The Talisker Distillery hides famously on the island of Skye in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland and its from here that our tasting selection of Single Malt Whiskies proudly presents itself to the lucky drammers attending on 7th June.

The Talisker masterclass will be held in the Malt cellars of Nickolls and Perks in Stourbridge and we will be tasting 100 years of dramatic wonderful whisky.

Just a few tickets remain for this special evening, so don’t delay!

You also have a chance to reserve your Early Bird tickets for our Autumn Whisky Festival.

Click here for more information or to reserve tickets

or use the  “Buy” buttons or phone us on 01384 394518

Looking forward to seeing you soon!

The Nickolls and Perks team

Thursday June 6th.
Single Malt Scotch Tasting
4:30 P.M.  or  6:00 P.M
Ed Kohl with Exclusive Malts of Scotland

Ed Kohl is with Impex Beverages fairly new importer / distributor that is building a portfolio of very good single malts. Ed has been in the industry for years, and has been specializing with Scotch Whisky for quite some time and will take us through their new line of Exclusive Malts single cask range. The tastings will start at 4:30 & 6:00 and will run for 45 to 55 minutes. Please try to be prompt for the start. 
This is a wonderful range of single cask – single malts that you do not want to miss.

Bowmore  11 Y.O.  53.6%           $104.99 – $94.99
Nose: subtle peat with faint tar
Palate: sweet suer cane moving into spicy heather mixed with camphor
Finish: sweet malt and spicy white pepper

Clynelish  15 Y.O.  55.7%         $110.00 – $99.99
Nose:New mown hay, heather
Palate: Grassy heather, honey malt, hazelnuts
Finish: long, flowery, malty with a pleasant spiciness

Mortlach   17 Y.O.  53.3%   $127.99 – $114.99
Nose: nougat, roasted nuts, nutmeg
Palate: sugar spice, camphor, cinnamon – nutmeg
Finish: sweet malty finish with orange citrus spiciness

Glen Grant  20 Y.O.  55.7%   $149.99 – $134.99
Nose: sherry, heavy malt profile
Palate: sweet malt, some grassiness and nutty tones, very complex

Littlemill 22 Y.O.  99.6%      $179.99 – $159.99
Nose: lemons grass, toffee
Palate: soft and creamy, butterscotch, toasted coconut, almond paste
Finish: very pleasant soft malts with a lemon citrus finish

Joe Howell

Federal Wine & Spirits

Email: info@federalwine.com

Phone: (617) 367-8605

Web: http://www.federalwine.com/

Welcome to Summer!

Or so it would seem. Having personally just spent 3 days bathed in glorious sunshine on the Isle of Islay, I am full of the joys of spring – well as much as I am actually able…

With the year nearing its halfway mark, we at The Whisky Lounge have already completed 5 of our Whisky Festival events – if you count Leeds this weekend – having also covered Newcastle, Brighton, Edinburgh, London. That is some mileage in anyone’s book!

Most recently we had the London Festival and Jam & Dram session, which was brilliant fun and was received by all extremely well. If you do Facebook, you can go and view some images, plus the moody Edinburgh Whisky Festival video… In fact click here to have a look.

However, there is no rest for the wicked – we still have another 4 to go, so there is no let up in the pace. Plus we have loads of things going on over the summer, including for Father’s Day, our popular Whisky Schools, a fabulous and exclusive Glenmorangie Cask Masters Series and further shenanigans up and down the country.

First of all though…

Our next festival, after Leeds, is in new territory for us, and as always we are very excited and looking forward to seeing lots of new (and old) faces on the 22nd June.

We have had an early-bird of 2 tickets for just £30 for a little while now, but just to ensure you don’t miss out, we are keeping this going until just Sunday 2nd June, so you’d best get your skates on!! Incredible! We really would like to get whisky-drinkers new and old along, so if you know anyone in the area, please let them know of this amazing offer…

As always, your ticket price includes:

• FREE Glencairn Crystal Tasting Glass
• FREE Festival Guide
• FREE Bottle of Water
• FREE Access to sample ALL ‘On The Counter’ Drams for no extra cost
• FREE 2 WHITE Under The Counter Dram tokens
• FREE Guided tour of the festival – for newbies and the uninitiated (see website for details)
• ACCESS to The Whisky Exchange shop within the festival

THE CASK MASTERS

We’re always on the hunt for something a little different to get ourselves – and yourselves – involved with. To this end, we have decided to partner with Glenmorangie for our summer series of tastings.

