An Incredible Trio of K&L Exclusives at $100 Off
The Essential Hart Brothers Cask Strength Speyside Single Malt Collection (3x700ml) (Previously $285) ($184.99)
Our most incredible bundle deal of the year…
Today’s offer is quite simply the spirits deal of the year. A literal boatload of pending new arrivals means that we must make room in our spirits inventory, and our savviest Scotch aficionados get to reap the rewards. A trio of spectacular K&L Exclusive Cask single malts from Hart Brothers come together in an absolutely jaw-dropping bundle that can be had for $100 off the individual retail prices of these three singular whiskies, which have already made quite an impression on our diehard clientele. Starting things off, the Longmorn 10 Year Old “is nearly the perfect Speysider,” according to K&L Spirits Buyer David Othenin-Girard. The first-fill sherry butt will no doubt thrill fans of the style, as “it’s perfectly matched to the medium body of Longmorn’s profile,” according to David’s colleague Andrew Whiteley.
Also joining the party are two outlandishly great casks from the dynamic Benriach, starting with a 12 Year Old sherry-aged stunner, of which David declares, “No one will be disappointed with this exceptional cask. It’s fabulous!” Finally, Benriach’s 15 Year Old Port Pipe powerhouse is “a totally idiosyncratic cask that still seems to exemplify Benriach’s true nature. One of the best values from Hart Brothers this year … and right in line with what we’d expect—the unexpected!” In short, this is an unheard-of opportunity that we’ll almost certainly never see again, and quantities are highly limited, so collectors everywhere will want to jump in with both feet.
The Essential Hart Brothers Cask Strength Speyside Single Malt Collection (3x700ml) (Previously $285) ($184.99)
K&L Notes: This is a unique opportunity to snag three excellent Speyside single malts with compelling profiles at a steep discount over MSRP. With a new container of Scotch inbounding to our warehouse anyday, we need to make some serious space fast! While we don’t typically run ‘sales’ like this, the savvy Scotch drinker won’t blink at picking up these beauties for their daily drinking needs or thoughtful holiday gifting that is right around the corner. This 3-pack includes two different bottlings of Benriach—one 12 year old expression aged in a choice sherry butt and bottled at 58.2% ABV, and the other a 15-year bottling aged in port pipe and bottled at 56.5% ABV. The third bottle in the pack is a scrumptious Longmorn 10 Year Old, also in sherry butt at a robust 56% ABV. The combined regular retail value of this pack is $285. If you choose to stock up the bar with these excellent whiskies in this one time offer, all three can be yours for just $185!
Longmorn 10 Year Old “Hart Brothers Finest Collection” K&L Exclusive Cask Strength Single Sherry Butt Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky (700ml) (Regularly $74.99)
David Othenin-Girard | K&L Spirits Buyer | Review Date: June 02, 2022
I love Longmorn, and I’m always surprised how difficult it is to get. I guess Chivas is aware of how dang good this stuff is, and you just can’t make that much blended scotch without the stuffing from these gems. So anyway, we jumped on the chance to own a cask of Longmorn, and we’re all the more excited to see it was aged in sherry cask. Now this sherry cask isn’t very dark, but my god it has a ton of character—indeed, color and character are not always correlated. The color is pale gold. This one pops immediately with a huge apple orchard fruit character. It’s so pungent it can’t only be the fruit of the malt at this age, but rather that gorgeous, high-quality sherry coming through. After that we get a big vanilla bean, wild honey, candied citrus peel, honeydew, and a bit of candle wax. On the palate, it’s very rich and oily. More apricot and honey, but also now some earthy malt and hints of fragrant heather. With water the nose becomes darker and maltier, which is very unusual and welcome. A bit more sherry funk comes out as well, losing its absolutely pristine nose in favor of even more intensity. The palate is downright thick now, a strange trick of water and whisky, where by the perceived density increases despite the obvious physical fact that you’ve diluted the product. Absolutely unparalleled vibrancy adds to the picture with countless fruit and botanical aromas flowing freely now. This is nearly the perfect Speysider for me. It exemplifies the dichotomy of elegance and complexity that the region’s best malts exhibit. There isn’t a better $75 malt on the market today in my humble estimation. For those who want elegance and depth over power and punch, this is the real deal.
