Japan
Ohishi Single Brandy Cask Japanese Whisky (750ml) $69.99 View
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
Glenfarclas 21 Year Old & 101 World Whiskies to Try Before You Die
A whisky pairing that is guaranteed to please! This 21 year old expression of Glenfarclas is rich and full-bodied with fruity spice on the nose. Smooth on the palate with notes of malty biscuits and a touch of oak smoke, with a long and smooth finish.Once you have whet your appetite, Ian Buxton’s 101 World Whiskies to Try Before You Die is on hand to provide a map to your next dram.
MICHEL ROUX JR AND THE BALVENIE JOIN FORCES IN THE ULTIMATE EXPLORATION OF CRAFTSMANSHIP
‘The Craftsmen’s Dinner’: a new film series featuring leading experts in various fields ranging from pottery to salmon smoking unearths the true meaning of craftsmanship.
The Balvenie has a rich history of celebrating excellent craftsmanship; however the launch of ‘The Craftsmen’s Dinner’ – a six part short film series in which exceptionally skilled individuals in various fields are met and profiled by multi award winning chef Michel Roux Jr – will mark the brand’s foremost exploration of outstanding artistry to date.
The YouTube film series sees the two Michelin starred chef – naturally a master of his own trade – set out to unveil the true meaning of craftsmanship by meeting and discussing the talents and secret skills of six equally gifted people; including one of the only knife makers left in Britain, a music-loving salmon smoker, an organic farmer, a potter and a sparkling wine producer.
The series culminates with Michel creating the mouthwatering ‘Craftsmen’s Dinner’ for each of the individuals, using contributions from each artist; including salmon for the guests to enjoy, and beautiful hand crafted plates to serve it on. The first instalment of the series will launch at https://www.youtube.com/TheCraftsmensDinner on the 15th March 2016, and will be released on a fortnightly basis thereafter.
Michel Roux Jr commented: “I have tremendous respect for people who dedicate the years required to mastering and perfecting their trade, so it was a fantastic experience to work with The Balvenie on this project, and to meet such talented individuals.”
Scores of captivating stories emerge from the films; including Ole Hansen: a salmon smoker who lovingly plays piano music to his produce every day in the belief that it adds a certain dimension to the taste. And Will Ferraby: a Sheffield-based knife maker whose chef’s knives are famously so precise that they perfectly slice a tomato in two, even when dropped from a height.
Jonny Cornthwaite, Senior Brand Manager, The Balvenie commented: “Celebrating exceptional craftsmanship is at the heart of everything we do for The Balvenie; so it is a privilege to work with Michel Roux Jr and these six individuals who really capture the heart of our brand ethos. ‘The Craftsmen’s Dinner’ is our largest and most ambitious project to date; and we’re very excited to introduce the series to the public.”
The films will be released at www.youtube.com/TheCraftsmensDinner on the following dates:
About The Balvenie:
Adam Hannett, head distiller at Bruichladdich
Islay native Adam Hannett has some very big shoes to fill. As head distiller at Bruichladdich since summer 2015, he and distillery manager Allan Logan have taken over the running of one of Scotland’s best-loved distilleries, producing Bruichladdich, Port Charlotte and Octomore spirit. Retired production director Jim McEwan may cast a long shadow, but after 12 years of mentoring and training, Adam is now in charge of continuing the cult distillery’s reputation for making great whisky.
I spoke to him last month, during the build-up for this year’s Islay festival.