The ‘Morangie currently have a very exciting initiative called the Cask Masters, which appeals to the inner geek in us, and I suspect you too.

The basic idea behind this project is that Glenmorangie want the next limited release bottling to be chosen by the people who are going to be drinking it, i.e you! The first part of this process – and the best bit as far as we’re concerned – is getting to taste the whiskies concerned.

Therefore, you will get to taste, evaluate and choose your favourite from three cask samples (at 46% ABV), whilst using the Original Ten Years Old as a reference point. These have been chosen by Dr. Bill Lumsden (Head of Whisky Creation, Glenmorangie & Ardbeg), so as you would expect, they are top-drawer drams.

We are running this tasting in all of our UK locations, plus a special Edinburgh version which will be co-hosted by Dr. Bill Lumsden himself on the 24th of July. More news on this soon…

Perhaps the best news of all though….. these tastings are only £10 per person! Now if that doesn’t do it for you, nothing will!

Click here to go the events page where these tastings are now available to book… If you want find out more from the horse’s mouth, click here or on one of the banners above.

FATHER’S DAY!

It is that time of year again where we celebrate all things fatherly. Here at The Whisky Lounge we are no different and firmly believe in showing your appreciation for the father in your life, so here we have a few ideas for you…

GLEN GRANT 1974

We have kept back some of this amazing liquid for such a time as this. We, having shared in a portion of this with Berry Brothers, were staggered at the quality and the sheer tastiness of this dram. At not far off 40 years old, this is not creaky like some older bottlings can be, and at a satisfying full-strength of 47.8% ABV, this really is the real deal. We’ve also heard that the Berry’s 70cl version was extremely well-received by a certain Jim Murray who, in fact, made it his ‘Best Single Cask, Single Malt 35-40 Years Old’ in his last Whisky Bible…

There are only around 15 of our cute 20cl bottles of this remaining and at £59.99 we do not expect them to last…

We can even add a beautiful Whisky Lounge Gift Box and two Glencairn tasting glasses for an extra £10 – click here to go straight to this amazing whisky.

Our first raft of Whisky Schools earlier in the year were extremely well-received and sold-out in the main. To this end we have got some new dates for you in the autumn so you and/or your Dad have plenty of time to clear your diary. Rather than go on about how great they are and you really should go, here is a little video we put together that hopefully whets the appetite!

At only £90 per person you get tremendous bang for your buck…

As well as all of the whiskies on tasting, 2-course lunch and course material, you get to BLEND your own whisky and take a miniature of it away with you!

New dates are;

June 29th – London, Malmaison
September 7th – London, Malmaison
September 14th – Manchester, Malmaison
September 28th – Edinburgh, Hotel Du Vin
October 5th – Newcastle, Hotel Du Vin
October 5th – York, Hotel Du Vin

Click here to go to the Whisky Schools page and get booking!

NEWS

A new section where we round-up some industry news…

The Scotsman, 26th May 2013
The Indian single malt whisky hoping to break into the UK market
Featuring one of our newest exhibitors who will be at the remaining festivals this year.

The Guardian, 24th May 2013
Japanese distiller aims to revolutionise whisky drinking
Interesting slant on summer whisky-drinking?

Harpers, 24th May 2013
Glenfarclas and Hine join forces for 1953 vintage
Some very rare whisky and cognac from 60 years ago.

Just Drinks, 23rd May 2013
The Macallan Coronation 
Brief details of newest Macallan limited bottlings.

Spirits Business, 22nd May 2013
BUFFALO TRACE WARNS OF BOURBON SHORTAGE
Warning as demand outstrips supply! Aggghhh!

WHISKY LOUNGE NEWS

We are very close to securing our venues for both Liverpool and Manchester Whisky Festivals, but put the dates of 7th September and 12th October in your diaries…

We are also looking at an autumn date for our next ‘Islay, Backstage Tours’ which are now sold out for this summer’s versions from 15th June. We would like to hear from you with regards if and when YOU would like to go. In fact the first 50 people to express their interest and preferred dates during September/October will be entered into a prize draw for a special bottle of something peaty! Click here to respond.

