70CL | 46%
£155
WAS £180
SAVE £25
An 18-year-old blended Irish whiskey from Jameson that was matured in American and European oak casks, before being married in virgin American oak barrels for six months. Expect notes of sherry-soaked raisins, toffee and vanilla alongside nuttiness and oak spice.
Women have been instrumental in making the Society what it is today. The three As of Anne Dana, Anne Griffiths and Annabel Meikle came from different backgrounds and hadn’t planned to have a whisky career. But driven by a thirst for knowledge, an encouraging environment and openness to new ventures, these women ended up shaping some of the most recognisable parts of the Society.
As we celebrate International Women’s Day today, let’s raise a toast to these AMAZING Society women. We’ve asked our two Helens, Trine, Ebba and Anja in our DRAM-cierge team to select some suggestions in their honour. Plus – find a NEW Maverick Dram-Cierge Mystery Malt trio with bottles from three different regions.
Keep on scrolling to discover more or click over to our website to read this month’s International Women’s Day-inspired Unfiltered.
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
Hard Truth Distilling launches first television and radio ad campaign
New spots introduce “Moments of Truth” tagline
Nashville, IN (February 24, 2023) – Hard Truth Distilling Co., Indiana’s largest destination craft distillery, has reached a major company milestone by airing its first television advertising campaign this month, with a radio campaign to break on February 27.
Hard Truth began airing 15- and 30-second television commercials this week on streaming services in ten key markets: Chicago, Indy, Columbus, Cincinnati, Detroit, Grand Rapids, Dallas, Houston, Tampa, Ft. Lauderdale.
Introducing the tagline: “We do it all for these moments of truth,” the new ads feature scenes of pouring, toasting and enjoying Hard Truth’s cornerstone brand, Hard Truth Sweet Mash Rye Whiskey, against the backdrop of its beautiful 325 wooded acre campus and contemporary state-of-the-art distillery.
Jeff McCabe, Hard Truth co-founder and executive chairman, said the 10-market advertising campaign comes on the heels of the distillery, founded just eight years ago, now being in the top 10 percent of distilleries in the nation, a trend that enables Hard Truth to assert in its ads: “We’re proud to be one of the nation’s fastest growing spirits brands.”
Both McCabe and Bryan Smith, Hard Truth co-founder and master distiller, are featured in the new spots. Smith said the decision to focus on its sweet mash rye whiskey, unlike most other whiskey makers who use sour mash, helps define what makes its product lineup stand out from other distilleries. “The ads also feature a very brief glimpse of our Cinnamon Vodka bottle,” said Smith. “That’s a tribute to the non-whiskey brands that help spur our growth.”
Hard Truth’s internal marketing team and Bayonet Media of Indianapolis co-created the ads. John Behling, Hard Truth’s chief marketing officer, said the new campaign is an essential and effective way to support its distributor partners and retailers, not to mention they’ll be spreading the Hard Truth gospel to even more consumers. “We have a great story to tell and we’re at that point in our history when it’s time to tell it the loudest way possible, on TV and radio.”
Behling added that purchasing time on streaming services, rather than traditional broadcast channels, enable them to precisely target the correct demographic and ensure that viewers who see the ads have significant potential to purchase Hard Truth brands.
McCabe said that in addition to the new advertising campaign, one of the most significant signs of growth at Hard Truth is its current distillery expansion, highlighted by the construction of its second rackhouse—which will be twice the size of its current rackhouse, tripling its storage capacity. Along with this expansion, the distillery is transitioning to 24/7 production to keep up with demand.
“These are heady days for all of us at Hard Truth,” said McCabe. “We come to work every day thinking what’s next? We’re not sure what it will be, but we know it will be great.”
About Hard Truth Distilling Co.
Headquartered in Nashville, Indiana, Hard Truth Distilling Co. produces more than 20 premium spirits, including critically acclaimed Hard Truth Sweet Mash Rye Whiskey and top-selling Hard Truth Cinnamon Vodka, Hard Truth Toasted Coconut Rum, and Hard Truth Toasted Coconut Rum Cream.
Hard Truth’s spirits are distributed in Arkansas, Florida, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Wisconsin and Wyoming with several new states in process for 2023.
Founded in 2015, Hard Truth Distilling Co. quickly outgrew its original production facility, and, by 2017, construction had begun on its current facility, a distillery housed in a 50,000-square-foot building equipped with a state-of-the-art Vendome Copper & Brass distilling system. Hard Truth’s destination campus spans 325 wooded acres in Brown County, Indiana — an artists’ colony and tourist destination known for its natural beauty. Visit hardtruth.com for the
complete Hard Truth experience.
