauvignon barriques.
$164.99 $154.99 $149.99
Joe Howell
Federal Wine & Spirits

Email: joe@federalwine.com
Phone: 617-367-8605
Web: http://www.federalwine.com/

Richard Paterson - The Master Blender