WIN A VIP Trip To The Beautiful Isle Of Raasay Distillery

Isle of Raasay Distillery, the home of R&B Distillers, is perhaps the only distillery in Scotland that provides luxury accommodation within the same building as a working distillery. Designed by local architect Olli Blair and renowned Scottish designer Anne Hunter, the distillery offers six exclusive en-suite bedrooms well-appointed with luxury amenities and comfort with either double or queen size beds, and arguably the best view from any distillery in Scotland.

You could WIN a VIP trip there including including accommodation, breakfast, a distillery tour and whisky tasting.

Buy a bottle of The Tweeddale The Evolution to be in with a chance of winning this wonderful prize.

The Tweeddale The Evolution

The Evolution is the oldest expression from The Tweeddale to date. Inspired by Richard Day’s cellar book, The Evolution is a blend of classic Speyside single malts and a Lowland single grain. All the components of The Evolution have been aged for at least 28 years to create a complex expression that embodies the vision and craftsmanship of the venerable Borders blender.

Nose: Juicy black fruits, with cherries and plums, and just a touch of icing sugar.

Palate: Big and full with Christmas cake, blackcurrant and pear notes, with a sweet fruity quality reminiscent of mulled wine.

Finish: A definite American oak influence with a hint of creamy milk chocolate.

52% ABV

70cl

£175 – BUY NOW to be in with a chance of winning

Isle of Raasay Distillery, the home of R&B Distillers

Located between the ferry terminal and Inverarish, the main village on Raasay, the distillery is well placed for exploring the island’s breath-taking natural beauty and historic sites, including the iconic Dun Caan mountain, Brochel Castle and the enigmatic Calum’s Road.

Order a bottle of The Tweeddale The Evolution now for your chance to win:

• 1x overnight stay for up to 2 people at the Isle of Raasay Distillery in one of the luxury bedrooms
• breakfast served in the Gathering Room during your stay
• 1x distillery tour and whisky tasting for up to 2 people during your stay

Full details can be found here

Saturday, February 2nd, 2:30-5:30PM:

Paul John Indian Whisky

Take a sip of the soul of India! The Great Indian single malt whisky John Paul will be featured at this tasting, presented by whisky expert Koray Kaan Ozdemir. Distilled in the valley of Goa, India, John Paul whiskey is traditionally made in copper-pot sills without artificial colors, flavours, or chill-filtration.  Their whiskies have received multiple international awards, receiving Gold from both World Whisky and Wizards of Whisky Awards.

More Details & RSVP

Old & Rare Whisky – Where do I start?

Since its very beginnings, The Whisky Exchange has had a focus that sets us apart from other whisky shops: we love old and rare whisky. Co-founder Sukhinder started as a collector of old bottles and that grew into The Whisky Exchange – we’ll be celebrating our 20th year online later in 2019, and he’s been collecting even longer.

Why old and rare?

Whisky is far from static. Over the centuries of production, the spirit has changed hugely. From uisge-beatha, an unaged spirit infused with herbs – a proto-gin – it has gradually become the oak-matured whisky that we know and love today.

While we haven’t had a huge jump comparable to the ‘what happens if I put this in a cask?’ moment in recent times, whisky these days is not the same as that produced even as recently as the 1980s. Since the early 1980s, for example, regulations on sherry production have changed the way that sherry casks for whisky have been made; meaning that a sherry-matured whisky from that period might taste significantly different to one produced more recently. Step back further, to whisky distilled in the 1960s, and you can easily find large changes, especially in the types of casks used: bourbon casks revolutionised whisky making when they started appearing in the 1950s, imbuing whisky with new flavours which we now so often take for granted.

Learn more about sherry casks >

Some people like older whisky bottlings for collecting, but for us it’s all about taste. Seeing how the flavours created by the distillers, warehousemen and blenders have changed over the years. Old whiskies aren’t necessarily better, but they are different, and that difference is what we enjoy looking for.

First steps

One of the most common questions we’re asked is, ‘where do I start?’

With so many whiskies available, launching into the world of old and rare bottles can be daunting. But worry not – here are a few easy ways to start your journey.

Old Blends

One problem when first setting out to try older bottlings – especially single malts – is that they can be expensive. If you’re looking for a more reasonably priced place to start and develop your palate, then old blends are great.

The way that whisky has been blended has changed a lot over the years. Ratios of grain whisky to malt have shifted, with older blends often having much higher malt content than we find these days. 50% malt/grain recipes weren’t uncommon, compared to the 20% and lower malt whisky content that we usually find today.

The components of the blends were also quite different to today. Not only were the single malts not the same, with different yeasts, fermentation times and distillation techniques used, but the grain whisky has also changed. Changing tastes and new technology has led to a lighter style of whisky, both of grain whisky and modern blended whiskies.

Stepping back to the 1980s is enough to find whisky of a different style. If you find whiskies from the 1970s and earlier, with components often distilled in the 1960s and further back, things change even more. With just a few bottles you can start to unpick the recent history of whisky.

