The details we await…………..we’ll have to wait until next week, Phil is having technical issues….

BLACKS BREWERY & DISTILLERY KINSALE MOVE ONTO THE NEW PHASE OF WHISKEY FOUNDERS CLUB

Blacks Brewery and Distillery. Sam & Maudeline Black…..there is no stopping this pair who already have their eyes firmly on their next endeavour – the whiskey market. Always looking for a unique angle, and bringing creativity to their business, be that in the form of seasonal craft beer recipes, production methods or eye-catching packaging, Maudeline & Sam wanted to make their whiskey journey special too. They have achieved this by opening up their business to other whiskey enthusiasts who wish to share in their passion with the Blacks Whiskey Founders Club.

Already boasting over 100 members, the Blacks Whiskey Founders Club gives whiskey lovers the opportunity to purchase their own cask of whiskey, starting from €6,500. This club allows members to create their very own personalised and branded whiskey, with a cask expected to deliver over 397 bottles of pot still single malt Irish whiskey, or to use this as an investment opportunity and after the five-year maturation period sell back their cask to Blacks. This buy-back scheme will generate a minimum 4% annually compounded (approx. €280 per year per cask) return on a members initial investment.

Phase one of this €1million project has now been completed, the installation of two copper whiskey stills. With the club still open for new members to join, and with lots of different cask options to choose from for example ex bourbon, sherry or port, the next key date in the diary is the first annual Blacks Whiskey Founders Club party, which is set to take place on Friday 18th September. This annual event gives members an opportunity to network and check in on their whiskey, becoming an actively engaged part of the distilling process. During the day members will have a choice of some social activities such as golfing and a Kinsale Harbour sailing trip,  while in the afternoon there will be tours of the distillery and brewery, with lots of spirit and beer tasting.

Speaking in relation to the Blacks Whiskey Founders Club , Sam Black commented, ‘This really is a unique opportunity for whiskey enthusiasts, who otherwise would not be in a position to produce whiskey alone. It was my passion for brewing and my wifes support that gave me the push to open Black Brewery & Distillery and I want to share that experience with others. Some of our members who have already joined plan to bottle and label their whiskey to gift to family, friends, as corporate client gifts and to sell some on the secondary whiskey market, while for others its an investment opportunity, but one in which they to play an active role in also creating a piece of our famous Irish whiskey heritage. The next few weeks mark a huge milestone in this project as the actual whiskey production begins. I look forward to watching our club grow, adding more people to the Blacks family and getting to meet a lot of these face to face at our annual get-together.’

Blacks Brewery and Distillery are among some of the lucky businesses who have been able to adapt their operations processes in order to remain functioning safely through this Covid19 pandemic. Not only are they still supplying beers and spirits to off-licenses and supermarkets across the country, but they are also playing their part in trying to fight this virus and support the community, with the production of much needed hand sanitiser. Despite their online sales increasing over the last month and sales staff required to focus their efforts here, Maudeline and Sam were still adamant that they were going to use their resources to help, and therefore redeployed members of their sales team, who would have primarily focused on on-trade pubs and restaurants.

Sales staff are now helping in the distillery to bottle and label hand sanitizer. This supply of hand sanitiser is being split between charities, such as Cork Simon and local Kinsale volunteers, and consumers. In addition to charity drops and for consumers through retail stores, when placing online spirit orders through the Blacks website consumers receive free sanitiser and one is also donated to a charity group in their name. Now that the new copper whiskey stills are installed they will also play a role in this sanitation process, as before whiskey production begins in the coming weeks the stills must undergo a cleaning run in manual mode with vinegar, followed by a sacrificial alcohol run which will also be transformed into hand sanitiser.

Commenting on the new edition to their production line Sam Black said, ‘We consider ourselves very fortunate to still be in a position to stay open and meet the demand of customers. It is a very hard time for the entire Irish community and we just wanted to play our part, no matter how small in helping during this crisis. When we became aware of the huge shortage of hand sanitiser for those on the frontline we realised we were in a unique position to be able to assist, and so we quickly went about altering our production process to start manufacturing and getting this into the hands of those who need it.’

To find out more about how to become a member of the Blacks Whiskey Founders Club www.blacksbrewery.com. You can also contact Paul, a member of the Blacks team at paul@blacksbrewery.com or stay connected online at Instagram/blacksbrewery Instagram/blacksdistillerykinsale, Twitter @BlacksBrewery or Facebook/BlacksOfKinsale

We may not be gearing up for a month of whisky festivals like we’d planned this May but here at the Society, we still have a jam-packed whisky schedule to keep us entertained for the coming month. To get us excited for what’s in store, we’re inviting to you to go wild with our five specially selected preview bottlings from the May Outturn, full of big, bold flavours to perk up your mood.

Only a limited number of preview bottles are available ahead of the full Outturn release at 9am, Friday, 1 May. Order now to be the first to get your hands on these colourful characters.

PREVIEW BOTTLINGS                                    SEE ALL BOTTLINGS

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

Founded by the Nelstrop family in 2006, The English Whisky Co. built the beautiful St George’s Distillery specifically to make the very finest whiskies. Notable for being the first English whisky distillery for over a century, the site is perfectly suited to the production of whisky, having access to an abundance of locally grown barley, and fresh, clear water from the Breckland aquifer that lies 50 feet beneath the distillery.

This forward thinking distillery produce both peated and unpeated single malts, including a multitude of small batch bottlings that display an innovative and experimental approach to whisky making and maturation. They also produce a range of grain whiskies and liqueurs under “The Norfolk” brand.

BROWSE OUR FULL THE ENGLISH WHISKY COMPANY RANGE HERE

Discover the famous whisky from one of Japan’s most renowned distilleries. Don’t miss our new video series filled with Japanese Whisky, comedy, music and more whisky. Watch now.

