This week Joe Ellis reviews the Chivalry 18 Year Old Special Reserve Scotch Whisky

https://youtu.be/byoyi5oDI70

http://Twitter.com/whiskytube

https://www.facebook.com/whiskytube

A new look for Glengoyne range

Glengoyne Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky has introduced a new look for two of the most popular expressions in its core range.

Glengoyne’s 10 Year Old and 12 Year Old tubes have been redesigned to give the products great shelf stand out in an increasingly competitive single malt market.

The 10 Year Old has changed from silver-white to a beautiful rich copper-orange foil wrap which really exudes the warming flavour of Glengoyne Highland Single Malt. The 12 Year Old is now a stunning gunmetal grey and silver foil wrap showcasing the quality of the whisky.

Iain Weir, Marketing Director for Ian Macleod Distillers, who own Glengoyne said: “At Glengoyne we are passionate about offering consumers a high-quality premium product and our packaging changes reflect our strong vision.

“It’s clear that strong, eye-catching packaging makes a difference when consumers choose their whisky and we’re delighted with the changes we’ve made to two of the most popular members of our core range.

“With this year being Scotland’s Year of Innovation, Architecture and Design there couldn’t be a better time to launch our new tubes and we’re delighted with the bold changes to our 10 Year Old and 12 Year Old expressions.”

www.glengoyne.com

www.drinkaware.co.ukwww.scotch-whisky.org.uk 

Notes

Glengoyne Distillery is owned by one of Scotland’s leading independent, family-owned distillers, Ian Macleod Distillers. It is highly regarded as Scotland’s most beautiful distillery.

Glengoyne, uncompromising in its pursuit of excellence, runs its stills slower than any other distillery in order to create the rich, bold flavours for which the brand is known. The Glengoyne Highland Single Malt range is matured in the finest sherry casks from within its warehouses.

Glengoyne scoops two Gold’s at The Asian Spirits Masters 2016

Glengoyne Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky is celebrating after bringing home two Gold medals from this year’s Asian Spirits Masters for both their 21 Year Old and 25 Year Old expressions.

Held in April and organised by drinks trade publication, The Spirits Business, the competition honours the rapidly growing Asian market.  Chaired by Kristiane Sherry, Editor of The Spirits Magazine, the panel of well respected and knowledgeable judges blind tasted and judged each entry on their own merit.

The bold, complex flavours of the two expressions, which form part of the Glengoyne core collection, fought off stiff competition from a variety of leading global brands including The Balvenie, The Glenlivet and Glenfiddich in the Single Malt category- one of the most popular categories in the competition.

Iain Weir, Marketing Director for Ian Macleod Distillers owners of Glengoyne said: “The Asian market is one of the most important spirits markets in the world so for two of our expressions to win Gold is something we are incredibly proud of.

 “The Asian market knows good Scotch whisky and we are thrilled the premium quality of our Single Malt has been recognised.”

The Asian Spirits Masters is now in its fourth year and is an extension of the existing Masters competitions held by The Spirits Business. This year’s competition took place in Chinatown’s Opium Cocktail and Dim Sum Parlour located in central London.

www.glengoyne.com 

Notes

Glengoyne Distillery is owned by one of Scotland’s leading independent, family-owned distillers, Ian Macleod Distillers. It is highly regarded as Scotland’s most beautiful distillery.

Glengoyne, uncompromising in its pursuit of excellence, runs its stills slower than any other distillery in order to create the rich, bold flavours for which the brand is known. Glengoyne Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky is matured in the finest sherry casks from within its traditional dunnage warehouses.

Glengoyne 21 Year Old Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky

Nose: Red apples, spicy strudel, toffee, sherry and dried fruits. Christmas cake in a glass.

Palate: Lots of Sherry, honey, oak with a developing aromatic sensation. Ends with a heavenly cinnamon nip.

Finish: Long, sherry, spicy, warm and dry.

