Rare wartime whisky wins gold packaging award

at The Spirits Design Masters 2017

Leading malt whisky specialist Gordon & MacPhail is celebrating winning Gold in the Scotch whisky category of The Spirits Design Masters 2017, one of the most respected and high profile trade competitions in the industry.

The design was conceived for the company’s exceptionally rare wartime single cask bottling which was released as part of the company’s ‘Private Collection’ range.

Every detail of Private Collection Glenlivet 1943 by Gordon & MacPhail alludes to the decades of experience and patience poured into nurturing the whisky to maturation. Launched in October 2017, it is one of the oldest and most exclusive single malt whiskies in the world.

Designed by Gordon & MacPhail, the whisky is presented in a bespoke handcrafted wooden box. The unique closure, a section of the meandering River Spey, represents both the journey through time and the physical journey of the cask from its place of birth at The Glenlivet Distillery to its final resting place in Gordon & MacPhail’s Elgin warehouses.

A four-tier oak wooden base is also dually symbolic. Four elements are used to create the whisky: water, barley, yeast, and wood. Four generations of the Urquhart family, owners of Gordon & MacPhail, nurtured this special cask for seven decades.

Taking centre stage inside the presentation box, atop the wooden base that also serves as an elevated plinth, sits the hand-blown bespoke decanter. Each individually numbered bottle is engraved and infilled with gold. The gold base and stopper have been engraved with the contour lines of the hills and glens surrounding The Glenlivet Distillery.

The inside of the box is lined with a plush lining, also engraved with contours. Nestled within is an eloquent and visually atmospheric commemorative book written by whisky author Jonny McCormick. Opposite lies a traditionally printed certificate of authenticity signed and numbered by Stephen Rankin, director and member of the Urquhart family.

Margaret Ho, Designer at Gordon & MacPhail, said: “We wanted to communicate the rarity and exclusivity of this incredible whisky through the packaging’s touchpoints. We also created an immersive and sensory experience before the consumer took their first long-anticipated taste. From the touch of the engraved contour lines to the sound of the decanter closure releasing the first delicious notes of the whisky inside, the packaging excites the full range of senses.”

Ian Chapman, Director of Marketing for Gordon & MacPhail, said: “This award is testament to the skills and dedication of our in-house design and wider team who worked incredibly hard to capture the unique essence and heritage of this rare single malt whisky.

“Laid down by the first and second generation of the Urquhart family and bottled by the fourth generation, this spirit has an incredible story to tell. Distilled when the world was in the midst of rationing and divided in conflict, whisky today is a wonderfully unifying drink and we wanted the packaging to communicate not only its exclusivity but also its journey through the past seventy years.”

Notes

Gordon & MacPhail

Gordon & MacPhail is a 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 maturing the finest and rarest Scotch whiskies.

Since its foundation, Gordon & MacPhail has carefully nurtured relationships with Scottish distillers. These included The Macallan, The Glenlivet, Glen Grant, Linkwood, and Mortlach in Speyside as well as a number of other distilleries from across Scotland. From the beginning, Gordon & MacPhail has carefully matched spirit to the highest quality oak casks. These casks are sent to distilleries throughout Scotland, filled with new-make spirit, and matured 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 1993 Gordon & MacPhail purchased Benromach Distillery and re-equipped it before it was officially opened by HRH Prince Charles in 1998. A four-star visitor centre is open to the public throughout the year for tours and tastings. Benromach distillery is a member of the world-famous malt whisky trail.

The Glenlivet Distillery

George Smith, founder of The Glenlivet Distillery, came from a long line of illicit distillers. In 1817, Smith leased land at Upper Drumin Farm where he continued the family tradition to supplement his crofter’s wage. In 1823, the Excise Act was pushed through Parliament championed by the Duke of Gordon – Smith’s landlord. Gordon not only persuaded Smith to take out the first licence in the parish of Glenlivet but he also contributed to the distillery build at Drumin. This distillery would produce a spirit that defined Speyside whisky of its day.

