“Whisky from Around the World.” 

Sunday January 8th, 2017

Featuring whisky from India, Japan, and the Americas. 

$50 admission, includes sampling of 10 different varieties.

Light appetizers included. 

Dundee Dell

5007 Underwood Avenue

Omaha, Nebraska 68132

U.S.A. 

www.dundeedell.com

Day 23 of the Scotch Whisky Advent Calendar 

Scotch Whisky Advent Calendar 3rd Edition Day 23 Blog #158 – Samaroli Peaty 20 Year Old

Welcome to the night before Christmas Eve. Something warming this evening to help with the persistent chill that has settled over Alberta for the entire month of December. Coldest that I can remember for a while for this long without one of those lovely Chinook winds that keep us sane.

Today’s lovely blended malt from Samaroli consists of 17% 1995 Laphroaig, 28% 1995 Highland Park and 63% undisclosed Speyside Single Malt. We should be in for a treat here if past Samaroli blends are anything to go by.

Highland Park is a distillery that has some mystery surrounding it’s founding. As the gate says though they have hung their hat on 1798. Highland Park does it’s own malting and mixed heather into the peat before malting begins. They use 20 parts per million phenol which is a fairly heavy peat infusion. The distillery is on the island of Orkney and is at the moment the most Northern Whisky Distillery in operation (this will all change once Stuart Nickerson gets the Shetland Whisky still up and running). Owned by the Edrington Group Highland Park is seldom seen as an independent bottled whisky. No doubt this is one of the reasons why Samaroli are using this rare resource to add some interesting Island complexity to their Peaty expression.

Samaroli Peaty Blended Malt aged together in a refill Sherry Butt # 54 for 20 Years. Islay (Laphroaig), Island (Highland Park) and Speyside (undisclosed). Bottled with no caramel or chill filtration at the Samaroli strength of 45%.

Color: Even being a refill Butt there is a nice antiqued golden age to this after 20 years.

Nose:   Sweet and savory BBQ sauce on a side of Ribs. The fabulous part of this nose is that there is instant peat recognition but no smoky overtone. Heavily char grilled Cinnamon crusted Pineapple slabs. Earthy sweetness here reminding me of Manuka Honey.

Palate: The earthy peaty notes carry the weight of this whisky that now throws in bitter citrus and roasted turnip. The sweetness was certainly more about the nose as there is oily coating brined beef jerky making a play and the sweetness is all but gone.

Finish: The bitter citrus lingers, floating on a layer of slowly dwindling meaty flavor. Really full and palate filling for 45%. Even a touch of spark that numbs the sides of the mouth would make me think that this is more like cask strength.

This is a delicate slowly warming dram that gets larger as you get more into it. I would like to spend more time with a full bottle of this just to get to know it a lot better. I’m still tasting more on the finish…

The good news for the whisky hunters among us is that this will be available in very limited quantity and you can find out where from jonathan@secretspirits.com.

Lets see how Whiskylassie unraveled this Samaroli puzzle.

In the 2nd edition on this day we had the A.D. Rattray Bunnahabhain 27 Year Old.

Tomorrow we have the second installment in the 3rd edition from those awesome boys at Single Cask Nation. Make sure you get your Christmas Eve spirit going as we enjoy the excitement and family time and also say Happy Hannukah to Joshua and Jason at the Jewish Whisky Company.

Really looking forward to joining you tomorrow night

Cheers

Jonathan – taster of secrets

http://www.singlemalting.com/category/whisky-advent-calendar-2016/

Wolfburn Distillery Achieves Record Annual Production

Wolfburn Distillery is today delighted to announce that it has reached its annual production target – and in doing so has laid down more whisky than ever before.

“It has been an incredible year,” commented Shane Fraser, distillery manager. “We increased our workforce by taking on two apprentices, and we commissioned a fourth fermentation vessel. Combined, this means we have been able to increase our rate of production whilst maintaining excellent quality control.”

The team set itself a production target of 130,000 litres of alcohol – roughly the equivalent of 400,000 bottles of whisky. They reached the target during the first week of December, leaving valuable time for equipment maintenance before the Christmas shut-down.

“We filled a record 1,162 casks during 2016,” says Shane, “The volume is great of course, but equally important is that we have consistently managed to acquire really top-notch casks. Maintaining quality is the key to producing first-class whisky, and we have managed to do this very well throughout the whole year.”

