LOCHLEA DISTILLERY APPOINTS IMPEX BEVERAGES AS ITS EXCLUSIVE US IMPORTER

May 16, 2022 – Independently owned Ayrshire Distillery Lochlea has recently appointed, as their exclusive US Importer, South San Francisco, California based ImpEx Beverages.

Lochlea will launch in the US in June of 2022 with two expressions. Their First Release, bottled at 46% ABV, was matured in first-fill Bourbon and Pedro Ximenez Sherry casks.  It is bottled naturally with no added coloring, and is non-chill filtered.

Also in this debut shipment is the first in an annual limited-edition series of whiskies inspired by the changing seasons at Lochlea Farm.

Sowing Edition, bottled at 48% ABV, was matured in 100% first-fill Bourbon barrels. It is bottled naturally with no added coloring, and is non-chill filtered.

Later this year, the range of seasonal small batches will expand to include Summer’s Harvest Edition, Fallow Edition in Autumn, and finally Ploughing Edition in Winter.  Each expression will link to what is happening on site at that time of year through the casks selected, flavor profile, and even packaging. As with all Lochlea whiskies, they will be created using barley grown on the Ayrshire farm and their own water source.

The distillery will also release their core Single Malt, a masterpiece from talented industry veteran John Campbell simply called Our Barley, later in 2022.

When asked about the partnership, David Ferguson, Commercial Manager, said, “We can’t wait for our first Single Malt whiskies to land in the US which will be a key market to the future of our brand, and we are delighted to be partnering exclusively with the team at ImpEx Beverages. Our shared passion for Scotch Whisky was clear from our first meeting, so I know we’re in good hands.”Sam Filmus, President and Managing Director of ImpEx Beverages said, “There is something very special about what the team at Lochlea is doing and we couldn’t be more proud to be partnering with them to bring these amazing Single Malts to the US.  The passion they bring to each and every bottle is sure to please the US consumer looking for something unique in their glass.”

Lochlea Single Malt will be available at specialty retailers across the US.  For more information on where to buy please reach out to ImpEx Beverages at Office@ImpExBev.com.

About Lochlea Whisky

Under the cover of Lochlea Farm, independently owned Lochlea Distillery has been quietly distilling, casking, and maturing their masterpiece since 2018. Patiently waiting to share their work with the world.

Ensuring full traceability from field to cask has been paramount for Lochlea Distillery. The family-run farm grows and harvests their own barley, with the resulting draff used to feed local cattle and the water directly sourced on-site.

Rooted in Scottish history, Lochlea was once home to Robert Burns himself. Burns worked the lush farmland from 1777 to 1784 and has inspired the honest, passionate and progressive nature of Lochlea Whisky.

About ImpEx Beverages

In 2008, ImpEx Beverages was founded with the vision to import premium and rare Spirits from around the world, with a special emphasis on the best of what Scotland has to offer.

Today, ImpEx boasts an impressive portfolio, including some of the most notable small to medium sized distilleries and independent bottlers; importing Whisky, Gin, Rum, and Mezcal from Scotland, Belgium, Wales, Japan, Israel, Mexico, and England with future anticipated additions from unexpected destinations. ImpEx also features a fine line of Liqueurs and Cordials produced in the US.

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New Limited Release From

Loch Gorm 2022

Loch Gorm 2022 Edition was matured in oloroso sherry butts previously used by Bodega Jose y Miguel Martin for a minimum of eight years. The 22 casks selected are a combination of 20 fresh and two refill casks. The soaked sherry oak adds layers of rich, fruity character, which balance beautifully with classic Kilchoman peat smoke and citrus flavours.

NOSE: Intense sweet pipe smoke, followed by waves of freshly cut strawberries and candied lemon peel. Lighter notes of Neroli (orange blossoms), soft toffee and cloves.

PALATE: An initial note of dark chocolate and toasted walnuts, gentle tobacco smokiness, hints of caramel and dates accompanied by subtle warming peat smoke.

FINISH: Long and evolving with cinnamon and liquorice wood, chocolate bitters and lingering earthy smoke.

£74.99

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Whisky and golf fans rejoice! Loch Lomond & The Open 2022

Loch Lomond have released two limited edition expressions in partnership with The Open. They celebrate the 150th anniversary of the championship which will be held this year at the ‘home of golf’ – St Andrews Old Course.

