Living Souls 19YO ‘Kildalton’ Blended Malt, 42%

https://youtu.be/SH2YDccBbkc

Finally! An older Islay whisky that isn’t trying to destroy my wallet through terrible packaging and ‘allocated’ availability. This was an absolute delight upon the first smell and sip. A combination of Kildalton distilleries from the southern portion of Islay, I’d put strong money on Laphroaig being the backbone of this, unsure if Lagavulin or Ardneg are filling out the gaps in between.

I am honestly blown away by the layers of scents and flavours that are sitting within this glass of whisky. It is decadent with cherry, amaretto, almonds, smoke, white chocolate, hazelnuts, and just a delight at every single sensory corner.

I have to say fair play to the folks at Living Souls. This collection of four whiskies are some of the best releases I’ve tried in the past few years. Rare is it you get whiskies of this age that deliver on every aspect of the overall package. It’s simply incredible.

Hidden Barn Releases 3rd Annual Madeira Finished Bourbon

Limited Edition Blend Named “Perfect Harmony” Due to its Balance  

SPARTA, KY (Nov. 19, 2024) – Hidden Barn Bourbon is releasing its 2024 Madeira finished bourbon, aged for six years and then finished for seven months in Madeira casks.  Master Distiller Royce Neeley and Master Blender Jackie Zykan named this year’s release Perfect Harmony, due to the balance between the bourbon and the residual Madeira left in the oak barrel.  

Perfect Harmony is created using six-year-old bourbon distilled by Neeley using its mash bill of 70 percent corn, 20 percent rye and 10 percent malted barley, transferred to age in first-use Madeira barrels for an additional seven months, and then open-air vatted for several days allowing oxidation to occur and the entire batch to open up, contributing to the balance.  Then Zykan went to work, blending eight barrels to create Perfect Harmony.  

“It’s rare for a blender to create a blend and know instantly when we’ve hit the mark on what we’re trying to achieve. Very often we think about making tweaks here or there to see what will happen,” said Zykan.  “But this year’s Madeira blend is spot on, with the perfect balance of what I was trying to achieve – the right combination between the oak and Madeira make it come full circle.”  

Zykan’s tasting notes for Perfect Harmony describe it as having toffee, overripe red fruits, apple pie and oxidized rose on the nose.  The palate is gorgeously dense and creamy, with full-bodied vanilla and a hint of raisin.  The finish balances out the sweet viscosity with a slightly dry mint tone and notes of nutmeg and cardamom.  

Suggested retail pricing for the Hidden Barn Perfect Harmony Madeira Finished Bourbon is $89.99. This is the third in the Maderia finish series.  It is available for sale at the Neeley Family Distillery in Sparta, Ky, online, and at retail in Kentucky, Indiana, New York, California, Georgia, Colorado, Nevada, and New Mexico.  

About Hidden Barn Bourbon

Hidden Barn’s name harkens back to the local communities who painted their barns black in solidarity with distillers during Prohibition.  This sense of community is continued today through the passion for quality whiskey and camaraderie shared by its three partners, Jackie Zykan, Royce Neeley and Nate Winegar.  Together, the three friends bring their own strengths – a superior palate, distilling prowess, and a powerhouse connector to form Hidden Barn Bourbon.  Previous Hidden Barn Series releases have earned Best of Class in the Small Batch Bourbon Up to 5 years by The Tasting Alliance, Double Golds at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition in 2023 and 2024, and Best Small Batch, 1st Place at the 2023 New Orleans Bourbon Festival.  Hidden Barn Bourbon is owned by Neeley Family Distillery.   The brand is available online and in select states. For more information visit hiddenbarnwhiskey.com

Overholt Whiskey Announces Chore Coat Collaboration!

Coming to you with some very exciting news from Overholt Whiskey – today, we are launching The Overholt™ Chore Coat, an exclusive, limited-edition garment, in collaboration with SEEKER Los Angeles.

Overholt is the longest-standing American Whiskey brand maintained continuously since 1810 and has always been supported by trade, which is why we developed this chore coat specifically with, noting the functionality, quality, and style needed by those managing the bar. The Chore Coat has subtle customization that nods to the brand and its founder, Abe Overholt.

Each coat is proudly made in Los Angeles by local artisans, combining rich tradition with contemporary design – just like Overholt – each coat is individually numbered.

