WIN a bottle of Glen Scotia 25 Year Old!

Buy any 70cl bottle of Glen Scotia from our online shop before 30th April to be entered into our competition to win a free bottle of this world-class dram (worth £275!).

Matured in the finest American oak barrels and married in first-fill bourbon casks before bottling, Glen Scotia 25 Year Old has recently been awarded the coveted ‘Platinum’ medal at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition 2020.

The nose brings maritime notes, followed by red apple, orange peel and vanilla syrup on the palate, before a long lingering finish with spicy ground ginger. Simply delicious.

Shop our Glen Scotia range to win.

Enjoy free delivery on all orders over £99.

We might be apart,
but whisky can bring us together…

In times of trouble, triumph and everything in between, whisky brings people together. Even though we’re currently keeping our distance, we’d love to keep sharing our passion for whisky knowledge with you. To help keep spirits up, you can save 30% on all Edinburgh Whisky Academy courses, until we can get together and meet again.

Keep dramming, keep learning.

Sláinte 🥃

Maltstock, the Relaxed Whisky Weekend

Relaxed virtual flyer hunt

Usually you will see the Maltstock flyers in many relaxed whisky places you visit. In these bizarre times we’re all staying at home. We realize that one of the difficulties you all face is you have no chance of picking up a flyer and get relaxed. Well, not a physical version……

We’ve now created the relaxed virtual Maltstock flyer!

Who doesn’t enjoy a good Easter hunt?

The virtual flyer is hidden on websites from our Maltstock friends and sponsors. Why not join the hunt? Can you find all the hidden flyers? There are some great prices to be won!

How to join the hunt?

Simply go to the Maltstock website for all info.

 https://www.maltstock.com/thehunt

Some very relaxed prizes to be won

Can you find all the hidden virtual flyers? We’ll be giving away a couple of very relaxed prizes to the those whom can find the most flyers

• Ardbeg Wee Beastie – very kindly donated  by  Passion for Whisky
• 3 amazing BBQ ribs – very kindly donated by Ons Gaan Braai.
  Don Marcos Crazy chicken, Happy Ending for Beef and the Smokehouse all purpose rub.
• A set of your own personalized Maltstock flyers!
  The Maltstock flyer with your name on it instead of one of our sponsors. A one of a kind opportunity!

The hunt is on now! And will last until Monday April 13th midnight CET.

Please stay healthy everyone, stay relaxed and look after each other!

Get ready, we’re bringing Smokehead to you.

For the next few weeks we’ll be hosting a variety of Instagram live events including tastings, boilermakers, cocktail making sessions, food, music, interviews with fellow Smokeheads, giveaways and other cool Smokehead stuff.

Grab a bottle and tune into our first Instagram live on Sunday 12^th at 5pm with our brand ambassador Mikey Sim and custom Ducati aficionado, Tyler Lunceford. We’ll be talking the Original Smokehead, and maybe getting a bit sidetracked.

If you need a refill, head over to Smokehead.com, and we will do our best to get a bottle to you before we go live.

SHOP NOW

During this challenging time, £1 from the sale of each bottle purchased from www.smokehead.com will be donated to Drinks Trust to support their mission of providing care and support to our hospitality colleagues.

Stay safe, stay indoors, Smokeheads

JACK DANIEL’S BRINGS CHASE RICE LIVE FROM HOME FOR SWEET RELIEF MUSICIANS FUND

Jack Daniel’s Presents Chase Rice Friday Night Happy Hour

Friday, April 3 at 7 p.m. ET on Facebook and Instagram

LYNCHBURG, Tenn. – Jack Daniel’s and Chase Rice have a long history of collaborating to create meaningful moments and memories and that tradition continues this Friday as they come together to host a “Friday Night Happy Hour.” Rice is set to perform songs from his home to benefit Sweet Relief Musicians Fund’s COVID-19 Fund.

