GLENFARCLAS 2017 EVENTS CALENDAR

• 12^th June……………………Master Distillers Tastings, Milroys of London
• 6^th – 7^th July…………….…Events in Bangkok, Thailand
• 9^th – 22^nd July………….…Events in Perth, Adelaide, Mebourne, Brisbane & Sydney, Australia
• 24^th – 25^th July……………Events in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
• 1^st – 2^nd September…… Berlin Whisky Show, Germany     www.whisky-herbst.de
• 30^th September – 1^st October..  Whisky Exchange Show, London     https://whiskyshow.com/
• 6^th – 8^th October ……..…Potstill Festival, Amersfoort, The Netherlands www.potstillfestival.com
• 20^th October………………Bar & Spirits Festival, Vienna, Austria
• 21^st October……………….Dramathon    http://www.thedramathon.com/  
• 4^th – 5^th November……Spirits in the Sky, Brussels, Belgium http://www.spiritsinthesky.be/
• 17^th – 19^th November……International Whisky Festival, Den hag, The Netherlands www.whiskyfestival.nl
• 30^th November – 3^rd December…..Whisky Ship, Zurich, Switzerland     www.whiskyschiffzuerich.ch

For more information about any of the above events, please contact info@glenfarclas.com

A. Smith Bowman Distillery Releases Sequential Series Bourbon 

Extremely Limited, Available Mostly in Virginia

Fredericksburg, VA. (May 25, 2017) – A. Smith Bowman Distillery announces the latest release in its Abraham Bowman line of experimental whiskey, the Abraham Bowman Sequential Series Bourbon.

This limited release explores how flavor profiles are affected when bourbon, first aged in new charred white oak barrels, is then finished in different kinds of used barrels for its final years, and also explores how the barrel entry proof affects the finish.

This release is comprised of two expressions, each finished in two different kinds of barrels. The first expression was aged for nine years in new charred white oak barrels before being transferred into barrels that had previously held bourbon for nine years. Half of those bourbon barrels were barreled at 125 proof and half were barreled at 115 proof, before finishing for three years and five months.

The second expression was aged for nine years in new charred white oak barrels before being transferred into barrels that had previously been used to age bourbon and port wine, and then were used to finish their Abraham Bowman Port Finish Bourbon, which went on to be named the 2016 World’s Best Bourbon by Whisky Magazine. Half of these fourth-use barrels were barreled at 125 proof and half were barreled at 115 proof before finishing for three years and five months.

For the bourbon from the second-use barrels Master Distiller, Brian Prewitt notes “vanilla, baked apples, and cherry, followed by sweet caramel that pleasantly dances in the nose,” and describes the taste as “smooth, sweet flavor reminiscent of brown sugar and toasted nuts with a light leathery tobacco note with brown spice lingering on the palate.”

For the fourth-use barrels, Prewitt notes “dried fruit and dark spices on the nose,” and describes a taste of “figs and vanilla followed by a medium mouthfeel that tops off with a slight peppery finish with subdued oak.”

The Abraham Bowman Limited Edition Sequential Series Bourbon is part of a series of limited edition whiskies, named after Abraham Bowman, the commander of the 8^th Virginia Regiment in the American Revolutionary War. Each edition of the Abraham line is a different expression and a new release is offered a few times a year.  This is the 16^th release in the Abraham line.  The Abraham Bowman Limited Edition Sequential Series Bourbon will be available for Virginia residents to purchase through the VA ABC Lottery, and will be available in the A. Smith Bowman Distillery Visitor Center starting Saturday, May 27. Quantities are very limited and most product will be available in Virginia, however limited amounts will be available in other states this summer. The Abraham Bowman series aims to release new and different expressions of innovative whiskey for each release, so it is unlikely this exact bourbon will be repeated. The total age of this bourbon is 12 years and five months and bottled at 100 proof. These 375ml bottles have a suggested retail price of $39.99.