The 141st auction is now live with more than seven thousand quality bottles to choose from. As usual we thought we’d save you some scrolling time and highlight a few special expressions in this months auction to get you started.
A very rare and much sought after Largiemeanoch – Bowmore by another name – bottled in 1979 after twelve years of maturation. The Largiemeanoch brand was created in the 1970’s for The Howgate Wine Company Ltd, and vanishingly few bottles remain. This legendary bottling is rarely seen at auction and the dark malt has tropical notes drawn from the years spent slumbering in the finest sherry casks.
A bottle that seems to get more impressive each time we see it, The Macallan 72 Year Old Lalique Genesis Decanter. A fantastic expression this one, distilled in the 1940’s the whisky comes in a bespoke decanter by celebrated French crystal producers Lalique which is itself held in a case designed by Burgess Studio and handcrafted by cabinet maker NEJ Stevenson. One of the oldest whiskies Macallan have ever bottled, this is your chance to purchase one of the most sought-after expressions on the secondary market.
An incredible old Mortlach distilled in 1936, and bottled in 1986 – 50 years later. 1936 was the year when the Spanish Civil War began, BBC started the first public TV broadcasts from London, and King Edward VIII abdicated for Wallis Simpson. In keeping with the historical nature of this expression the label features artwork taken from The Book of Kells, a 9th century tome of inimitable beauty featuring Christian iconography combined with Celtic art. A heady mix of art, history and rare whisky this one is not to be missed.
A bottle of Orcadian gold make no mistake, this is the Highland Park 1958 Vintage with Decanter & Book. This 40 year old whisky was distilled in 1958 and is presented in this fantastic wooden box with its own Caithness Glass Decanter and a hardback book that celebrates whisky and Orkney. Jim Robertson, Highland Park’s previous Distillery Manager, has signed each book.
As always there are some pretty special drams available this month, but with well over 7000 lots available there is something to suit everyone. So the time has come to delve into this month’s auction, start building your watchlist, and as always best of luck to everyone in the auction.
Blair Athol
10 Years Old
‘Strawberry Fields’
NOSE: Pronounced fruity aromas are immediately detectable, followed by oak, strawberry jam, a touch of chocolate and warmth of spice.
PALATE: A quick strike of cracked black pepper fills the mouth and dissipates. A softer red fruit and sweetness ooze onto the palate. Unctuous and rich jam, chocolate and dried fruits follow close behind. A touch of leather, oak and a hint of vanilla meander through.
FINISH: The warmth remains long in the mouth, accompanied by the more mature chocolate and leathery tones. A drying spice lingers on.
£66.99
Undisclosed Speyside
13 Years Old
‘Tapestry’
NOSE: A bright fruit-driven nose of apricots, stewed apples, brown sugar and a touch of sticky toffee.
PALATE: A complicated dram indeed. Layers of delicate stone fruit, tinned fruit syrup and icing sugar weave in and out of richer classic sherry influences of sticky toffee pudding, dates and chocolate.
FINISH: Bright sugars and fruity syrup mellow first, leaving the headier notes to share centre stage with cinnamon spices and black pepper. Long warmth mellows in the mouth over the next few minutes.
£66.99
Miltonduff
16 Years Old
‘Let’s Stay Together’
NOSE: Bold sherry initially cloaks the intricacies, but time and a touch of water reveal more delicate cooked fruits, cinnamon and cloves. A touch of milk chocolate skulks around the back.
PALATE: Rich sweetness washes over the palate with bright sparks of pepper from the alcohol. As the dram mellows, deeper stewed fruits and milk chocolate give way to lighter stone fruits and layers of spice.
FINISH: Milk chocolate and fruit fade first, revealing Christmas cake and a touch of nuttiness. Bags of spices loiter for a lengthy, balanced finish.
£98.99
From renowned independent bottlers, Gordon & MacPhail, comes this brilliant Mortlach expression released as a part of their historic Distillery Labels series. The distillate hails from Mortlach distillery in the Speyside region of Dufftown, and was matured for 15 years by G&M.
Mortlach 15 Year Old Distillery Labels
From renowned independent bottlers, Gordon & MacPhail, comes this brilliant Mortlach expression.
Expect aromas of stewed apples, dates and mixed spice, leading to flavours of barley, strawberries and sweet poached pears. For the finish, we find new hints of worn leather and citrus.
Our collection dates for March 2023 have now been finalised.
Please click HERE for the list of dates, locations and to register your interest in this service.