Airing live on Rice’s Instagram and both Jack Daniel’s and Rice’s Facebook pages this Friday, April 3 at 7 p.m. ET, the virtual concert will feature acoustic performances of current Top 25 single “Lonely If You Are” off his recent chart-topping surprise release The Album Part I and a sneak peak of new music off the forthcoming Part II as well as other hits from his multi-Platinum career.

“We initially had February and March off this year so we could focus on writing and recording The Album Part II, and I can’t wait to see what everyone thinks of the new music we’ve been working on,” says Rice. “I’ve really missed playing for our fans, so connecting with them virtually while raising money for a good cause and drinkin’ some Jack Daniels is a damn near perfect Friday night in my books!”

Sweet Relief Musicians Fund is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charity that for the past 24 years has been offering vital assistance to professional musicians and music industry workers in need. The world has been shocked by the devastating effects of COVID-19. Due to massive cancellations, many in the music industry are struggling to find the means to make ends meet during these unprecedented times. Sweet Relief has created a COVID-19 Fund to provide immediate assistance with medical expenses, lodging, clothing, food and other vital living expenses to those impacted due to sickness or loss of work.

“It’s been heartbreaking to see what this virus is doing around the world, and one of the places it’s hit closest to home for me is seeing all of my friends in the music industry lose out on work,” shares Rice. “I’m honored to join Sweet Relief Musicians Fund and my friends at Jack Daniel’s to support our own during this tough time.”

Rice has previously partnered with Jack Daniel’s to give back in other ways, including a private concert at the Tennessee distillery recognizing the nearly 70 percent of firefighters who volunteer their service, which was highlighted by a $75,000 donation to the National Volunteer Fire Council, as well as a flyaway trip for Rice’s most loyal fans to thank them for their role in the chart-topping success of his smash hit “Eyes On You.”

For more information, visit www.chaserice.com. Follow on Twitter and Facebook @ChaseRiceMusic and on Instagram @ChaseRice.

About Chase Rice
With over 1.6 million albums sold and more than 1.1 billion total streams, plus a legion of passionate fans at his high-energy concerts across the globe, Chase Rice has established himself as a powerful force in Nashville and beyond – but he genuinely sees new releases The Album Part I and The Album Part II as the launching pad for music that says what he wants to say, how he wants to say it. With songs such as lead single “Lonely If You Are” featuring sleek rhymes over heartland six strings and keys mixed with EDM-laced drama, this is the same gravely-voiced Chase Rice fans first fell in love with years ago – but better. Freer. Unbeholden and uninhibited, somehow capable of evoking Chris LeDoux and The Chronic, campfire singalongs and stadium anthems, all at once. The series follows his sophomore album, Lambs & Lions, released with Broken Bow Records in 2017 and featuring two-week chart-topper “Eyes On You” – Rice’s first No. 1 as an artist and the most-streamed song of his career with over 350 million streams and counting. Lambs & Lions followed Ignite the Night, which debuted at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums and No. 3 on the all-genre chart, producing a pair of Top 5 hits; “Ready Set Roll” and “Gonna Wanna Tonight.” After supporting Kenny Chesney’s The Big Revival stadium tour, Rice has consistently sold out 2,500-3,000 seat venues on his own headlining tours. 2020 will see him join forces with Brantley Gilbert and Rascal Flatts on their nationwide tours.

About Jack Daniel’s

Officially registered by the U.S. Government in 1866 and based in Lynchburg, Tenn., the Jack Daniel Distillery, Lem Motlow, proprietor, is the first registered distillery in the United States and is on the National Register of Historic Places. Jack Daniel’s is the maker of the world-famous Jack Daniel’s Old No. 7 Tennessee Whiskey, Gentleman Jack Rare Tennessee Whiskey, Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel Tennessee Whiskey, Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey, Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Fire, Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Apple, Jack Daniel’s Sinatra Select and Jack Daniel’s Country Cocktails. Today, Jack Daniel’s is a true global icon found in more than 170 countries around the world and is the most valuable spirits brand in the world as recognized by Interbrand.

