NEW PRODUCT RELEASE

EQUINOX & SOLSTICE SUMMER EDITION 2024:

MORTLACH 16 YEAR OLD

This year’s Summer Edition of Equinox & Solstice is a single refill hogshead of 2007 Mortlach, bottled at 16 years of age and reduced to this series’ trademark easy drinking strength of 48.5%.

We’re always on the look out for casks that go against common expectations of certain distilleries. In the case of Mortlach, we often associate this distillery and its notoriously meaty and full-bodied distillate with sherry casks. So, we were very pleased to find this refill hogshead matured example that shows this wonderfully fat and oily distillate in all its natural glory. Rich, naturally sweet, waxy, fruity and well-balanced, this is perfect for easy summer sipping or, as is often the case with this series, makes a terrific highball too.

£95.00

SHOP NOW

EUROS 2024! 

The wait is over! Join us at Whiski Bar to catch every exhilarating moment live on our big projector and screen! Grab your friends and get in early for a good table to enjoy the thrilling matches while indulging in our delicious drinks and food! Whether you’re a die-hard fan or just love the atmosphere of watching the game with your friends, Whiski Bar is the place to be!

With our huge projector and a lively atmosphere, you wont miss a moment of the action as you enjoy our extensive selection of drinks such as Innis & Gunn, Tennents, Cocktails and over 300 whiskies to choose from! Indulge in our delectable all-day menu, featuring our popular Haggis tower, burgers and Rib-eye steak! The excitement doesn’t stop at the final whistle. Stick around for our live music starting at 10PM!  We’ve got everything you need for an unforgettable Euro 2024 experience.

Whiski Bar  & Restaurant
119 High Street, Edinburgh, EH1 1SG
www.whiskibar.co.uk

The Hearach whisky takes its name from the Gaelic word for a native of Harris. So, every box of our single malt features portraits of local men and women from our community.

Meet Donald Mackay, better know here as ‘Mossie’, from Scalpay who is planning to celebrate his 91st birthday in July of this year. Born in 1933, he was born and brought up on the island but spent much of his life at sea and has seen plenty of the world as a result.

Today, he is happily retired and still lives in Scalpay with views of the south harbour, where he’s a proud ‘seanair’ to his 7 grandchildren. A legendary dancer, after seeing him in action at our launch weekend cèilidh last year, we’re happy to confirm his energy and love of life remains undiminished! A huge thank you to him for allowing us to capture some of his Hearach spirit…

ORDER THE HEARACH

SKIP THE LIGHT FANDANGO

Cask No. 44.172

Age: 20 years

Cask: First Fill Oloroso Hogshead

The nose had honey and nut cornflakes, sticky buns, moist gingerbread and peanut brittle, orange boxes and cherry cola in a leather shoe. The intense, deep palate had pastel de nata, syrup of figs, dates and stewed prunes with custard to begin, leaning later into earthier notes of thyme, oregano, tobacco strands and wine-stained flamenco floorboards. The reduced nose went from golden syrup, maple candies and hot fudge sundae to sawn oak and orange groves. The palate now combined demerara sugar on roasted peaches and honey on fresh figs with salted peanuts and cigarette ash. This spent its first 17 years in ex-bourbon wood, the rest in a first fill Spanish oak oloroso hogshead.

VIEW THE BOTTLE

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

 Glengoyne unveils first exclusive bottling in new Solstice Series

Inspired by the movement of the sun in a full year, Glengoyne’s Solstice Series comprises two bottlings, of which the first launches this month.

Glengoyne Summer Solstice is the first expression to be shared exclusively with the Glengoyne Family. 

Glengoyne Highland single malt Scotch whisky has unveiled the first in their exclusive single cask ‘Solstice Series’ comprising two beautiful single cask bottlings inspired by the movement of the sun.

Glengoyne Summer Solstice came to life following a project true to the distillery’s reputation of being Scotland’s slowest distilled whisky. Over a year in the making, 12 pinhole cameras were installed at Glengoyne Distillery to track the sun’s path through the sky and watch its influence on the maturation of the casks.

After patiently waiting, the cameras captured imagery of Glengoyne through sun, wind, ice and snow and created beautiful solargraphy to show the path of the sun over Glengoyne, inspiring the creation of the new series.

Launching Glengoyne’s Solstice Series is Glengoyne Summer Solstice, a limited edition expression of only 168 bottles available to purchase, with an ABV of 59%. The bottling is the first to be exclusively available to Glengoyne Family members.