Glengoyne 25 Year Old Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky

Nose: Red fruits, old leather, brown sugar and raisins.

Palate: Soft oak, cinnamon, stewed fruits and a Seville marmalade tang.

Finish: Very long with spicy liquorice, slowly drying.

Hello SWA friends,

We will be on Islay during the Feis Ile this year, and due to popular demand we will be returing to the legendary Ballygrant Inn to host not one, but two tastings! We have teamed up with David to provide 6 of the finest quality drams with a fantastic 3 course meal. All this for a mere £40 a ticket!

The tastings will be on Tuesday 24th and Thursday 26th May evening, starting at 7:30pm. We’re limited in the number of spaces available for each tasting so make sure register your interest early by either replying HERE or contacting us at the office. We know that these tickets will sell out quickly so don’t miss out!

Tam and the team will be on Islay all week, look out for the famous SWA van and folks in SWA polo shirts if you have any questions.

Best wishes,

The SWA Team

Whisky Ramblings Via Video #129

Mark Dermul, Belgian Whisky blogger, tries an independent bottling of Springbank. It is not often that one comes across a single sherry cask matured Springbank. The Lads of Lobland series already consist of a great Clynelish, but now this Belgian club bottled a wonderfully dark Springbank, at cask strength. It turned out to be a Campbeltown sherry monster, where quite a bit of the distillery character is dominated by the cask, but what a dram! 

https://youtu.be/XEanEwDD9Cw

Green Spot “Château Léoville Barton” Finished Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey (750ml)

( $89.99)

Whisky Advocate: “Mitchell & Son’s classic whiskey finished for 1 to 2 years in wine casks formerly used by the Barton family in the St-Julien appellation. Spiced apple, redcurrant, blushing pink young raspberries, with a deeper earthiness, like a hedgerow run wild. An autumnal character: apple, rhubarb, ginger, piquant fruits, more vanilla, then a finish of sweetened apple and peppercorns. A definite imprint from the higher-strength pot still. It feels like the wine has shaped, sculpted, and finessed the whisky beautifully. À votre santé!” (12/2015)

K&L Wine Merchants
http://www.klwines.com
Phone: 877-KLWines (toll free 877-559-4637)
Email: wine@klwines.com
San Francisco, Redwood City, Hollywood CA

WhistlePig Unveils 15 Year Whiskey Finished in Tight-Ringed, Home-Grown Vermont White Oak

New Custom-Charred Barrels Crafted From Trees Sustainably Logged On the WhistlePig Farm

SHOREHAM, VT – (May 3, 2016) – WhistlePig announced today the launch of its 15 Year rye whiskey, marking the next step in the company’s vision of becoming entirely farm- to-bottle. Aged for 15 years and finished in Vermont White Oak from the WhistlePig Farm and surrounding area, this whiskey combines rye spice with wood sugar, earth, and allspice, delivering a flavor and texture only accessible after long, long years in a barrel.

Kentucky oak trees are fat, Vermont ones are tight. Tight wood rings deliver more flavor and depth into whiskey. To fully accentuate the unique flavor profile of the oak, WhistlePig developed a Custom-Charring Initiative for the 15 Year. The barrels receive a long toast and heavy char designed to draw out a rich sweetness that complements the natural spice of aged rye, and ultimately provides a most exquisite mouthfeel.

“Since day one, our vision was to create a fully farm-to-bottle operation, and with the release of the 15 Year, the public can now enjoy a top-notch whiskey aged in barrels made from wood right here on our farm,” said Raj Peter Bhakta, Founder and CEO of WhistlePig. “Tight is better than fat, and old is better than young. In whiskey at least.”