Andrew Whiteley | K&L Spirits Buyer | Review Date: June 02, 2022
We rarely get to bottle Longmorn these days. While the world loves to talk about single malt, the fact is blends are still king, and Longmorn has been prized for over 100 years as a top-notch ingredient to add the stuffing to famous blends, from VAT 69 to Dewar’s and Chivas. In fact, due to its quality, Longmorn was one of the distilleries Nikka’s Masataka Taketsuru did a stint at in his legendary visit to Scotland. For years, you could find Longmorn without looking too hard at the independent bottling market, but it seems less and less is available today, certainly at reasonable prices. Official bottlings are hardly to be found, although they do exist. Fortunately for us, the Hart Brothers were able to come up with a first-filled sherry butt of 10-year-old Longmorn that checked all of our boxes. Bottled just shy of 11 years and with a beautiful golden amber hue, this famous malt offers a bushel of stone fruits and a full peck of apples, both fresh and baked. The slightest rancio notes sit behind all that fruit provided from a quality sherry butt. While not a bomb or wildly dark, it is listed as a first-fill butt, and frankly, it’s perfectly matched to the medium body of Longmorn’s profile. A warm and soft waxy character runs throughout, giving this a lovely texture and confirming the distillery’s critical role in the blending world. At 56% ABV it’s no slouch. With a little water, it almost louches so much oil comes out. The palate gets sweeter, and the texture is elegant and silky. The finish shows a dry tannin like the best red wines yet doesn’t lose that beautiful fruit from the first nosing. It’s a splendid cask and a screaming deal in the burning hot whisky market.
2009 Benriach 12 Year Old “Hart Brothers Finest Collection” K&L Exclusive Cask Strength Single Sherry Butt Unchillfiltered Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky (700ml) (Regularly $99.99)
David Othenin-Girard | K&L Spirits Buyer | Review Date: June 01, 2022
It’s a sherry butt from Benriach! This distillery has been absolutely on fire recently thanks to master blender Rachel Barrie and all these awards. But the thing that people really want from this excellent Speysider, one of the few to operate its own malt floors in Scotland, are single casks. So we bought three of them. Having three different casks allows us to really begin to understand quintessential character of Benriach, which is a distillery that’s hard to pin down in the first place, the diversity of its offerings being one of its most prominent features. This sherry butt will be the most appealing to many, thanks to the continued obsession by most malt lovers with dark sherry casks. Let’s have a taste! The color is a beautiful tawny. A nice dark one here! I let it rest for ten minutes before first nosing. OMG, the nose has that perfect oloroso spice and nutty richness. Immediately, we get old saddle leather, the darkest cacao, stewed red fruit, and candied citrus. On the palate, liquified Christmas pudding, sweet and richly spiced. Big notes of cola, sarsaparilla, shoe polish, red currants, and a slight flinty character (not quite gunpowder). This absolutely loves water as well, which softens the savory, leathery nose and opens the jammy red fruit and rich, savory nuttiness. The bold ‘Riach malt still manages to poke through the rich wine and wood flavors. Tasting these three casks in succession is a truly eye-opening experience. No one will be disappointed with this exceptional cask. It’s fabulous! While the sister distillery sold out in a flash, this humble cask of Benriach remains one of the very best casks in the shop, but it will only take a few people to realize how special this is for it to disappear like the ‘Dronach we had.
2006 Benriach 15 Year Old “Hart Brothers” “K&L Exclusive” Single Port Pipe Unchillfiltered Speyside (700ml) (Regularly $109.99)
David Othenin-Girard | K&L Spirits Buyer | Review Date: June 01, 2022
This is the third and final barrel in the triumvirate of Benriachs that we purchased from Hart Brothers this year. Fifteen years in port pipes and only $10 more than the 12-year on sherry? I’m very picky about my port pipes in Scotch, as I’m always very concerned about sourness and sulfur. This lovely pipe had neither, although it isn’t without its distinctive character. The color is an inviting chestnut with a red hue. The nose is a wild medley of dark red berries, linseed oil, chocolate powder, cherry chocolate truffles, and pungent old oak spice. It really reminds me a lot of the Balvenie Port Wood, with more intensity and less wood. On the palate, the red fruit, while present doesn’t totally take over, and a gorgeous toffee character balances the sweet-tart red fruit and the toasty oak. With just a drop of water, the red fruit and the oak come out more, and I prefer this at full strength. A totally idiosyncratic cask that still seems to exemplify Benriach’s true nature. One of the best values from Hart Brothers this year, whose slightly higher price point rewards in kind with over-the-top quality, and right in line with what we’d expect—the unexpected!