Buy old & rare blended whisky at The Whisky Exchange >

Whisky Clubs

Our next tip is sharing whisky. While that’s at the heart of all whisky for us, when it comes to old and rare whisky, especially more expensive bottles, it’s worth bringing together a like-minded group to share the costs and, more importantly, the experience. A whisky drunk with friends is almost always better than a whisky drunk alone.

Sharing the tasting experience is even more fun with old and rare whiskies than with modern bottlings. Comparing and contrasting your experience with others is better when the whiskies are unfamiliar, as old and rare drams almost certainly will be, at least to start with.

Outside of informal groups of friends, there are whisky clubs in most major cities around the world – a quick “whisky club” search should turn up at least one entry. And if not, why not start your own?

Bars and whisky shows

The single most useful thing for old and rare whisky fans is a place where they can try them without having to buy a full bottle. While many bars offer the chance to try recently bottled whiskies, there are far fewer that specialise in old and rare releases.

There are also a few whisky shows around the world that cater to an audience who want try interesting old whiskies, from Limburg’s Whisky Fair and the Whiskybase Gathering in Europe to an increasing number of shows in the far east. However, as you’d expect, we’d recommend heading to Glasgow at the end of February for our own event – The Whisky Show: Old & Rare.

In the end, the idea behind them all is the same: gather a selection of the top whisky shops and bars out there, as well as the world’s best-known collectors, hook them up with some whisky fans who want to buy their whisky to try by the dram, and let nature take its course.

Whisky Shows are almost always significantly cheaper than buying the same whiskies by the glass in a bar, with many also offering smaller sample sizes than you find in bars – a 1cl pour is standard at The Whisky Show: Old & Rare. You don’t need much of a whisky to be able to tease apart its character, and with 1cl pours you always have the chance to go back for more if you love a whisky. And one thing’s certain when you drinking old and rare whisky – you’ll find something you’ll love.

Originally published on The Whisky Exchange Blog – Old & Rare Whisky – Where do I start?

RAASAY DISTILLERY PREVIEWS FIRST RAASAY SINGLE MALT AT NATIONAL WHISKY FESTIVAL AND BEGINS TAKING PRE-ORDERS

Attendees at The National Whisky Festival in Glasgow will be among the first in the world to preview the Isle of Raasay Single Malt Scotch Whisky during Head Distiller Iain Robertson’s Whisky Masterclass on Saturday 26th January.

Festival-goers will also be given an exclusive opportunity to reserve one of the first bottles of Isle of Raasay Single Malt in Scotch whisky history. Pre-orders for the first Raasay Single Malt will then be available on general release on www.raasaydistillery.com from 14th February.

At the exclusive ‘Whisky Masterclass’, Raasay’s Head Distiller Iain Robertson will showcase the new-make spirit alongside cask samples from Raasay. Iain Robertson will conduct tastings of five different drams from specially selected rye, virgin oak and Bordeaux casks, exploring the blending, balance and finish that will characterise the first Isle of Raasay Distillery Scotch Whisky due to be released in 2020.

Visitors to the Raasay Distillery stand will also be able to sample Raasay While We Wait’s 2018 Release – a peaty yet fruity whisky that was created to represent the flavour profile of the future Raasay Single Malt. This is the fourth expression of the independent bottling launched in 2018 to mark one year since production began at Raasay Distillery and to kick-start the two-year countdown to the first bottling of Raasay whisky.

The National Whisky Festival will take place in the iconic SWG3 venue in Glasgow’s Kelvinhaugh as part of the largest winter music festival of its kind: Celtic Connections. Music has played a significant part in Raasay Distillery festivities since the Isle of Skye pipe band first welcomed guests at the 2017 grand opening, and since then as part of the regular ‘Raasay Tunes’ events, which celebrate a wealth of musical talent. The star line-up for Raasay Tunes in 2019 will also be revealed at the event in Glasgow.

Raasay Distillery is owned by independent Scottish whisky company R&B Distillers, which will also be showcasing its heritage brand The Tweeddale at The National Whisky Festival. Brand Ambassador Chris Hoban will be telling the story of the rebirth of the Tweeddale Blend with guests able to sample the 28-year-old Tweeddale: The Evolution and Tweeddale Grain of Truth Single Grain. Chris will also host a live blending session with a selection of Highland single malt and grain whisky, with a chance for guests to try the whisky blended during the class.

NOTES

Raasay Distillery will be at Stand 25 in the Galvanizers Hall at The National Whisky Festival at Celtic Connections.

Tickets to The National Whisky Festival are priced at £37 and available to purchase on the website: www.nationalwhiskyfestival.scot

Places at R&B Distillers’ tasting events are limited with places allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. Tickets for the tasting events will be announced on the National Whisky Festival Facebook page.

