Statement from Kentucky’s Bourbon Industry

on House Passage of HB 5

“The Kentucky Distillers’ Association thanks and applauds the Kentucky House of Representatives for passage of the common-sense compromise to House Bill 5, a long-term phase out of Kentucky’s discriminatory barrel tax on Bourbon that no distiller pays anywhere else in the world.

“We appreciate the leadership of A&R Chairman Jason Petrie and House Speaker David Osborne who put forth this compromise which addresses funding issues with schools, local fire and emergency services, and barrels under industrial revenue bond contracts.

“Distillers will continue to pay the punitive tax over the next 17 years, giving local communities a significant influx of revenue and ample time to diversify their budgets and plan for the future without having to depend on the success of a single industry.

“Most importantly, schools will be held harmless under the companion House Bill 447 should their funding decrease over the phase out. And distillers will be required to honor IRB contracts and commitments by continuing to pay taxes on those barrels.

“The KDA and its members have always asked to be treated just like every other industry in Kentucky. No other manufacturer pays taxes on its goods during production. Taxes aren’t levied on vehicles rolling down the assembly line, dish washers as they are being built, or tobacco drying in the barn.

“The distilling industry is the highest-taxed large manufacturing industry in Kentucky, and our companies already pay a multitude of other taxes like all other businesses including property, sales and use, local occupational taxes plus alcohol license fees at the state and local levels.

“Bourbon has been blessed with historic growth over the last decade, but Kentucky continues to lose out on the next generation of distillers and those jobs and investments. They are simply not coming to Kentucky, and the Bourbon barrel tax is a main reason why.

“Thank you to all House members who voted for these critical measures.

“We urge the Senate to pass House Bills 5 and 447 and keep Kentucky the one, true home of Bourbon.”

— KDA President Eric Gregory

Founded in 1880, the Kentucky Distillers’ Association is a 501(c)(6) non-profit trade association that passionately unites, promotes, protects and elevates the Commonwealth’s signature Bourbon and distilled spirits industry. Its diverse and growing membership produces the overwhelming majority of the world’s Bourbon, from legendary, global brands to emerging micro distilleries that are fostering the next generation of the Commonwealth’s timeless craft and treasured economic engine. The KDA maintains an open membership policy, champions a strong commitment to the responsible and moderate consumption of spirits, and fights to curb underage drinking and drunk driving.

HEARTS & CRAFTS BANYULS CASK SINGLE MALT WHISKY

Our limited edition Banyuls Cask Single Malt Whisky is the fourth expression in our Hearts & Crafts collection. This yearly limited edition series celebrates the Arts & Crafts movement which flourished here in the Cotswolds and stood for the importance of traditional craftsmanship – the same values upon which our beautiful rural distillery was built.

This limited release has been aged for its full term in French oak casks seasoned with Banyuls, a wonderful dessert wine from the South West of France made using the same “mutage” technique as port wine, adding alcohol to partially fermented sweet wine and ageing in oak for at least 10 months.  The wine is crisp, fruity with notes of coffee and chocolate which marry perfectly with our rich and fruity distillate.

All bottles come with a limited edition William Morris design presentation tube.

Non-chill filtered. Natural colouring.

£94.95

DISCOVER OUR NEW LIMITED RELEASES

Our first release of 2023 has both UK and EU exclusives!

Our latest Single Cask Limited Releases exhibit the mastery of both Speyside and Highland single malts. With notes ranging from green grass and sweet fruits, to warm spices and marzipan there is a bottle for every nose. With very limited stock make sure you’re one of the first to pick up a bottle today!

SHOP SINGLE CASKS UK

SHOP SINGLE CASKS EU

About the Single Cask Collection

Hand-selected from some of Scotland’s finest distilleries, each expression in our Single Cask Collection reflects the one-of a kind nuances of production, season and cask influence in Scotch single malt whisky. Evocatively named and beautifully presented, our Single Cask releases are extremely rare and highly-covetable.

Unlock the Mystery of Whisky!

Last year we announced our newly revitalised W Club. Since then, our membership has grown by over 135 per cent! We are always working hard to improve and enhance to make sure your £30 goes further than ever. If you’re not yet a member, it’s never a bad time to sign up!