It’s time again for an update on everything Springbank.

Currently the world is facing uncertain times and, from everyone at Springbank, we hope that yourself, family and friends are all doing your utmost to keep each other safe. Following the advice issued by the UK and Scottish Governments on March 23rd, we have shut down our operations at Springbank, Glengyle and Cadenhead’s until further notice. This does mean that there may be a few delays in regard to any new releases but we hope that business will return to normal before long.

This month we have an update on sales teams events, upcoming releases,  a round-up of distillery news, letting you know what has been happening (and what we are planning for the future) at Springbank and Glengyle, in Campbeltown and beyond.

Distillery News

After the winter break we resumed production in January, with the first mash of the year taking place on Tuesday the 13th of January. Prior to this we had a new lyne arm fabricated and installed on the wash still, as the old one had sprung a hole and was too thin to weld repair. We were sure to get it made to the exact same size and dimensions as the old one so that nothing changes with our wash distillation.

The maltings didn’t start up until later that month, with all our malt bins having been filled by the time we shut down for Christmas there was no room for any more until the 24th of January. Fear not, our malting team were put to good use in bringing all the casks out from the warehouse for our annual ‘vatting season’ whereby we vat all our Springbank, Longrow, Hazelburn and Kilkerran products for the following year to allow the different cask types to marry. This is a very labour intensive process and takes 3 months to complete properly but our skilled production team made it look easy, as usual.

Our bottling hall has continued to bottle all of our famous single malts, and great Cadenhead’s bottlings as well, including a number of special releases that you’ll be able to enjoy later this year.

And finally, the new warehouse is nearing completion! We are hoping that by this summer we will be able to show everyone this amazing new facility.

Sales Team Events

The sales team have been grounded in Campbeltown for the time being until it is safe to resume our travelling. Here’s an update on what we were up to at the start of the year and our plans for  future events (fingers crossed we can make them).

Once again we have been travelling far and wide to share the story of Springbank and Kilkerran. David has been busy at work (sunning himself) in New Zealand and Australia. Cara enjoyed her time on Sweden’s Cinderella cruise but came back with a cough so has been drinking plenty of Springbank to warn any virus off. Nicole has been settling into the bright city lights moving from Islay to Campbeltown in between trips to Canada and Prague. Melanie has been keeping us all in line at Campbeltown HQ whilst Grant has been up and down the UK spreading the good word of Springbank and Kilkerran.

Future Events

Due to the ongoing Covid-19 outbreak, all future sales team events have been suspended.  We will follow government guidelines and hope to be back on the road visiting as many of you as possible soon.

Please remember, the Events Section of the Springbank Website is updated whenever we have new information to share with you all.

Springbank Website – Events Page

New Releases

As we approach summer we shall be releasing some new batches of our regular favourites and a new release from Kilkerran further in advance.

Kilkerran Heavily Peated Batch 3 

The next edition of our peat in progress will soon be available – the exact launch date will be determined, in part, by when our staff are able to return to work.  This batch will be 80% Bourbon to 20% Sherry maturation and still packs a punch of peat and tropical fruits.

Springbank 21yo 

An eclectic mix of bourbon, sherry, port and rum casks have been selected and vatted for the legendary Springbank 21yo, which is scheduled to bottled and released in May.

Hazelburn Sherrywood

Our annual release of Hazelburn fully matured in Oloroso sherry casks is shaping up beautifully and is almost ready to be bottled as a 12yo.

Longrow 18yo 

The rich, smokey and complex character which is Longrow 18yo 2020 edition will be ready to enjoy during the long summer nights. This bottling has been drawn from a mixture of bourbon, sherry and rum casks.

After summer the society can also look forward to Glengyle’s first Kilkerran 16yo release, look out for Society alerts and social media updates for more information when this will be available.