Eddie has just got back from two days at the Islay Festival 2013 and has bottles and sunburn to prove it. Talking of which, have a little look at this short video he has just put together of his time there…

COMPETITION TIME!

And finally…given that Eddie came back with a few of the fabled Feis Ile bottlings from this years festival, we thought it would be rude to keep them all to ourselves…

Therefore we are offering small samples of the Ardbeg, Lagavulin and Laphroaig Feis Ile 2013 bottlings to the first 5 people who can tell us:

1. What is the name of the (in)famous Ardbeg distillery dog?
2. In what year did the legendary Malt Mill distillery at Lagavulin stop distilling?
3. What does the word ‘Laphroaig’ mean?

Email us at info@thewhiskylounge.com with your answers, name and address and we’ll announce the winners through our Facebook page and Twitter feed next week.

That’s pretty much it from us for now but I think that is enough to be going on with! Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter – @thewhiskylounge – and like and share our Facebook page to keep bang up to date with the latest news about our events and more.

We look forward to seeing you over a dram or two soon.

Sláinte!

Eddie, Amanda & Joe
Team Whisky Lounge

Top-Up Tipplers: which will you choose?
Ever come to our website for that special bottling, only to find that another lucky Member has snapped up the last one? We added an exciting selection of new-to-the-UK bottlings on Monday and they’re proving very popular with several already sold out. Here are your top five choices this week – but don’t worry: these are still available!

Online Exclusives: Members’ Top Five

1)  4.163 Soaring sweetness and ocean spray
11yo First-fill ex-bourbon barrel, £57.40Various bass notes grounded the nose (tobacco, creosote, burnt sticks, white pepper, chipotle chilli, balsamic reduction) but soaring on a breeze of clean, minty smoke and ocean spray, was a kite made of toffee, puff candy and chocolate melted over ice-cream More 

2)  35.86 Sumptuous breakfast dram
11yo First-fill ex-sherry butt, £43.90 The nose suggested sumptuous breakfasts – cinnamon toast, marmalade, bran flakes, prunes, coffee, pancakes with corn syrup, cranberries and Nutella on toasted bagels. More

3)  2.83 Intense explosion of taste
19yo Refill ex-bourbon hogshead, £80.50 The nose really grabbed our interest – so much in it – summer fruits, cherry Bakewell, apple and berry tea; maple syrup, toffee and Fry’s Turkish Delight; mulled wine, tobacco and old books. More

4)  27.101 Sweet and savoury, clean and earthy
16yo Refill ex-bourbon hogshead, £68.00 Smoky, oily and meaty – the nose evoked a restaurant kitchen’s back door – soft leather and wood  suggested upholstery shops – we also found dark chocolate, heather flowers, clove and citric notes intensifying over time. More

5)  35.80 Steamed Apple Sponge Pudding
21yo Second fill ex-bourbon hogshead, £66.90 We found ourselves in a cafe in a book shop with a variety of cakes on display; Viennese Apple Strudel, French Tarte Tatin, caramelised pineapple cake and slices of Battenberg. There is also a basket of oranges and Pink Lady apples to choose from. More

Browse all bottlings

The Scotch Malt Whisky Society, The Vaults, 87 Giles Street, Leith EH6 6BZ Contact: sales@smws.com or call 0131 555 2929 (Mon-Fri 9am-4.45pm). Visit the Society at http://www.smws.co.uk/memberships for your chance to join and to take advantage of their great offers.

www.ralfy.com take to the fishing boats with Whisky Review 364 – Old Pulteney WK209 Good Hope

Ballantine’s 12 Takes Customers Beyond with the Story of Serve

Ballantine’s, the No. 1 Scotch whisky in Europe, is aiming to increase awareness of Ballantine’s 12 with The Story of Serve; an interactive online film experience. Exploring the Ballantine’s 12 Serving Ritual – a beautiful crystal decanter created by award winning designer Lee Broom – the film encourages and rewards sharing with friends via social media.

The experience is described as “a YouTube puzzle that takes you beyond”. The puzzle appears as one film, split into nine YouTube players, which have to be rearranged in the right order for the film to play. Once the puzzle has been solved, customers will discover The Story of Serve; taking them beyond the usual expectations of the way that whisky can be drunk. At the end of the film, viewers can enter a draw to win one of these exclusive decanters – which splits into three sections to hold whisky, ice and water or a cocktail combination – by sharing the experience through Twitter or via email.