Due to the success and popularity of the Glenlivet Distillery, several distilleries in the region appended the name Glenlivet to their own. In 1884, a landmark decision ruled that only Smith’s single malt could call itself ‘The Glenlivet’.

WOOLF SUNG COLLECTION LAUNCHED ‘THE HUNTER’ – GLENGLASSAUGH 40 YEAR OLD

Fine wine and spirits merchant Woolf Sung Ltd are proud to announce the launch of the Woolf Sung Collection; a range of ultra-premium, independently bottled, single malt Scotch whisky aged for more than 25 years.

‘The Hunter’ is the inaugural release. A 40 year old Highland single malt distilled at the Glenglassaugh distillery in 1972, and bottled in 2013 at a cask-strength of 42.9%abv.

The label is a one-of-a-kind design and each is hand numbered. The bottle is beautifully presented in a stainless steel, black powder coated, bank vault case. Each case is embossed with Woolf Sung’s unique release number. Only 160 bottles have been produced of this wonderful whisky.

The aroma opens with an abundance of herbs, dried fruits and a hint of black pepper. With time, fresh apples give way to more robust notes of sherry and dark chocolate. On the palate notes of crab-apple and cinnamon present themselves, followed by more black pepper and plenty of rich oloroso sherry. Water brings zesty ginger, Seville orange marmalade and roast coffee beans. Finally, spicy oak and pearl barley contribute to a long, sumptuous finish.

These will soon be on sale at selected spirits retailers and directly from Woolf Sung Ltd at £950 (inclusive of VAT).

Website. woolfsung.

Kavalan “Fino Sherry Cask” Cask Strength Single Barrel Taiwanese Single Malt Whisky (750ml) SKU #1165852

The most prized possession in the Kavalan portfolio, the Fino Cask Solist utilizes sherry butts from the most restrained and elegant style of Jerez wine and puts them on the top floor of the Taiwan distillery’s warehouse, where the heat is at its most intense. Known as the “the church”, partly because the vaulted ceiling resembles a cathedral (and partly because miracles seem to happen inside the sherry butts resting in this room), the temperature reached inside this chamber helps to excrete more nutty, almond flavor out of the fino barrel and into the Kavalan single malt resting inside of it. A number of Scottish distilleries have used fino sherry butts in the past, but none were able to capture the essence of the sherry so intensely in their whiskies due to the colder aging conditions in Scotland. Taiwan, on the other hand, with its tropical climate has proved to be holy ground for this type of cask maturation. The Kavalan Fino is indeed heavenly. Rich and malty, with a turn towards salted caramel, toasted almond skins, toffee, and creme brulee, this is a side of sherry-aged whisky that we rarely ever see. Hedonistic and other-worldly, indeed. Bottled at 57% cask strength.

$459.99

Mark’s Whisky Ramblings 188 : Craigellachie 21 Year Old 1994 Sauternes Wine Cask Finish

Mark Dermul, Belgian whisky blogger, tries another wine finished malt. Craigellachie Distillery in the heart of Speyside produces primarily for the blending industry, so official bottlings are few and far between. Independents, however, have plenty to go around. Cadenhead released this 21 Year Old 1994 Sauternes Wine Cask Finish in 2015. Turns out to be one of Mark’s favorite Craigellachie malts to date.

https://youtu.be/NUHKnGmFO8w

KWM Whisky Advent 2017 Day 18 – Ardbeg Corryvreckan

The Ardbeg Corryvreckan has been my favourite whisky in the Ardbeg core range for the last decade, since it was introduced. That was until the Ardbeg An Oa was introduced just a few months ago. Now I’m torn, so here I sit, tasting the Ardbeg Corryvreckan again, to see if it is still my favourite whisky in the core range.

Ardbeg is one of a trio of Islay distilleries to mark their 200th birthdays over the last few years. The iconic Hebridean Island distillery has been on a tear for the last 17 years, and of all the Islay distilleries it has one of the strongest and most loyal cult followings of any distillery in Scotland. Look at the popularity of its annual Ardbeg Day releases (Kelpie, Dark Cove, Perpetuum and so on) if you need proof of this point. Or the sums people are willing to pay for older vintages like the 1974s, recently released Ardbeg 1815 or 17 year old expression. This makes it all the more striking when you consider that the distillery only operated intermittently from from 1981 through 1997, and it could easily have been demolished and lost forever!

