Malt Messenger Bulletin
Whisky Events Next Week & Two New KWM Exclusive Whisky Casks!
The Family Day long weekend approaches, and we have exciting new whiskies to tell you about, as well as an exciting week of whisky tastings ahead. Not going away this coming week? No problem, we have some awesome events and new whiskies with which to keep you busy!
Firstly, the new whiskies. I’m a week behind getting the word out on the first of these, our 3rd KWM exclusive Compass Box Blend! If you follow us on social media, you may have already caught wind of it. Tasted blind you would be hard pressed to find anyone who would identify the Compass Box Great King Street Glasgow KWM Marrying Cask as a Blend. It is big, rich and sherried with a prominent coastal peaty core. Love sherried Ileachs? This whisky is a steal at just $94+gst.
Our second new exclusive single cask is the Tipperary 2002 KWM Rum Finished Cask. The whisky is a joint bottling with our friends Keg n Cork in Edmonton. They wouldn’t put both of our logos on the front of the bottle, only individually on the back. So cheekily we found a work around, the label indicates the whiskey is “Exclusive to Canada’s Best Whisk(e)y Shops”. Tipperary is a new Irish whiskey producer, backed by Stuart Nickerson of GlenGlassaugh fame. It is is our second exclusive cask of Irish whiskey, following hot on the heels of our Teeling 16 Year KWM Single Cask. Curiously, both whiskies might have been sourced from the same distillery…
We have a trio of great tastings coming up this week including a Whisky Festival… starting Monday, we have Valinch & Mallet with Davide Romano, 6PM. This is Davide’s first Master Class at KWM and we have an awesome range planned, $2000 worth of single cask whisky, in just 7 bottles, cost $50. More details below.
Then Wednesday we will be featuring Victoria Caledonian Distillery w/ Graeme Macaloney, also at 6PM. The Victoria Distillery is one of the diaspora of Jim Swan (think Kilchoman and Kavalan) distilleries scattered around the globe. Founder Graeme Macaloney will be launching his distillery’s first ‘own distillation’ whiskies. The cost, just $15. Details below.
Finally Thursday, the main event: our 6th annual Feis Ile: The KWM Islay Whisky Festival. We will have on offer a range of 100 whiskies from Islay, as well as a few Islay-ternatives. I can’t be sure, but I am taking credit for coining this term about 4-5 years ago… An Islay-ternative is a peated whisky from anywhere else in the World… Tickets are $60 and include a KWM logo glass, food from Peasant Cheese, and all the peaty drams you can reasonably (and safely) sample in 2 hours! More details below.
I hope this Malt Messenger Bulletin finds you well. Please let me know if you have any comments, questions or requests. As always, in the event of a discrepancy in price, the Point of Sale at KWM will be taken as correct.
Slàinte!
In This Edition
- NEW KWM CASK: Introducing the Compass Box Great King Street Glasgow KWM Marrying Cask #34
- NEW KWM CASK: Introducing the Tipperary 2002 KWM Rum Finished Cask
- Monday at KWM: Valinch & Mallet with Davide Romano
- Wednesday at KWM: Victoria Caledonian with Graeme Macaloney
- Thursday at KWM: Feis Ile: The KWM Islay Whisky Festival
Andrew Ferguson
Kensington Wine Market
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@scotch_guy, Instagram: @thescotch_guy/
or @kwmwhisky and Facebook: facebook.com/scotch.guy.1
NEW KWM CASK: Introducing the Compass Box Great King Street Glasgo KWM Marrying Cask #34
If You Think That is a Mouthful… Wait Until You Try the Whisky!
This is our third KWM exclusive Compass Box Blend, and it is one for the peat heads! It is also our second marrying cask from the Great King Street line – this time from the Glasgow Blend – which means it has a bit of sherry cask influence and a dash of peat or more as well! Bottled at 49%, the whisky is the 2018 Glasgow Blend, finished for just under 2 years in a second fill Sherry Butt from the Craigellachie Distillery. The whisky is 18% Laphroaig, and it dominates the blend. The sherry matured Craigellachie 34% plays second fiddle, while the 35% Cameronbridge grain, matured in First Fill ex-Bourbon, plays a moderating role, adding an elegant touch!