Over the last year, fifty different in-demand releases were offered to W Club members via 24-hour Priority access, and more than 500 of the world’s most sought-after whiskies went out exclusively to W Clubbers across over twenty exciting ballots.

For the year ahead we are looking to increase the number, frequency and transparency of these releases, which are all designed to ensure W Club members get as fair as possible a chance of acquiring some of the finest whiskies released throughout the year.

After the lifting of restrictions in early 2022, we ran nearly one hundred in-person tasting events —from members-only tastings to brand-led nights and roadshows—across fourteen stores up and down the United Kingdom. All of these events are either discounted for members or are hosted exclusively for the W Club. We’ll be running even more throughout 2023, and we will have tastings return to TWS venues who didn’t host them in 2022 – including our new Cardiff store.

Once the tastings are confirmed, the information can be viewed on our events page on the W Club Members Hub (accessible via the QR Code) and each one is communicated via email. To ensure you’re not missing out, make sure you’ve selected your nearest store on the “My Account” section of www.whiskyshop.com

Join The W Club →

K&L Exclusive from an American Single Malt Icon
Westland 7 Year “Madeira Cask” K&L Exclusive Single ex-Madeira Barrel Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky (700ml) ($109.99)
“I think it’s safe to say that the Westland Distillery deserves its spot atop the craft distilling pyramid.” — David Othenin-Girard, K&L Spirits Buyer

Arguably the finest exclusive cask we’ve ever seen from one of the country’s most compelling distilleries, the Westland 7 Year “Madeira Cask” is further evidence that the American single malt category is one of the most exciting in the spirits market right now. This top-notch operation in downtown Seattle has distinguished itself from the herd by focusing on doing one thing in extraordinary fashion—making some of the very best single malt whiskies in the world.

Westland 7 Year “Madeira Cask” K&L Exclusive Single ex-Madeira Barrel Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky (700ml) ($109.99)

K&L Notes: This exceptional cask of Westland is one of the finest we’ve ever tasted. Made from the distillery’s signature five-malt mash, it spent seven full years in freshly dumped Madeira cask before being bottled at cask strength exclusively for K&L Wine Merchants. This is the oldest cask of single malt from the exceptional distillery in urban Seattle. Westland has successfully proven that the American Single Malt category can hang with the big boys in Scotland, and these single casks are the most interesting offerings that we’ve seen.

David Othenin-Girard | K&L Spirits Buyer | Review Date: March 15, 2023

This was a wild selection. Westland has consistently offered us really exciting barrels over the years, but this is the first time we’ve seen a malt fully matured in Madeira. Seven years makes this the oldest single cask we’ve bought from them and one of the oldest malts they’ve put on the market. In any case, let’s taste! A gorgeous tawny color. On the nose, an outrageous mixture of dried red fruits, hibiscus, roasted arabica, freshly cut mahogany, sandalwood, and sweet red candies. It’s very ROUGE! On the palate, it’s an absolute juice bomb! Fresh red raspberry, syrupy caramel sauce, pure almond butter, and dried rose petals. This is an absolutely wild cask! With water it becomes sweeter and more floral, but not perfumed. I love the hibiscus character, but it remains balanced behind the sweet fruit and sticky, nutty malt. A truly fabulous cask that will certainly turn any Scotch lover into a Westland fan.

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

ralfy review 969 – Ledaig Rioja @46.3%vol: (NAS)

The Rarest Midleton Very Rare In The World?

Four fantastic new bottles are available to buy now on the Mark Littler Shop, including a Midleton Very Rare 1988. 

The Mark Littler Shop is infamous for listing incredibly rare and collectable whiskies such as the Balvenie 1937 50 YO (sold in 2021) and the Springbank 1919 50 YO (sold in 2022). Now another spectacularly rare bottling is available for one lucky purchaser, the Midleton Very Rare 1988.

The Midleton Very Rare 1988 is perhaps the rarest release in the series, the first of which was the 1984 release. It is said that only one cask was bottled for the 1988 version, hence the fact that this bottle has only appeared at auction 16 times since 2009. When the bottle does appear at auction, it sells almost exclusively in Ireland, making this UK-based opportunity one that shouldn’t be missed.