Between 1885 and 1887 Alfred Barnard, a beer and whisky historian working for Harper’s Weekly Gazette, travelled across the United Kingdom visiting 162 distilleries (129 in Scotland, 29 in Ireland and 4 in England). He wrote about his experiences and each of the distilleries he visited in his still referenced work, The Whisky Distilleries of the United Kingdom. At the time of Alfred Barnard’s visit Ardbeg was the largest distillery on Islay, producing 1.2 million liters of spirit a year, only slightly less than its annual production today. The distillery first started as most of Scotland’s 18th and 19th century distilleries did as a farm. Although 1812 is the official founding date of the distillery there is some evidence it was operating as far back as 1794.

In 1888 the distillery was acquired by the Hay family in whose hands it would remain for nearly 100 years. In 1973 Hiram Walker acquired the distillery, and Ardbeg’s fortunes turned. The new owners started moving away from barley peated in their own maltings in favour of relying on commercial maltings like the nearby Port Ellen maltings. This shift was most notable in 1974, which is regarded as the benchmark vintage from the distillery. Sadly whiskies from this year are now rarer than hens teeth and commanding huge prices. The onsite maltings closed for good in 1977.

In 1981 Ardbeg was closed. Hiram Walker had a problem, the industry was in crisis, the various whisky companies had vastly overestimated future demand for whisky and there was a glut. Hiram Walker had two Islay disilleries, but they only needed one. That year Ardbeg was closed, while Laphroaig is kept open. In 1989 increasing demand prompted the firm to reopen Ardbeg, but it would only operate intermittently for the next 16 years. In 1996 the distillery is closed again and put up for sale. The next year Ardbeg’s fortunes finally turned for the better. The distillery was bought by Glenmorangie PLC and its iconic 17 Year and Provenance (1974) whiskies are released for the first time. Within a year of reopening the distillery has a visitor center and a new path forward opens up before it. Over the last decade Ardbeg fans have been patiently awaiting the release of older whiskies. It will likely be a few more years before we start seeing expressions like the Ardbeg 17 again, but the future is bright, with a touch of oily peat smoke!

The Ardbeg Corryvreckan is named for the dangerous natural whirlpool between the northern tip of the island of Jura and its neighbour Scarba. The whisky is bottled at a natural cask strength of 57.1% and has been matured predominantly in American oak for at least 10 years. The rest of the recipe is malt thathas been matured in Virgin French Oak Limousin casks. This is what gives the Ardbeg Corryvreckan its spicy profile.

Ardbeg Corryvreckan – 57.1% – Bottled August 21, 2017 – Matured in Ex-Bourbon & Virgin French Oak – Andrew’s Tasting Note: “Nose: thick with honey and cream, Irish soda bread, dried fruits and salted caramel; a touch of powdered sugar, juicy malt, apricot and ashy smoke; sweet marmalade, candied ginger, cardamom and ginger. Palate: big, rich, spicy, sweet and fruity; decadent, earthy and peated; massive spices: fennel, hot ginger, cinnamon and cardamom; juicy malt, firm earthy-oily peat and tar; sea salt, clean beach smoke and layers of fruit: oranges, melon and apricot. Finish: long, savoury, oily and coating; tarry peat and juicy malt linger long with sugars, spice and everything nice. Comment: this is a big peaty, maritime malt; a fine winter warmer, and still my favourite core Ardbeg.” – $120 for 700ml – or – $15 for 50ml

Diageo celebrates 20 year anniversary 

This weekend, Diageo plc, the maker of some of the world’s most iconic drinks including Johnnie Walker scotch, Smirnoff vodka, Tanqueray gin and Guinness stout is celebrating its 20^th anniversary.