The Overholt™ Chore Coast retails for $229 and is available for purchase on the SEEKER website. Did we mention this makes an excellent holiday gift…can’t beat a dram of Overholt in an Overholt chore coat!

Complex, elegant, and full of character, our inaugural expression is a delicious dram which unfolds in your glass, revealing itself over time, just like the island itself.

Made to our carefully refined blenders’ recipe, we combine spirits which have been matured by the coastal village of Ardhasaig in selected first fill Ex-Bourbon casks, first fill Ex-Oloroso and Fino sherry butts.

“ I get a gentle peat smoke on the first sip which reminds me of island home fires burning when I was growing up. It comes along with a toasted maltiness. I can also taste homemade apple sauce and smell machair flowers, particularly white clover which springs up on our west coast every summer. Mixed spices appear, and an old-fashioned sweetness from things like candied ginger, vanilla, and honeycomb. Finally, there’s a long, clotted-cream note, mixed with a lasting sense of new leather. ” 

Shona Macleod, Carragreich, Isle of Harris.

PEAT SMOKE – APPLE SAUCE – TOASTED MALT – WILDFLOWERS – SPICE – CANDIED SWEETS – CLOTTED CREAM

£65.00
Includes Presentation Box & Free Delivery

ORDER A BOTTLE OF THE HEARACH

Lochlea adds Stout Cask Finish to

Limited Editions with Overtone Collaboration

Award-winning farm-to-cask distillery Lochlea in Ayrshire has revealed its first ever single malt whisky matured in stout beer casks: Lochlea Stout Cask Finish.

The UK-exclusive limited edition release is a culmination of various cask experiments with Glasgow-based craft brewery Overtone, renowned for its range of seasonal beers inspired by the culture of music and different musical genres.

Lochlea Stout Cask Finish started life the same as Lochlea’s signature whisky – Our Barley – matured in a combination of ex-bourbon, STR and oloroso sherry casks. The spirit was then placed into casks that had previously been loaned to Overtone Brewery to age their stout in a for a few months. The casks – originally from Lochlea before going to Overtone – were delivered back to the distillery, deliciously seasoned with the brewery’s distinctive rich stout beer – perfect for finishing Lochlea’s floral, fruity Lowland spirit.

The final dram reveals the influence from the stout through a rich nose with hints of all butter shortbread, tropical fruit and macadamia nuts, evolving into sweet toffee notes and a delicious toasted barley flavour on the palate. The spirit finishes with a long moreish fruit and cereal flavour.

Non-chill filtered and bottled at 52% ABV, Stout Cask Finish will be available in select retailers across the UK this winter, highlighting the innovative distillery’s creative local partnerships with likeminded independent creative producers*.

Lochlea’s Trade Sales Manager Emma Kirk said: “One of the benefits of Lochlea’s position as an independent distillery is our ability to be experimental and collaborate with other like-minded brands. When we discovered Overtone – one of Glasgow’s best craft breweries – were on the hunt for whisky casks to mature their first ever double mash stout in, we could not turn the opportunity down. Lochlea gifted the brewery the cask make up of our core expression, Our Barley. On return, our production team filled each stout seasoned cask with ‘Our Barley’, for a year. Our  distillery team have chosen three casks out of the six; the result is this delicious first stout cask finish ever to be released by us that we are really proud of.”

The team at Overtone said: “It’s been a pleasure to have this ongoing yearly side project with a local distillery that’s consistently pushing boundaries and doing incredible things. Our collaboration begins with brewing a rich, robust stout, full of roasty goodness, which is then aged in their freshly emptied casks. After about 8 months, the barrels are emptied and refilled with their whisky, creating a fascinating blend of flavours. I’m excited to see how this partnership evolves in the years to come, and I’m sure craft enthusiasts will enjoy the unique character it brings. We truly value this relationship and look forward to what we can achieve together.”

Lochlea Stout Cask Finish will be available via specialist retailers when it launches on 3^rd December, RRP: £59.99.

*Lochlea has previously partnered with other local producers, including Blackthorn Salt in Ayr.