To create the expression, Single Cask Bourbon Barrel no. 294 was hand-selected by Distillery Manager Robbie Hughes, as he believed the cask perfectly reflected the light and fruity flavours that encapsulate a Scottish summer. The cask, which had been maturing since 2008, delivers a deliciously fruity expression that offers notes of vanilla, strawberry coulis, banana, apricot and white chocolate.

On the nose, the Glengoyne Summer Solstice presents a combination of raspberry, desiccated coconut, white grape, lime, soft oak, Swiss meringue and dark coffee beans. The palette reveals a fruity and syrupy taste before revealing a beautiful finish with notes of toffee and biscuit, paired with refreshing notes of citrus and gooseberry.

Robbie Hughes, Glengoyne Distillery Manager, said: “I’m so pleased to unveil the first expression in Glengoyne’s Solstice Series, with our Summer Solstice expression. Inspired by a solography project that took place at our distillery over 12 months, the expression celebrates the movement of the sun between the summer solstices, signifying long summer evenings and the journey we’ve travelled from darkness to light. 

“Everything we do at Glengoyne, we do with patience, dedication and the understanding that perfection takes time. We’ve a wonderful community of whisky lovers who appreciate and understand Glengoyne’s unhurried philosophy, so sharing this special release exclusively with our Glengoyne Family members is our way of thanking them.”

Glengoyne’s Solstice Series celebrates both the longest and shortest days of the year and the second expression, Glengoyne Winter Solstice, is set to launch this December.

Glengoyne Summer Solstice is an exclusive release available only to Glengoyne Family members and will be available to purchase online from 13:19 on the 20th of June, to celebrate when the sun reaches its meridian point – the highest point in the sky.

Glengoyne is part of Ian Macleod Distillers, one of Scotland’s leading independent family-owned distillers. With family at the heart of the brand, Glengoyne invites whisky aficionados who enjoy and celebrate Glengoyne all over the world to become part of the Glengoyne Family. Joining the family allows exclusive first access to rare bottlings, such as the Solstice Series and invitations to unique events. Members of the Glengoyne family can expect exclusive access to the Winter Solstice expression, coming in December.

Glengoyne Summer Solstice has an RRP of £260 and is available to purchase HERE

For more information on Glengoyne see: www.glengoyne.com. To join Glengoyne’s Family, visit: glengoyne.com/join-our-family

Tasting Notes

Nose

Raspberry and vanilla, desiccated coconut, white grape, lime, soft oak, Swiss meringue, and dark coffee beans.

Palate

Fruity and syrupy, vanilla, strawberry coulis, banana, apricot and white chocolate.

Finish

Toffee and biscuit with refreshing citrus and gooseberry.

THE WHISKY EXCHANGE PRESENTS

New and exclusive to The Whisky Exchange, The Seasons is a series of 12 single cask whiskies chosen to tell the story of the passing seasons. The first three single malts in the collection were selected by our team to reflect the feel and flavours of a long, sunny summer. These are the perfect drams to enjoy on a warm evening – or at any time of year when you need a taste of sunshine.

 DISCOVER NOW 

LOWLAND SINGLE MALT
2012 12 YEAR OLD

The Scottish Lowlands often bring to mind light, floral and refreshing single malts like this one from a mystery distillery. Filled with bright notes of stone fruit and a hint of vanilla, this is the perfect dram to serve at your summer party.

  SHOP NOW  

BENRIACH 2008
15 YEAR OLD

One of Speyside’s great old distilleries, Benriach is known for its generous notes of soft fruit and citrus. We selected this cask from 2008 for its summery notes of mango sticky rice, vanilla ice cream and warm toffee.

  SHOP NOW  

ARDMORE 1997
26 YEAR OLD

This well aged Ardmore is waxy and honeyed, with tropical notes that made us think of summer holidays on the beach. It might be the oldest whisky in the collection, but this still has plenty of freshness, with notes of peach and pineapple.

  SHOP NOW  

Bunnahabhain 30 Year Old “Rites of Passage” 1st Fill Oloroso Barrel Cask Strength Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky (700ml)

$599.99

Rites of Passage is a new independent bottler committed to the old way of doing things. Lamenting the loss of medium- to long-term aged single casks, they only bottle superlative quality casks in premium barrels with a minimum age statement of 12 years old. Many of their casks will greatly surpass that – like this 30 year first-fill sherry cask from Bunnahabhain. Double barreled in first-fill Olorosso this particular whisky was distilled on December 2nd, 1991 and filled into first-fill sherry and was reracked into a new first-fill sherry cask in 2017 by Epicurean Selection, the company behind Rites of Passage. It was finally bottled on October 5th, 2022. It is dark as chocolate and clean as a whistle. Bottled at 47.3% ABV natural cask strength with no added color or chill filtration. Only 249 bottles produced.

