Limited Edition Release.

Chapter 7, Rum Cask. In time for Father’s day
Chapter 7, rum cask, is here again and as it is a personal favourite, we are always very excited about this release. We are releasing 96 bottles of cask strength decanter bottles and 520 bottles of 46%.
Non Chill filtered, Not Coloured.

These are truly unique and rare whiskies.

ORDER NOW TO AVOID DISAPPOINTMENT AS THESE WILL SELL VERY QUICKLY

Chapter 7 – Tasting Notes –

Nose Sweet, soft and slightly spicy. A mixture of vanilla and rum & raisin ice cream, fresh and citrusy with a hint of tropical fruits. Slightly nutty with a hint of marzipan.
Palate Very soft again with citrus notes. Slight peppery spice with a hint of raisins. Malty with a hint of fresh wood. Salty and dry on the finish. Slightly nutty

All sorts of interesting new whiskies and spirits have been arriving through our door over the last few months and now we’ve got our lovely new shelving (thanks Chris the Chippy!) it’s a lot easier to browse through it all.  If you aren’t able to visit us in person then it’s also really easy to browse our new Scotch Whisky arrivals and other New Products online.  If you’re a peat lover then don’t miss out on the two peated releases from AnCnoc – Flaughter and Rutter, we can thoroughly recommend them.  If peat’s not your style then there are plenty of other delights, including the new Arran 17 year old, and if you enjoy making cocktails the Plum Sake we now stock tastes luscious on its own as well as in cocktails (see below for recipe).

With Father’s Day less than 2 weeks away (June 15th) then now’s the time to start thinking about what to buy for your Dad (and we don’t mean a pair of socks…).  We’ve got some suggestions for you in our Father’s Day gift section that cater for all tastes and budgets, and you might also want to have a browse through our Father’s Day Gift Guide.  Just contact us if you need any further advice/inspiration!

One final piece of news, we have now recommenced shipping to the USA and at very competitive rates.  Check out our Delivery page for more information.

Sláinte!
Fran and Ken
Arkwrights Whisky and Wines
www.whiskyandwines.com

NEW PRODUCTS

HAKUSHU DISTILLER’S RESERVE

I was fortunate enough to attend the release tasting for this smoky whisky from Suntory’s Hakushu distillery and it was fascinating to taste through the component whiskies of various ages and from differing cask types that went into creating this expression. Fresh, minty and smoky it’s perfect for summer – I loved it.

Buy Online: £39.99

TOMATIN CU BOCAN 1989

A real cracker of a whisky! Tomatin, but not as you know it. Rich and really smoky. We tried this at around 10am and were savouring the taste for the rest of the morning.

Buy Online: £ 199.99

BUY TICKETS

www.ralfy.com revisits and “auld acquaintance” with Whisky Review 461 – Highland Park 12yo Malt (re-reviewed 2014)

• 1990 Glenfarclas K&L Exclusive Single Malt Whisky 750ml (Pre-Arrival) ($149.99)
  We’ve always loved Glenfarclas. As you may or may not know, this distillery is one of the last independently owned in all of Scotland. It’s owners are the Grant family. It also happens to be on most knowledgeable peoples’ list of top distilleries and has consistently provided us with excellent sherried speyside offerings at incredible prices. We’ve had success finding single casks in their vast warehouse system, but found that current market conditions have made purchasing a single cask from the Grants rather cost prohibitive. Negotiating the price down on those casks is also out of the question as wholesalers worldwide are privy to the price structure and the Grants are very loyal and fair. With that option off the table we decided to get creative. Those single casks have a set price list, but picking multiple casks for one bottling afforded us some flexibility. We knew we were onto the next crazy value, but we never imagined how versatile a multicask bottling could be. So, into the warehouse we went. George bragged about the quality of the 1990 vintage, but we had no idea how special they were until we were standing in front of the barrels. These casks are from a sequential lot of first fill oloroso sherry butts at 24 years old. Without a doubt, ‘Farclas fans will be pleased, but this bottling is approachable enough for even the most novice whisky lover to appreciate. ETA 12/1/14

• Glenfarclas “The Faultline Casks” K&L Exclusive First Fill Oloroso Sherry Casks Single Malt Whisky 750ml (Pre-Arrival) ($99.99)
  When George Grant offered us the opportunity to take multiple casks for a special exclusive bottling, we were over the moon. The creative juices began flowing. We talked about doing an ultra-aged expression, but we didn’t feel we could match the outrageous cask from the 1970 vintage, which we’d acquired a couple of years back. Instead, we decided to focus on a NAS (no age statement) mixture of casks from earlier vintages. The goal was to create a high proof, heavily sherried ‘Farclas that we could sell for around $100. After tasting multiple vintages from 8-15 years of age, we settled on three of our favorite casks in the 9-10 year range. At no other distillery is vintage so important and the importance of their vessel was clear when tasting these younger expressions. We’ve ended up with a mixture of young casks that surpasse even our own high expectations. This is full fledged and powerful, yet tempered by the strong influence of that special wine of Andalucía. If you love Sherry, if you love high proof single malt, if you love powerful flavors and massively textural whisky, than this bottling is for you. Even better, if you love not spending a ton for a bespoke offering from one of the world’s best distilleries, don’t wait to order. We’ll have more than the standard single barrel, but this bottling is still highly limited. Expect this to arrive in time for the Holidays, hopefully by early December.

The second limited edition of Kilchoman Loch Gorm Single Malt Whisky is now available

This is the second edition of Kilchoman Loch Gorm Single Malt. The first, which was released in April last year, was awarded the prestigious 2013 IWSC Gold (2013 edition).  Each release is differentiated by the distillation and bottling dates on the front of the bottle and carton.

