Welcome to this weeks episode of the show in which I’ll be re-visiting the Bimber distillery and taking a look at a selection of their bottlings along with their new new blended malt, Apogee XII.
Kilbeggan to be Featured in “The Three Drinkers in Ireland”
A new, global TV series going live on Amazon Prime on St. Patrick’s Day
Photo Credit Beam Suntory
The Three Drinkers return to our screens with a brand new, six-part series on Amazon Prime called ‘The Three Drinkers in Ireland’ – and they’ve shaken things up!
Kilbeggan, Ireland (March 17, 2022) “The Three Drinkers in Ireland” is an aspirational, gastronomic journey through the picturesque island of Ireland. Premiering March 17, 2022 on Amazon Prime, drinks experts Aidy Smith and Helena Nicklin with special guests Beth Brickenden and Eulanda Shead-Osagiede will indulge in an Irish feast for the senses, tasting lots of delicious food and drink, scoping out the landscape, meeting characterful locals and offering plenty of take-home tips along the way. The series will go live from March 17, 2022 with episodes 1–3, and episodes 4 -6 will air by the end of the month.
The Three Drinkers are drinks experts, writers and broadcasters Helena Nicklin and Aidy Smith, joined by a deliciously diverse revolving roster of ‘third drinker’ guests. This will be the second Amazon Three Drinkers TV series for Smith and Nicklin who also produce the popular ‘Bring a Bottle’ podcast, run the drink, travel and lifestyle-focused online magazine thethreedrinkers.com and have a growing social media presence.
In this year’s series, The Three Drinkers explore Kilbeggan Distillery. Since 1757, this distillery has crafted beloved Irish whiskey unlike any other. As the oldest continuously licensed distillery in Ireland, Kilbeggan continues to push Irish whiskey conventions while remaining true to classic distilling traditions, keeping the spirit of Irish whiskey alive.
“We’re thrilled to see Kilbeggan Distillery be included in ‘The Three Drinkers’ series, as they explore the beauty, traditions and culture of Ireland,” said Ruth Wyer, Visitor Center Manager Kilbeggan. “Every bottle of our whiskey is crafted with the true spirit of our community that runs through our stills and into our award-winning portfolio. We’re excited to showcase our heritage and the craftsmanship behind our Irish whiskey making process to the ‘The Three Drinkers’ audience.”
The first Three Drinkers series, “The Three Drinkers do Scotch Whisky”, premiered on Amazon Prime in 2019 and is still streaming in more than 170 countries (in 39 languages) as well as being broadcast in China and on various airlines including British Airways and Lufthansa.
“The Three Drinkers in Ireland” will take a slightly different approach from the Scotch show, exploring all sorts of drinks beyond whiskey, from gin and poitín to cider and Irish cream. They’ll also be taking a deeper dive into Ireland’s incredible food scene and showcasing some traditional activities such as bog snorkelling, cheesemaking, eel fishing and Irish dancing.
Nicklin said, “We’ve loved bringing everything together, from the food and drink, to the people, places, culture and tourism of the whole of the island of Ireland. We’ve been blown away by the sheer quality of Irish produce too. It’s world class! Ireland is also the perfect country to visit as the world opens up again, thanks to its wide-open spaces and easy accessibility – and it’s a great location for lovers of fantastic food and drink to boot.”
In this series, Aidy and Helena welcome two new faces from the world of food, drink, travel and lifestyle: Beth Brickenden, Irish native, wine consultant and alternative events specialist behind the renowned Drag & Wine Tasting, joins the duo for episodes 1-3, and Eulanda Shead-Osagiede, award-winning American travel writer, influencer & co-founder of the popular travel, food and lifestyle blog ‘Hey! Dip Your Toes in’, comes along for the journey in episodes 4-6.
Along the way, they receive a cheeky visit from iconic UK drag queen Vanity Von Glow as well as original ‘third drinker’ and whisk(e)y guru, Colin Hampden-White.
Smith and Nicklin have been advocates for better inclusivity within the drinks industry, with Smith being one of the only TV Presenters globally with Tourette Syndrome.
He said: “As part of the LGBTQIA+ community and having faced ongoing hurdles due to stigmas associated with Tourrette’s throughout my career, I’ve been very keen for us to play our part when it comes to increasing D, E & I within the drinks industry. We are delighted that our key guests within this series showcase a more inclusive world; it’s a step forward for the trade and we couldn’t be more delighted to welcome our incredibly talented third drinkers.”