Loch Lomond Whiskies →

Loch Lomond
The Open Course Special 2022

Master Blender Michael Henry has finished this limited edition single malt in Bordeaux red wine barriques

£49.00
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Loch Lomond 22 Year Old 1999
The Open Course Collection 2022

Only 4000 bottles of this 22-year-old are available, finished for 36 months in Haut-Médoc claret wine barriques

£225.00
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Loch Lomond Gift Pack & Glasses
The Open Course Special 2022

This limited edition gift pack contains a 70cl bottle and two branded glasses emblazoned with The Open and Loch Lomond logos. Perfect to share a dram with a friend whilst watching a round of the 150th edition of The Open at St Andrews Old Course!

£55.00
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Nikka Coffey Still Japanese Grain Whisky (750ml) $74.99 View

Nikka “Taketsuru” White Label Pure Malt Japanese Whisky (750ml) $79.99 View

Nikka Coffey Still Japanese Malt Whisky (750ml) $84.99 View

Nikka “Miyagikyo” Japanese Single Malt Whisky (750ml) $89.99 View

Nikka Miyagikyo “Peated” Japanese Single Malt Whisky (750ml) $300.00 View

Nikka Yoichi “Unpeated” Japanese Single Malt Whisky (750ml) $300.00 View

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

Whisky season is in full swing, get into the spirit with two NEW Flavour Hunters Festival Bottlings. Say hello to our Highland Rare Release Hazelnut Bubble Gum and our Vaults Collection bottling 29.278 Peat smoked porcini.

Both these exceptional whiskies are packed with flavour-fuelled fun. Don’t miss the celebrations, click over to our website now to buy or keep on scrolling to discover more details along with our Flavour Hunters Festival must-have recommendations.

BROWSE THE NEW WHISKY

MAY OUTTURN

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

ralfy review 927 – Mortlach 10yo @ 57.5%vol: (Editions Spirits Ltd:)

Elixir Distillers announces name of new Islay distillery ahead of Fèis Ìle festival

Just over six months after breaking ground, and after much speculation from whisky enthusiasts around the world, Elixir Distillers has confirmed that their new Islay distillery will be called PORTINTRUAN.

Located just outside the town of Port Ellen on Islay’s south coast on the way to Laphroaig, Lagavulin and Ardbeg distilleries, Portintruan is pronounced Port-nah-truan. It takes its name from the historic farm estate where the distillery is located and means ‘place of the stream’.

Co-owner Sukhinder Singh explains the vision for the distillery: “Elixir Distillers has always taken a flavour-led approach and this will be the Portintruan philosophy as well. We will be utilising a number of old-style production techniques which we believe will accentuate the depth and character of the spirit. A key part of the process will be using malt predominantly from our own floor maltings on-site, and we will be using direct-fired wash stills for the distillation. We plan to work with different phenol levels across the range, which will all have their own specific flavour profiles.”

Portintruan will be where the past meets the future, combining these old-style production techniques with modern technology to improve process and quality, and of course sustainability. Being sustainable is one of the most important factors in Portintruan’s plans, although Distillery Manager Georgie Crawford recognises there is a lot of work still to be done:

“Working within what is currently possible on Islay, we want to be as green and as responsible as we can. We are talking to the Islay Energy Trust, our fellow distillers on the island and suppliers to ensure we take all opportunities to be greener. We are using the latest technology to implement a heat loop for our waterusage to ensure the maximum amount is recycled and reused with the heat recovered for other processes. We’re also using a bio diesel for our direct-fired stills which is the cleanest fuel we can currently source, and we’re building the distillery so that it can use hydrogen power once that is available.”

Portintruan will be adding an experimental distillery within the site – so it will be two distilleries in one. This will enable the team to produce not only different Scotch whisky styles but also rum. Plans for the distillery site also include 14 houses for Islay families working at the distillery, a visitor’s centre, a bar and restaurant, a tasting room bothy overlooking the sea, and a multi-purpose educational facility which will serve as a base for an apprentice programme to train the next generation of distillers.

The distillery name is being announced in time for the 2022 Fèis Ìle, the annual festival of whisky and music on Islay which will be held in person for the first time since 2019. The festival runs from Friday 27th May to Saturday 4th June and is set to welcome around 10,000 whisky-loving visitors to the island. The Elixir Distillers team will be setting up two cabins on the distillery site to welcome Islay whisky enthusiasts wishing to see Portintruan in the earliest stages of its development.

Visitors will be able to peruse the distillery plans, look out over the site of the distillery and chat with members of the Elixir Distillers team over a dram or two of one of their Islay whiskies. Elixir Distillers will
also be running a number of tastings and events across Islay during the festival. Full details can be found on the festival website https://feisile.co.uk/feis-ile-2022/

Work on the site is well underway, with ground works complete and foundations about to commence, followed by the steel work. Portintruan is anticipating starting distilling from early 2024.

