KWM Whisky Advent Day 9 – Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban

In last year’s KWM Whisky Advent Calendar we featured the Glenmorangie Original, it was the first time we were able to include a Glenmorangie whisky. Glenmorangie is back this year in the 2017 edition, with the Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban 12 Year. After maturing 10 years in Ex-Bourbon barrels, the whisky is finished a further 2 years in Ruby Port Pipes, hence the name Quinta Ruban. “Quintas” are the port houses or lodges in Villa Nova de Gaia where the wine is laid to mature before bottling. Ruban is a reference to ruby port.

Port is an interesting fortified wine style with deep roots and a strong connection to the British isles. The British had a great fondness for French wine, especially Bordeaux, which they call Claret. There was only one problem, the English & French were at war with each other more often than not in the 17^th and 18^th Centuries, and that made the importation of French wine impractical to say the least. The British naturally turned their attention to Portugal, a nation with which they had a long allegiance, but this was not as straightforward a solution as one might expect.

During the age of sail, it was seldom possible to sail directly from Portugal. The prevailing winds made the journey long and difficult. The conditions at sea were not favourable to the transportation of wine. So this lead to the birth of a new wine style, Port. Port is named for Oporto, the Portuguese port city at the mouth of the River Douro. After crushing the grapes were fermented as with all wines, but early in the fermentation a neutral grape spirit is added to stop the fermentation and preserve sugar. The combination of higher alcohol and sugar made the wine more durable and stable. And the British loved it! Port was shipped to the UK including Scotland in cask, and many of these barrels would then be used to mature whisky.

One surprising fact about Port, is that the Douro’s appellation is the third oldest in the world. It was granted in 1756 well before Bordeaux or Burgundy. The only older ones are Chianti 1716 and Tokaji 1730 are old.

There are a few distinguishing characteristics which make Glenmorangie unique. First and foremost, its stills, which are the tallest and most slender in all of Scotland. “They are 8 metres high (26ft 1/4 inches) with their long copper necks standing at 5.14 metres (16ft 10 1/4 inches), the same height as a fully grown adult giraffe!” These stills ensure that only the lightest and most delicate vapours make it to the condenser, thus resulting in lighter more delicate spirit. The distillery was converted from a brewery originally established on Morangie farm in the 1730. Rather than the more traditional dumpy pot stills, the founder installed a pair of 2nd hand gin stills in the distillery. Today’s stills are modeled on that design.

Glenmorangie also has a unique water supply. The distillery is fed by the Tarlogie Springs, which bubble up from a limestone aquifer, rather than the granite filtered water used by almost every other distillery in Scotland. These natural minerals give it its ‘hard’ water qualities and provide Glenmorangie with a raw ingredient unique amongst Highland distilleries.

Last but certainly not least, the distillery is famous for its Sixteen Men of Tain. Historically no more than 16 men worked at the distillery. As demand and production grew, there were never more than 16 men on shift at a time. Times have changed, and production techniques have changed too. There are many more than 16 men and women working at the distillery and for the brand today, at last count close to 400 (2004). The company now refers to the “Men of Tain”, craftsmen who make the whisky.

Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban– 46% – 12 Year – Matured in Bourbon Finished in Ruby Port – Andrew’s Tasting Note: “Nose: dried cherry and cranberry leap out of the glass; some musty old wood with dark chocolate, prune juice and cooked dates. Palate: big, nutty and wood; more dark chocolate with some firm old leather and sweet Cuban tobacco; the musty old wood is still there with some licorice nibs and decadent spice. Finish: medium-long and warming; the spicy oak holds on with a touch of chilli heat. Comment: I forgot how interesting this whisky is; I am not generally a fan of Port matured or finished whiskies, but this one is good! – $92 for 700ml – $11 for 50ml

Diageo Whisky Summit brings the best of Scotland to China

The second edition of Diageo’s annual China Whisky Summit took place on 17-18 November in Guangzhou.

The landmark two-day event brings together over 500 industry experts, scotch adorers and business partners to discuss and share whisky knowledge, trends and opportunities in a series of panels, workshops and tasting masterclasses.