Campbeltown Malts Festival Cancelled

It was with a heavy heart that we cancelled Campbeltown Malts Festival 2020 which was due to take place in May. However, we took the decision to protect our employees, community members and customers from any further spread of Covid-19. We are disappointed that we won’t be enjoying a few drams together in Campbeltown this way but we are working on another project at this time so stay tuned for updates on how we can enjoy some whisky together.

Although this year’s festival won’t be going ahead we hope to still see you at Campbeltown Malts Festival 2021.

Society On Tour 

Here at Springbank HQ we have been racking our brains to enrich our Society members’ Springbank experience and give you all something back to show our appreciation for your support. After great deliberation we have come up with “Society on Tour.” This concept will see our sales team travelling the globe to hold Society member tastings with an eclectic selection of samples.

Some of you may have been lucky enough to come along to our first Society on tour tasting in Edinburgh this February. For those who couldn’t make it, don’t worry we are already planning future events.

Social Media

You can follow Springbank on Social Media:

Facebook – Official Springbank Whisky

Twitter – @Springbank1828

Instagram- springbank1828

You can follow Kilkerran Single Malt on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram too.

Slainte,

The Springbank Team

Live ‘Maltstock detox walk’ by Black Sheep Red Sheep

Hi Maltstockees!

These are strange times! So let’s facilitate a little bit of escapism! Let’s do an online afternoon detox walk!

Most of you will recognize Dennis as one of a relaxed duo of brand ambassadors for The Glenrothes. For years now, Dennis and Jan have hosted our morning walk on the Saturday of Maltstock. They are also ambassadors for Irish whisky. And they have presented many amazing drams from Ireland the past few years.

Dennis will be hosting a very special detox walk on Facebook. Sharing his thoughts on a couple of relaxed drams he’ll take us for a walk. You can join him next Sunday 5th of April at 15:00 CET (Amsterdam).

If you are based in the Netherlands and want to join Dennis in the tasting, that is also possible. For €15 Dennis will arrange for you to receive the drams he is going to taste. Sets can be ordered with him until Thursday the 2nd of April 12:00 CET. Please contact Dennis at dennis@blacksheepredsheep.com for more information about this relaxed offer.

Annette, Bob, Klaas, Stan and Teun

The well-being of staff, customers and visitors will always be the primary focus for Glengoyne Distillery. Therefore, in light of the ongoing global health risk posed by COVID-19, you may already know that we’ve taken the difficult decision to close our distillery to members of the general public for the time being.

Read our full COVID-19 statement on our website.

However, we are still absolutely committed to keeping you entertained and updated on all things Glengoyne via our newsletters, website and social media. Starting as we mean to go on, we’re delighted to invite you to join us for a Facebook live tasting on Friday 27th March from 8pm GMT.

Be sure to join us with a dram in hand on International Whisky Day as Gordon Dundas, Glengoyne International Brand Ambassador hosts a Facebook Live Tasting.

Whisky Experiential Ambassador, Gordon Dallas will also join Gordon, and both will be thrilled to answer all your questions.

From now, we invite you to send us your questions in advance via our Facebook, Instagram or Twitter pages, or live on Facebook on the night itself, and we will enter you into our prize draw, where one lucky winner will receive a bottle of our much loved Teapot Dram, Batch 007. The winner will be notified on March 30th. T&Cs apply.

So, see you on the Glengoyne Facebook page, this Friday (TODAY)!

Sláinte!

Robbie Hughes
Distillery Manager

Glengoyne Distillery, Dumgoyne, Near Killearn, Glasgow G63 9LB
Tel. +44 (0)1360 550 254

Email: reception@glengoyne.com

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THIRD FIFE WHISKY FESTIVAL PROVES A SELL-OUT SUCCESS

The third Fife Whisky Festival proved a sell-out success with more people enjoying the event than ever.

Around 650 whisky-lovers attended the Festival which organisers, Karen Somerville and Justine Hazlehurst, have announced will return for a fourth outing in 2021.

