Dear Whisky Fans,

WoW hopes you’re having a great summer and enjoying some great drams during the warmer half of the year. We here at the WoW Expo office are planning an incredible 2012 Expo and look forward to impressing you with new and interesting whiskies as well as an exciting venue.

Nine months is a long time to wait for the Whiskies of the World® Expo 2012 and we don’t like to miss a chance to celebrate, nose, taste and compare expressions of uísque beatha or “the water of life”. Our latest occasion was the Memorial Day weekend when we sampled four different wood finished expressions of Glendronach released in 2010 including a 20yo Tawny Port finish. This particular whisky sold out very quickly so Glendronach released a second bottling in 2011. The new 15yo Tawny Port maintains the tradition of releasing non-sherry wood finishes of the highest quality and it is delicious.

Father’s Day marks another whisky rendezvous on the calendar. It takes fortitude to be a good father so this Father’s Day why not fortify your Dad with a good bottle of whisky?  We’ve done some research for you and can recommend several phenomenal expressions that will not leave any Dad disappointed.

Featured Whiskies:

For lovers of the best Scottish single malts we suggest Glenglassaugh 26 Years, a whisky rarely found in US stores.  This Highland malt is a marriage of the finest casks filled in 1983 from the Glenglassaugh distillery. Those who sampled it at the Expo gave rave reviews of this complex yet light whisky (46% alcohol) which still retains much of the youthful elements and light fruits of the original spirit. The price seems reasonable enough for an original distillery bottling, meaning this wonderful whisky wasn’t only produced but also bottled right at the distillery.

For the connoisseurs of everything single malt, not necessarily Scottish, Amrut whisky from India will be a perfect fit. Amrut Intermediate Sherry Matured is uniquely different from the usual sherry finished or sherry matured whiskies. It is the first “intermediate sherry matured” whisky – with the malt aged in sherry casks between periods maturing in either bourbon or virgin casks at Amrut’s Bangalore distillery.

Blended whisky fans will definitely appreciate Johnnie Walker Swing. Named for contrasting malts in the blend from the northern Highlands and Islay that will swing on your tongue the distinctive convex shape of the bottle makes a visually striking presentation. This proprietary bottling is not easy to find and any Dad will appreciate having it in his collection.

On a very important note, we recommend a great a great place to purchase these whiskies, alongside hundreds and hundreds of other liquid delicacies—Whisky Shop in San Francisco. Please don’t worry if you’re not a San Franciscan, as you can order directly from their website at http://www.whiskyshopusa.com and enjoy the convenience of on-line shopping.

Bible For Dad

Another great Father’s Day gift is the new 2011 edition of Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible. This comprehensive guide to whisky contains almost 4000 tasting notes of single malts, blends, vatted malts and grain whiskies from around the globe, many of which have been released since the publication of the previous edition. The tasting notes will not only help to understand the character of a whisky before buying it, but are by themselves a fascinating read for anybody interested in whisky.

The 2011 edition of Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible also contains copious tasting notes for Bourbon and American whiskey aficionados as well! Order now to have it delivered by Father’s Day!

Featured Father:

When we talk about great fathers we mean fathers whose children respectfully and gratefully follow in their footsteps. Sometimes it takes generations to revive family roots and bring back the traditions founded by a great patriarch. There are a number of examples of children following in their father’s footsteps in the whiskey business.  This Father’s Day Whiskies of the World would like to honor Augustus Bulleit who created the legendary recipe for Bulleit Bourbon and his great-great grandson Tom who recreated the legendary recipe of Bulleit Bourbon 150 years later.

The story of Bulleit Bourbon began in the early 1800s when Augustus emigrated from France to New Orleans and using his knowledge of brandy-making created small batches of Kentucky Bourbon. Popular among the pioneers migrating westward of the Mississippi River, business was booming for Augustus Bulleit until 1860. Augustus  and his legendary Bourbon died while transporting whiskey to New Orleans, at least until Tom Bulleit came along.

If you stopped at the Bulleit table at the last WoW Expo, you probably met an interesting couple and received a generous pour of bourbon from them. This would make you part of Tom Bulleit and his daughter Hollis’ family whiskey tradition that represents a continuity of both Bulleit family history and a lost American era.

Cheers,

Douglas Smith