‘Growing up on Islay you take whisky for granted – you think everyone’s got eight distilleries on their doorstep’
‘In 2004 I dropped out of university – I didn’t enjoy it and wanted to come home to Islay. I came around to the distillery and met Jim McEwan, who took me on for a few months, just tour guiding and working in the shop. The first day I came home and my eyes had been opened – I’d absolutely fallen in love with the way whisky is made‘
‘What do I do in a normal day? Generally, whisky things. No two days are the same – that’s the joy of it’
‘The casks we have are amazing. The spirit is unbelievably good. My job is an absolute joy. It’s dealing with people who are at the top of their game – absolute craftsmen – and ingredients – whether it’s casks or barley or whatever – that are all the best quality’
‘I hear the term “master distiller” bandied around a lot. I’ve been working here for 12 years and I don’t think I’m anywhere near being a master of anything yet. You are constantly learning, constantly surprised by the little things. If someone else thinks that it’s the title for me in 20 years from now, then fair enough, but I’ll always be the guy who’s looking to learn‘
‘I’ll never rest and say “I know everything”, because the day you do that is the day you’ll have lost the spark for whisky making’
‘If I’m making a whisky, I don’t want to be doing it off a spreadsheet. I want to go to a cask, pull a sample and nose and taste it – keeping everything local means I can do that’
‘Sometimes when you’re walking around the warehouses you find something you forgot you even had: the experiments that Jim had, things you find in dark corners, things you see and say “Oh, I remember we did that!”‘
On Bruichladdich Classic Laddie] ‘It’s a very complicated recipe, and it changes. And that’s ok. We don’t mind if we get a bit of variation, as the whisky is about the flavour and ingredients we’ve got. Whatever nature gives us, whether it be through the barley or the casks, that’s what we need to put in the bottle’
On our wish list of things we’d like is to have our own maltings and malt our own barley here. It’s a missing piece of the jigsaw. How we do that, we don’t know yet. One day…’
It’s a Victorian distillery, we have to respect it. Doing things slowly slows down the process and limits how much we can make. But we’re not trying to flood the market, we’re just trying to make the best whisky we can‘
You can see Adam in action below, hosting his first Islay Festival masterclass last weekend.
JUNE TASTINGS
Glen Moray Tasting – The Vaults, Mon 6 June More >
Old & dignified Tasting & Dinner – 28 Queen St, Fri 17 June More >
Jazz & Whisky Tasting – 28 Queen St, Fri 24 June More >
Edinburgh Whisky Solstice 2 for £40 – Assembly Rooms Edinburgh, Sat 25 June More >
July Outturn Preview – The Vaults, Thu 30 June More >
UK-WIDE PREVIEWS WITH UISGE SOURCE
Aberdeen: Taster Menu Whisky Dinner at MUSA – Thu 16 June More >
Our Highlight Whisky Event of the yeart: 5 delicious courses of contemporary food paired with 5 SMWS drams…
Manchester – Malmaison, Fri 24 June More >
Dundee – Malmaison, Fri 24 June More >
Melrose – Town House Hotel, Fri 24 June More >
FREE EVENTS AT THE VAULTS
Leith Jazz & Blues Festival – Fri 3 June More > & Sat 4 June More >
Flavour Behaviour Members’ Experiment – Mon 13 June More >
Sample rare whiskies and learn something about yourself in the name of scientific research…
Browse All Events & 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
Early Bird Tickets for Austin, Houston, and Atlanta on sale NOW from June 1st until June 31st!
Austin: September 29th, 7 PM at the Four Seasons 6 PM – The Bon Vivant Hour. This will be a classroom style event.10 whiskies & 10 bites of food $70 7 PM – General Admission tickets $140 (Early Bird $120)
Houston: October 1st, 3 PM at the Hyatt Regency Downtown 3 PM – VIP $160 (Early Bird $140) 4 PM – General Admission $140 (Early Bird $120)
Atlanta: October 22nd, 6 PM at the Intercontinental Buckhead 6 PM – VIP $160 (Early Bird $140) 7 PM – General Admission $140 (Early Bird $120)
June Dates to Remember
In Austin, June denotes “Whisky Days” at Twin Liquors!