Fully matured from filling to bottling at 46% ABV in fresh Oloroso sherry butts, Loch Gorm adds a new dimension to Kilchoman’s portfolio, bringing a depth of character and colour to the Islay Single Malt. The Loch Gorm range is the only all sherry cask-matured expression from Kilchoman.

This range is named after the famously peaty loch in front of the distillery; Kilchoman draws the water for Loch Gorm from the burn that runs into the loch. 

Anthony Wills, Managing Director of Kilchoman, said: “’Our sherry cask matured releases have proved very popular and this is the third and most mature to date so we anticipate this latest offering to be very well received.  Loch Gorm shows wonderful balance between the peat smoke and spicy rich flavours, typical of sherry cask maturation, producing a unique flavour which characterises Kilchoman whiskies.”

Founded in 2005, Kilchoman is one of the smallest distilleries in Scotland and the first distillery to be built on Islay for 125 years. A working farm distillery, it is one of only a handful of distilleries still practising floor malting. Kilchoman also grows a portion of its barley at the distillery, and completes all parts of the production process, from barley to bottling on the island. 

Tasting Notes: Kilchoman Loch Gorm Single Islay Malt Scotch Whisky 

Nose:  mixed preserved fruit, particularly lemon and rich peat smoke

Palate:  dry cereal flavour develops into honey and biscuit with lingering peat

Finish:  rich, sweet and smoky

We have received word from the chaps over at Just Whisky Auction that their best auction yet goes live today and from what we’ve seen it looks to be a corker. With their usual selection of rare old whisky plus brand new bottles from this year’s Feis Ile it looks like they continue to go from strength to strength while they continue to provide top class bottles and service.

There are so many top quality bottles on offer this month it’s hard to single any one out, but we’ll try! It’s been a while since we’ve seen the Macallan Robert Burns Bottling up at auction so it’ll be interesting to see how much it fetches. With much more common bottles from the Macallan soaring in price of late, this ultra-low volume (1 of 250 worldwide) is one to watch.

Next up and from the same neck of the woods is a very seldom seen 1957 Macallan-Glenlivet Gordon MacPhail bottle. This is the desirable version with the flora screen print.

With Feis Ile drawing to a close it was inevitable some of the special releases would find their way to auction and it happens to be Just Whisky Auction who benefits from the first bottles trickling in for lucky customers to place bids on. Highlights include a smattering of Bowmore Feis Ile 2014 bottles, the Bruichladdich Octomore 1695 Discovery, the Lagavulin Feis Ile 2014, Bunnahabhain Drám An Stiúreadair and no doubt plenty more.

In other Islay related news, Ardbeg Day was celebrated on the 31^st May with a football related launch of their less peaty (shock!) whisky – Auriverdes. Following on from last month’s controversy with the sale of a Gold Auriverdes for nearly £2,600! comes the first standard Auriverdes bottles to hit UK auctions.

We’ll let you check out the bottles yourself, and we’re told bidding goes live at 6pm while the auction runs until the 15^th June at 8pm.

The auction can be viewed at http://www.just-whisky.co.uk/

Don’t forget you can also take advantage of Just Whisky’s low 5% sellers fee until further notice. With selections like the bottles this month, a low sellers fee, it makes a great place to sell whisky. Also if you find yourself with a spare 5 minutes, you can check out their new Whisky Blog.

Johnnie Walker Private Collection 2014 limited edition

This 2014 Johnnie Walker Private Collection edition is a tribute to one of Johnnie Walkers signature flavours –– Smoke.

A bold 46.8% ABV blend of incredibly rare, smoky whiskies from 3 regions of Scotland, each possessing their own, unique smoky style: Highland, Island & Islay.

Highland –Subtle sophisticated smoke, contains extra layers of complexity through sweet and vibrant notes.

Island – Maritime character, fresh, oily, sea-salt, smoke.

Islay – Bold smoke – dry, medicinal and phenolic.

These blends are married with a worthy body carrier: the fruits of the J.W. & Sons innovative ‘Calculus’ experiment, an in-house spin on the finishing process started in the 1980’s. Only 8,888 numbered bottles available worldwide

Simply click here to reserve one of these rare expressions – £500

Cadenhead’s Small Batch Collection
Caol Ila 22 Year Old 52.2%
One Week Special on a Federal wine Exclusive

The William Cadenhead Company has claim to being Scotland’s oldest independent bottler, making fine handcrafted spirits since 1842. They have been owned for the last forty years by the family that owns the famous Springbank Distillery. Cadenhead made a brief appearance in the American market in the ‘90s but we haven’t been able find it since.

Caol Ila is the largest of all the Islay distilleries. Malt lovers prize Caol Ilas because because they have a softer, subtler smoke than many others on the island.

Aged for 22 years, this cask strength bottling is one of the oldest Caol Ilas we have been offered in quite some time. It’s is a wonderful peaty whisky for the warmer months (or the colder ones!) as it shows very little oak but has very nice depth. Like other Cadenheads it is all natural, not chill-filtered and with no caramel coloring.

We took all we could. There is no more at Cadenhead. We have only 18 bottles of this rare old malt. Our sale will go for only a week or until they are sold, whichever comes first. 

Cadenhead Caol Ila  22 Y.O. 52.2%

Nose: Fruity and malty, dark fruits, black currants followed by rhubarb and custard.
Palette: Toffee, hints of peat /smoke, peanut butter, oily, mellow and soft smoke.
Finish: Dry Finish

Regularly 199.99 — On Sale 169.99  –  one week only

Joe Howell

Federal Wine & Spirits

Phone: 617-367-8605

Web: http://www.federalwine.com

This week Joe Ellis breaks his own rule and posts a video on a day other than Wednesday! Today he has reviewed the brand new Ardbeg Auriverdes. 

http://youtu.be/teSuVoSMrM4 

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