The new series sees an evolved format, with to-camera, take-home tips from wine and spirits experts Aidy and Helena, helping viewers navigate their at-home drinks discovery. From advice on forming the perfect egg white flip for cocktails to wine and spirit food pairings, theirs is an engaging, lifestyle-driven approach.
Smith added, “Having been drinks professionals for over 25 years collectively, we felt it was time to take the leap and speak directly to our audience via the TV screen. We’ll be offering them a variety of tips and tricks that they can explore for themselves at home”.
About Beam Suntory
As a world leader in premium spirits, Beam Suntory inspires human connections. 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 Courvoisier cognac, as well as world renowned premium brands including Basil Hayden, Knob Creek and Legent bourbon; Yamazaki, Hakushu, Hibiki and Toki Japanese whisky; Teacher’s, Laphroaig and Bowmore Scotch whisky; Canadian Club whisky; Hornitos and Sauza tequila; EFFEN, Haku and Pinnacle vodka; Sipsmith and Roku gin; and On The Rocks Premium Cocktails.
Beam Suntory was created in 2014 by combining the world leader in bourbon and the pioneer in Japanese whisky to form a new company with a deep heritage, passion for quality, innovative spirit and vision of 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.com and www.drinksmart.com.
The Legendary Irish Silkie Comes Ashore for St. Patrick’s Day
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Artist Manuel Froelich marks St Patrick’s Day on Silver Strand beach in Donegal on Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way by creating an image of the local legendary silkie coming ashore to toast Ireland’s patron saint with a drop of Silkie Irish whiskey. Struck by the beauty of Donegal, Manu said: “I really enjoyed visiting Donegal and bringing our silkie to life on Silver Strand beach. On the wild Atlantic shoreline in Donegal, you don’t find too many shamrocks or leprechauns, but you do hear tales of silkies coming ashore to steal the hearts of fishermen. I hope even St. Patrick would be impressed with our mermaid lifting a glass of her namesake whiskey in his honour.” For more information on Silkie Irish Whiskey see sliabhliagdistillers.com
In honour of St Patrick’s Day this month, our top ten whiskies showcase some of our Irish favourites – from the traditional to the modern. Our picks include triple distilled single malts matured in ex-bourbon and ex-sherry casks from The Irishman and Dingle Distillery, a limited edition single pot still with a wild cherry wood cask finish from Method and Madness, as well as a rich, peated single malt from Teeling. Whatever your palate, we’ve got the bottle for you.
Certificate in Irish Whiskey
Since then, over 600 candidates from 26 countries have participated in the eight-module online course written by Irish whiskey experts Fionnán O’Connor and Matt Healy.
Feedback has been excellent. From a “Great program” with “Valuable information for the novice and expert” to “Comprehensive, informative and in-depth”, we love hearing what you have to say about your learning experience.
To celebrate St Patrick’s Day, we’re making the entire module on Pot Still Spirit Production available for free, until midnight on Sunday 20 March.
So, whether you’re just starting out on your journey in Irish whiskey or have been an enthusiast for some time, we hope you’ll get a sense of how this fun and accessible online course is perfect for improving your knowledge.
What’s more, we’re pleased to announce the inclusion of one of our most-requested features… downloadable course notes! All candidates who enrol in the full course can now download a copy of the Certificate in Irish Whiskey PDF (also available to existing students).
As a valued member of the Edinburgh Whisky Academy alumni, we would love to share your EWA story to date with our community. This will help customers like you find solutions to fit their needs through our online diplomas, certificates and modules. Would you have a few minutes to share your story through a short video testimonial?
Edinburgh Whisky Academy
15 Fountain Road, Bridge of Allan
FK9 4ET
United Kingdom
As arguably the birthplace of whiskey distilling as it’s known today, and with St. Patrick’s Day celebrations around the world, there is no better time to feature some of our favourites. Whether you’re Irish or not, but you most definitely love a dram, there is something here for everyone to sip on this week. Oh, and see details below for our special giveaway in collaboration with Slane whiskey which you do not want to miss… Sláinte!