Created on 17 December 1997, through the merger of Grand Metropolitan plc and Guinness plc, Diageo has become a global leader in beverage alcohol, with its products being sold in 180 countries.

Over the past 20 years Diageo’s share price has increased by 340%¹, market capital has grown 440%¹ and earnings per share (pre-exceptional items) are 220%² higher.

The milestone is being celebrated around the world by the company’s 30,400 employees. From a time capsule ceremony at Cardhu distillery in Scotland, the home of Johnnie Walker, to employees in Lagos, Nigeria and Sydney, Australia toasting the occasion with a dram of Johnnie Walker Black Label.

In London, to mark the celebration, Diageo’s Chief Executive, Ivan Menezes, along with the company’s talented team of Scotch Whisky Blenders and fellow members of the senior leadership team opened the market at the London Stock Exchange.

Ivan Menezes, Diageo Chief Executive said: 

“I am incredibly proud of what we have achieved over the past 20 years, which is testament to the commitment of our talented employees past and present.  Diageo is a young company created from the incredible entrepreneurial legacy of John Walker, Pierre Smirnoff, Charles Tanqueray, Arthur Guinness and many more – and this spirit continues today. 

“Our brands are part of celebrations globally every day, as we mark this milestone, it is not only the growth of our brands and business that I will be toasting, but the way we do business. We have made great strides in diversity and inclusion, minimising our environmental impact, our contribution to the communities where we operate and in our aim to reduce the harmful use of alcohol around the world.” 

E¹Percentages calculated comparing number from 17 December 1997 and 4 December 2017.

²EPS calculated using numbers from 30 June 1998 and 30 June 2017.

Key milestones  

• Diageo plc is created through the merger of Grand Metropolitan and Guinness. The company is listed on the London and New York stock exchanges in December 1997.
• In 2001, Diageo and Pernod Ricard acquired Canadian alcoholic beverages business Seagram’s. The acquisition brought Crown Royal Canadian whiskey and Captain Morgan rum into the Diageo brand family.
• Our Water of Life programme was launched in 2007, to provide safe drinking water and sanitation to people across Africa. Since launch, the programme has reached more than 10 million people in 21 countries.
• The Nolet Family and Diageo formed a new 50/50 company in 2008 to sell, market and distribute Ketel One vodka.
• In 2008, Diageo launched DRINKiQ, an online resource to arm consumers with the tools needed to make informed choices about drinking, including the decision not to drink.
• Diageo launches the Learning for Life skills programme in Latin America and the Caribbean in 2008. The programme now runs in more than 40 countries, and has reached more than 120,000 people.
• In 2011, Diageo became the first global company to own a majority stake in the fast growing Chinese White Spirits category through the acquisition of a controlling share of Shui Jing Fang.
• Diageo also acquired Mey Içki, the leading spirits company in Turkey in 2011.
• Diageo acquired Meta Abo Brewery in Ethiopia and Ypióca Cachaça in Brazil in 2012.
• In 2013, Diageo began its acquisition of United Spirits Limited in India.
• Diageo became the first alcohol beverage company to sign up to the UN Women’s Empowerment Principles in 2013.
• Diageo gained full control of Don Julio tequila in 2015.
• Diageo was named as one of the top 25 most diverse and inclusive companies in the 2016 Thomson Reuters Diversity and Inclusion index.
• In 2017, Diageo acquired the fast growing tequila Casamigos.
• Diageo announced its investment to bring back two lost distilleries, Port Ellen and Brora in October 2017.
• Diageo celebrated training 1 million responsible drinking ambassadors in 2017 and launched its Drink Positive campaign aimed at promoting moderation and tackling misuse. 

About Diageo 

Diageo is a global leader in beverage alcohol with an outstanding collection of brands including Johnnie Walker, Crown Royal, JεB, Buchanan’s and Windsor whiskies, Smirnoff, Cîroc and Ketel One vodkas, Captain Morgan, Baileys, Don Julio, Tanqueray and Guinness.