2016 is Wolfburn’s first year of sales and the demand for its single malt scotch whisky has been much higher than expected. “We’re going to need these increased production levels to keep up with demand,” adds Shane. “Producing this volume now ensures we will have great quality single malt scotch to sell in years to come.”

Photographs:

1. Shane Fraser and Iain Kerr filling casks at Wolfburn Distillery
2. Wolfburn cartons and bottles studio image

ABOUT WOLFURN:

The original Wolfburn Distillery was founded just to the west of Thurso by William Smith in 1821. In its day it was one of the largest distilleries in Scotland, producing, according to HMRC records, 28,056 “gallons of proof spirit” in a single year. Taking its name from the stream that provided the water – the Wolf Burn – the distillery operated until the 1860s. The reasons for its closure are lost in time, but by the 1870s the newly produced Ordnance Survey maps showed it being in ruins.

In 2011 plans were laid to resurrect the old distillery. Construction began in mid-2012 and in January 2013 the new Wolfburn Distillery commenced production, thereby becoming the most northerly distillery on the Scottish mainland. Situated 300m from the site of the original distillery, the new Wolfburn operates in much the same way as the old: craftsmen use traditional methods to produce fine spirit, which is laid down in best quality oak casks to await the day when it is bottled as single malt scotch whisky. Wolfburn’s first expressions were launched globally in 2016.

Wolfburn Distillery, Henderson Park, Thurso, Caithness KW14 7XW

www.wolfburn.com

www.facebook.com/wolfburn

As the weather turns colder, we find ourselves drawn to warm and inviting spaces – such as peacefully overlooking the bay from our Island lodge nestled in the grounds of our distillery, or tucked away in our one and only hotel bar raising a glass with fellow islanders.

That’s what the festive season is all about to us Diurachs. Enjoying a special dram in a unique setting.

To ensure that seasonal drop is all the more special wherever you choose to escape, your favourite Jura expression is once again available to give – or receive – in our crowd-pleasing and collectable festive gift tins.

Carefully sourced ingredients and our hand-crafted approach to whisky making means that every bottle of Jura is exceptional, and with a variety of delicious flavours in each expression, there’s something for everyone to enjoy.

Westland “Peat Week” Limited Edition Single Malt Whisky (750ml) SKU #1285213 $99.99

Westland’s 2016 edition of “Peat Week”–a limited-edition malt made in celebration of an annual week-long event dedicated to the joys of peated whisky–was a originally a prize for whisky pilgrims who made the voyage to the Seattle distillery this past fall. Luckily for us, we have friends in high places at the distillery. We managed to get our hands on an exclusive allocation of the 100-proof, smoky, single-malt delight, and we think fans of Westland and Islay both are going to be pleased. The 2016 Peat Week commemorative bottling drinks like a smokier version of Talisker in that it’s equally as fruity as it is peaty. There are gobs of creamy banana on the palate that blossom into peaty and smokier notes of campfire, all framed in sweet barley and vanilla. Think of Caol Ila with less intensity or Kilchoman with more finesse. Or maybe put the Peat Week into its own category as a whole. We’ve certainly never tasted a peated American single malt this delicious. The finish is a flurry of cinnamon, cloves and oak spices that come into focus as the peat begins to fade. Westland continues to impress with its precocious line-up of single-malt whiskies, and the 2016 edition of Peat Week is one of the best releases yet.

Phone: (877) KL-WINES (Toll Free 877.559.4637) Email: wine@klwines.com

K&L Wine Merchants 3005 El Camino Real Redwood City, CA 94061 USA

San Francisco, Redwood City, Hollywood CA

Andy at Malt Box reviews Aldi’s Glen Marnoch 28yr Old @maltbox 

https://youtu.be/VYu9FdKvMwc

Day 22 of the Scotch Whisky Advent Calendar 

Scotch Whisky Advent Calendar 3rd Edition Day 22 Blog #157 – Adelphi Cambus Single Grain 27 Year OId

Welcome to a very exciting addition to our Scotch Whisky Advent Calendar story. Firstly we have the pleasure of having Jason Johnstone-Yellin from Single Cask Nation sitting here with me tasting this dram and secondly we were able to secure our first ever closed distillery cask from Alex Bruce and the fabulous team at Adelphi.

Cambus is a Lowlands Grain distillery that opened in 1836 and was unfortunately closed in 1993. Anything bottled from Cambus now is always going to be over the 20 year old mark which is a bit of a benchmark for us so far in adding Single Grain offerings to our calendar editions. During its time in operation it was considered by many to be the finest grain whisky in all of Scotland. Located near Stirling in what some called “the midlands” it was just below the Highland/Lowland dividing line. Owned by the Diageo group it was deemed to be surplus to requirements as is so often the major factor in a distilleries closure.