Wendy Chamberlain, Lib-Dem MP for North East Fife, described the event as “impressive” and welcomed the economic boost it brings to the Kingdom.

She said: “The Festival was very busy once again and is an important event for Fife.

“What is really impressive is the representation of distilleries – not only do all the local distillers attend but the big players from all over Scotland come along plus the smaller, bespoke companies.

“The Festival is very important in terms of tourism for North East Fife and it’s great that it brings people into Cupar and to visit Lindores Abbey which is a fantastic setting for the Friday dinner.

“It’s wonderful to see how the Festival is growing in numbers and in the variety of events which are included and I would like to congratulate Karen, Justine and their team of volunteers.”

Fife Whisky Festival once again included a whisky-themed dinner at Lindores Abbey Distillery in Newburgh with author Ian Rankin as this year’s guest of honour.

Co-founder Karen Somerville said: “It was just a fantastic weekend which went really smoothly, and we’re delighted it was a huge success once again.

“We had 80 people for the banquet dinner this time which was double the number we seated last year and Ian Rankin was a great speaker.

“Everyone enjoyed his after-dinner talk about his love for whisky and the way he weaves that into his stories by making his main character, Inspector Rebus, a whisky fan too.

“He also talked about growing up in Fife and his memories of childhood walks near the Kingdom’s Cameronbridge Distillery which this year provided our exclusive Festival bottling.

“We’re now looking forward to returning to Fife for our fourth Festival in March next year.”

The Festival including two tasting sessions at the Corn Exchange in Cupar with an increased number of attendees – 325 at each gathering – compared to last year.

Whisky connoisseurs enjoyed drams from more than 35 distilleries and independent bottlers including Springbank, Tullibardine, Blair Athol, Glen Scotia, Glenfiddich and Eden Mill.

And on the Sunday, there was the chance to attend a special screening of whisky film The Amber Light at Kingsbarns Distillery and Visitor Centre near St Andrews followed by a tour and tasting.

The Festival also raised £650 for Age Concern in Cupar with a raffle.

Fife Whisky Festival was launched in 2017 by Ms Hazlehurst, founder of Kask Whisky, and Mrs Somerville, managing director of Angels’ Share Glass, with the first event held in March 2018.

The Festival, sponsored by Bruce Stevenson Insurance Brokers, legal firm MacRoberts LLP and global construction company ISG, aims to showcase the renaissance of whisky-making in Fife by bringing together the best whisky producers from the region and beyond.

Ms Hazlehurst said: “The Festival really has gone from strength to strength since we started out – getting bigger and better every year.

“We’ve had some great feedback from the distillers and festival-goers about how much they enjoyed the event and how well run it was.

“And we’ve also heard from local business owners who were pleased with just how busy the town was over the weekend and how that boosted their business.

“A lot of people came from outside Fife and stayed over on the Friday and Saturday nights which meant the local B&Bs and restaurants took lots of bookings.”

Dates will be confirmed for the 2021 event shortly with plans including the introduction of a merchandising stall where fans can buy Fife Whisky Festival glasses, aprons and whisky water droppers.

The organisers also intend to launch a new website for 2021.

For more details about the Festival, visit www.fifewhiskyfestival.com

Notes:

Fife Whisky Festival was launched in 2017 by Justine Hazlehurst and Karen Soerville and the first event, opened by endurance cyclist Mark Beaumont, was held at the Corn Exchange in Cupar on Saturday March 10, 2018. For more details, go to www.fifewhiskyfestival.com

Angels’ Share Glass is a family-run business based in Bridge of Allan, near Stirling. The firm is co-directed by Karen Somerville and her father Tom Young – a world-renowned Master Craftsman who has been glassblowing and making lamp-work glassware for nearly 60 years. More information about the company can be found at www.angelsshareglass.com

Justine Hazlehurst is the founder of Kask Whisky, a whisky events company based in Edinburgh. She has established the Fife Whisky Trail and the Leith Whisky Trail and works alongside Holyrood Distillery developing and leading the distillery’s Whisky Walking Tour. For more details about Kask Whisky, go to www.kaskwhisky.com

<ENDS>

Website now fully updated!