Diageo is a global company, and our products are sold in more than 180 countries around the world. The company is listed on both the London Stock Exchange (DGE) and the New York Stock Exchange (DEO). For more information about Diageo, our people, our brands, and performance, visit us at http://www.diageo.com/. Visit Diageo’s global responsible drinking resource, www.DRINKiQ.com, for information, initiatives, and ways to share best practice.

Celebrating life, every day, everywhere.

DIAGEO SECURES 5 MILLION PLEDGES NEVER TO DRINK AND DRIVE AND ANNOUNCES 50 MILLION PLEDGES AS NEW TARGET TO TACKLE DRINKING AND DRIVING 

14 December 2017: Diageo has secured over 5 million pledges never to drink and drive through its global programme Johnnie Walker #JoinThePact, beating its target a year ahead of its goal. Diageo also announces a tenfold increase in its next target, aiming to secure 50 million pledges by 2025 – with 2 million pledges already secured towards this goal thanks to recent activity in India.                                                             

Over 7 million adults have now signed the declaration never to drink and drive, which is supported by Johnnie Walker’s sponsorship of Formula 1 partnerships and fronted by former and current F1 drivers including Mika Häkkinen, Stoffel Vandoorne and Fernando Alonso.

Diageo started the #JoinThePact campaign in 2008 as part of its efforts to tackle drink driving around the world. The target of 5 million pledges has been reached early thanks to a global effort to secure pledges, with the #JoinThePact campaign already activated in over forty countries across five continents. From the heights of Nepal to the streets of Sao Paulo, the campaign has travelled the world raising awareness among consumers and encouraging millions to make a commitment never to drink and drive.

Mika Häkkinen, Johnnie Walker’s Global Responsible Drinking Ambassador, will visit London this week to celebrate reaching the target and kick off a festive push for pledges in the UK, including visiting the Houses of Parliament today to encourage MPs to sign up. Over the Christmas period, Diageo GB is partnering with Ei Group, a leading UK pub company, to encourage customers to make a pledge to never drink and drive and provide safe rides home over the festive period*. The activity is timed to support the Department for Transport’s annual THINK! road safety campaign.

Charles Ireland, General Manager, Diageo Great Britain, Ireland and France, said: “This is a busy time of year for our business and for the pubs that we work with across the country – however responsibility remains our number one priority. Our partnership with Ei Group will ensure the message to never drink and drive is seen by people as they are celebrating, and potentially deciding how to get home. We’re proud of our track record in tackling drink driving in the UK and around the world, but we are not complacent and are determined to do more.”

Paul Harbottle, Commercial Director, Ei Group, said: “We are dedicated to taking care of customers through responsible retailing and playing a positive role in the many communities where our publicans operate. Giving people a positive action they can take, like making a pledge never to drink and drive through #JoinThePact in return for a safe ride home, is a great way to engage people on an important issue like drink driving at this time of year. We’re delighted to be partnering with Diageo to share this important message.”

Earlier this month, #JoinThePact was launched in India, with activity taking place in Mumbai and Delhi. The Caparo T1, a two-seater supercar with Johnnie Walker responsible drinking branding, was driven by Mika Häkkinen in the streets of Delhi, to raise awareness for the campaign and promote responsible drinking – engaging the public, media and fans alike.

In Mexico, a #JoinThePact TV commercial was launched in October this year – the first time a branded responsible drinking advertisement has run on national television in the country. The Johnnie Walker film ‘Glass Car’, featuring Fernando Alonso, aired nationwide and throughout the Mexican Grand Prix.

Mika Häkkinen said: “It’s truly incredible that we have reached our target over a year early. I have been working on this campaign from the very beginning and it’s fantastic to see how we have reached people around the world, and I believe as a result made our roads safer. This is not the end, this job continues and we push forward to collect more pledges to never drink and drive and take #JoinThePact to new parts of the world.”

Carolyn Panzer, Director of Alcohol in Society at Diageo, commented: “Our ambitious new target of collecting 50 million pledges never to drink and drive through #JoinThePact shows our tireless determination to make progress on reducing drinking and driving. We believe that a single death caused by drinking and driving is one too many and each one can be prevented.”