About A. Smith Bowman

A. Smith Bowman’s distilling roots date back to the years before Prohibition when the Bowman family had a granary and dairy farm in Sunset Hills, Virginia. They used excess grain from the family estate to distill spirits. In 1934, after the Repeal of Prohibition, Abram Smith Bowman and his sons continued the family tradition and built a more modern distillery in Fairfax County, Virginia called Sunset Hills Farm.  The Distillery was moved in 1988 and is now nestled in Spotsylvania County near the city of Fredericksburg, 60 miles away from the original location.

As a small and privately owned company, A. Smith Bowman Distillery continues the time-honored traditions on which it was founded. Considered a micro-distillery by today’s standards, A. Smith Bowman produces an assortment of hand-crafted spirits distilled from only the finest natural ingredients and using the latest technology. This micro-distillery focuses on the production of premium spirits honoring the legacy of Virginia’s first settlers. Its various brands have won more than 100 awards in the past five years, including “World’s Best Bourbon” in 2016 for its Abraham Bowman Port Finished Bourbon and again in 2017 for its John J. Bowman Single Barrel at the World Whisky Awards.  For more information on A. Smith Bowman, please visit http://www.asmithbowman.com/.

Wyoming Whiskey Pours into California

Kirby, WY (June 1, 2017) – America’s next great bourbon has landed on the West Coast. Wyoming Whiskey is now available in California through its boutique distributor, The Craft Spirits Cooperative. Wyoming Whiskey Small Batch Bourbon, Outryder Straight American Whiskey, Private Stock Single Barrel Bourbon, and limited quantities of sherry-finished Double Cask are now available throughout the state.

“We tested the California waters in Los Angeles during a six month trial period.” Said co-founder David DeFazio. “During that time, the Cooperative proved that it is the right partner for our brand and we look forward to seeing them distribute our whiskies across the state.” Peter J. Scheufele, Director of The Craft Spirits Cooperative stated, “With our hybrid program, pairing brand building efforts with distribution, we are singularly focused on bringing exceptional products to remarkable accounts. Our salespeople practice an education-first selling style to let the unique stories and liquids produced by our suppliers shine, and the reaction to Wyoming Whiskey has been outstanding. We are excited to begin introducing these authentic products our accounts across the state.”

Wyoming Whiskey is a family-owned and operated craft distiller built on a simple (but not easy) concept: to create a traditional bourbon in an untraditional place. Using only Wyoming-sourced, non-GMO ingredients, and water from a mile-deep, limestone aquifer, Wyoming Whiskey respects the maxims of great bourbon, yet also reflects the feel and taste of the state where it is made. Wyoming Whiskey holds fast to its western heritage.

Californians can now experience these award-winning Wyoming spirits firsthand. National bourbon connoisseurs have testified that exceptional bourbon is being made on the Wyoming frontier. This year, Wyoming Whiskey’s limited release Barrel Strength Bourbon received a “Liquid Gold” award in Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible. The flagship Small Batch Bourbon received a score of 95 from WhiskyCast’s Mark Gillespie, stating it is “one of the best bourbons [he’s] ever tasted.” The Spirit Journal’s Paul Pacult also called Wyoming Whiskey “a whiskey distiller to watch” after sampling Small Batch and awarding it 4/5 stars.

The following Wyoming Whiskey offerings now available throughout California:

Wyoming Whiskey Small Batch ($39.99 / 44% ABV / 88 Proof): Wyoming Whiskey’s Small Batch Bourbon is medium amber in color with a nose of sweet corn, molasses, and clove. It is medium-bodied with a palate of vanilla, caramel, charred oak, and a hint of citrus. The finish is mild with lingering caramel and toast, and is very smooth. Mash bill: 68% corn, 20% wheat, 12% malted barley. Age: 5 years.