Compass Box Great King Street Glasgow KWM Marrying Cask #34 – 49% – Visit Our Website for a Full Breakdown of the Components, Ages & Cask Types! – My Tasting Note: “Nose: big, rich and nutty with ashy peat and Dutch licorice; a touch waxy with round fruits: orange, melons and apricots; soft leather, dark chocolate, earthy dunnage notes and crisp oak spices; underneath the top note of sherry loads of creamy vanilla and honey. Palate: big, bold, round and smooth; bold leather, chocolate and tobacco along with ashy peat, tar and Dutch licorice; as the sherry pulls back it unveils elegant vanilla and delicate fruits: juicy orange, soft melons and dried apricots; the smoke is firm with an ashy, subtly medicinal edge; malty, meaty and nutty with late spices: cinnamon heart, ginger and cloves. Finish: long, coating, creamy and warm with decadent spices, smoke and a subtle medicinal edge; rich and elegant. Comment: wow, we tried the cask sample all those many months ago, but the final bottled whisky is even better; Laphroaig accounts for less than 20% of the Blend, but is without question the heart of the Blend; the Cameronbridge has added a touch of delicacy while the Bourbon matured Clynelish and heavily sherried Craigellachie also make their presence felt, but Laphroaig is standard bearer leading the charge.” – $94
NEW KWM CASK: Introducing the Tipperary 2002 KWM Rum Cask
Our Second Ever KWM Exclusive Irish Cask – Matured in ex-Rum!
Our 2nd ever KWM exclusive single cask of Irish whiskey is here. It is a shared cask with our friends Keg n Cork in Edmonton, bottled by Tipperary, a new Irish whiskey firm headed by Stuart Nickerson of GlenGlassaugh fame, and his daughter Jennifer. Tipperary is still a ways away from building its first distillery, and is sourcing mature stocks from other Irish Distilleries. This whiskey is likely from the Cooley Distillery, or failing that Bushmills, regardless, the spirit was distilled in January 2002, and bottled in October of 2019, just shy of 18 years old, after maturing in a single Rum Cask. Only 108 bottles filled at 55.7%.
Tipperary 2002 KWM Rum Cask – 55.7% – 17 Year – Rum Cask 141 – Andrew’s Tasting Note: “Nose: decadent, juicy, tropical and fruity; the chewy malt is still there after almost 18 years, toasted oak, shredded coconut and bags of fruit: fresh pineapple, kiwi fruit, green mangoes and dried apricots; soft, floral and enticing. Palate: round, toasty and surprisingly spicy; rich and coating the palate comes in waves each one pushing further than the last; green grass and more chewy malt; vanilla and oak spices before making way for the fruits: at times tropical fruit punch, at others green apple and then melons; a touch of salted caramel, loads of coconut including shredded and toasted; big, decadent, toasty and fruity. Finish: long in length and coating; the spices fade before the finish, leaving room for vanilla, coconut, toasted oak and loads of fruit. Comment: not quite as tropical as our Teeling cask, but there are similarities there; surprisingly creamier and more decadent; why surprising? rum casks are typically more tired and less yielding of character than a first fill ex-Bourbon barrel; as with our Teeling we don’t know if the spirit is from Bushmills or Cooley; probably the latter, but who cares? it is great juice at a great price!” – $165
Monday at KWM: Valinch & Mallet with Davide Romano
We Have an Awesome Range of Single Malts
Valinch & Mallet is a small independent bottler founded by a pair of Italians with a passion for Scotch whisky. We have been very impressed in recent years with the quality of their whiskies, and their ability to source excellent single casks, so we are thrilled to welcome Valinch & Mallet co-founder Davide Romano to KWM for his first Master Class tasting at KWM. It will feature 7 whiskies including: Bruichladdich 15 Year, Cameronbridge 37 Year, Glenlossie 25 Year, Glentauchers 21 Year, Tamdhu 20 Year, Wardhead 21 Year & 1 more!
6PM Monday February 17 – $50
Please call 403-283-8000 to register, or register online!
Wednesday at KWM: Victoria Caledonian with Graeme Macaloney
Your Chance to Sample the Distillery’s First Whisky Releases
Graeme Macaloney’s dream was to establish a distillery on Vancouver Island, which he achieved in 2016. While the distillery’s own production matures, they have released a mix of Young Spirits and Blended Malts to build excitement. Graeme will be sampling our guests on a mix of these, as well as giving a preview of the distillery’s first whisky release.
6PM Wednesday February 19 – $15
Please call 403-283-8000 to register, or register online!
Thursday at KWM: Feis Ile: The KWM Islay Festival February 20th, 2020
All The Islay and Islay-ternative Whiskies You Can Sample in One Night!
We’ll be cracking as many Islay whiskies as we can put our hands on, as well as some Islay-ternatives, all in the name of peat and Scottish West Coast culture. The whisky list is growing rapidly, currently just over 100 and counting. Includes a KWM logo Whisky Glass.
Please call 403-283-8000 to register, or register online!
Thank You for Reading the Malt Messenger!
Contact & Disclaimers
If you have any whisky questions or comments concerning The Malt Messenger please contact me by e-mail, phone, or drop by the store.
All of the products mentioned in THE MALT MESSENGER can be purchased in store, over the phone or from our website at www.kensingtonwinemarket.com. All prices quoted in the Malt Messenger are subject to change and don’t include GST. In the case of discrepancies in pricing, the price in our in store point of sale will be taken as correct.
Thanks for reading the Malt Messenger.
Slainte!
Andrew Ferguson
Owner & Scotchguy
Kensington Wine Market
403-283-8000
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Kensington Wine Market