Please note the date of our local and Edinburgh collections have changed.
Home collections are available for those customers sending 10+ bottles or bottles to the value of £1000. Unfortunately this service is not available in London or to those customer who live within 10 miles of a collection point.
Collections are limited and offered on a first come first served basis.
It would be appreciated if bottles could be packed for uplift. In addition a submission form and label should be completed. Submission forms can now be completed via your main accounts page.
A winner in our auction? We are now offering a delivery (to collection point) service to customers who are dropping bottles off for a future auction. This service is charged at £12 (inc VAT), optional loss and breakage cover is available.
WATERFORD DISTILLERY ANNOUNCES LAUNCH OF CUVÉE: ARGOT SINGLE MALT WHISKY
Waterford Distillery has today launched their new single malt whisky, Cuvée: Argot
Cuvée: Argot marks a new entry point for Waterford Whisky, available worldwide
The new product forms part of the distillery’s Cuvée Concepts, each of which layer distinct Single Farm Origins to give even greater complexity of flavour
1st March 2023: Ireland’s Waterford Distillery, producer of natural whiskies, has announced the launch of Cuvée: Argot, a permanent addition to its single malt whisky range and accompanying Cuvée Concept.
Launching from 1st March, Cuvée: Argot is the distillery’s first permanent global bottling, marking a more accessible entry point to the world of Waterford Whisky.
Cuvée: Argot – pronounced “ar-go” – , is created as a vibrant, enthusiastic bottling, bringing together several of Waterford Whisky’s’s Single Farm Origins adding depth and ultimate complexity, with a hint of true Irish peat following the success of the distillery’s bottlings of Ballybannon and Fenniscourt launched last year – the first whiskies to use real Irish peat for generations.
Waterford Whisky’s Cuvée Concept, inspired by the legendary châteaux of France, is the first of its kind in the single malt whisky industry. By harvesting, distilling and maturing Irish barley farm by farm, each with its own distinct terroir-derived flavour profile, the Cuvée: Argot’s complexity combines a number of distinct Single Farm Origins – each one a unique whisky in its own right – to create a signature bottling from the distillery.
Full transparency and traceability of the Cuvée: Argot is accessible by its game-changing TÉIREOIR code. Utilising pioneering technology, drinkers have full access to how the barley was harvested, stored, malted, and distilled – ensuring the diligence and veracity of each Single Farm Origin.
Mark Reynier, Waterford Distillery Founder and CEO, says:
“We are delighted to introduce the Cuvée: Argot as part of our continued quest to uncover whisky’s most natural flavours. At Waterford Distillery, our view is rather than a manufactured product, Waterford Whisky is an agricultural produce. It’s of the land; our reverence for its raw material, barley. And Argot is our introduction to that Waterford Whisky world.
“On the one hand we can express barley by letting Ireland’s farmlands do the talking via our Single Farm Origins; or as in this case, with ultimate creativity, we can bring these flavours, those barley ingredients together for ultimate harmony and complexity in the same way as Bordeaux Grand Vin and Champagne Grand Marques.
“With this new addition to our ever-growing collection of bottlings, Argot is a refreshing, more accessible bottling for whisky lovers and flavour enthusiasts to experience our Cuvée Concepts.”
Tasting Notes by Ned Gahan, Head Distiller at Waterford Distillery:
Cuvée: Argot is matured fully in a mixture of 37% first-fill US Oak, 19% Virgin US oak, 19%
Premium French Oak and 23% Vin Doux Naturel.
The whisky has aromas of orange peel, almonds stewed apple, bread crust, green foliage, mixed berries, fennel and white chocolate, with the flavours of bell peppers, granola, grapefruit, smokey barbecue, banana milkshake, green apple skin – the finish is long, warming, peppery and dry.
About Waterford Distillery
Waterford Whisky, the world’s largest producer of organic and biodynamic whiskies, is on a quest to unearth whisky’s most natural flavours.
Unashamedly influenced by the world’s greatest winemakers, Waterford Whisky obsessively brings the same intellectual drive, methodology and rigour to barley – the very source of malt whisky’s complex flavour.
Extolling a hundred exclusive farms of Irish-grown barley, the distillery searches for natural flavours via three paths: its Single Farm Origins pursue the individualism of terroir-derived flavour; its Arcadian Farm Origins express the intensity of flavour from alternative philosophies and long-forgotten varieties; whilst its Cuvées revel in the ultimate sophistication, where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
With this unique commitment to natural and profound flavours, Waterford Whisky is agricultural produce, not a manufactured product.
For more information, visit https://waterfordwhisky.com/