Chinese consumers have a thirst for knowledge on scotch whisky and a desire to refine their appreciation of its heritage, provenance and craft credentials. The Summit is one of Diageo’s major initiatives to drive awareness about the scotch category and excitement about Diageo’s scotch portfolio in China.

£4 billion of scotch is shipped across the world each year, making it the UK’s biggest food and drink export. Testimony to the growing demand for scotch amongst Chinese consumers, scotch whisky exports to China grew by 45% to £27m in the first half of 2017 according to the Scotch Whisky Association. Tourism is another important part of the scotch whisky industry and last year 1.7m visits were made to distilleries in Scotland, with many coming from China.

The Whisky Summit is one of the most exciting and engaging immersive whisky experience ever hosted in China, showcasing all the whiskies from Diageo’s 27 distilleries in operation in Scotland. Visitors have the opportunity to take virtual tours of some of Diageo’s most iconic distilleries and attend masterclasses given by some of the world’s most renowned whisky experts like Jim Beveridge, Johnnie Walker Master Blender, Georgie Crawford, Lagavulin Distillery Manager and acclaimed whisky writers Charles MacLean and Dave Broom.

The third release in our series of special 10th Anniversary drams shall remain ‘Anonymous’. What we can reveal, is that this stunner of a dram, released under our Rare Casks Anon. banner is a peated malt, distilled in 1999 at a famous distillery on the Isle of Orkney and matured for 17 years in a refill sherry butt. Bottled a day before it’s 18th birthday and certainly come of age, the perfect marriage of peat and sherry!

Long story…bond, labels, wax… meant this latest Anon. release was due for launch at a later date, however we’ve managed to pull out all the stops and offer an early number of bottles in time for Christmas. Once we have word of the remaining bottles we will let you know!

Order Now!

Four Roses K&L Exclusive OBSV (8 Years Old, 8 Months) Single Barrel Cask Strength Bourbon Whiskey (750ml) $64.99 View

Four Roses K&L Exclusive OESK (10 Year Old) Single Barrel Cask Strength Bourbon (750ml) $64.99 View

Four Roses 8 Year 9 Month Old “K&L Exclusive OESQ” Single Barrel Cask Strength Bourbon (750ml) $64.99 View

Oban 18 Year Old “Limited Edition” West Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky (750ml) (Elsewhere $150) $119.99 View

Kavalan Solist “Sherry Cask – K&L Exclusive” Cask Strength Single Barrel Taiwanese Single Malt Whisky (750ml) (Elsewhere $300) $209.99 View

Ralfy gets upset with cosmetic compromise in Ralfy Review 702 – Auchentoshan 12yo @40%vol:(Re-reviewed 2017)

Bunnahabhain 1980 Canasta Cask Finish

A limited edition 36 year old whisky from Islay’s Bunnahabhain distillery, first filled to Oloroso sherry casks before being finished in sweet Canasta sherry casks. Only 1,200 bottles have been produced at a cask strength of 49.5% abv.

£1,800 Order Now

Orders will be dispatched week beginning 4th December

KWM Whisky Advent Day 8 – Gordon Macphail Glentauchers 1996

Glentauchers Distillery was established in 1898, at the height of a major boom in whisky production. There was a surge in distillery openings in the 1890s as global demand for Scotch whisky surged. The distillery was built out of granite by the prominent blender James Buchanan. As with many distilleries built around the turn of the 20^th century, the legendary Charles Doig was the architect.

The distillery’s production surged in the 1960s during the next major whisky boom, when two new pairs of stills were added to the first set. Even though it had been modernized just 20 years earlier, that was not enough to save the distillery from the industry downturn of the 1980s. Glentauchers was mothballed in 1985 and sold off by Diageo in 1989 to one of its competitors Allied Distillers. Allied reopened the distillery in 1992 with an intention of using the whisky in its Ballantine’s blends. Allied became a part of the Chivas Group in 2005.