Tickets for this year’s Spirit of Toronto go on sale Monday March 16 at 10am and our 2020 Masterclass Series has been published on our website. Keep reading for more details…

Tickets on sale next week

Tickets go on sale this coming Monday March 16 at 10am through Roy Thomson Hall’s box office, and the Spirit of Toronto website has been updated with the schedule for our 2020 Masterclass Series – there will be some difficult choices to make in our humble opinion!

For those of you attending the show for the first time, these are tutored tastings with limited seating presented by a variety of speakers on the lower level of Roy Thomson Hall.

Masterclass seats may be reserved when purchasing tickets for the show. Those opting for Early Bird admission will enjoy priority entry into the main tasting hall when their pre-show class is over.

Spoiled for choice…

The schedule for our 2020 Masterclass Series is now online and we’re happy with the variety it offers, be it something that appeals to seasoned connoisseurs, novice tasters or those simply looking for an adventure on the palate.

Kicking off our 2020 series is ‘Santé: The Spirit of France’, a relaxed, pre-show session that explores the craft and culture of drinking French through a curated selection of handcrafted spirits that explore grain and fruit. Joining us to host this one-of-a-kind tasting is none other than Regis Lemaitre, a long-time friend of Spirit of Toronto who will regale and delight with his unmitigated passion for all things distilled.

In keeping with this continental feel we are pleased to have the Italian Trade Commission presenting another set of pre-show aperitivos as they invite guests to discover the ‘Spirits of Italy’ and explore the building blocks of our most beloved cocktails.

Those of you looking for a deep dive into whisky won’t be disappointed and we’re pleased to be showcasing some of Scotland’s most esteemed distilleries courtesy of Balblair, Benromach, Glen Moray as well as a selection of single malts from the blending portfolio of the Johnnie Walker range. For those of you whose taste runs towards the Emerald Isle will be torn between exploring whiskeys from the world’s oldest distillery, Bushmills, versus the Hinch Distillery, one of Ireland’s many newcomers – decisions, decisions.

Closer to home Bearface will unpack the art of Canadian whisky blending with samples of their component whiskies, Forty Creek will take guests on a trip down memory lane, and we welcome the return of Dr. Don Livermore who will be presenting a few of his all-star favourites as well as a sneak preview of his 2020 releases. And speaking of releases, we are excited to be showcasing Canada’s newest single malt whisky courtesy of Dr. Graeme Macaloney and the Caledonian Distillery on Vancouver Island.

Staying Healthy

Please know that as we work towards this year’s show we maintain an on-going discussion with our venue, Roy Thomson Hall, with regards to the public health risk from COVID-19.

While Toronto Public Health has stated that the virus is not circulating locally at this time, Roy Thomson Hall monitors the situation on a daily basis and has taken a number of additional precautions to ensure the well-being of its staff and patrons, including a daily disinfection of the entire venue, and the installation of hand sanitizer stations and anti-bacterial wipes in all public and office areas.

All events at the Hall are continuing as originally planned and if cancellation is necessary, the box office will be issuing refunds for tickets purchased. To visit their website for further details, please click here.

Automatic ticket nofication

Those of you subscribed to this list will receive an automatic notification the night before tickets go on sale.

We’re often asked about the best way to purchase tickets in order to secure your first masterclass choices but regrettably we can offer no guarantees as tickets will be available online, by telephone and in person, and all three purchase methods are certain to experience a queue. That said, please bear in mind that any no-shows for our 7pm and 8:30pm classes will be given to patrons on a stand-by basis the night of the show — so hope springs eternal, and there is still a chance of attending the class of your choice even if tickets are sold out.

Looking forward to welcoming you back on Saturday April 25!

CLICK HERE TO BUY TICKETS