ISLE OF RAASAY DISTILLERY Isle of Raasay Distillery opened in September 2017 and became the first “legal” distillery on the beautiful Hebridean island. Co-founded by Scottish entrepreneurs Bill Dobbie and Alasdair Day, Raasay Distillery is designed to produce a contemporary Scottish island malt and catapult Raasay into the global market as Scotland’s newest whisky producing island. Raasay Distillery is proud to be one of the few 100% Scottish-owned Scotch whisky businesses in Scotland. On the site of the Victorian-era Borodale House, formerly the Isle of Raasay Hotel, is a state-of-the-art modern distillery, offering year- round tours and luxury accommodation, with, arguably, the best view of any distillery in Scotland. The distillery has since received Five-Star Visitor Attraction rating and Four-Star Accommodation rating from VisitScotland for the visitor centre and accommodation respectively. Isle of Raasay Single Malt will be lightly peated and fruity, utilising the best of the island’s natural elements and reflecting Raasay’s rugged natural beauty. Raasay Distillery uses water from an ancient Celtic well located behind Borodale House at every stage of production, from mashing to fermentation, cask reduction and reduction to bottling strength, ensuring that natural flavours are retained in the final whisky.

Working with local crofters, Raasay Distillery has successfully grown and harvested barley in a nearby field, the first time that barley has been grown on Raasay in over 40 years. In August 2018, the team successfully produced spirit from the 2017 batch of Raasay barley crop, which will mature into the first ever single malt produced from Raasay-grown barley in 2021. Raasay While We Wait is an independently bottled single malt – which has been crafted as an accurate preview of Raasay Distillery’s future core style. Designed as a peaty and fruity single malt, each iteration of Raasay While We Wait has been crafted through the vatting of two malts from a single Highland distillery – heavily peated at 45ppm and unpeated – matured in bourbon barrels and finished in Tuscan Montechiari wine casks.

Raasay Distillery, Borodale House, Isle of Raasay, Kyle IV40 8PB
raasaydistillery.com Instagram/ Facebook: @raasaydistillery, Twitter: @RaasayWhisky

Happy Robbie Burns Day! Burns was a man of the people, and I can’t think of a better way of celebrating the birth of Scotland’s favourite son, than by giving the people a deal on John Barleycorn (aka Whisky), Wine, Beer & Other Spirits!

We kicked off our SALE last night with our 3rd Annual Burns Bash. It is actually our 15th or 16th year celebrating the Bard’s birth and all things Scottish. A few years ago we learned we couldn’t host Burns Dinners in collaboration with restaurants or other venues. So instead we invite 100 of our closest whisky friends in to the shop and open just as many bottles. It was a great night had by all!

This weekend is the one some people wait for all year: our Year End Inventory Sale. It is Kensington Wine Market’s biggest sale of the year and there are some massive deals to be had. Of the many thousands of products in-store, less than 100 are not on sale. Almost every whisky in the store is 10-35% off, with the exception of some Scotch Malt Whisky Society whiskies and Membership Kits. Even our KWM 2018 Whisky Advent Calendar is 25% off!

Deals over 15%!

There are huge deals throughout the store. SAVE 15-40% on all in-stock Wine. SAVE 5-25% on all in-stock Beer. SAVE 10-30% on all in-stock Spirits. The details and sale rules can all be found below. All of the whiskies discounted by 15% or more, can be found in the attached document!

Happy Hunting!

Andrew Ferguson

Kensington Wine Market

PS – Don’t forget you can follow me on Twitter:

@scotch_guy, Instagram: @thescotch_guy/ , @KensingtonWM

 or @kwmwhisky and Facebook: facebook.com/scotch.guy.1

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

Wishing you all a fantastic Burns Night

We hope you all have a lovely time celebrating this Scottish tradition today and tonight.

We are having a simple dram of our very own Glen Moray 1990 this year.

We hope that your evening is filled with plenty of delicious drams, haggis, poems and laughs.

“Oidhche Bhlas Burns”

Bartels Whisky
4 The Old Glebe
Loughborough, Lec LE12 8LB
United Kingdom

With our programme of Burns Suppers underway, our thoughts have turned to food glorious food. These four new releases are a feast for the senses with mouth-watering notes – roast meats with root mash and wine braised shallots, monkfish wrapped in bacon and butterbean hummus. Supper is served!

Order now for Burns Night delivery, we’d love to share a dram with you on Friday, 25 January.

BOTTLINGS          TASTINGS

DISCOVER MORE

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

Saturday, February 2nd, 2:30-5:30PM:

Indian Whiskey: Paul John

Take a sip of the soul of India! The Great Indian single malt whisky John Paul will be featured at this tasting, presented by whisky expert Koray Kaan Ozdemir. Distilled in the valley of Goa, India, John Paul whiskey is traditionally made in copper-pot sills without artificial colors, flavours, or chill-filtration.  Their whiskies have received multiple international awards, receiving Gold from both World Whisky and Wizards of Whisky Awards.

More Details & RSVP