With the opening of its distillery on the WhistlePig Farm in Shoreham, Vermont in the fall of 2015, WhistlePig became one of the few whiskey companies to house every aspect of the whiskey production process in one place, from harvesting the rye fields to distillation, barreling, aging, and bottling the liquid. The 15 Year is the first WhistlePig release aged in barrels constructed from oak grown on the farm, and rounds out WhistlePig’s portfolio as the most premium offering, accompanied by the 10 Year and 12 Year Old World Series. WhistlePig also plans to release additional innovative products matured in Vermont White Oak moving forward.

The 15 Year comes from a mash of 100% rye and is hand bottled at 92 proof. The whiskey is aged in three separate whiskey barrels: #3 Charred New American Oak, used bourbon barrels, and finished for six months in custom #4 charred Vermont White Oak.

The 15 Year is a highly limited release and is available in select markets.

Flavor Profile of the 15 Year

Nose: Deep and rich, dominated by caramel, vanilla, and oak with hints of allspice and burnt orange.

Taste: Warm, rich, and slightly creamy; loads of butterscotch and baking spice with leather and a hint of tobacco

Finish: Ultra-long and rich, warm, and inviting

About WhistlePig

WhistlePig is the premier aged rye whiskey, featuring the bold and often untapped flavor of rye. Founded by Raj Peter Bhakta with the help of legendary master distiller Dave Pickerell, WhistlePig is leading a surge of innovation in the emerging field of North American whiskey. As the most decorated rye whiskey – having received a record 96 points from Wine Enthusiast – WhistlePig is widely viewed as the world’s finest rye. With the opening of its distillery on its 1,300-acre Vermont farm in the fall of 2015, WhistlePig has become one of the leading farm-to-bottle rye whiskeys in the world.

GLENFARCLAS NAMED “BEST DISTILLERS’ SINGLE MALT” AT SAN FRANCISCO WORLD SPIRITS COMPETITION

Glenfarclas whiskies win six top medals, including two Double Gold

Glenfarclas 105 Cask Strength Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky was distinguished as “Best Distillers’ Single Malt Scotch – No Age Statement” at the 16th annual San Francisco World Spirits Competition where a record-breaking 1,899 entries were submitted for a blind tasting.

Thirty-nine of the industry’s finest spirits experts reviewed each entry before ultimately awarding Glenfarclas whiskies a total of six top medals, including two Double Gold Medals and the designation of “Best Distillers’ Single Malt Scotch Whisky.”

Medal winners:

Double Gold

• Glenfarclas 105 Cask Strength Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
• Glenfarclas Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky Aged 21 Years

Gold

• Glenfarclas Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky Aged 12 Years
• Glenfarclas Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky Aged 17 Years

Silver

• Glenfarclas Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky Aged 10 Years
• Glenfarclas Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky Aged 25 Years

Director of Sales, George Grant said ““It is a great honor to be recognized among the best of this competition and we feel very proud and could not be any more pleased with these results.”

Aberlour 16 Year Old First-Fill Sherry Cask #4738 – TWE Exclusive

Last week saw the end of the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival – five days of events across Scotland’s most densely packed whisky-producing region. We watched enviously as tweets, Facebook posts and the occasional bragging text message told tales of great whisky, music, food and general shenanigans. So as not to feel left out, we’ve been having our own minimalistic Speyside whisky festival at TWE HQ, with one very special new bottling.

Announcing our latest exclusive: Aberlour 16 years old, single first-fill sherry cask #4738.

It’s a hard life as a whisky tester for Aberlour…

Sat at the southern end of the town of Charlestown of Aberlour in the heart of Speyside, Aberlour has been producing whisky since 1879. A classic Speysider, it’s best known these days for sherry-matured drams – including the category-defining small-batch cask-strength sherry monster A’Bunadh – and when the distillery offered us the chance to select an exclusive single cask, the choice was clear: first-fill sherry.