Lochlea Stout Cask Finish:

52% ABV

Nose: All butter shortbread, layers of tropical fruit and macadamia nuts

Palate: Sweet toffee notes and toasted barley

Finish: Long, silky with moreish fruit, cereal and sweet flavours

About Lochlea Distillery:

Lochlea was originally a 222 acre livestock farm before being purchased by Neil and Jen McGeoch in 2006. After much consideration of the future of the farm and a successful trial to grow its own barley in 2015, the couple transformed the land and existing farm buildings into a fully-operational distillery in 2017 and started distilling the following year. The farming side has remained a unique part of Lochlea, with the move into barley production – paving the way for Lochlea to be one of the very few fully grain-to-cask distilleries in Scotland. It also has a rich Scottish heritage with strong links to Robbie Burns, with the bard having worked and lived on the farm a several years.

For a full list of Lochlea stockists, visit: Lochlea Distillery stockists

Whisky Auctioneer November 2024 Auction ENDS TONIGHT!

02.12.24

Now Live: November Auction

Our November auction while featuring over 8,500 rare whiskies ends tonight! This is a unique opportunity to bid on some of the world’s most sought-after bottles.

This month, we are thrilled to feature The Macallan TIME : SPACE 84 year old, making its global auction debut at Whisky Auctioneer. This extraordinary dual-chamber vessel contains two remarkable whiskies: an 84-year-old vintage distilled in 1940 – the oldest ever released by Macallan – and a 2018 vintage bottled in 2024, representing the distillery’s future.

Alongside this, we’re thrilled to present standout lots such as the Old Malt Cask bottlings of Port Ellen and Ardbeg, the Laphroaig 1967 Samaroli, the Ardbeg Special Liqueur by D&J MacEwen from the 1950s, and remarkable old and rare Japanese whiskies from Karuizawa and Kawasaki – plus many more.

Browse the highlights below for more insights and bidding today!

 Macallan TIME : SPACE 84 Year Old

Legendary Old Malt Cask bottlings for the Plowed Society (Port Ellen & Ardbeg)

Celtic Heartlands Collaboration Bottles (Bowmore 1968, Macallan 1969, Bunnahabhain 1966)

Karuizawa The Golden Age of Showa

Rare and Vintage Glenfiddich (Glenfiddich 1958 Private Vintage, 1955 Private Vintage, 1974 Rare Collection & 19 Rare Collection)

Exclusive Release: Against the Grain Hirundine Whisky Now Available at Whiski Shop!

We’re thrilled to announce an exclusive release that brings Scotland’s rich traditions and passion to your glass! Introducing Against the Grain Hirundine Whisky, a premium 12-year-old Single Malt crafted by none other than Scotland rugby stars Pierre Schoeman and Duhan Van Der Merwe.

“This whisky isn’t just a drink; it’s a tribute to the heritage, craftsmanship, and heart of Scotland that inspire us all.”

Aged to perfection, Hirundine Whisky boasts a unique blend of flavors that reflect both the rugged beauty and refined spirit of its homeland.

What Makes Hirundine Special?

Created by Champions: Crafted by two of Scotland’s rugby legends, Schoeman and Van Der Merwe, this whisky reflects their dedication and deep love for Scottish traditions. 12-Year-Old Single Malt: Each dram is the product of patient aging, offering a rich depth of flavor that seasoned whisky fans and new enthusiasts alike will appreciate. Exclusive to Whiski Shop: You won’t find this release anywhere else! Visit us to be one of the first to own a bottle of Hirundine Whisky. Join us in celebrating this exclusive release that marries sport, tradition, and taste. We look forward to sharing a dram with you soon!

We’re very pleased to present the 2025 Victoria Whisky Festival. The Victoria Whisky Festival will run through Thursday the 16^th, Friday the 17^th, Saturday the 18^th and Sunday the 19^th of January 2025 at the 5-star Hotel Grand Pacific located on Victoria’s beautiful Inner Harbour. To order tickets please contact Frank Hudson at info@victoriawhiskyfestival.com

THE WHISKY EXCHANGE X SIGNATORY WINE CASK BOTTLINGS

We’re delighted to unveil the new Wine Cask series from Signatory Vintage, selected exclusively for The Whisky Exchange. These three exceptional single malts from Mortlach, Edradour and Auchroisk each showcase rich and bold flavours developed from extended maturation in casks sourced from three of the world’s top wine producers.

 DISCOVER MORE