Dekanta

2-49-7 Minamiikebukuro Toshima-ku, Tokyo,

Diageo North America Pledges More Than $4 Million to the Bar and Restaurant Community

With hospitality workers facing unprecedented challenges from the impact of COVID-19, Diageo North America commits more than $4 million to support in their time of need

Look at what your good taste has gotten us! We hope this note finds you in good health and with good spirits, pun intended. While this year is off to a strange start, we wanted to share some good news with you about the bottles you have come to love. Recently, our brands outperformed in the prestigious San Francisco World Spirits Competition.

PEAT PROVED ITS PALATE-PLEASING POWER

KILCHOMAN KILLED IT

Everyone who got a taste of the extremely limited edition U.S. Exclusive Small Batch #1 knew it was a winner.  Whisky Advocate rated it a 92 points very quickly, and the demand for it skyrocketed.  Now that it has won a
Double Gold medal from this prestigious competition, whatever’s left on the shelves is going to fly off of them soon, we anticipate.  Luckily Small Batch #2 will be here by the end of the month, and we hope it will please peat-seeking palates just like the previous one!

PORT ASKAIG PROVES AGAIN

There are a lot of Independent Bottlers out there, and many bring in excellent expressions representing some of the best that distilleries have to offer, like Single Cask Nation and Single Malts of Scotland.  However, there is one one that just represents the best of Islay – Port Askaig.  And this Port Askaig expression not only won the coveted Double Gold, but won the title of “Best Independent Merchant Single Malt“.  Quite impressive for an ongoing expression with a high proof.  But if you’ve tried it, you can understand why.

The other ongoing Port Askaig expression – the 8 year old, won yet another Gold medal.  Recognized for it’s balance and smoothness, it continues to please.

WHISKIES FROM JAPAN ASTOUNDED

Ohishi has made quite the impact in the competition this year.  Weighing in at 750ml each, this duo proved themselves to be quite the heavyweight Japanese whiskies.  Not only did they Both Win DOUBLE GOLD medals, but the 10-year Brandy cask was deemed the Best Single Grain Whisky! In The World!!

That’s quite the feat, considering that there are many excellent single-grain whiskies out there.  But that’s why we went with those casks –  we knew there was something special about this carefully crafted gem from a small Japanese distillery.

WALES WOWED THE WORLD

The Penderyn expressions from the gold series showed what Welsh gold is all about.  The Peated won DOUBLE GOLD, proving that is the flavor du jour.  The Rich Oak and Portwood were also huge hits, each earning their Gold medals.We are confident that it has been the continued support of whisky lovers like you that enables us to keep bringing in tremendous brands and new expressions for these discerning judges to taste.

NOTEWORTHY MENTIONS

Penderyn Portwood 12 yr Single Cask U.S. Exclusive (PT113) 60.4% abv just received 93 points from Whisky Advocate Magazine in their Spring Edition! The Penderyn Madeira 10 yr Single Cask U.S. Exclusive has begun to hit store shelves near you.

The 2019 Edition of Kilchoman 100% Islay received 91 points, replicating its success with the 2018 Edition.  You can expect to look for the 2020 edition in October.

Also to be noted, Ruben Luyten of Whisky Notes just gave the 1996 23 yo Ben Nevis (52.7% abv) from our Single Malts of Scotland Collection a very respectable 90 points (the US Exclusive is the second one at this link).  This mirrors Serge Valentin’s rating on Whisky Fun.

Thank you all so much!  We will be in touch as the year drinks on 🥃

If you have any questions or would like any additional information, please don’t hesitate to email office@impexbev.com

Port Ellen 40 Year Old 9 Rogue Casks
Pre-order now available!

About to launch: a limited release of Port Ellen’s oldest spirit to date.

Distilled at the original Port Ellen in 1979, these nine casks of whisky were discovered and brought together by the master distiller to craft a unique limited edition release: the oldest and most limited to date. Each cask was matured for at least 40 years before all nine were married together and bottled at a natural cask strength of 50.9% abv, free from any artificial colouring. Presented in a beautiful case, under lock and key, this release is limited to just 1,380 bottles worldwide. The nose is delicate, with a mild smoke complemented by burnt orange, fresh herbs and a grassy note. The palate brings a much more pronounced smoke, alongside rich leather and pipe tobacco with a gentle wood spice. the finish is long and satisfying with a wisp of smoke remaining.

Don’t miss out – pre-order today!

Pre-Order Now

Balblair is nestled deep in the Scottish highlands near the banks of the Domoch Firth. Built on an ancient Pictish gathering site, the distillery was founded in 1790 by local man, John Ross, making it one of the oldest distilleries in Scotland. Dwarfed by its famous neighbour Glenmorangie, Balblair distillery produces whisky in a classic northern highland style – robust, aromatic, generously fruity, and unpeated.

When matured in ex-Bourbon casks, you can expect to encounter an explosion of ripe tropical fruits, such as pineapple and banana, alongside rich, creamy vanilla and bursts of fresh citrus. Sherry casks bring a darker fruit profile with stewed plums, prunes, and chocolate covered raisins.

BROWSE OUR FULL BALBLAIR RANGE HERE

Mark’s Whisky Ramblings 307: Highland Park 9 Year Old 1998 Signatory Dumpy

Mark Dermul, Belgian whisky vlogger, tries a old yet young Highland Park. This truly is a golden oldie, bottled in those old fashioned dumpy bottles that Signatory used in the last Century. Distilled in 1988 (the year in which Mark got his driving permit) and bottled in 1998. The malt matured for 9 years on a sherry cask and has thus spent more than double that time in the bottle.

https://youtu.be/Tv49cE0Tu3w