View Irish Whiskey→
Enter Slane Giveaway→
At just over 30 quid there is not much else which springs to mind for value vs quality in a Scotch! Truly a bottle that any whisky fan should have on their shelf as a go-to for a casual dram or for sharing amongst pals. Get a bottle for yourself, and a couple to keep for future gifts and you’ll have free shipping to make it worthwhile anyway!
Our long-time partners at Gordon & MacPhail have done it again with this K&L Exclusive Cask from the beloved (yet hard-to-find) Ardmore. It’s a tour de force in sherry-aged malt and a stunning value by any measure, considering that comparable age statements from the Highlands’ biggest names go for multiples of this price.
Email: wine@klwines.com
Phone: (877) KL-WINES (Toll Free 877.559.4637)
K&L Wine Merchants 3005 El Camino Real Redwood City, CA 94061 USA
San Francisco, Redwood City, Hollywood CA
Mark’s Whisky Ramblings 434: Teeling Brabazon 1 through 4 Head-to-Head
Mark Dermul, Belgian whisky blogger, tries four Irish malts. The Brabazon series from Teeling consists of four interesting releases. The series is named after the 17th Century politician that ruled the Liberties, the area where the distillery can be found. It also refers to the Brabazon House, the building behind the distillery in which Teeling now have their corporate offices. Let’s put these four whiskeys head-to-head.
The Glencairn Glass announces the winners of
its inaugural short story competition
a bottle and a glass of whiskey on a black background with space for text
The world’s favourite whisky glass – The Glencairn Glass – has been celebrating Scottish crime writing talent over the past two years as headline sponsor of the prestigious McIlvanney and Bloody Scotland Debut crime-writing prizes.
To support this creative collaboration, The Glencairn Glass launched its first very own crime short story competition, inviting all budding crime writers to curate their stories around the theme: ‘A Crystal-Clear Crime’ in no more than 2000 words. The competition has been in partnership with Scottish Field Magazine and Bloody Scotland.
The winner and runners up were selected by a panel of three judges including Deborah Masson, 2020 winner of the Bloody Scotland Debut Crime Novel of the Year with her book ‘Hold Your Tongue’ and Peter Ranscombe, Scottish Field’s drinks columnist and author of the historical thriller ‘Hare’, along with Glencairn’s marketing director Gordon Brown who is also an author, writing under the name Morgan Cry.
The competition attracted entries from all over the world and the judges can now reveal the winner and two runners up as follows:
Winner: (£1000 prize)
Halmeoni’s Wisdom – a dark tale of human trafficking, illegal trade and a desire for freedom. Written by Brid Cummings, a fiction writer and occupational therapist, based in South Australia.
Brid said; “When I heard I’d won the Glencairn Glass crime short story competition, I was absolutely delighted. With such an intriguing theme, I enjoyed the challenge of writing the story, but had no expectation of winning. The news has given me a huge confidence boost and the encouragement to complete my psychological suspense novel. Many thanks to Glencairn Crystal and the Bloody Scotland team for this fantastic opportunity.”
Runners up: (£250 prize for each runner up)
Teardrops – a story about a confession to murder and a need for retribution, born of revenge. Written by Jennifer Harvey, a Scottish author based in Denmark.
Jennifer said: “I am delighted to be a runner-up in the Glencairn Crystal crime short story competition. Many thanks to the judges for selecting my story ‘Teardrops’. I will raise a glass to the winners and all the entrants in celebration. Cheers!”
Auld Bride – a story about a lost soul returning to the island of her birth, where more than a new job awaits her. Written by Judith O’Reilly, author and former political producer with BBC and ITN and correspondent with The Sunday Times, based in Northumberland. Judith was also a ‘Crime in the Spotlighter’ at the Bloody Scotland Crime Writing Festival in 2019.
Judith commented: “I’m thrilled to be named as a runner up in this great crime writing short story competition run by Glencairn Glass. The story itself is a cross between The Wicker Man and Kinky Boots, with a flash of Whisky Galore thrown in for good measure. I really wanted to add a touch of the supernatural to a story about whisky and the comeback of a ghost distillery. Whisky with all its history and traditions is a very evocative thing to write about. I hope readers enjoy it.”