About Elixir Distillers

Founded by Sukhinder and Rajbir Singh, Elixir Distillers is a creator, blender and bottler of fine spirits, combining delicious, characterful liquid with beautiful design. Their expertise is Scotch whisky and rum but they also work with Japanese whisky, tequila and other spirits. Their core brands include Port Askaig, Elements of Islay, Single Malts of Scotland and Black Tot which they export to more than 25 international markets around the world.

LAPHROAIG COMES OUT ON TOP AT BONHAMS FIRST WHISKY AND SPIRITS SALE IN PARIS

EXCEPTIONAL AND RARE BOTTLES ON OFFER

 Bonhams : Whisky et Spiritueux d’Exception

15-year-old Laphroaig, 1967. Sold for €51,240 (Estimate: €28,000 – €38,000)

Paris – A bottle of the highly-coveted 15-year-old Laphroaig, 1967 was the top performer at Bonhams inaugural sale of exceptional Whisky and Spirits in Paris on Tuesday 10 May. It sold for €51,240 against an estimate of €28,000 – €38,000. The189-lot sale made a total of €322,275 with more than 80% of the lots sold.

Diego Lanza, Senior Whisky Specialist at Bonhams, said: “We are delighted with the result of our first whisky sale in Paris. The 15-year-old Laphroaig, 1967 which led the sale sparked a keen bidding war and performed exceptionally well. There was also a strong showing from other bottles as well, including the Springbank-12-year old-1967 which sold for €18,300, having been estimated at €15,000-20,000, and the Longmorn Glenlivet-1974 which made an impressive €6,100 against an estimate of €3,500-4,500.”

Sale: Fine Whisky and SpiritsLocation: 4 rue de la Paix, ParisDate: Tuesday 10 May

Link to catalogue: Bonhams : Whisky et Spiritueux d’Exception

Bonhams, founded in 1793, is one of the world’s largest and most renowned auctioneers, offering fine art and collectables, motor cars and a luxury division, including jewellery, watches, wine and whisky. The main salerooms are in London, New York, Los Angeles, Paris and Hong Kong, with auctions also held in Knightsbridge, Edinburgh, and Sydney. With a worldwide network of offices and regional representatives in 22 countries, Bonhams offers advice and valuation services in 53 specialist areas. For a full list of forthcoming auctions, plus details of Bonhams specialist departments, please visit bonhams.com

Malt of the Moment!

Littered with awards including a recent Gold medal at International Wine and Spirits Competition 2022, this delightful Benromach has been matured for 15 years in first fill bourbon and sherry casks. A sophisticated, well balanced and defined whisky that offers superb value for money.

As our current Malt of the Moment, we’re delighted to offer this exceptional single malt along with 2 Benromach branded tasting glasses for the fantastic price of £57.99! *

Slàinte

*whilst stocks last

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The Finest Rendition Yet of a Coveted Whiskey Phenomenon
Bardstown Bourbon Company “Discovery Series #7”
Blended Whiskey (750ml) ($139.99)
“This is easilty the best Discovery in years … What a find!”
— David Othenin-Girard, K&L Spirits Buyer

For a few years now, we’ve enjoyed tremendous success with the line-up of highly unique, expertly crafted whiskeys from Bardstown Bourbon Company. Eponymously named for the town at the epicenter of the Kentucky bourbon tradition, this distiller maintains a healthy respect for its roots while also pushing the innovative envelope in its blending practices and collaborative ventures. Their latest release, the “Discovery Series #7” shows the blending team in its finest form. The #7 edition is a big step in the series’ evolution, as for the first time, it includes whiskey distilled outside the U.S. The results are unconventional but also undeniably delicious. The K&L spirits team is well-versed in the singular character of the whiskeys in the Discovery Series, but the seventh edition has outdone them all. Buyer Andrew Whiteley calls it “one of the most compelling whiskies to date out of Bardstown, and that is saying something!” His colleague David Othenin-Girard was equally captivated, noting, “I just about fell out of my seat when I saw that this is a blended whiskey.” Like previous releases, the #7 edition is highly coveted by the most savvy collectors, and as word of the project’s exceptionally unique results starts to get around to a broader audience, we don’t expect to see it in stock for very long.