So lets get into the whisky

Adelphi Independent Bottlers – Cambus 1988 – 27 year old Single Grain Scotch Whisky at the cask strength of 48% cask number 59353 and aged in a Bourbon Refill cask.

Colour:     Pale gold which is a definite result of the refill Bourbon cask not really imparting that much colour at all.

Nose:     Sweet Marzipan icing like wandering past the head table at a wedding after the cake has been sliced. Fresh farm cream like the kind that my nana used to serve over her famous apricot pie which was a staple in my youth complete with the apricot pie note. The marzipan almond piece really kicks in and some other nutty characters emerge including what I would call white chocolate covered macadamia’s. Wow lovely start to this whisky.

Palate:     Savory note here that takes a bit of a diversion from the nose by adding in some fresh rolling in the hay action (in the best way possible)

Finish:     Some earthy char coming into play here with a bit of a brand new tire note. Seriously like when you just pick up a brand new set of tires and that sweet clean rubber jumps out at you and lets you know that you have something bright and shiny in your possession.

Wow this kind of feels like I was just given a new car at my wedding and am driving away with that new rubber meets marzipan package all in one. This is an amazing experience and I have never had a Single Grain with this many layers before. Right at the death when everything is almost fading away the apricot comes back once more complete with that delicious pie crust.

Super cool stuff and thanks so much to Alex at Adelphi for agreeing to part with it just for us. There may be a few bottles that were filled once we had taken our share but not many and probably only to be found in Scotland so good luck hunting one down.

So here below are the extremely enlightened and expert tasting notes from Jason Johnstone-Yellin.

It’s Grrrreat!!

Nose: Cereal notes lead the way with dehydrated pineapple and mango behind, there’s a heavy sweetness while the wood rests quietly behind (but still present) – after a bit of time a chili heat comes through.

Palate: Woody with wet barley to the front of the palate with a pleasant oiliness, a flavor like sandalwood runs across the center of the palate before the dehydrated tropical fruit from the nose manifests itself towards the back of the palate.

Finish: Good length with warming ginger and lingering hints of the tropical fruit.

Overall: One of my favorite things about Cambus whisky is the weight of it. Combined with that it bypasses the vanilla notes of a grain distillery like Invergordon and instead embraces heavy fruit and mature oak notes. This is a really cracking cask.

So there you have it the first closed distillery done and dusted (literally). Head on over to Whiskylassie to see her take on this Cambus.

On this day in the 2nd edition we had a fantastic Island Tobermory (non peated) from Malt Whisky Company that you can catch up on again here.

Tomorrow as the big hitting week continues we head back to those crazy Italians for something old and peaty.

See you then whisky peeps

Slainte

Jonathan – taster of secrets

http://www.singlemalting.com/category/whisky-advent-calendar-2016/

World Exclusive Launch of Glenfarclas Pagoda Ruby Reserve in Singapore

The Whisky Corporation introduces a brace of rare luxury whiskies from the family-owned distillery as part of its growing connoisseur and investment portfolio

Glenfarclas Pagoda Ruby Reserve Limited Edition Silver Release, 700ml

Singapore, 12 December 2016 – In a world premiere, whisky investment specialists, The Whisky Corporation, announced it is bringing the critically acclaimed Glenfarclas Pagoda Reserve series, a spectacular collection of ultra-bespoke single malt whiskies from the Glenfarclas distillery in Speyside, Scotland, here to the Singapore market.

The breath-taking collection, launched locally by George Grant, sixth generation distillery director at Glenfarclas alongside leading whisky industry experts around the region, is destined to be one of the most sought-after releases to hit the Asian market to date, and indeed the world.

Glenfarclas Pagoda Reserve Trilogy features three distinct Glenfarclas vintages: the 43-year-old, 48-year-old and 59-year-old, each bottled in beautiful hand-blown Glencairn crystal decanters and topped with a handcrafted, unique magnetic pagoda-shaped stopper in brass, silver and gold finishes.

“With only 100 traditional 700ml sets produced, just 10 1.5-litre magnum sets and a collector’s edition of only 30 silver magnums, it is well-known within the industry these whiskies are extremely rare. Due to the massive pre-order demand prior to its release, only 10 sets will be made available to the market in December. All of the magnums and a total of 90 Trilogies were secured by collectors and those in the know some time ago,” said Ben Morley, Chief Operating Officer, The Whisky Corporation.