While we love bourbon-cask-matured whisky – and our last exclusive was a first-fill-bourbon-matured 16-year-old Highland Park 1999 – the opportunity to grab a whole sherry cask for ourselves was too good to miss. It’s not chill-filtered and the colour is all natural – it looks amazing and the taste doesn’t disappoint:

ABERLOUR 16 YO. SINGLE FIRST-FILL SHERRY CASK #4738. TWE EXCLUSIVE. 53.5% ABV

Nose: Rich and sticky, with cinder toffee, caramel sauce and vanilla-rich milk chocolate to start. Weighty and fruity notes of spiced raisins, warm leather, molasses, stewed plums, dates and flamed orange zest develop, with spicy cloves and hints of autumn forest.

Palate: Initially softer than the nose suggests, but after a burst of sweet berry fruit, prickly intensity rolls in. Spice – nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon, anise and liquorice root – is joined by stewed fruit and rich Christmas-pudding sweetness. Savoury notes develop: charcoal, dark leather, tobacco and damp oak, but behind everything is a butter-and-brown-sugar sweetness, with flashes of marzipan-iced fruit cake.

Water: It can take water well, evening out both the sweet and savoury notes, leaving liquorice, blackcurrant jam and fruit cake.

Finish: Long and rich, with sweet stewed fruit and black liquorice slowly becoming savoury and revealing earthy dunnage warehouse notes and ashy barrel char.

Comment: An intense but well-balanced sherry-matured dram, marrying Aberlour’s weighty spirit with a punchy cask. It’s a bit of a beast, but the years of maturation have helped it mellow, dropping the strength to an eminently manageable 53.5% ABV and rounding off the rougher edges sometimes found in A’Bunadh to reveal the distillery’s fruity character.

This one’s a must for sherry heads and is available now from our website and London shop.

Ohishi Single Sherry Cask Whisky – A K&L Direct Import Feature

While the quality of Japanese whisky has never been a secret amongst our colleagues and customers, the popularity of the genre has skyrocketed over the past few years thanks to some major awards and accolades from some of the industry’s biggest publications. What was once a niche market has become the obsession of the entire world, which has been great for Japan’s whisky industry, but not so great for fans of the spirit. Not only are the shelves rather bare here at K&L, we’ve heard reports that even Tokyo is sold out of major labels like Yamazaki, Hibiki, and Nikka, leaving even the most dedicated whisky tourists in the lurch. But we know that our customer depend on us to find the latest, greatest, newest, and most exciting spirits in the world, which is why we recently set our sights on finding more Japanese whisky and-the good news is-we think we’ve found the next big thing. We tried an experiment a few months ago, buying a single cask of pot-distilled rice whisky from a distillery named Fukano. It was so soft and mellow, very much like classic, delicately-flavored Japanese whisky and we snagged all that we could immediately. While we thought the whisky was fabulous, we weren’t sure how the market would react to rice whisky, so we sent out a small promotional email to some of our most-rabid whisky customers to test the waters. Many people were skeptical when they first noticed that we were selling malted rice whisky. Some assumed it was nothing more than glorified Shochu. It is indeed made in a very similar process, but the product qualifies as neither Shochu nor whisky in Japan, but it does fit the definition of whisky in the United States, which is why it can only be sold here. The results of that offer were off the charts. Not only did we sell through every single bottle that day, our customers sent us endless emails requesting MORE, MORE, MORE! So we went back to our source to find more and the second time around we found an even more impressive rice whisky specimen from a distillery called Ohishi, located in the foothill Mountains of Kumamoto near the small village of Mizukami-the source of the Kuma River, one of Japan’s fastest flowing. Tragically the island of Kyushu, where both Fukano and Ohishi are positioned, was recently hit by a massive earthquake and the region’s infrastructure was devastated. While thank goodness no one at either distillery was harmed, It will take quite a while for the roadways to be completely repaired, so we’re not sure if and when we’ll ever get another cask like this. It may be that our next great discovery is a one-time affair and that would be unfortunate, but it’s a reminder to enjoy life’s great pleasures while they’re available. We think this latest cask of Ohishi sherry-aged rice whisky definitely qualifies. -David Driscoll & David Othenin-Girard, K&L Spirits Buyers