Peter Moore, Global Brand Director for Ballantine’s comments: “Our customers are spending more time online than ever before, so we have created a range of innovative activities to pique their interest, whilst also raising awareness of Ballantine’s 12. Partnering with the brilliant designer Lee Broom in creating this unique decanter highlights the credentials of Ballantine’s 12 as a contemporary whisky, taking customers beyond the usual conventions.”

The Story of Serve will be available in both English and Spanish and is optimised for web and tablet viewing. The initiative will be promoted via Ballantines.com, Facebook and selected whisky blogs. Users across the world will be able to take part in the puzzle, with customers from a wide range of countries able to participate in the competition. The competition is open now and will run until 1st July 2013.

The Story of Serve follows a range of innovative digital activities from Ballantine’s, including the award-winning* app “Loud Blue” and the Ballantine’s 12 Taste app, which saw the creation of a new typeface inspired by the core flavours of the expression.

To explore Ballantine’s 12 ‘Story of Serve’ visit http://serve.ballantines.com

Notes:

*Ballantine’s Loud Blue won The FWA Mobile Award of the Day in January 2013

Countries featuring “The Story of Serve” include Brazil, Chile, Spain, Mexico, Japan, Venezuela, Argentina, Italy, UK, Bulgaria and Poland.

About Ballantine’s
Ballantine’s is the No 1 Scotch whisky in Europe and the No 2 ultra-premium Scotch whisky in Asia, and the range sells over 70 million bottles a year worldwide. Ballantine’s has won more than 120 trophies and medals at international competitions in the past 10 years for quality, as a result of its unique richness of character and perfect balance. The range, from Ballantine’s Finest to the exclusive 40 Year Old, is the most extensive in the world of Scotch and is maintained by the latest in a tradition of Master Blenders that dates back to 1827.

About Chivas Brothers
Chivas Brothers is the Scotch whisky and premium gin business of Pernod Ricard – the world’s co-leader in wine and spirits. Chivas Brothers is the global leader in luxury Scotch whisky and premium gin. Its portfolio includes Chivas Regal, Ballantine’s, Beefeater Gin, The Glenlivet, Royal Salute, Aberlour, Plymouth gin, Longmorn, Scapa, 100 Pipers, Clan Campbell, Something Special and Passport.

In July 2010 Chivas Brothers launched The Age Matters campaign to help consumers understand the importance of Scotch whisky age statements.

For further information please visit www.chivasbrothers.com

A word from Glen Garioch:

“We’ve launched our new website at GlenGarioch.com. It’s littered with information on our whiskies, stories from the distillery’s history, plus a brand new news section with writing from whisky experts from around the globe. Go check it out if you are adventurous enough to discover it!”

A Whisky Shop world exclusive Kilchoman 2008 is now in stock simply click the image to buy. Only available while stocks last!

We are very proud to announce the arrival of the new Kilchoman 2008 – bottled exclusively for The Whisky Shop. This expression has been bottled from a first fill bourbon cask at a natural cask strength of 61% volume.

One of only 260 bottles every created.

Only £84.99 – simply click here to buy

DRAMBUSTERS – Dates for the Diary 2013 –

Friday 14^th June – Gordon & MacPhail Whisky tasting
Saturday 29^th June – Trip to Arran for their Open Day
Friday 9^th August – Carn Mor tasting
Friday 29^th September – tasting – whiskies to be confirmed
Friday 1^st November – tasting – whiskies to be confirmed
Saturday 30^th November – Drambusters Whisky Festival 2013 Saturday 12^th – Sunday 13^th Saturday 12^th – Sunday 13th October–– trip to Campbeltown to visit Springbank and Glengyle distilleries

GOT YOUR TICKET YET?

WEB/CLUB SPECIAL PRICE £49

APPEARANCE – Rich golden amber with a crimson heart.
NOSE – Wonderful rich aromas of honey drenched raisins and sultanas. Candied ginger and orange peel are spiced with a beautifully delicate back note of warm oak. 
PALATE – A perfectly balanced traditional sherried character. An explosion of chocolate coated raisins and zest of orange, mellowed with sweet warm oak spices, hints of soft toffee and gentle sugared almonds. 
FINISH – A uniquely balanced classic finish