Nabil has written a very interesting E-pistle on the “supertaster” phenomenon that manifests itself by a higher concentration of taste buds on the tongue:
http://www.maltmaniacs.net/E-pistles/Malt-Maniacs-2012-09-Supertaster.pdf
Happy reading and Happy New Year,
www.ralfy.com celebrares the ending of another year with Whisky Review 329 – Whisky of the Year 2012
One of the highlights of the whisky year is Diageo’s Special Releases – a range of whiskies from closed and less seen distilleries, as well as some alternative takes on their better known drams. It’s also the only place to find new official bottlings of Brora and Port Ellen, both of which sold out last year, as usual, almost instantaneously across the world.
However, thanks to TWE and Diageo all is not lost! For our first tasting of 2013 we will be joined by the indomitable whisky ambassador Colin Dunn and his magic whisky bag, this time filled with all eight whiskies from the 2012 Special Releases range, including the late-arriving Talisker 35yo, and the sold out Brora, Port Ellen and Lagavulin 21 year old.
The complete line-up will be:
Dalwhinnie 25 Year Old
Auchroisk 30 Year Old
Caol Ila Unpeated 14 Year Old
Lagavulin 12 Year Old
Lagavulin 21 Year Old
Talisker 35 Year Old
Brora 35 Year Old
Port Ellen 32 Year Old
Tickets for this unique chance to try all of the 2012 Special Releases in one place are sure to sell out quickly so make sure you don’t miss out!
The tasting will take place on Monday 21st January 2013, 7:30pm at Vinopolis near London Bridge.
Tickets go on sale on Thursday 3rd January at 3pm and cost £40 each. As ever, they will be sold on a first come, first served basis and are limited to two per customer.
To book your ticket: Call us on 020 7403 8688 or visit the shop – http://www.thewhiskyexchange.com/Vinopolis.aspx
Long lost child of Canadian whisky empire coming home
A long lost child of the Canadian whisky empire is coming home.
From the vestiges of the world’s southern-most whisky producer in New Zealand – which was once a part of Canada’s vast Seagrams realm – the rare and acclaimed Dunedin DoubleWood 10 year old blend has just arrived in Ontario.
Crafted from the pure ingredients for which the Land of the Long White Cloud is famed, the distinctive Dunedin DoubleWood is turning heads. It has picked up a swag of awards in recent competitions and also helped New Zealand score stunning triumphs over Scotland, Wales and England in last month’s Whisky Test Match series across the UK. The New Zealand Whisky Collection’s win in Edinburgh, against three local legends (Glenfiddich, Johnnie Walker and Ardbeg) in a blind tasting by Scottish judges, was a particularly stunning upset.
The DoubleWood “noses and tastes older than its 10 years. A distinctive, pleasant nose which combines scented face cream with light rose wine and later some sandalwood,” according to Whisky authority, Charles Maclean.
Seagrams – the Canadian company that was once the largest distiller of alcoholic beverages in the world – owned the New Zealand distillery in Dunedin, from where the DoubleWood hails, for most of that distillery’s life.
“The distillery flourished under Seagrams,” said New Zealander Cyril Yates, who started at the distillery as a teenager and worked there for 24 years.
“But in the late 1990s, Australian brewer Fosters bought it and shut it down – just as I was due for a 25 year long-service reward trip to Ontario to visit the Seagrams’ museum.”
The closure marked the end of a chequered distilling history in New Zealand that began with Scottish settlers in the 1800s but encountered numerous setbacks along the way, such as prohibition, and even interference from Scottish bankers who would only finance construction of New Zealand’s railways if the local whisky industry was wiped out.
The barrels of whisky that remained at the now defunct distillery were sold to a wine company. They left the single malt quietly maturing and ingeniously decanted all the blended whisky into red wine barrels to add character and colour – a technique that is now being copied, even back in Scotland. The whisky has sat in those 443 barrels, ageing and sweetening, in a South Island seaside bondstore ever since.
“It is the influence of the red wine barrels which gives the whisky a cream soda, almost bubblegum-like soft and sweet explosion across the palate,” said the Collection’s Greg Ramsay.
Two years ago, Mr Ramsay – a young whisky enthusiast and golf entrepreneur from the tiny Australian island of Tasmania – bought those barrels and set about bottling the whisky as part of a plan to revive the New Zealand whisky industry.
The New Zealand Whisky Company hasn’t looked back – its whisky collection is picking up awards wherever it goes and is being exported to Scotland, Australia, the Netherlands – and now Canada, courtesy of the LCBO. Early next year, LCBO will also stock New Zealand’s 21 year old South Island Single Malt.
Plans are now also on the horizon to resume distilling at Dunedin.
“Canada is one of the world’s most discerning whisky markets and we can’t wait for their verdict on these delicious drams,” said Mr Ramsay.
“In fact, the fate of a mothballed New Zealand industry, that was once so well nurtured in Canadian care, could once again sit with the people of Ontario. If our foray into Canada proves as successful as our other international exports, then a return to distilling will happen sooner rather than later.”
The Dunedin DoubleWood is available now at LCBO outlets. It retails for $89.95 More information about the New Zealand Whisky Company is available at www.thenzwhisky.com.
The Scotch Malt Whisky Society January Outturn Tasting
Celebrate the New Year right with a tasting of another fabulous line-up of single cask, cask strength whiskies from The Scotch Malt Whisky Society (SMWS)!!!
The SMWS releases several new bottlings every month and our Outturn tastings are your opportunity to try before you buy!
Open to both Society members and non-members alike; invite your whisky-loving friends & join the fun on Monday, January 7th to explore SMWS’s rare and wonderful single malt whiskies.
Click on the Register Now link below or stop by our shop to register today!
Memberships are now available in-store! For more info on SMWS visit www.smws.ca
ENJOY SMWS PRODUCTS RESPONSIBLY, PLEASE ARRANGE SAFE TRANSPORT HOME. DON’T DRINK AND DRIVE
If you have any questions about the event, SMWS generally or how to register, please get in touch.
We look forward to seeing you at the tasting!
Slainte,
Crystal Coverdale
General Manager
Edgemont Fine Wines, Sprits & Ales
3020 Edgemont Blvd, North Vancouver BC
604-984-9463
Open Daily 9am-11pm, Free parking at back
We are sprucing up the place and will be open for business again on January 8th. During this time our retail store on Fillmore street and our Website will be unavailable. Please stop in and see our new digs after January 8th.
Happy Holidays from all the staff at D&M!
The latest (and first) two posts from WorldWhisky.org.
http://www.worldwhisky.org/2012/12/list-of-popular-whisky-apps-for-smartphones-and-tablets/
http://www.worldwhisky.org/2012/12/categorized-index-of-twitter-whisky-accounts/
All the very best for 2013!!!