This particular bottle was purchased by Mark Littler Ltd’s client in Dublin in 1991 for just £32 whilst the family were in Dublin celebrating a birthday and is available to buy now on the Mark Littler Shop. 

Also available to buy on the Mark Littler Shop are two Macallan James Bond 60th Anniversary bottles. These bottlings were released via ballot on the Macallan website in September 2022 to great fanfare, and prices on the secondary market skyrocketed within days. Is there a gap in your collection?

The Macallan James Bond Decade IV and Decade V are now available to buy on the Mark Littler Shop.

And finally, a stunning Dalmore 1973 33 Year Old is also available to purchase. Dalmore distillery is often credited with being the first distillery in Scotland to perform a luxury rebrand in the year 2005. As such, the twelve-point stag has become synonymous with the brand. This beautifully presented vintage whisky sold just 5 times in 2022 and is now available to buy.

The Mark Littler Shop carries rare and collectable Scotch, Irish, Canadian, and Japanese whiskies with free UK delivery and 1-3 day shipping.

About Mark Littler Limited

Mark Littler is an independent whisky broker, market analyst and consultant with over a decade of experience in the industry. Each week he publishes new videos on his YouTube channel about topics such as cask investment fraud (and how to avoid it), the history of distilleries and bottles, debunking whisky investment myths and much more. For more information visit www.marklittler.com

If you are interested in the Macallan James Bond Series or would like to chat to one of the team about our other services, please get in touch.

Email: whisky@marklittler.com

Telephone: 01260 218 718

Melbourne-based whisky website, Skull and Barrel, has launched its own retail site offering a comprehensive selection of rare, old, and collectible whiskies and spirits. With over 15 years of experience, the company’s team is passionate about connecting these rare bottles with those who share their enthusiasm, and actively supports customers in their aims, whether that be consuming, collecting, or investing.

Skull and Barrel’s range includes The Macallan, Ardbeg, Springbank, and Glenfiddich, with an emphasis on limited edition and rare bottles. They offer a range of services, including valuations, selling collections of bottles, and queries about buying.

A spokesperson for Skull and Barrel said, “We are excited to launch our own retail site and bring our passion for old, rare, and collectible whiskies to a wider audience. Our aim is to make the market more accessible to buyers and sellers of any background and geography, and to connect these rare bottles with those who share our passion.”

Skull and Barrel’s range of Macallan whiskies is particularly noteworthy, with a wide variety of vintages and expressions available, including rare and limited editions.

Springbank, another of the company’s featured distilleries, is known for its small-batch, handcrafted approach, producing some of the most highly regarded whiskies in Scotland. Skull and Barrel’s selection of Springbank whiskies includes rare and hard-to-find bottles, making it a must-visit destination for whisky enthusiasts.

Skull and Barrel’s expertise, knowledge, and commitment to quality make it a go-to destination for rare and collectible whiskies and spirits. For more information about Skull and Barrel and their range of whiskies and spirits, please visit their website or contact the team directly.

www.skullandbarrel.com.au
2/31 Makland Drive
Derrimut, 3026, Victoria,
Australia
sales@skullandbarrel.com.au

Five New UK Exclusives!

Today, excellent independent Scotch whisky bottler, Murray McDavid has launched five new UK Exclusives! Using a variety of exciting casks for these new expressions, this really is cask maturation at its best.

Explore these new UK exclusives via the link below.

Some great news also just in regarding our Lindores Single Cask! (see below)

As ever, if you have any questions or queries, please just get in touch.

Slàinte

SHOP MURRAY MCDAVID

SPEYSIDE CLASSICS

MACALLAN DOUBLE CASK

Founded in 1824, Macallan has grown over almost two centuries to become one of the most respected names in whisky. Famed for its generously sherried style, this old Speysider sets the standard for luxury single malts.

Macallan grew from humble beginnings as a small farm distillery by the River Spey. From those early days, one of the things that distinguished this pioneer of single malt was its sourcing of excellent casks – originally from Spain and later from the United States. The Double Cask range is a continuation of that legacy, each one a perfect marriage of Macallan’s heavyweight spirit and finest quality oak.

  SHOP MACALLAN