Father’s Day Offers

Why not make Father’s Day an experience he will love this year and treat him to one of our special offers? From a personalised bottle to a day at our Whisky School we have something for everyone. To find out more about these fantastic offers have a look here

Whisky of the Month

The Glenturret Single Cask 328 Brock Malloy Edition 70cl Cask Strength is our Whisky of the Month. This truly rare and exclusive bottle is available online here

Hibiki 21 year old

Hibiki means resonance in Japanese. The legendary Hibiki represents true harmony, the ideal of perfection, the paragon of ‘The Art of Japanese Whisky’ and its artisans. In Hibiki 21 year old, numerous pure single malt whiskies aged in a variety of cask types, including Mizunara, a very rare Japanese oak, all combine to create a full orchestra of flavours and aromas and tenderly unfold a calm essence.

£190 Buy Now

This Bank Holiday Monday (this arrive much too late for us to publish any sooner however the sale is on until Sunday May 31st – One Week Monday to Sunday – Whisky Intelligence) for one week only Single Malts Direct are offering FREE UK delivery on all orders. We have the best range of Duncan Taylor products anywhere on the internet and some great collector edition bottles.

For any further information contact the team on info@singlemaltsdirect.com

Thanks for doing business with us. Sincerely, The Single Malts Direct Team www.singlemaltsdirect.com

Single Malts Direct, 36 Gordon Street, Huntly, Aberdeenshire, AB54 8EQ, Scotland UK

+44 (0) 845 606 6145

+44 (0)1466 792106

info@singlemaltsdirect.com

www.ralfy.com discusses how to minimise purchasing disappointment with Whisky Review 537– buying scotch whisky in 2015

Gemini Brands Win Top Awards in Two Tasting Competitions

Spirits Bring Home Chairman’s Trophies and Double Gold Medals 

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS (May 20, 2015) – Several Gemini Spirits brands received top marks in two recent tasting competitions, including  two Chairman’s Trophies at the Ultimate Spirits Challenge and four Double Gold medals in the San Francisco World Spirits Competition.

“We are honored by these exciting results,” Gemini Spirits & Wine General Manager Ken Kwarta said. “We have a strong portfolio and these awards are another testament to that.”

2015 Ultimate Spirits Challenge

Judges awarded Penderyn Single Malt Welsh Whisky each the highest honor of “Chairman’s Trophy” at the 2015 Ultimate Spirits Challenge. Selected as Chairman’s Trophy finalists in their respective categories were Glenfarclas 105 Cask Strength Single Malt, Glenfarclas 25 Year Old Single Malt,”

Those awarded as “Extraordinary, Ultimate Recommendation” include:

• Penderyn Single Malt Welsh Whisky
• Glenfarclas 105 Cask Strength Single Malt Scotch Whisky
•  Glenfarclas 25 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky
• Glenfarclas 17 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky

Those awarded the distinction of “Excellent, Highly Recommended” were:

• Glenfarclas 21 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky

• Glenfarclas 10 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky

• Glenfarclas 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky

 This competition, in its sixth year, is judged by a panel of the spirit industry’s most renowned judges including award-winning authors, buyers, journalists, educators and bar owners, who rate each spirit on a 100-point scale.

Complete results for the 2015 Ultimate Spirits Challenge can be found at www.ultimate-beverage.com/usc2015results.

San Francisco World Spirits Competition

More than 1,580 entries were submitted for a blind tasting at the 15^th annual San Francisco World Spirits Competition, where 41 of the industry’s finest spirits experts reviewed each entry, ultimately awarding four Double Gold medals and one Gold medal to Gemini brands.

Double Gold

• Glenfarclas 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky
• Glenfarclas 21 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky
• Glenfarclas 105 Cask Strength Single Malt Scotch Whisky

Gold

• Glenfarclas 17 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky

Complete results for the 2015 San Francisco World Spirits Competition can be found at http://sfspiritscomp.com/results/browse.

About Gemini Spirits & Wine

Gemini Spirits & Wine is the fastest growing spirits and specialty brand development company in the United States. Gemini is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Sazerac Company and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Gemini operates as an autonomous company, and is focused on building its portfolio of spirits and specialty brands concentrated in targeted categories. For more information, visit http://www.geminispiritswine.com/.

Tamdhu Batch Strength limited release is here!

A Tamdhu for the devoted malt fan, this magnificent edition is bottled un-chill-filtered at natural color and high strength. Each batch is unique and varies slightly in style and intensity. As with every bottle of Tamdhu, once distilled it is matured exclusively in hand-selected sherry oak casks. Our oak is amongst the finest in the industry, with a high proportion being first-fill and teeming with flavor. Finally, patience is required to allow these fine casks to do their work, giving Tamdhu its deep color and exquisite quality. Tamdhu Batch Strength arrives with a great award on its shoulders: San Francisco’s Worlds Spirits Competition crowned it with the Golden Medal in its most recent edition.