Wyoming Whiskey Outryder ($54.99 / 50% ABV / 100 Proof): Launched in October 2016, Outryder Straight American Whiskey is Bottled in Bond and represents Wyoming Whiskey’s first use of rye, along with corn and malted barley, to craft a straight whiskey from two distinct mash bills. These two whiskies were laid down in November of 2011 at the behest of co-founder David DeFazio. The first mash bill contains 48% winter rye, 40% corn, and 12% malted barley and the second reflects a traditional bourbon mash bill of 68% corn, 20% winter rye, and 12% malted barley. Outryder has an initial nose of creamy browned butter with cinnamon, clove and allspice, along with freshly baked, dark-rye bread. Hints of orange blossom honey are on the palate. A long, spicy rye finish is coupled with hints of buttery toffee. Age: 4 years and 10 months.

Wyoming Whiskey Private Stock ($49.99 – $54.99/ 92-112 Proof): Wyoming Whiskey retailers have the option to hand-select one-of-a-kind Wyoming Whiskey bourbon barrels. Head distiller Sam Mead and industry consultant Nancy Fraley will choose the initial barrel samples based on their unique, and varied, flavor profiles. Through the Private Stock Barrel Program, retailers can select from five different 100ml Wyoming Whiskey barrel samples. Accounts will select their barrel, and proof, and it will become uniquely theirs as indicated on the custom label. Depending on the barrel, and proof, a 34 – 38 case yield should be expected. Stores will have the unique option to pick the proof of their chosen bourbon between 92 – cask strength of approximately 112 proof. This gives retailers the ability to further customize their barrel selection to suit the desires of their customers. Mash bill: 68% corn, 20% wheat, 12% malted barley. Age: 5 years

Wyoming Whiskey Double Cask ($59.99 / 50% ABV / 100 Proof): Wyoming Whiskey Double Cask is the first sherry barrel-finished bourbon offered out of Wyoming. Pedro Ximenez barrels were chosen to compliment the flavor profile of specifically chosen barrels of fully-matured Wyoming Whiskey bourbon. Double Cask features dark, autumnal notes of dried apricot and fig, stewed prune, black currant and toasted nuts. There are hints of candied orange peel, vanilla butter cream, and molasses underneath. The finish is comprised of dark, dried fruit followed by warm, brown baking spices. Mash bill: 68% corn, 20% wheat, 12% malted barley. Age: 5 years.

Wyoming Whiskey product character highlights:

• All water used to produce WW award-winning bourbon comes from a mile-deep, limestone aquifer in Manderson, Wyoming.

• Wyoming Whiskey’s wheat, corn, barley, and rye have been grown within 100 miles of the distillery in Kirby, Byron, Thermopolis, and Riverton, Wyoming.

• Wyoming Whiskey’s barley is malted in Great Falls, Montana, the nearest malting facility.

• Wyoming Whiskey’s grains are milled on-site daily with a two-stage roller mill guaranteeing freshness.

• All fermentation and distillation occurs on-site through the use of four 2,500 gallon fermentation tanks and a continuous distillation system comprised of a 38’ tall and 18” wide column still and a 42” by 40” pot still.

• Wyoming Whiskey bourbon is bottled on-site. No product, other than their own, makes it into the bottle.

Sign up as a Whiskey Baron to receive newsletter updates and Wyoming Whiskey on Instagram and Facebook.

About Wyoming Whiskey
Wyoming Whiskey has a simple goal: to create America’s next great bourbon. Based in Kirby, Wyoming, the company and product is a collaboration between its partners and 97,818 square miles of Wyoming. The Mead family first came to Wyoming as ranchers in 1890 and the state defines them, and their whiskey. They use the finest corn, wheat, barley, and water from the Big Horn Basin and promote Wyoming’s natural and human resources. Every drop of this bourbon is 100% Wyoming. To learn more, visit wyomingwhiskey.com.

Buffalo Trace Masterclass

On June 10th, we will be joined by the famed Buffalo Trace for an evening of tasting that should not be missed. On the night we will be putting Rye against Wheat with an absolutely epic line up.

Buffalo Trace vs Eagle Rare 10

 George T Stagg vs. Weller 12,

William Laurue Weller vs Van Winkle 15.

*We are hoping to have the White Dogs of both Mashbills but this is currently unconfirmed.* Details are available on the Milroy’s Web Store.

Tickets

“Michter’s honour a historical legacy tracing back to the founding of America’s first whiskey company in 1753.”