“We have seen a huge amount of interest in rare and fine whiskies within Asia through our offices in Hong Kong, Shanghai and our most recent expansion in Singapore. As such, we’re concentrating on strategic growth in these key markets where savvy investors are looking to diversify their investment

portfolios, and catering to connoisseurs looking for exceptional and limited edition whiskies to add to their collections.”

Recognising Singapore’s importance in the global market for single malt whisky, the region was also selected above Hong Kong or China as the destination of choice to launch the newest addition to the Pagoda Reserve series, Glenfarclas Pagoda Ruby Reserve. Aged for 62 years, it is the oldest whisky ever to be released by the Glenfarclas Distillery.

The limited edition Glenfarclas Pagoda Ruby Reserve, named in homage to the Glenfarclas distillery’s distinct facade, features citrus notes and an eloquently rich coating with slight sweetness providing exceptional balance, a signature of its era of production. Presented in fine Glencairn crystal, the Pagoda Ruby Reserve comes adorned with its namesake, a ruby pagoda-shaped stopper.

To maintain the whisky’s uniqueness and rarity, the 329-litre Pagoda Ruby Reserve 1954 single cask will be launched under two releases; a Limited Edition Silver and Collector’s Edition Gold. The Silver release will see 180 700ml bottles and 62 Magnum 1.5-litre bottles available to the market. The Collector’s Edition will feature only 50 bottles available each in 700ml and 50 magnums of the Collector’s Edition with Gold.

“The whisky investment landscape is incredibly buoyant and those who have bought the most exclusive whiskies have yielded exceptional returns in recent years. By working with key distilleries such as Glenfarclas to offer limited edition and exclusive collections including the Pagoda series, we provide our clients with access to some of the most sought after and finest collectable whiskies available globally,” added Morley.

As Asia’s recognised specialists in single malt investment, The Whisky Corporation’s Singapore base works closely with its panel of whisky specialists, including ‘Keeper of the Quaich’ Stephen Notman, in guiding Singaporean clients and sourcing for exclusive fine whiskies.

About The Whisky Corporation

Established in Hong Kong in 2008, the Whisky Corporation specialises in creating bespoke single malt whisky portfolios and exclusive private releases from Scotland’s most famous distilleries. As one of Asia’s leading specialists to specialise in professional single malt investment, The Whisky Corporation focuses on assisting private clients to invest safely and securely.

Through its network, The Whisky Corporation sources and brings to market the very finest whisky, including exclusive official distillery bottlings and since its establishment, The Whisky Corporation has enjoyed spectacular success in Hong Kong and plans to expand its growth with the opening of a Singapore office in late 2016.

THE GLENTURRET 10YO PERSONALISED LABEL  

The Glenturret 10 Year Old Single Malt whisky, produced at Scotland’s oldest distillery, the Brand home of The Famous Grouse. On the palate, spicy citrus and orange with a soft malty finish. Comes with a unique printed label that they can treasure for a lifetime. Purchase your personalised bottle here.

THE FAMOUS GROUSE PERSONALISED

Scotland’s favourite whisky is a blend crafted from the finest malt whiskies, such as The Macallan and Highland Park, married with exceptional grain whiskies, for the smoothest possible taste. Make someone famous by personalising a bottle of The Famous Grouse with a name and message of your choice. Get your personalised bottle here

THE GLENTURRET FLY’S 16 MASTERS EDITION

Inspired by a photo, unearthed from the back of a cupboard at Scotland’s oldest working whisky distillery, dating from 1905 and featuring 16 stillmen, along with a collie dog this whisky is the winner of Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible Liquid Gold Award 2017 and comes beautifully presented in a handmade tweed gift bag. Purchase your bottle here.

Every Wednesday at 10am, members of the new incarnation of our famous W Club get a personal invitation to take advantage of some outrageously good deals.

With a very limited number of bottles available discounted by up to 50%, offers last for a maximum of 24 hours or until stock runs out.

Only available to members of the new W Club, you can join in the fun this Whisky Wednesday and bag a bargain in time for Christmas by signing up to The W Club today.

JOIN NOW

For just £20 a year you’ll have access to a host of brilliant benefits, including: Exclusive members-only offers at The Whisky Shop Priority notice on rare and restricted releases A quarterly copy of Whiskeria magazine, delivered to your door Special W Club competitions Members-only bottlings and opportunities to join the tasting panel Behind the scenes news, reviews and Q&As

Here’s a sneak peak at some of the deals