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

DOUBLE PRODUCT RELEASE

ISLAY SPONGE PART VI CAOL ILA 13-YEAR-OLD

This is the last of the ‘low hanging’ distilleries in our Islay Sponge series; the jury remains out on just when exactly we’ll bottle a Port Ellen or Lagavulin… For now though, this is a gorgeous multi-vintage and nicely sherried Caol Ila 13-year-old that perfectly represents this Islay stalwart in our Islay Sponge series. A 50/50 mix of a 2009 refill sherry hogshead and 2010 1st fill sherry hogshead, this shows off the Caol Ila distillate in full, peaty glory, while gently draping everything in a gentle tinge of clean sherry.

SHOP NOW

WHISKY SPONGE WEB EXCLUSIVE – DEANSTON 2012

As we near the grand milestone of our 100th edition, we’re pulling out all the stops to bid farewell to the era of The Sponge! And what better way to celebrate than with a Special Whisky Sponge Exclusive, handpicked with our Decadent Drinks followers in mind! We’ve selected a naturally low volume, 1st fill barrel of Deanston, from 2012, bottled at natural cask strength. This classic, modern, highland-style Deanston, is oozing with character and charisma!

SHOP NOW

These bottles all reminded us of various escapades across these islands and will have you traveling through Scotland with every sip. If you’re in need of some inspiration for your next whisky adventure – look no further. Get ready to toast a fantastic staycation! Dive into a world of delightful drams and irresistible discounts. It’s the perfect time to treat yourself and your friends, PLUS save big on your favourite bottlings!

SHOP ALL THE BOTTLES

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

The House of Suntory Announces the Launch of Its Groundbreaking 2024 Tsukuriwake Series

The unique and exclusive four-expression series further explores diversity, innovation, and craftsmanship at the Yamazaki and Hakushu Distilleries.

NEW YORK, US, JUNE, 2024 — Today, The House of Suntory announces the launch of the 2024 Tsukuriwake Series – showcasing the exceptional blending and diversity of Japanese whisky. The series is comprised of Yamazaki Golden Promise, Yamazaki Islay Peated Malt, Hakushu 18 Year Old Peated Malt, and Yamazaki 18 Year Old Mizunara.

Tsukuriwake (pronounced soo-koo-ree-wah-keh) means ‘artisanship through a diversity of making,’ and the limited-edition 2024 Tsukuriwake Series is a true reflection of this. Suntory’s 5th Generation Chief Blender Shinji Fukuyo has pushed the boundaries of whisky making with this series by using ingredients like wood, and processes that expand the previous Tsukuriwake range to showcase the diversity of whisky making.

Following last year’s milestone 100th Anniversary of pioneering Japanese whisky, The House of Suntory continues to innovate the category with the 2024 Tsukuriwake Series. The previous selection was released in 2022.

“Tsukuriwake translates to ‘artisanship through a diversity of making’, which is truly what the 2024 Series represents with each of the four liquids included,” says Chief Blender of Suntory Shinji Fukuyo. “While past releases from the collection focused mainly on the details of the casks, The 2024 Tsukuriwake Series emphasizes the elements of whisky making, such as ingredient selection, peat, and cask. This series is the ultimate showcase of the incredible diversity of choices that goes into the making of Yamazaki and Hakushu whiskies.”

In previous years, the Tsukuriwake Series has mainly focused on the casks matured in the lands of Yamazaki. The 2024 Series reveals that the Tsukuriwake approach goes beyond diversifying the whiskies in multiple casks to  incorporate elements of whisky-making, such as ingredient selection, peat and cask. See below:

Yamazaki Golden Promise
Yamazaki Golden Promise is made from golden promise barley, a standout grain cultivated in Scotland in the 1960s. Distilled in Japan since 2009 and aged in American Oak casks, it delivers a maltier, richer Yamazaki profile. It is perfect for more mature whiskies and has been added to Yamazaki 12 Year Old, imparting its deep and rounded flavor. Yamazaki Golden Promise offers a rich and full palate featuring notes of orange marmalade, custard and a sweet, lasting finish.

Yamazaki Islay Peated Malt
Islay Peat is often recognized as a distinctive character amongst scotch, with a softer and sweeter mouthfeel than Scotland’s mainland peat. The water and maturation process used to create Yamazaki Islay Peated Malt yields a balanced sweetness that complements the smoke, that adds complexity to the long enduring finish of Yamazaki. On the palate, it has a smooth sweetness of brown sugar with hints of bitter orange citrus and a warm, smokey finish.