The Macallan 18 year old 1997 Sherry Oak

Often referred to as the Rolls Royce of whiskies the Macallan boasts a fantastic range of whiskies prized by connoisseurs around the world. The Macallan 18 year old 1997 expression is incredibly smooth – the whisky combines notes of rich dried fruits and sherry with some gentle wood smoke and spicy flavours.

£160 Buy Now

The Macallan 30 year old  Fine Oak 

As with all the Fine Oak series, this 30 year old Macallan is matured in a combination of both ex-sherry and ex-bourbon casks and showcases a lighter style of Macallan than the Sherry Oak series, with more of the distillery character coming through. The 30 year old expression is bottled at 43% abv, and is described as heady and aromatic with a silky, elegant finish.

£1400 Buy Now

The Macallan 25 year old Sherry Oak 

The sumptuous Macallan 25 year old Sherry Oak is becoming harder to find and delivers everything you would expect from an older, sherry-matured expression from this highly-revered distillery. This is a full and rich whisky, with lots of dried fruit and cinnamon flavours and hint of woodsmoke and spice. Bottled at 43% abv.

£750 Buy Now

The Macallan Lalique No. 6

The Macallan No. 6 brings togther the art and knowledge of the Macallan Whisky Maker and the craftmanship of Lalique to create a stunning whisky encased in a beautfiul crystal decanter. A rich, complex single malt that has been exclusively matured in first-fill Spanish sherry casks, this is a perfect example of the exquisite quality and character expected of The Macallan distillery.

£2800 Buy Now

UPCOMING TASTINGS & EVENTS

The Vaults – Tue 26 May

Feis Ile is underway, celebrate in our spiritual home with 5 BIG peaty drams & supper More >

New Members’ Tasting

19 Greville Street – Wed 27 May

Designed to welcome new members and share our passion for single cask whisky More >

UK-wide Preview Tastings

Fri 29 May

Enjoy our preview selection of drams from June’s Outturn along with supper

More NEWCASTLE >

More WOKINGHAM >

More DUNFERMLINE >

More GLASGOW >

June Outturn Preview Members Tasting

The Vaults – Thu 4 June

Sample 5 drams with supper and get your bottles before they run out More >

New Outturn Open Tasting

19 Greville Street – Sat 6 June

Try out five single cask whiskies from this month’s new list with cheese from Ian Mellis. More >

Steak and Chips Sampling Session – ‘New Style’

28 Queen Street – Tue 9 June

NEW – Explore a wide range of flavours with an unprecedented SEVEN smaller samples More >

Browse All Tastings >

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 here for membership information

This is your chance to join and to take advantage of their great offers!

Spot the SMWS bottles in this amusing You Tube video

NEXT AUCTION GOES LIVE ON TODAY!

Our next auction will go live on Monday 25 May and ending on Tuesday 2 June. We have an exciting line-up of bottles, with plenty of single malts, old blends, everyday drinking whiskies and a good selection of miniatures. Our Japanese whisky selection is strong, with bottles from Karuizawa and Hanyu, and some bottles that were only released in Japan. Look out for the following bottles, and good luck with your bids!

• Hanyu Joker Monochrome – from the oldest vintage and the last release to complete the Hanyu Card Series
• Johnnie Walker 1805 The Celebration Blend – just 200 bottles were made to celebrate the 200th anniversary of John Walker’s birth, and were only given to dignitaries and VIPs
• The Macallan in Linley Miniatures Trinket Box – a set of six miniatures of Fine & Rare Macallans from 1947 to 1989
• Highland Park 40 Years Old – one of the oldest Highland Parks ever released
• Karuizawa 1984 Sherry cask #3662 – a joint bottling from Shinanoya and The Whisky Exchange

To find out more, please email info@whisky.auction,

call Enrico Gaddoni on +44 (0)20 8838 9381

or visit the website https://whisky.auction.

A Day at The Distillery

Visiting The Glenlivet distillery during Speyside whisky festival is quite an experience. Tasting the spirit and seeing photographs of the landscape beforehand, you build up your own picture: remote warehouses nestling into the surrounding hillside, the unmistakable smell of malt, the hum of the mash tun. All of which is true, but in reality there’s so much more – the welcoming hospitality, the sense of history, slick modern industry.

The Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival has been drawing whisky fans from around the world to the distilleries of the Scottish highlands since 1999. Over six days, whisky-themed events take place across the region encouraging visitors to celebrate Scotland’s national drink in a variety of fun and informative ways.

The Glenlivet has been involved with the Spirit of Speyside Festival since its inception, and the sense of celebration at the distillery is palpable. The place is buzzing as visitors enjoy live music, whisky tastings, demonstrations and tours laid on specially. Key members of the distillery team mingle with visitors, happily sharing stories and whisky wisdom. The festival is a wonderful opportunity to get to the heart of the single malt that started it all.

Discover how Spirit of Speyside Festival is celebrated at The Glenlivet