Diageo has a long history of working to reduce alcohol-related fatalities and crashes and supports numerous drink drive prevention programmes around the world. These range from supporting high visibility enforcement through random breath tests to funding safe rides and free public transportation, and supporting laws to establish maximum blood alcohol concentration levels in countries where none exist.

In 2016, Diageo and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) signed a two-year partnership agreement to collaborate on the Sustainable Development goal of halving road traffic deaths. Together they have committed to reach approximately 6,000 government officials, young people, and other relevant stakeholders, through training workshops to improve road safety.

Notes 

*terms and conditions apply

About Diageo

Diageo is a global leader in beverage alcohol with an outstanding collection of brands including Johnnie Walker, Crown Royal, JεB, Buchanan’s and Windsor whiskies, Smirnoff, Cîroc and Ketel One vodkas, Captain Morgan, Baileys, Don Julio, Tanqueray and Guinness.

Diageo is a global company, and our products are sold in more than 180 countries around the world. The company is listed on both the London Stock Exchange (DGE) and the New York Stock Exchange (DEO). For more information about Diageo, our people, our brands, and performance, visit us at www.diageo.com. Visit Diageo’s global responsible drinking resource, www.DRINKiQ.com, for information, initiatives, and ways to share best practice.

Celebrating life, every day, everywhere.

About Ei Group plc

Ei Group plc is the UK’s leading pub company, with over 4,600 pubs across England and Wales. Founded in 1991, Ei Group plc’s purpose is to use its scale and expertise to help great pubs prosper at the heart of local communities.

We have a proud heritage in leased and tenanted pubs which is being strengthened by a flexible new strategy. The reinvigoration of the leased and tenanted estate will go hand in hand with the rollout of enhanced managed and commercial divisions to ensure that each Ei Group plc will continue to thrive at the heart of its local community. We are embracing change to help our Publicans run great British pubs and deliver shared success for all those associated with Ei Group plc.

Mark Your Calendars

8th Annual 

Canadian Whisky Awards Banquet

Thursday, January 18, 2018

Hotel Grand Pacific

Victoria, British Columbia

It’s that time of year again. Join your hosts, Heather Leary and I in Victoria B.C. to celebrate the best Canadian whiskies in the world. We would love to have you with us as we announce the top winning whiskies of the year. Tickets for the gala banquet and awards presentation may be purchased for $65 from James Burrough at the Hotel Grand Pacific. Your ticket includes music, entertainment, a gala awards ceremony and a full hot and cold buffet.

Reach James by e-mail at

jburrough@hotelgrandpacific.com

The Canadian Whisky Awards help keep the world talking about the very best Canadian whiskies.

Winners will be announced at the ceremony and through major press across Canada and the U.S.

We hope to see you in Victoria.

CTV Montreal’s Mutsumi Takahashi talks Canadian whisky.

Warm Welcome for Canadian Whisky

Second edition 

A whirlwind tour from Montreal to Vancouver to promote the second edition of Canadian whisky: The New Portable Expert made no fewer than 44 stops. Strong attendance at tastings, dinners, media events, a non-fiction literature festival, book stores and book signings confirm what we already know: Canadian whisky is having its moment.

Massive thanks to the whisky brands that made sure we had plenty to pour and talk about at each stop, to all who came out to chat and sip, and to Penguin Random House for ensuring every detail was taken care of.

Redblacks star Henry Burris quarterbacks a CTV session about Canadian whisky.

Escalator Tax Encourages Bootlegging

Anecdotal evidence suggests moonshine is making a a comeback in Canada. And it’s not the fun and often tasty white spirit some of Canada’s microdistillers are bottling to help keep the cashflow positive.

My experiences this year point to more and more off-the-grid distillers converting potatoes, apples, even deer feed into alcohol which they share with friends and sell surreptitiously. It’s profitable, and becoming more so as taxes drive the price of legally made spirits ever higher.

In my travels across Canada this fall I have been offered boot-leg spirit in four provinces. Occasional encounters in the past have become a deluge this year.