‘Michter’s’ are one of Milroy’s favourite American Distilleries. A delectable range at a tasty price. The US-1 expressions, so named to honuor Michter’s heritage harkening back to America’s first whiskey company, consist of some of the finest single barrel and truly small batch whiskeys available. Distilled to Master Distiller Pamela Heilmann’s exacting specifications, no US-1 whiskey is ever released until Willie and the Michter’s tasting panel deems it ready..

Buy Michter’s on the Milroy’s Web Store

Ralfy mixes malt and rum with Ralfy Review 655 – Balvenie 14yo Caribbean Cask @ 43%vol

Isle of Arran Distillery toasts international drinks tourism award win

Isle of Arran Distillers has been recognised at the prestigious Drinks Business Awards for their success and investment in wine and spirits tourism.

An international award judged by the biggest drinks trade magazine in the world, the distillery beat off tough competition from wineries and distilleries to win the accolade for ‘Best Contribution to Wine and Spirits Tourism’.

The judges praised the distillery’s success in enhancing the whisky tourism offering in Scotland, their role in the impressive boost in visitors to the island and for the substantial investment into Lochranza and the new distillery planned for Lagg.

James MacTaggart, master distiller at the Isle of Arran Distillery, said: “We are fiercely proud of our island home and of the welcome we offer to all those seeking ‘the Arran Waters’.

“The Distillery & Visitor Centre at Lochranza, our large network of worldwide distributors and our investment in the south of the island at Lagg, are all central to our business success. It is also core to our wish to introduce the world to the qualities of our malt whisky, and to the people and places involved in its production.

“Arran has a unique position in the history of Scotland’s most recognised product and this award is testament to our contribution to the bright future the industry has.”

Faye Waterlow, visitor centre manager, said: “Everyone is over-the-moon with this award.

“We are one of over 130 distilleries in Scotland, and certainly one of the most remote, but we are proud to offer visitors a very warm welcome complete with fascinating tours, good food and, of course, the finest spirit.

“We work continually all year round to distribute our whisky in countries all over the world and it is important for us to offer a first class welcome to all those who make the long journey to our home in Lochranza.

“Our whole company is dedicated to building on this recognition as we look towards the opening of the new centre at Lagg and an exciting new chapter of whisky-production on Arran.”

The visitor centre at Lochranza welcomed a record number of visitors last year. 104,000 people made the journey to the distillery in 2016 – a 93% increase since 2012, and 18% increase on 2015.

Currently the highest-rated attraction on the island on Trip Advisor, Lochranza recently reopened after the completion of £1 million worth of rennovations to both the visitor centre and distillery.

The Company currently distributes their Single Malt in 50 worldwide markets.

The business is also making a £10m investment in the south of the island with a new distillery site and visitor centre at Lagg. Focusing on peated single malts, the Lagg centre will overlook the southern fields and cliffs of the island offering a striking contrast to Lochranza in the mountainous north.

Visitors to Lagg are expected to exceed 62,400 in the first full year (60% of visitors to Lochranza in 2016) rising by 10% per year to 75,504 by 2020. It is projected that by 2020 the number of visitors to both sites will surpass 200,000, resulting in a combined turnover in excess of £2 million.

Notes:

For more information visit www.arranwhisky.com * Accolades for Isle of Arran Distillery include Winner for: Best New Exporter (2004), Queen’s Award for International Trade (2005), Scottish Distiller of the Year (2007) and Scottish Drinks Producer of the Year (2007)

Scottish Field Visitor Experience of the Year 2014 & 2015

Drinks Business Best Contribution to Wine and Spirits Tourism (2017)

Product awards include: Best Whisky Liqueur (2007), ‘Best Single Malt Scotch 12 Years & Under’ for The Arran Malt Amarone Cask Finish (2008) ‘Best Single Malt Scotch 11-15 Years’ for The Arran Malt Sherry Single Cask 1998 (2010) and ‘Best Single Malt Scotch 11-15 Years’ for the Icons of Arran Peacock (2011.) ‘Double Gold Award’ for Arran’s 14 Year Old Single Malt and ‘Gold Award’ for Arran’s 10 Year Old Single Malt at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition (2012). Double Gold in FiftyBest.com awards (2012). Double Gold Medal for the 12 year-old Cask Strength in the San Francisco World Spirits Competition (2013). Double Gold for both the 10 year-old and 12 year-old Cask Strength at the China Wine & Spirits Best Value Awards 2014.