Describing the winning story Halmeoni’s Wisdom by Brid Cummings, Peter Ranscombe commented: “I was gripped from the excellent start all the way through to the satisfying finish”. Peter selected Teardrops by Jennifer Harvey because; “the theme was very well chosen – a really ‘of-the moment’ story. The structure was interesting with a suitably unsettling ending too”. He described Auld Bride by Judith O’Reilly as: “an old-fashioned blend of suspense and mystery that led up to a chilling climax”.
Deborah Masson said: “Halmeoni’s Wisdom was unique. The imagery was expertly drawn and it had a satisfying end with redemption realised. Teardrops was a fascinating tale, and an all too real danger in today’s modern world. Then in Auld Bride – masterful descriptive writing is displayed in setting the scene in this tale and a surprise twist brings not only past and present together, but also good and evil.”
Glencairn’s marketing director Gordon Brown, who is also a founding director of the Bloody Scotland International Crime Writing Festival and has written eight crime novels with his latest, ‘Thirty-One Bones’, under the pseudonym Morgan Cry said: “The quality of entries was outstanding. With entries from all over the planet it demonstrates the continuing fascination with crime writing. This is why Glencairn is delighted to continue their sponsorship of both the McIlvanney and Bloody Scotland debut crime prizes which will be announced at this year’s Bloody Scotland Festival in September.
Three prizes are awarded to the winning authors: the first prize winner, Brid Cummings, receives £1000, whilst the two runners up, Jennifer Harvey and Judith O’Reilly, each receive £250. All three winners also receive a set of six bespoke engraved Glencairn Glasses. The overall winning entry will be published in the May issue of Scottish Field Magazine (on shelf Friday 8th April). The runners’ up stories will also be published from 8th April online on Scottish Field Magazine’s website (www.scottishfield.co.uk).
You will also be able to read the winning story and the runners up stories on the Glencairn Glass website: www.whiskyglass.com from Monday 11th April.
Finally, for further information about this year’s McIlvanney and Bloody Scotland Debut crime-writing prizes, as well as the Bloody Scotland Crime Writing Festival taking place in Stirling, Scotland, for four days from the 15th to 18th September, please visit www.bloodyscotland.com.
About Glencairn Crystal:
The Glencairn Glass, created in 2000 is the world’s favourite whisky glass. Glencairn Crystal now make over 4 million Glencairn Glasses per year, across hundreds of brands, distributed to over 140 countries worldwide.
About the winning authors:
Winner: Brid Cummings (www.bridcummings.com)
Brid has had work published in the UK, Ireland, and Australia, including short stories in the Big Issue Fiction Edition and the Bath Short Story Anthology. She has been a runner up in the Mslexia Short Story Competition, The Moth Short Story Prize and the Australian Sisters in Crime Short Story Awards.
When not writing crime stories, Brid Cummings works as an Occupational Therapist in South Australia (reputed to be the murder capital of Australia!)
Runner Up: Jennifer Harvey (www.jenharvey.net)
Jennifer Harvey is a Scottish writer now living in Denmark.
She is the author of three novels. ‘Someone Else’s Daughter’, ‘All The Lies We Told’ and ‘The Vanishing Child’. Her short fiction has appeared in various publications and anthologies in the US and the UK, including: Carve, Folio, The Lonely Crowd, New Writing Scotland, and Best Small Fictions.
She has been shortlisted for the Crime Writers’ Association Margery Allingham Prize, the Bristol Prize, the Bridport Prize and placed 3rd in the University of Sunderland Short Story Award. When not writing, she can be found wandering along the seashore dreaming up new stories.
Runner Up: Judith O’Reilly (www.judithoreilly.com)
Judith O’Reilly is the author of the Michael North series of action adventure thrillers including Killing State and Curse the Day. Sleep When You’re Dead is about a doomsday cult (also living on a remote Scottish island) and is published later this year.
Judith has previously featured in Bloody Scotland’s Crime in the Spotlight initiative to promote new crime writers. Her work was described by David Baldacci as ‘A sheer delight” and Lee Child as “Terrific.” Judith has also written two memoirs, Wife in the North and A Year of Doing Good. Wife in the North was a UK and German bestseller, a BBC Radio 4 Book of the Week, and serialised in the Sunday Times and the Daily Telegraph. She’s a former journalist with the Sunday Times, BBC 2’s Newsnight and Channel 4 News. She lives in Durham and is the founder member of the NCS, the Northern Crime Writers’ Syndicate.