Bottlings of Glentuachers single malt have been almost non-existent for most of its history, with the exception of the odd independent bottling. The one major exception to this is Gordon Macphail, who have had a long standing relationship with the distillery. Glentaucher’s is one of the many distilleries with which Gordon Macphail has an arrangement to bottle and sell semi-official bottlings, the Distillery Label range. A few Chivas Visitor Center bottlings have been released over the last few years. Early this fall it was announced that Chivas would be releasing Glentauchers 15 Year single malt for the first time, along with Glenburgie and Miltonduff.

About Gordon Macphail’s Distillery Range: “Building and nurturing long-lasting relationships has always been key to curating our collection of single malt whiskies. It’s our relationships from the Sherry bodegas in Jerez, Spain, and the American Oak cooperages in Kentucky – where we source casks of the finest quality – to those who distil the Scottish malt spirit – which we fill into our casks – that has helped shape our foundations and continue to develop the future of Gordon & MacPhail. The result of the mutual support and friendship with some of Scotland’s single malt producers means that Gordon & MacPhail has traditionally matured and bottled whisky from a collection of distilleries, releasing them with a ‘house’ label, unique to each distillery.”

“From the Orkney distillery of Scapa, through to Speyside classics such as Strathisla, Longmorn, and Glen Grant, our ‘Distillery Labels’ series showcases individual producers with whom Gordon & MacPhail has been working, sometimes for over a century. It was these trusted relationships which allowed us to be amongst the first companies to capture examples of the unique styles and individual production from a variety of Scotland’s single malt distilleries, bringing them to the consumer. The ‘Distillery Labels’ range dovetails into the ‘Rare Vintage’ collection, home to our exceptionally rare single malts also featuring the original historic distillery labels.”

Gordon Macphail Glentauchers 1996 – 43% – First Fill Sherry Butts – Bottled 2016 – Andrew’s Tasting Note: “Nose: fresh, creamy and very fruity; loads of melon, lemon merengue, lime zest and cream cheese icing; milk chocolate and palines. Palate: still creamy, honeyed and nutty; loads of soft vanilla with a back bone of soft leather and light but nutty sherry; more cream cheese icing with lemon zest, some tart grapefruit and lemon merengue; the melon tones are still there but the citrus and oak are in control. Finish: light and elegant with a good length; creamy and citrusy with floral tones. Comment: sadly this is an Advent Calendar exclusive, there are no bottles to be had; just as well, this is a tempting breakfast dram! – !!SOLD OUT!!

INNOVATIVE INCHDAIRNIE GOES BACK TO THE FUTURE  AS IT REVEALS ‘RYE WHISKY’ 

News of groundbreaking Ryelaw creation sees Fife distillery display its ability to innovate and heralds return of rye in Scotch whisky making

InchDairnie Distillery has underlined its innovative intentions with the news that its first release, Ryelaw, will be a groundbreaking ‘rye whisky’ that brings together elements of Scotch whisky and American rye whiskey.

Ryelaw, which is made with a high proportion of malted rye, the key component in American rye whiskey, and also malted barley, the key ingredient in Scotch whisky, is being distilled at the Fife Distillery on Friday 1 December and the following days. It will be filled into casks for maturation until it is judged to be ready for bottling, at which point it will be the first release from the ingenious distillery in Glenrothes, which opened in May last year.

The creation of Ryelaw marks what is believed to be the return of the use of rye in Scotch whisky for the first time in over 100 years, and the culmination of a meticulously developed year-long project at Inchdairnie.

Ryelaw is inspired by a discovery made by InchDairnie’s managing director Ian Palmer; the unearthing of evidence in the 1908/9 Royal Commission Report on Whisky and Other Potable Spirits that shows rye was historically commonly used to make Scotch whisky more than 100 years ago. He combined this finding with his desire to fuse whisky tradition with innovative technology and his forward-thinking approach.

Unique equipment, recipe and production

Ryelaw is unique in a number of ways. Firstly, it has been created using Inchdairnie’s unconventional mash filter, one of only two in Scotland, which is able to process the viscous rye grains, unlike the traditional mash tuns in most distilleries.

Secondly, its secret recipe, with its high proportion of malted rye, and the fact that it will be made and matured in Scotland, means that it will meet the legal definitions of both a Scotch whisky and an American rye whiskey. In America, rye whiskey must contain at least 51% rye.