While I agree that as a luxury, alcoholic beverages should contribute more to the treasury than necessities, research shows that alcohol consumption is not “elastic.” As prices go up, consumption does not decrease, people just seek less expensive alcohol.

This unintended outcome is something legislators should keep in mind when determining how much to tax alcohol. Declining legal sales should not warm the hearts of health authorities or anti-alcohol advocates. They just as likely mean that more people are turning to illegal and unregulated sources. This not only reduces tax revenues, but puts people’s health at risk.

Automatic tax increases are not like automatic pay raises. At some point people are going to find ways to stop paying them.

Strong range of fall releases

Canadian whisky has been attracting a lot of notice this year with Canada 150 special releases. While the scrumptiously flavourful Canadian Club 40 year old and the Northern Border Collection Rare Releases got most of the attention, there have been some stellar new whiskies from other producers as well.

Forty Creek Heritage, the latest in Forty Creek’s tradition of special fall releases is a dazzling throwback to the long-lost and much-lamented Forty Creek Three Grain. It’s rich silky texture brings a broad and carefully balanced range of fruits, flowers, nuts & grains and barrel notes to the long and lusty palate. A must have.

For Crown Royal lovers in Ontario (and collectors around the globe) the world’s best selling Canadian whisky has a special new bottling called Blender’s Select. Well worth a trip to the LCBO, or of you live outside the province, a road trip.

Sour mash just leaps out of the bottle when you open another Ontario exclusive – Collingwood Double Barreled. Breaking the Canadian whisky mould, Double Barreled is made using a typical bourbon mash bill, with all the grains blended and then fermented together. It takes Canadian whisky flavours in a welcome new direction.  Highly recommended.

Wiser’s brilliant master blender, Dr. Don Livermore continues to stand Canadian whisky on its ear with his latest, Wiser’s 15. According to Dr. Don, this whisky reminds him of Wiser’s Deluxe 10 year old, another whisky we’ve long wanted to see revived. Good work, Doc!

And Canada’s microdistillers have joined the ranks of noteworthy new releases with Lohin McKinnon’s Wine Barrel Finished Single Malt, distilled and matured in Vancouver. Add to this Shelter Point Double Barreled Single Malt whisky and it has been a fall of spectacular new Canadian whiskies.

And speaking of whisky books…

The updated Canadian Whisky: The New Portable Expert is now in stores and with on-line sellers. This new, updated edition includes a visitor’s map showing every whisky distillery in Canada (over 40  of them!), over 100 new tasting notes with a birdwatchers’ checklist so you can tick them off as you sample them, coverage of Canada’s burgeoning microdistillery sector, new chapters on whisky flavours and how to taste them, and numerous updates throughout.

An Attention Grabbing, Limited Edition Single Barrel Rye Whistle Pig 10 Year Old “K&L Exclusive” Single Barrel Cask Strength (115.8 proof) Straight Rye Whiskey (750ml) ($89.99)

While I continue to field questions about the Whistle Pig “Boss Hog” 14 year old limited edition—the $500 bottle of rye that has everyone asking “is it really that good?”—I’ve found a few alternatives (four of them, actually) for those of you who like to keep your whiskey indulgences under $100. I’ve got four new single casks of 10 year old Whistle Pig that, in my opinion, are the most exciting single barrels of (North) American whiskey we’ve locked down this year. Hence, I’ve saved the best for last.

Here’s how it’s going to work. I’m only going to release a new cask once the previous one has sold through, so there will never be multiple barrels available at the same time. Each cask is very, very small. For example, the current barrel pictured above yielded less than 140 total bottles. Perhaps that explains the beautiful concentration of flavor in this 115.8 proof cask strength expression. The nose smells like classic rye, but it’s the initial sip that really stands out in this particular whiskey. It’s seductively sweet, not in a supple or viscous way, but rather the same way that a graham cracker is sweet. The sugar excites your tastes buds and perks up your palate, but it’s really just a side show for the wood, oak spices, and peppery rye character to work their collaborative magic. The mid-palate then gives way to Bourbon-like richness, maple notes, and burnt vanilla before finishing quite dry and spicy. If you’ve been jonesing for a new bottle of high proof rye, or a Handy/Kentucky Owl substitute, this will definitely do the trick. It’s a fantastic bottle of whiskey from front to back, destined to impress any serious fanatic, and we’re only on the first cask!

– David Driscoll, K&L Assistant Head Buyer

Whistle Pig 10 Year Old “K&L Exclusive” Single Barrel Cask Strength (115.8 proof) Straight Rye Whiskey (750ml) ($89.99)

David Driscoll | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: December 13, 2017

I think I’m going to look back at this string of Whistle Pig barrels years from now as some of the finest procurements of my spirits buying career. I remember being very excited when first tasting through a number of 10 year selections, but tasting this 115.8 proof barrel again I’m overwhelmed by the concentration of flavor. It’s simply delightful whiskey, in the way that I remember rye and Bourbon tasting ten years ago when I first started: full of sweet oak flavor, nuanced and distinct, of a quality that clearly stands above the standard $20 bottle of Bulleit or Rittenhouse. In a world where Thomas Handy rye is considered the best whiskey in the world by some, I’d make a case for these Whistle Pig cask strength editions. They are older, equally as potent, and simply gorgeous from front to back. This will be the first of four barrels I’ve locked down and once people try this cask I’m expecting all of them to come back for each subsequent release. It’s that good.

KWM Whisky Advent 2017 Day 17 – Bunnahabhain 12 Year 

Words by Evan Eckersley

Bunnahabhain Distillery is the northernmost distillery on Islay – it lays off the beaten path and is somewhat remote even when compared to the rest of the island. Until the 1960s when they finally built a road to the distillery it was only reachable by boat. Bunnahabhain is one of a trio of Scottish Single Malt Distilleries owned by Burn Stewart (Distell Group), who also own Tobermory Distillery on the Isle of Mull and Deanston Distillery in Perthshire. Like it’s siblings, most of the flagship single malts from Bunnahabhain are bottled unchill-filtered and with no added colouring at the the curious but commendable strength of 46.3% ABV.

This Islay distillery was founded in 1881 and started its life making the heavily peated whisky that the region is famous for. For most of its history its whisky was exclusively used in blends, and even today only a fraction of its production is bottled as a single malt. In 1963 production was increased and at the same time the distillery’s style was changed to the lighter, unpeated single malt whisky it is known for today. Since 1997 there have been small amounts heavily peated (35 PPM malt spec) single malt made each year but it is not what the distillery is known for.

The core of Bunnahabhain’s production and lineup is still not all that peaty as they use a malt spec with a maximum phenolic level of 2ppm. This makes it one of the more gently peated Islay single malts available. The distillery and its whisky are sometimes referred to as the “Gentle Giant of Islay!” What it lacks in smoke and peat it typically makes up for in nuanced and complex character and plenty of sherry cask influence. Older Bunnahabhain tends to be a treat if you can track it down but today let’s partake an introduction to the distillery’s finesse with the Bunnahabhain 12 year old. Bottled at 46.3% ABV.

Bunnahabhain 12 Year – 46.3% – Evan’s Tasting Note: “Nose: Christmas cake. Big sherry cask with dried fruits, salted caramels, and new leather coming through. Black pepper, raisins, dates, dark, dark italian panforte with plenty nuts and fruit in the mix, dark chocolate, well-stocked humidor and even hints of coffee grounds and liquorice. Palate: Rich and mouth coating with some spices and saltiness. Dried blueberries, fruit leather, christmas cake, chocolate covered berries and raisins, hints of nutmeg, salty black liquorice, ground black pepper, heavily steeped black tea, and hints of bitter coffee. Finish: It ends how it begins – with christmas cake, black liquorice, salt and mild spice notes. Comment: It has been a while since I have sampled the Bunna 12 year. I love the 18 year but it is good to be reminded of how well put-together this 12 year is – especially given the price.” – $75 for a 700ml – or – $10 for a 50ml