Check out this calendar for a full month of Whiskey Days tastings. Pay special attention to the events in BLUE. Whiskey Days Calendar
The Inaugural Scottish Summer Ball
June 11 in San Francisco: The Inaugural Scottish Summer Ball will take place at the famous Verdi Club in the Mission. This will be an evening of traditional Scottish Dancing! The five piece traditional string band Border Skirmish will perform and teach you all traditional Scottish dancing. Never tried traditional Scottish dancing before? No worries, they will teach you all you need to know whether you are a beginner or a pro. Your ticket will include whisky tasting, food pairings, dancing, and many other surprises throughout the evening that will make it a night to remember! Dress code is cocktail attire. Kilts should be worn if you have one! Kilts can be rented from The Whisky Shop at a discounted price of $150 for this event.
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
Queen Elizabeth’s 90th Birthday Bell’s Decanter
The latest addition to a long line of Bell’s Commemorative Decanters, this limited edition has been created to celebrate the 90th birthday of Queen Elizabeth, Britain’s oldest and longest reigning monarch. The first Bell’s decanter was introduced in the 1920s, while the tradition of commemorating events in the lives of the Royal Family only began in 1981 with the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana. A must-have for collectors, only 1000 of these decanters have been created.
LEADING WHISKY SPECIALIST GORDON & MACPHAIL WINS TOP INDUSTRY AWARDS
Colleagues at family-owned Scotch malt whisky specialist Gordon & MacPhail are celebrating an award winning year so far, having been presented with both a gold and silver medal at the International Spirits Challenge, and a Master and silver award at the Scotch Whisky Masters.
One of the most authoritative, respected and influential spirits competitions in the world, over 1,300 entries from more than 70 countries were assessed by an experienced panel of specialist judges at the International Spirits Challenge.
Rare Vintage Strathisla 1967, one of the unique whiskies in Gordon & MacPhail’s exclusive Rare Vintage range, was awarded the top prize of a gold medal. A rich and smooth after dinner dram with rich fruit cake, mixed spice and milk chocolate sweetness on the nose, the whisky offers gentle and warming flavours with a burst of menthol freshness, a touch of chilli, and notes of fruit with a sherried edge.
An elegant Speyside dram, Distillery Labels Glentauchers 1996 was presented with a silver medal in recognition of its complex flavours and rich chocolate edge. The colour of dark gold, the whisky has light sherry influences with stewed apple and candied fruit aromas, before rich praline chocolate and toasted hazelnut notes develop. Chilli spice emerges on the palate with red apple, orange peel and dark chocolate notes, giving way to a delicate liquorice edge.
The Scotch Whisky Masters 2016 saw a record-breaking number of whiskies battle it out to be named a Master of their category, from blends through to single malts from various regions, including Speyside and Islay.
Rare Vintage Longmorn 1967 was crowned ‘Master’ of Speyside single malts aged over 31 years. Soft and delicate on the nose with sweet sherry mixed with ripe nectarine and hints of marzipan, it is a long and warming dram full of sweetness and spice, with flavours of ground black pepper, stewed fruit and citrus.
Winner of the silver award in the Speyside single malt aged 13-18 years’ category, Connoisseurs Choice Glen Elgin 1998 impressed the judges with its unique flavour profile. Subtle sherry influences lead on the nose with pressed apples, dried apricots and tangerine aromas, complemented by a cocoa edge. Flavours of spice with orange, grapefruit and blackcurrant give way to lingering milk chocolate on the tongue, with a smooth and spicy finish.
These recent wins follow an outstanding year for the company, which saw a number of products in its extensive range of whiskies honoured with prestigious awards throughout the course of 2015. Amongst these accolades the world’s most exclusive whisky, Generations Mortlach 75 Years Old by Gordon & MacPhail, which was released in September 2015 to great acclaim by whisky lovers and the industry, was presented with the Master Award by the Spirits Business Design Masters.
Stephen Rankin, UK Sales Director and a member of the fourth generation of the Urquhart family who own Gordon & MacPhail, said: “At Gordon & MacPhail we are dedicated to providing whisky lovers across the world with high quality products, which are lovingly handcrafted by experts in their field.