Both Yamazaki Golden Promise and Yamazaki Islay Peated Malt, enhance the intricate, multi-layered flavor profile of the Yamazaki core brand.

Yamazaki 18 Year Old Mizunara (Tsukuriwake 2024 Edition)
Yamazaki 18 Year Old Mizunara (2024 Tsukuriwake Edition) introduces a limited-edition label for Suntory’s flagship Yamazaki 18 Year Old Mizunara, celebrating The House of Suntory’s legacy of mastering Mizunara oak: a Japanese oak notoriously difficult to work with, but now known as a signature enhancer of Suntory whiskies. The complex, deep flavor of Mizunara gives depth to the multi-layered profile of Yamazaki. A long maturation period reveals its signature spiciness and incense-like sandalwood and aloe wood flavors that comprise this 100% Mizunara whisky. It offers subtly spiced orange notes and a long, lingering finish with hints of clove and dried coconut.

Hakushu 18 Year Old Peated Malt (2024 Tsukuriwake Edition)
Hakushu 18 Year Old Peated Malt (2024 Tsukuriwake Edition) introduces a limited-edition label for Suntory’s celebrated Hakushu 18 Year Old Peated Malt. To honor the art of diverse blending at the Hakushu distillery, it enables The House of Suntory to produce more than 100 different malt whiskies and constant refinement of the Japanese peated malt whisky. The refined and elegant smokiness of Hakushu 18 Year Old Peated Malt lends a refreshing quality to the liquid, evoking the essence of a serene forest. A lengthy maturation process in Hakushu’s pristine and pure water reveals a distinct smokiness with spicy, peppery notes, deepening to unveil herbaceous minerals and ripe apple undertones.

The Yamazaki 18 Year Old Mizunara and Hakushu 18 Year Old Peated Malt, launched last year for the House of Suntory’s 100th anniversary and were continued due to their popularity among consumers.

For more information on the limited-edition whiskies, please visit us online here. All four are available in select markets around the world.

About The House of Suntory
Since 1923, Suntory has been renowned as a pioneer of Japanese Whisky for its House of Master Blenders and for their Art of Blending. Founder Shinjiro Torii built Japan’s first malt whisky distillery in Yamazaki, and the Suntory legacy continued with Torii’s son and Suntory’s second Master Blender, Keizo Saji, who continued to establish distilleries including the Hakushu Distillery. As the generations of Suntory’s master blenders carry on, Suntory Whisky remains committed to heritage and innovation. The House of Suntory has been named four-time Distiller of the Year at the International Spirits Challenge in London, UK (2010, 2012, 2013, 2014). Suntory Whiskies are subtle, refined and complex. The portfolio includes Yamazaki, Hakushu, Chita, Kakubin, Hibiki, Suntory Whisky Toki and Ao. The House of Suntory portfolio also offers Roku Japanese Gin and Haku Japanese Vodka. Created from Japanese ingredients by the master artisans at The House of Suntory, Roku Gin and Haku Vodka represent the nature and spirit of Japan. Last year, Suntory Whisky celebrated one hundred years of whisky innovation—a major milestone not only for the brand’s history, but for Japanese spirits culture as a whole. To mark this anniversary, The House of Suntory rolled out its centennial campaign throughout 2023.

About Suntory Global Spirits
As a world leader in premium spirits, Suntory Global Spirits inspires the brilliance of life, by creating rich experiences for people, in harmony with nature. Known for its craftsmanship of premium whiskies, including Jim Beam® and Maker’s Mark®; Japanese whiskies, including Yamazaki®, Hakushu®, Hibiki® and Toki™; and leading Scotch brands including Laphroaig® and Bowmore®, Suntory Global Spirits also produces leading brands such as Tres Generaciones® and El Tesoro® tequila, Roku™ and Sipsmith® gin, and is a world leader in Ready-To-Drink cocktails, with brands like -196 and On The Rocks™ Premium Cocktails.

A global company with approximately 6,000 employees in nearly 30 countries, Suntory Global Spirits is driven by its core values of Growing for Good, Yatte Minahare and Giving Back to Society. The company’s Proof Positive sustainability strategy includes ambitious goals and investments to drive sustainable change and have a positive impact on the planet, consumers and communities. Headquartered in New York City, Suntory Global Spirits is a subsidiary of Suntory Holdings Limited of Japan. For more information, visit www.suntoryglobalspirits.com