Bardstown Bourbon Company “Discovery Series #7” Blended Whiskey (750ml) ($139.99)

K&L Notes: We are seven releases in, and Bardstown Bourbon Company’s Discovery Series just gets better and better. The Discovery has always been about blending the best whiskey possible from meticulously sourced components and being transparent about what exactly went into the bottle. Discovery #7 marks a big shift in the blend and includes whiskey distilled outside of the United States for the first time. Here’s the mashbill breakdown: 31% of the blend is 12-year-old Kentucky bourbon with a mash of 75% corn, 13% rye, and 12% malted barley. 25% is 12-year-old Kentucky bourbon from 78% corn, 10% rye, and 12% malted barley. 21% of the blend is Ontario-distilled, 12-year-old, 100% corn whisky. 15% is 7-year-old Indiana Rye made of 51% rye, 45% corn, and 4% malted barley. And the final 8% is a whopping 17-year-old Tennessee distillate of 84% corn, 8% rye, and 8% malted barley. The end result of all this is an incredibly smooth and approachable whiskey that steps outside tradition not for the sake of innovation, but because the fabulous results justify the approach.

Andrew Whiteley | K&L Spirits Buyer | Review Date: May 13, 2022

Discovery. This is what happens when you drink this whiskey. You’ll discover that names aren’t as important as thoughtful, flavor-driven decisions. Controversial? Perhaps. Risky? Definitely. Worth it? Absolutely. One of the most compelling whiskies to date out of Bardstown, and that is saying something! My hat is off to the creators and blenders involved in this one. The color is mahogany. The nose is brimming with spice, fruit, wood, and fine leather. When thinking about the component whiskies, the cohesion feels like a surprise, but upon further reflection, it probably shouldn’t. It’s no different than any other thoughtfully created blend—they have just started with a more diverse set of ingredients. The mouth-feel is big and full. No sharp edges here. Just a nice kick from the 57.25% ABV. It feels fuller and more complete than the last several batches of Discovery. It’s almost like a great chef has been cooking with one hand tied behind his back. Now that hand has been untied, and the sky is the limit.

David Othenin-Girard | K&L Spirits Buyer | Review Date: May 12, 2022

I just about fell out of my seat when I saw that this is a blended whiskey. WHAT?! What an outrageously risky thing to do! I absolutely love it when companies do crazy stuff like this. If you’re not aware, this whiskey includes a not insignificant amount of old Canadian corn whisky, thereby removing it from the bourbon category. But what it lacks in nomenclature, it more than makes up for in quality. This is easilty the best Discovery in years, handily beating the excellent #6 and definitely better than #4 and #5. What’s so impressive about the Discovery #7 is how complete it feels. It certainly doesn’t feel at all outside the category (straight bourbon) and has a very old-school vibe to it, almost to the point of feeling slightly antique in the best way possible. Let’s have a go. The nose is a gorgeous conglomerate of dense red and black berry fruit, exotic spice, antique wood (sandalwood especially), freshly ground medium roast, and hints of honey-lathered saddle. Why you’d put honey on your saddle I don’t know, but leather and honey surprisingly go together, so I’m not judging you. The entry starts very sweet and honeyed as well, before being pushed back with a bold clove spice and some caramel-covered apple. The finish is long and surprisingly spicy with this gorgeous dusty note that gives it that antique feel that I love so much. This is a very modern whiskey in every way but flavor. An absolutely exceptional diversion from the last few batches and a welcome change that exemplifies the name perfectly! What a find!

Neal Fischer | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: May 13, 2022

I enjoy the Bardstown whiskeys quite a lot for the flavors created through their blending techniques, but I also like them a lot because of how transparent they are about their blending. On the side of all their labels, they will tell you what whiskey is going into the batch, including info on mashbill, age, and location of origin. They don’t mention distillery names, mind you, but in any given project, they are up front about how much is coming from their distillery along with other Kentucky distilleries or even whiskey sourced from farther afield. This bottle is the seventh batch in their Discovery series, and it’s my favorite yet in that project line. The ages of the whiskeys in the blend span 7 to 17 years, and that depth and maturity really come through in the glass. One of the most fun and peculiar elements is a 12-year-old, 100% corn whiskey coming from Ontario, Canada. This ain’t your typical blend! The nose begins with big, juicy, red cherry notes, dusty oak, varnish/polish, and a touch of pine before dipping into dried mixed berries, brown sugar, and cinnamon stick. With more time in the glass and air exposure, the caramel and brown sugar notes turn to vanilla bean with building perfume-level aromatics along with a lot of allspice and clove. The palate is more fruit-forward along with more intense baking spices. More orchard fruit and dried fruit characteristics step forward, and the whiskey has a good texture, nearing chewiness. The Discovery #7 stands at an impressive 114.5 proof, so adding water would be a reasonable consideration. Happily, a little water does not diminish the whiskey at all and offers a change many might love. More salted caramel notes come out. Other dessert-oriented or confectionary flavors emerge as well, like a very tasty candy corn note, but the presence of the spice characteristics remains, especially headed into the medium-long finish. This is quite a lovely whiskey.