Lastly, distillation will partly take place in the distillery’s bespoke Lomond Hill still*, which was installed alongside two traditional pot stills to provide the capacity to experiment and the ability to have greater control over shaping flavour. As a result, Ryelaw will be the first rye whisky ever to be distilled in a Lomond Hill still.

While it can be described in general terms as a ‘rye whisky’, Ryelaw will officially be categorised as a single grain Scotch whisky** made using malted rye. This is in line with The Scotch Whisky Regulations 2009, which define the five categories of Scotch whisky*** and state that distillers in Scotland can only make Scotch whisky. 

Pushing the boundaries of flavour

In keeping with the meticulous approach taken with the distillery’s design, choice of equipment and production processes, Ryelaw has been in development over the past year, with initial pilot distillation already having taken place in October.

Together with Palmer’s 40 years of production expertise and the experience of distillery manager Scott Sneddon, InchDairnie has developed Ryelaw with a number of partners including food and drink innovation consultants Campden BRI, malt specialists Muntons, and yeast producers AB Mauri. The rye is currently supplied by Muntons, while the next batch and future batches will be grown by a local Fife farmer.

Ryelaw will be matured in new American oak casks, with the combination of the malted rye and fresh wood designed to create a distinctive take on the full spicy flavour, which rye whisky is renowned for.

When it is released, Ryelaw will become part of the core range being created at the distillery that will include other innovative whiskies, and an InchDairnie Single Malt Scotch whisky, which is expected to be available in around 2029.

Of his decision to create a whisky using rye, Ian Palmer said: “Our intention with the distillery right from the start was to push the boundaries of flavour in whisky using a combination of our experience and new technology while remaining true to whisky’s traditions.

“Creating this ‘rye whisky’ is one of many experimental ideas we had in mind when we built the distillery and one of the reasons we chose to install specific equipment that others do not have such as the mash filter and Lomond Hill still.

“We’ve spent a year researching and developing this and now we’re incredibly excited to be ready to start distilling. Rye whisky aficionados and malt whisky lovers will have to wait a good few years before we are ready to bottle it though!”

www.inchdairniedistillery.com/ryelaw/

 @InchDairnieDist

* A Lomond Hill still is InchDairnie Distillery’s unique version of a traditional Lomond still. A Lomond Hill still (named after the hills behind Inchdairnie distillery) is a traditional pot still but it has distillation plates in the neck in the still before the lyne arm. These plates help to create the same flavour profile throughout distillation

** ‘Single’ because it is from one distillery; and ‘grain’ whisky because it is made with grain other than malted barley

*** The five categories of Scotch whisky:

1. Single malt Scotch whisky
2. Single grain Scotch whisky
3. Blended malt Scotch whisky (formerly called “vatted malt” or “pure malt”)
4. Blended grain Scotch whisky
5. Blended Scotch whisky

Notes:

• InchDairnie is operated by John Fergus & Co. Ltd
• John Fergus & was founded in 2011 by Ian Palmer and he is the managing director at John Fergus & Co Ltd.
• InchDairnie has been supported from a technical point of view by Mauri Yeast, Tatlock and Thomson, Speyside Cooperage and the company’s malt supplier Muntons

In case you missed it… Rebel Yell 10 Year Single Barrel was included in Whisky Advocate’s Top 20 Whiskies of 2017, coming in at no. 12 as one of only three bourbons included in the list. This prestigious list contains the highest ranked whiskies in the world – those that are best in class for their style and that generate excitement among the whisky community. 

In the magazine, Fred Minnick described his Rebel Yell 10 Year Single Barrel tasting experience as: “Stellar caramel and vanilla notes, then pure bliss, striking powerful mouth-coating notes of crème brulee’ with a beautiful pecan pie note on the finish.”  

Only 2,000 cases of Rebel Yell 10 Year Single Barrel Kentucky Straight Bourbon were released in 2017 – each bottle a unique experience and hand-bottled barrel by barrel.   

For more information on Rebel Yell and its product lineup, visit www.rebelyellbourbon.com. For more information on the brand’s loyalty program, Band of Rebels, fans can sign up at www.bandofrebels.com. @rebelyellbourbon