“Winning these awards alongside numerous other accolades over recent years demonstrates our commitment to producing quality whisky, something which has clearly been recognised by some of the most influential leaders in the spirits industry.”
Notes
About Gordon & MacPhail
Gordon & MacPhail is an independent, family-owned Scotch Whisky specialist which has been based in Elgin, Moray, since 1895. Four generations of the Urquhart family have continued the tradition of seeking out the best and rarest Scotch Whiskies.
Since its foundation, Gordon & MacPhail’s policy has been to send casks to distilleries throughout Scotland, fill them with ‘new make’ spirit and mature them either at the distillery of origin or in the firm’s own bonded warehouses in Elgin.
Now one of the world’s leading malt whisky specialists, Gordon & MacPhail exports to more than 60 countries. It offers more than 300 presentations of own-bottled single malts. In 2009, Gordon & MacPhail was awarded the prestigious Queen’s Award for Enterprise in International Trade; an honour that was bestowed on the business again in 2013 with a visit from HRH The Princess Royal.
In 2015 Gordon & MacPhail made history by bottling the oldest cask ever released – a 75-Year-Old Mortlach, distilled in 1939.
‘OLD & DIGNIFIED’ WHISKY – THE PERFECT GIFT FOR FATHER’S DAY
The Scotch Malt Whisky Society launches limited edition Father’s Day whisky and membership offer to treat Dads
With Father’s Day just around the corner (Sunday 19th June), spoil Dad with something exceptionally special – a rare bottle of ‘Old & Dignified’ whisky and membership of The Scotch Malt Whisky Society.
SMWS have created a special limited edition online whisky package just for Dads – a bottle of ‘Exotic fruits and Polytunnel Flowers’ (Cask No 63.35) from its ‘Old & Dignified’ flavour category, alongside Society membership for just £175 (normally £229).
You’ll have to be quick though to snap one up; there are only 18 packages available for lucky dads via the Society’s website at www.smws.com/dad
The 25-year-old whisky, one of only 114 bottles, has been hand picked by the Society’s experts, from the aptly named ‘Old and Dignified’ flavour category, one of the Society’s 12 unique flavour profiles.
With a nose of nostalgic craft workshops and sandalwood and rich, deep fruit on the palate, this delicious whisky makes for the perfect Father’s Day tipple.
SMWS membership is the gift that keeps on giving, unlocking the doors to the Society’s monthly releases of unparalleled and limited edition single cask whiskies, exclusive events, ‘Unfiltered’ magazine and Members’ Rooms in London, Edinburgh and around the world.
The membership pack is decadently designed and includes three sample bottles of Society whiskies, a member’s journal, a Society badge and a £10 voucher to spend on his first purchase.
SMWS bottles some of the rarest single malt whiskies on the planet, from an array of distilleries in Scotland and around the world.
New whiskies are released each month, providing an ever-changing choice of new flavours. As each single cask whisky only yields a few hundred bottles, every Society release is a limited edition – the perfect present for whisky lovers.
To purchase, visit www.smws.com/dad
@smwsuk
‘Exotic fruits and Polytunnel Flowers’
Cask No: 63.35
Age: 25
Cask: Refill Barrel
Flavour category: ‘Old & Dignified’
Tasting Notes:
Exotic fruits flattered our noses (mango, rhubarb tarts, cherry pies, sherbet lemons, jellied fruits) but it had interest and weight too – brown sugar, craft workshops, sandalwood and perfume samples in women’s magazines. Even more fruits arrived on the palate – strawberry, blackcurrant, kiwi, fig and plum – all held down to earth by deeper notes of fortified wine, dark chocolate, Strepsils and sugar-coated fennel seeds. The reduced nose was simply delightful – perfumed pear and elderflower sorbet and flowers in polytunnels. Lots to discover on the palate now too – honey sweetness balancing fruit and floral perfumed bitterness – we agreed it was elegant and rounded.
Notes:
