Trip to Taiwan – part 3/3

By Mark Dermul, Belgium

Apart from being a whisky blogger and vlogger, Mark Dermul from Belgium also works part time as whisky expert for the auction platform Catawiki. In that capacity he was recently sent – together with two colleagues – to Taiwan on a whisky business trip.

This is his report.

Part 3 of 3.

Whisky Bars

Doing business in Taiwan is mired in cultural do’s and don’ts. Luckily, the Taiwanese people are very open, honest, welcoming and forgiving, so we did not worry too much. But a lot of business starts with a meal, continues in a bar and is concluded with some karaoke, it seems. We had lots of fun. Allow me to point out a few bars of interest that we visited.

Backyard Jr is a lovely little whisky bar (little to be taken with a grain of salt for their range is eye-watering) in the famous Breeze Center near the famous Taipei 101 shopping center.

I unfortunately did not note the name of the karaoke bar, but we were treated to Balvenie 21 Year Old and the Taiwan exclusive Macallan Aera. Very nice.

The aforementioned whisky bar in the Hotel Kuva Chateau is a must-visit if you are in Taoyuan. Their whisky list of over 2.000 open bottles is very well organized. Every bottle has a code, to help the bartender locate it in the bar that comprises some four walls.

In Taichung, you have a grand view of the city from the Lounge One bar on the 29^th floor of one of the modern skyscrapers that dot the city skyline. A life band of jazz musicians entertains while you sip your favorite malt or bourbon. I had a Glen Ord 18 and Bunna XXV.

Apart from these whisky bars, where we enjoyed a few great sips, the best drams were had while visiting some collectors (who by now have become friends). While they will not be named for privacy reasons, I can say I’ve had some of my most amazing whisky’s in their den. A shortlist, if you’ll allow me:

• Macallan 25yo (b 1980s)
• Springbank 1966 (b 1997)
• Macallan 14yo Moon Import (b 1980s)
• Rosebank 1967 Signatory (b 1998)
• JJ&S Liqueur Dublin Whisky (b 1960s)
• Glen Scotia 8 Year Old (b 1950s)
• Port Ellen 14 Year Old 1979 Wilson & Morgan (b 1993)
• Caol Ila 15 Year Old The Manager’s Dram (b 1990)
• Lagavulin 13 Year Old 1979 Wilson & Morgan (b 1993)
• Laphroaig 10 Year Old Bonfantimport (b 1970s)
• Talisker 1955 Gordon & Macphail (b 1992)

Nuff said…

Sightseeing

All this beautiful liquid would almost make you forget that Taiwan is also a beautiful country in its own right with many sights to see.

People who know me, know that I am not one to be dumbfounded easily. But when visiting the monuments and temples in Taiwan, I have to admit, I was truly humbled. Not just by the buildings, but also by what they signify, the people who pray in them and were very inviting, the fantastic gardens and parks.

I was impressed with the Shing Tien Kong Temple (Five Saviours), the Dalongdong Baoan Temple and mostly with the Confucius Temple. The Square of Democracy with the Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall is just stunning. Goosebumps, anyone?

Tapei is a bustling city that captivates, especially at night (it is a city that never sleeps), while Taichung was more open, less busy and thus actually – to me – more enjoyable. But one thing is for sure… I am definitely in love with Taiwan and its people and hope to one day return here.

After a week – that truly seemed much shorter – in Tawain, I can honestly say that we did good business, made plenty of new friends, had the best food ever, drank liquid history and to top it all off, I was able to pick up two new bottles of Auchentoshan at the airport. Ha! This trip was perfect.

I would like to extend my sincere thanks to Mr Wang and his staff, Mr Hsien, Mr Lin, Ms Lin, Mr C and all the staff at both the Landis, Tempus and Kuva hotels for their gracious generosity and hospitality. You have made this trip one that will be long remembered. Xièxiè!

I also wish to thank my colleagues at Catawiki for the opportunity to travel to Taiwan.

Last but not least I would like to thank my better half Sofie, who continues to support me in all my crazy whisky and other adventures. Thank you, sweetheart.

May the Malt be with you!

The 1st part was published on February 17th and the 2nd and February 24th.

Irish Whiskey for St. Patrick’s Day ~ Kilbeggan Small Batch Rye

What makes Kilbeggan Small Batch Rye noteworthy? 

• RYE!! Paying tribute to the golden age of Irish whiskey in the late-1800s, this is the only modern Irish whiskey of record to feature such a high quantity of rye within its mash: a mash of malt, barley, and approximately 30% rye*.

• Double distilled to 86 proof in Kilbeggan’s copper pot stills – one of which is the oldest working whiskey pot still in the world today – Kilbeggan Small Batch Rye is the first of its kind in today’s market.

• It is the first whiskey 100% distilled and matured at the Kilbeggan Distillery, Ireland’s oldest continually licensed distillery, to be released since its restoration was completed in 2010.

• Although Kilbeggan Small Batch Rye was conceived as a pot still Irish whiskey, it breaks the technical definition of “pot still,” which is: a mashbill that is at least 30% malted barley, at least 30% unmalted barley, and no more than 5% of any other cereal. Since this whiskey is comprised of 30% rye and exceeds the 5% limit, even though it is distilled in copper pot stills, it cannot technically be called a pot still Irish whiskey. However, it displays many of the same characteristics of traditional pot still Irish whiskey, such as its spicy flavor and creamy texture, which are accentuated even further by the rye.

*History lesson – back in the late-1800s, many large Irish distillers used rye in their mashes. However, this spicy grain virtually disappeared from the Irish Whiskey category around the time of Prohibition and the Irish War of Independence.

As we celebrate St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, we also celebrate the spirit of the Kilbeggan community, who unwavering dedication and perseverance has kept the distillery alive for more than 260 years.

While we like to enjoy Kilbeggan Small Batch Rye neat due to its mellow and spicy character, this March 17^th, we’ll be toasting St. Patrick and the Kilbeggan community with the Kilbeggan Rye Old Fashioned: 2 parts Kilbeggan® Rye, 2 dashes aromatic bitters, and a bar spoon of simple syrup or cinnamon syrup. Combine ingredients in a mixing glass, add ice, and stir briefly. Serve over a large ice cube and garnish with a sprig of rosemary.

Double distilled and matured in Ireland’s oldest continually licensed distillery, Kilbeggan® Small Batch Rye is an innovation that pays tribute to the golden age of Irish whiskey. Kilbeggan Distilling Company celebrates the limited-edition release of Kilbeggan®Small Batch Rye, the only modern Irish whiskey of record to feature such a high quantity of rye within its mash.It is the first whiskey 100% distilled and matured at the Kilbeggan Distillery to be released since its restoration was completed in 2010.Each bottle is a testament to the spirit of the Kilbeggan community, whose unwavering dedication and perseverance have kept the distillery alive for more than 260 years.“Following the restoration of the Kilbeggan Distillery, the oldest licensed distillery in Ireland, our team was inspired to create this remarkable whiskey rooted in Irish distilling heritage,” says John Cashman, Beam Suntory Global Brand Ambassador, Irish Whiskey. “It is a truly unique spirit, featuring a rare mash that has produced aflavor unlike anything available today.” Featuring a mash of malt, barley, and approximately 30% rye, this whiskey hearkens back to the late-1800s, when many large Irish distillers used rye in their mashes. However, this spicy grain virtually disappeared from the Irish Whiskey category around the time of Prohibition and the Irish War of Independence. Double distilled to 86 proof in Kilbeggan’s copper pot stills–one of which is the oldest working whiskey pot still in the world today–Kilbeggan®Small Batch Rye is the first of its kind in today’s market. Due to the nature of its mash, the flavor profile of Kilbeggan Small Batch Rye is notably softer than familiar American rye whiskies. The combination of rye, malt and barley produces an oily, viscous, creamy whiskey, bristling with rye and barley spice. As both Irish whiskey and rye whiskey enjoy a resurgence, Kilbeggan Small Batch Rye is a true innovation within both categories, with a smooth, spicy flavor profile sure to excite whiskey drinkers and cocktail enthusiasts alike.Due to its mellow and spicy character, Kilbeggan® Small Batch Rye is best enjoyed neat. If using this whiskey in a cocktail, we recommend an Old Fashioned: 2 parts Kilbeggan® Rye, 2 dashes aromatic bitters, and a bar spoon of simple syrup or cinnamon syrup. Combine ingredients in a mixing glass, add ice, and stir briefly. Serve over a large ice cube and garnish with a sprig of rosemary.

Kilbeggan Small Batch Rye, 43% alc./Vol. It joins the U.S. portfolio along side permanent expressions Kilbeggan®Blended Irish Whiskey (40%ABV) and Kilbeggan®Single Grain Irish Whiskey(43% ABV). KILBEGGAN®SMALL BATCH RYE| 43% ABV AROMA Soft green fruits combine with a rich creamy aroma and give way to white pepper, citrus,and soft ginger spices TASTE Beautiful warming mouthfeel of textured vanilla cream, floral spice, clove,and forest sorrel, building to a crescendo of warm spice and biscuit dryness FINISH Immensely long and nuanced, thick buttery coating with a return to the vanilla and a spicy, oily coating that remains long after the finish

About Beam Suntory Inc. As the world’s third largest premium spirits company, Beam Suntory is Crafting the Spirits Brands that Stir the World.Consumers from all corners of the globe call for the company’s brands, including the iconic Jim Beam and Maker’s Mark bourbon brands and Suntory whisky Kakubin, as well as world renowned premium brands including Knob Creek bourbon, Yamazaki, Hakushu and Hibiki Japanese whiskies, Teacher’s, Laphroaig, and Bowmore Scotch whiskies, Canadian Club whisky, Courvoisier cognac, Hornitos and Sauza tequila, EFFEN and Pinnacle vodka, Sipsmith gin, and Midori liqueur.Beam Suntory was created in 2014 by combining the world leader in bourbon and the pioneer in Japanese whisky to form a new company witha deep heritage, passion for quality, innovative spirit and commitment to Growing for Good. Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, Beam Suntory is a subsidiary of Suntory Holdings Limited of Japan.For more information on Beam Suntory, its brands, and its commitment to social responsibility, please visit www.beamsuntory.comand

Benromach 39 Year Old

1977 vintage single sherry cask of the Speyside single malt. Limited release of 225 bottles. Benromach 39 Year Old 1977 vintage Speyside single malt Scotch whisky. Single cask Refill American hogshead #1268 released 2017. 225 bottles. Presented in a bespoke wooden box, made in oak, and designed to reflect the colour of the wooden washbacks at Benromach Distillery. AROMAS WITHOUT WATER… enjoy the vibrant notes of sweet honey, apricot conserve, orange zest and butterscotch, mingling with developing hints of toasted oak and a delicate menthol edge. Now take a sip. Savour the sweetness leading to a touch of pepper on the tongue followed by notes of ripe banana and luscious passion fruit. Citrus undertones and dried tobacco mingle with toasted oak leading to a fresh menthol finish. Add A FEW DROPS OF WATER and take time to enjoy the nose as it develops… sweet, subtle coconut and exotic fruits combine with ginger and lime aromas. Now lift it to your lips and enjoy a slow sip… a smooth sweetness emerges with warm bursts of white pepper and overtones of pear, kiwi and lime. Finally, dried tobacco and a trace of toasted oak on the finish. Exquisite.

Benromach Distillery was designed by Charles C. Diog and constructed at Forres in the Speyside whiskey region for D. McCallum and F.W. Burickman in 1898. Following numerous periods of closure, it was purchased in 1993 by < b>Gordon & MacPhail who charged up its single pair of stills in 1998 and have nurtured Benromach ever since. Striking new labeling combined with an increasing range of single malts is forging a very popular brand of single malt whiskies which includes Benromach Organic, Benromach Peatsmoke and Benromach 10 Year Old.

Shop $1,342.42

Saturday, March 16th 12-4PM

St Patrick’s Weekend

 Irish Whiskey Tasting 

Friends don’t let friends drink green beer! The Whisky Shop continues our St Patrick’s Day weekend tradition in 2019 with an Irish Single Malt tasting, featuring the historically inspired Knappogue Castle single malt. Made with pure Irish spring water and malted barley, Knappogue Castle Single Malt is famously smooth and flavorful, with some of the rarest and oldest commercially available Irish whiskies to date in their highly sought after portfolio.

More Details & RSVP

Glendronach Grandeur Batch 10 27 Year Old

This limited edition is the 10th release the GlenDronach Grandeur series. Consisting of hand-selected Pedro Ximenez and Oloroso sherry casks from some of the distillery’s rarest stocks, this 27-year-old expression has been bottled at a strength of 50.1% abv. Only 2,293 bottles have been produced, each one individually numbered.

Described by Master Blender Rachel Barrie as ‘a symphony of depth and mellow maturity, reminiscent of times gone by. With layers of damson plum, black walnut and truffle on a bed of antique leather and old-fashioned treacle gingerbread, Batch 10 celebrates the robust, full-bodied style of The GlenDronach Distillery.’

£499.00 – Buy Now

Learn more here

ralfy.com talks An Cnoc

https://youtu.be/go-p7Igwc5I

EXCEPTIONAL, RARE SCOTCH WHISKY BLEND BELIEVED TO CONTAIN LEGENDARY MALT MILL SINGLE MALT UP FOR AUCTION

PERTH, SCOTLAND – An exceptionally rare bottle of blended Scotch whisky that is likely to contain the near mythical Malt Mill single malt is set to go under the hammer in an online auction being held by Perth-based Whisky Auctioneer (www.whiskyauctioneer.com) and is expected to fetch over £5,000.

Mackie’s Ancient Brand Scotch Whisky takes its name from the infamous Sir Peter Mackie, once proprietor of Lagavulin distillery, and agent for neighbours, Laphroaig. After losing the contract for the latter, he built an exact replica on the grounds of Lagavulin, designed to precisely replicate the output of Laphroaig. This distillery was Malt Mill.

Dating from the 1940s, before the distillery closed in 1962, this bottle was imported to the US market by Browne Vintners Company, NY. Just how much Malt Mill could appear in the blend is impossible to say, but the bottle offers a singularly unique opportunity to potentially own whisky from a legendary lost Islay distillery.

The legend of Malt Mill was bolstered further by the 2012 Ken Loach film, The Angels’ Share, where a single fictitious cask of Malt Mill played a starring role.

Joe Wilson, whisky content expert at Whisky Auctioneer, said: “We are excited to feature this incredibly special bottle in our current auction. Almost all the whisky produced at Malt Mill went into blends, namely White Horse and Mackie’s, with examples exceptionally rare and highly prized. We expect to see a huge amount of interest in this vintage gem from whisky collectors across the world.”

The auction goes live on Friday 22 February and will close on Monday 4 March.

Listing (live from lunchtime 22 February): https://whiskylink.co/mackies

For more information on auctions or to register to participate in the next auction please visit: www.whiskyauctioneer.com

NOTES

Available for interview: Iain McClune, Managing Director, Whisky Auctioneer

Additional Information

1. Whisky Auctioneer specialises in auctioning whisky, whether it be fine, old, rare, collectable or affordable.
2. Formed in 2013 and based in Perth, central Scotland, Whisky Auctioneer aims to be the most comprehensive website available for the buying and selling of whisky.
3. Whisky Auctioneer holds regular monthly online auctions as well as specialist auctions for collectible whiskies and exclusive releases.
4. To buy or sell on the Whisky Auctioneer website, an account must be first set up here: https://www.whiskyauctioneer.com/register
5. Social Media Handles:
   1. twitter: @whisky_auction
   2. facebook: @WhiskyAuctioneer
   3. web: whiskyauctioneer.com

Some more of our favourite sherry casks

Mortlach 20 Year old Cowie’s Blue Seal

This 20-year-old Speyside single malt comes from the new Mortlach range, launched in 2018. Known as ‘the Beast of Dufftown’, Mortlach is distilled 2.81 times in a complicated process referred to simply as ‘The Way’. This single malt is dubbed ‘Cowie’s Blue Seal’ in tribute to one of the original Mortlach bottlings dating back to 1909. Matured exclusively in American oak ex-sherry casks and bottled at a strength of 434.4% abv, this expression has waxy notes of overripe fruits, oak and wood spice.