Ohishi K&L Exclusive Single Sherry Cask #653 Japanese Whisky (750ml) ($74.99)

The special Ohishi distillery is located on the banks of the Kuma River one Japan’s fastest flowing rivers. The distillery was founded in 1872 and produces some of the most exciting whisky coming out of Japan. Ohishi grows at least 30% of the rice that they distill and thanks to the fertile soils and exceptional growing climate make for some of the finest base ingredients available. The strain of rice is call “gohyakumanishi” (meaning 5 million stones) and utilizes an organic method of cultivation which requires the use of koi carp for weed control. The rest of the grain is procured from local farms in Kumamoto prefecture and is of the short grained Mochi varietal. The grains are partially malted and then distilled on the traditional Japanese stills before being filled into ex-sherry and brandy casks and aged for long periods of time in the high altitude warehouses. This cask brings in a great balanced sherry influence and definitely feels more like Scotch than our single cask from the Fukano Distillery. This cask will likely be the only one we get for a while considering the recent events in Kumamoto prefecture. Our cask of Fukano sold out in a flash, so we can expect this special cask to go very quickly as well.

David Driscoll | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: May 07, 2016

Wowee wow. A slam dunk sherry-aged whisky for those who like that pure sherry flavor. Because the Ohishi is distilled from rice you obviously lose the inherent maltiness normally present from a barley-distilled single malt whisky, but what you get instead is a cleaner canvas onto which the sherry itself can paint its masterpiece. This is soft, supple, and rich on the palate with loads of that caramel, fudge, chocolate, and rancio character I associate with whiskies like Glendronach or Glenfarclas, but with more of that Glenmorangie or Macallan finesse. If you like sherry-aged whisky, this is a must buy. If you like Japanese whisky, buy six of these. You’ll be sorry when it’s gone, and seeing as this is a single cask, it will likely be gone very fast.

Andrew Stevens | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: May 09, 2016

For the many who missed out on our last round of K&L exclusive Japanese whiskey, and those who snagged a bottle and already regret not buying another, here is a new one for you. Richer and more full bodied than the Fukano due to the sherry casks, this whiskey delivers like a beautiful marriage between amazing Highland distilleries. Toasted vanilla and caramel play on the rich toffee notes that are present. Despite the richness, because this is distilled from rice it gives it a more elegant and lighter body. Smooth butterscotch and vanilla notes end it. Super small production so get it while we have it.

Ryan Woodhouse | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: May 09, 2016

I had no idea what to expect from this…Rice-based whisky? Will it taste like Sake…nope…Scotch…kind of…top-quality, rich, soft, sherry cask…YEP. This is just one of the most exotic, supple easy-drinking whiskies I’ve come across. Decadent sherry flavors, silky texture, rancio tones that go on forever. Bravo to our Spirits department for tracking something unique like this down…a really intriguing bottle that definitely delivers on the palate.

Jeffrey Jones | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: May 06, 2016

This rice whiskey is soft and creamy and very easy to drink. The sherry cask aging added richness and some subtle dried fruit notes. It is very supple and should please any fan of the Nikka Coffey Grain Whiskey.

Daniel Maas | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: May 07, 2016

“Now Sherry my love for you is real.” Yeah – that’s a lyric from the IMMORTAL BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN’S hit, “Sherry Darling,” but aside from being profound truth, it also sums up exactly how I feel about this exclusive bottling of EXCELLENT Japanese Whiskey. That I loved this was pleasant surprise (as a lover of the PEATY malts of ISLAY), as I found the sherry influence here to be immensely balanced. This is the absolute perfect entry point for a scotch lover into the exciting world of Japanese whiskey!

K&L Wine Merchants http://www.klwines.com/

Phone: 877-KLWines (toll free 877-559-4637)

Email: wine@klwines.com

San Francisco, Redwood City, Hollywood CA