Highland Park Valkyrie – Viking Spirit

One in three people living on Orkney have Scandinavian ancestry, so it was no surprise when Highland Park embraced this heritage with its Warriors Series, a range of whiskies named after proud Vikings: Sigurd, Harald, Einar, and the like. But the next stage in the conquest has arrived: the Viking Legend series, the first of which is Valkyrie, named after the female spirits with the power to choose who would live or die on the battlefield.

For even more authenticity, the distillery enlisted the help of Danish designer Jim Lyngvild, who can trace his lineage all the way back to the Viking era – his 36th great-grandfather was Ragnvald Eysteinsson, the first Earl of the Orkney Islands. Jim’s design for the Valkyrie bottle adds a bold splash of red (a departure from Highland Park’s traditional black and silver) to symbolise the blood of fallen warriors.

The Highland Park whiskymaking team (are you sure about this? – Ed)

The whisky itself is bigger and bolder than Highland Park’s 12 Year Old. Master whisky maker Gordon Motion says he ‘dialled up the peat’ with Valkyrie, and that sweet, aromatic smoke really comes through on the palate, along with plenty of spice and fruit – the 12yo seems rather refined in comparison.

Gordon adds that Orkney’s topography has an impact on its whisky, too: ‘There are very few trees on Orkney, so you’ll find gorse, bracken and heather in our peat,’ he says. ‘It gives a much sweeter, more floral character than, say, Islay peat. It’s like an incense stick – still very smoky, but it gives you an aromatic, floral note.’

2018 will see the next release in the Viking Legend series – Valknut – named after the tattoo the Valkyries used to identify the special warriors fit to join Odin’s army, while Valhalla, so named after the hallowed Viking afterlife, will complete the trilogy in 2019.

Keep an eye out, too, for new branding and packaging for the Highland Park core range. The liquid will remain exactly the same, and the age statements will stay, but the 10yo will be called Viking Scars; the 12yo will become Viking Pride; while the 18yo will be known as Viking Honour. Click here to see our extensive range of Highland Park whiskies.

Originally published on The Whisky Exchange Blog – Highland Park Valkyrie – Viking Spirit

June Outturn brings the satisfying comfort of a hearty brunch with 21 new single casks with flavoursome foodie characters to taste and explore. This First Friday also packs a pretty punch with eight powerful peaty whiskies, including three exclusive bottlings for this year’s Feis Ile, Islay’s festival of whisky and music.

READ OUTTURN

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

Ardbeg “Kelpie” Islay Single Malt Whisky (750ml) ($109.99)

The much anticipated release of Argbeg’s newest expression is finally upon us. As with all of the Ardbeg’s limited releases, we expect this newest edition to fly off our shelves in the matter of hours, so this is an offer that demands quick action. Called “Kelpie,” this new edition is named after the mythical beast from Corryvreckan, but also alludes to “kelp” or seaweed. Aged in Russian oak barrels from Adygea, near Georgia along the Black Sea, the whisky exudes a whirlwind of dark fudge, earthy peat, and of course a healthy dollop of seaweed and salt water flavors. As we’ve come to expect from Ardbeg’s director of distilling, Dr. Bill Lumsden, Kelpie is every bit as a profound and expansive Scotch as we’ve ever had. Bottled at 46% ABV, it has a rich and warming mouthfeel that reveals flavors of treacle, espresso, smoked meats, clove, a host of orchard fruit notes, as well as touches of black pepper spice. Ardbeg produces towering expressions of whisky and the Kelpie is no exception. For fans of whisky’s rarest and most elite bottlings, this is simply a must have.