£200.00 – Buy Now

Learn more here

Tamdhu 30 Year Old Platinum Old & Rare

Distilled at Speyside’s Tamdhu distillery in July 1987, this single cask bottling from Hunter Laing & Co.’s Platinum Old & Rare Selection has been matured in a single sherry butt for three decades. Bottled in July 2017 free from chill-filtration and without articial colouring, only 533 bottles have been produced at a natural cask strength of 53.9% abv. The nose has orange marmalade and candied sweetness with a touch of apricot. The palate brings dried fruits with subtle spices and rich smooth toffee alongside massive sherry notes. The finish has more complex fruits and a developing sweet note atop a hint of honey.

£250.00 – Buy Now

Learn more here

Glendronach Grandeur Batch 10 27 Year Old

This limited edition is the 10th release the GlenDronach Grandeur series. Consisting of hand-selected Pedro Ximenez and Oloroso sherry casks from some of the distillery’s rarest stocks, this 27-year-old expression has been bottled at a strength of 50.1% abv. Only 2,293 bottles have been produced, each one individually numbered. Described by Master Blender Rachel Barrie as ‘a symphony of depth and mellow maturity, reminiscent of times gone by. With layers of damson plum, black walnut and truffle on a bed of antique leather and old-fashioned treacle gingerbread, Batch 10 celebrates the robust, full-bodied style of The GlenDronach Distillery.’

£499.00 – Buy Now

Learn more here

Author’s Series Tormore 1988 Frederick Douglass

Part of the First Editions Authors’ Series of single cask releases from independent bottler Hunter Laing & co, this 28 year old Speyside single malt was distilled in November 1988 and matured in sherry butt HL14253. Bottled in October 2017 at a natural cask strength of 54.1% abv, only 244 bottles have been produced, each one presented in a handsome leather case emblazoned with gold lettering. A rich amber coloured whisky, this long-aged Speysider has spent its life in a second-fill European oak sherry butt.

£400.00 – Buy Now

Learn more here

Saturday, March 9th, 2:30-5:30PM 

Paul John Indian Whisky 

Take a sip of the soul of India! The Great Indian single malt whisky John Paul will be featured at this expert presented tasting. Distilled in the valley of Goa, India, John Paul whiskey is traditionally made in copper-pot sills without artificial colors, flavors, or chill-filtration.  Each expression begins with a mash made from heritage barley harvested in the foothills of Himalayas. Paul John’s whiskies have received multiple international awards, receiving Gold from both World Whisky and Wizards of Whisky Awards. 

More Details & RSVP

Blair Athol 11 Year Old 2007

Matured in two hogsheads and bottled in November 2018 by Signatory Vintage for the Highland series. A big, bold example of Highland malt whisky. Blair Athol 11 Year Old 2007 vintage Highland single malt Scotch whiskey. Matured in hogsheads #2288 & #2292 bottled November 2018 by Signatory Vintage for the Highland series.

Blair Athol Distillery was established in 1798 in Pitlochry and with footprints in four centuries it is one of oldest working malt whisky distilleries in Scotland. Purchased by Arthur Bell & Sons in1933 it is the spiritual ‘home’ of Arthur Bell’s range of blended scotch whisky complete with distillery visitor centre and Blair Athol Distillery tours. Although a large proportion of Blair Athol’s malt whisky cascades into blends, Bell’s to be precise, independent bottlings of Blair Athol single malts feature in the popular Connoisseurs Choice and Signatory Vintage ranges.

Shop – Blair Athol 11 Year Old – $39.67