Westland Whiskey Dinner
Sunday, January 21 6:30pm
Omni Parker House Hotel
60 School St, corner of Tremont, Boston
Reservations 617-725-1600

As always with Frank Weber’s special dinners this will be a wonderful evening with excellent food and on-point service.

Westland Distillery feels that coastal Washington State with its cool foggy climate and abundant peat bogs is most like Scotland with all the natural ingredients to make fine single malt whiskies, They work with the best quality products at the start so the final product is wonderful. This young distillery is already doing some very nice work with a bright future.

Westland’s American Oak Single Malt, Sherry Wood Single Malt, and Peated Single Malt will be featured at the dinner. All have received a strong praise from the likes of the Whiskey Advocate, and the Whiskey Bible, and been medalled at Spirits Competitions in both Europe and America.

Take a warming break and enjoy what will be a great dinner with some wonderful whisky and wine. You won’t be able to beat the price either.

Roasted Butternut Chowder with Apples and Bacon

Served with Westland American Oak Single Malt

Loin of Pork Scaloppine,

Oven Risotto with Kale Pesto, Red Cabbage in Brown Butter

Served with a wedge of Acorn Squash

Served with Dom Brunet Pinot Noir 

Mixed Lettuces with Grapefruit, Goat Cheese and Black Pepper

Served with Westland Sherry Wood American Single Malt

Prosecco Sorbet

Artisanal New England Cheeses

Served with Westland Peated American Single Malt

$59.00 per person plus tax and gratuity

www.parkersrestaurantboston.com

Joe Howell

CHIVAS REGAL HARNESSES COMMUNITY SPIRIT IN SEARCH FOR THE 2018 CHIVAS MASTERS GLOBAL CHAMPION 

APPLICATIONS OPEN FOR BARTENDERS WHO CREATIVELY CAPTURE

THE SPIRIT OF THEIR COMMUNITY 

8^th January, 2018: Chivas Regal, the world’s first luxury whisky, has launched its search for the 2018 Chivas Masters Global Champion. Now in its fifth year, the Chivas Masters is a global competition that celebrates bartenders who demonstrate cutting-edge skill and creativity and share Chivas Regal’s core values of community, collaboration and generosity.

Launching in 22 countries across six continents, the Chivas Masters offers bartenders a once in a lifetime opportunity to grow their skills in a collaborative environment where they can learn from peers, alumni and industry experts from across the globe. This year, the theme of community will sit at the very heart of the competition, with the national stages challenging participants to produce a Chivas drink that is inspired by someone in their local community. The winner of each of the 22 national finals will go on to the Global Final to represent their market and compete for the coveted title of Chivas Masters Global Champion 2018.

This year’s Global Final will be hosted in the United Kingdom – both in London and at Strathisla distillery in Speyside, the spiritual home of Chivas Regal. Throughout a series of masterclasses and intense individual and team challenges, the bartenders’ skills and creativity will be tested, and they will have to prove that they can be as generous with their expertise as they are with a dram of Chivas Regal, by collaborating with their fellow finalists to achieve shared success.

At the culmination of the six-day programme, the Chivas Masters Global Champion 2018 will be crowned, and will win an all-expenses-paid trip to Tales of The Cocktail 2018 in New Orleans, and the chance to travel the world with Chivas to inspire the bartenders of the future.

Max Warner, Global Brand Ambassador for Chivas Regal, comments: “At Chivas Regal, we believe that generosity and success go hand in hand – a belief inspired by our founding brothers, James and John Chivas, who shared their success with the local community as their business grew. These are the values that have influenced the Chivas Masters right from the start, and the reason why in 2018 we are beyond excited to bring the Global Final home to where our brand, values and indeed our own community were born.”

If you think you have what it takes to be the next Chivas Masters Global Champion, visit www.chivas.com/chivasmasters to find out more.

#ChivasMasters 

Notes:

About Chivas Regal

Launched in 1909, Chivas Regal is the world’s first luxury whisky and is considered to be a timeless classic, renowned for its benchmark quality and taste, style, substance and exclusivity. A truly global brand, Chivas Regal has been integral to the growth of the Scotch whisky category worldwide and today sells 4.5 million 9L cases annually in more than 150 countries across the globe. With generosity, entrepreneurship and integrity at the heart of Chivas Regal, the brand launched its successful Win the Right Way campaign in 2014, which aims to inspire a new generation whilst making a positive impact on the lives of others. The Chivas Regal range includes: Chivas Regal 12, Chivas Regal Extra, Chivas Regal Mizunara, Chivas Regal 18, our first blended malt Chivas Regal Ultis, Chivas Regal 25, pinnacle of the range and ultra-prestige blend Chivas Regal The Icon, and the Global Travel Retail exclusive Chivas Brothers Blend. www.chivas.com

The Whisky Shop Dufftown January Sale

On the 18th January we will putting on sale over 30 new products with 18% Off – that’s 18% Off on the 18th for 2018.

No heads up on what’s going to be added you will just have to wait and see.

Friday January 19th 5-7 PM

Glen Scotia & Loch Lomond 

Treat yourself to a traditional whisky tasting. From 5-7 PM, we’ll be tasting new releases and rare favorites by both distilleries. Both established in the 19th century, Glen Scotia and Loch Lomond have contributed a wealth of great drams to the whisky world – we’re very excited to see what will be brought to this event.

Pourlist to be revealed as event approaches- RSVP to know first. 

Click Here to RSVP

Isle of Arran Distillers announce Burns Unbroke events

Isle of Arran Distillers, sponsors of Burns Unbroke, a brand new multi-arts Robert Burns Festival have announced a series of masterclasses at the inaugural celebration, and a cocktail reception on the opening night of the Festival.

To be held on the 26^th January, 1^st February, 15^th February and 1^st March, the masterclass tastings will include a selection of expressions from the award-winning Arran Malt range including the Robert Burns Malt – the only whisky officially endorsed by the World Burns Federation.

Under the tutelage of the experienced, friendly staff from the Isle of Arran Distillery Festival goers will have the chance to taste the ‘Arran Waters’ with five drams of the Arran Malt, as well as the delicious Arran liqueur, discovering the inspiration and craft behind each. You will be guaranteed an informal and enjoyable evening.

Running at the Summerhall in Edinburgh for six weeks from the 25^th January 2018, the program for Burns Unbroke will celebrate the plethora of artistic and performing talent in Scotland, and beyond, through the prism offered by new interpretations of the life and work of Robert Burns. The opening night of the Festival take place on Wednesday 24^th January for press.

Invited guests will be welcomed at the evening reception by two bespoke cocktails created for Arran Whisky by Glasgow agency The Drink Cabinet, who specialise in experiential events in the drinks industry. Using Arran Whisky’s Robert Burns Malt, the specialists from The Drinks Cabinet will offer guests the chance to taste two delicious cocktails inspired by the Bard himself, a most fitting way to kick start the Burns Unbroke Festival celebrations.

The Isle of Arran Distillery is a headline sponsor of Burns Unbroke alongside Creative Scotland and Scotland.org.

James MacTaggart, Master Distiller at Isle of Arran Distillery, said: “As the producer of the official Robert Burns Malt, we were delighted to be involved in a festival that shares our passion for the poet.

“At Arran, we regard whisky making as a form of story telling. Each of our expressions take inspiration from the landscape, history and legends of the island we call home.

“We’re really looking forward to sharing these stories with festival goers and, of course, raising a glass to the Bard.”

Sheilagh Tennant, Burns Unbroke Director, says “Just as ‘ freedom an’ whisky gang thegither’, so to does Burns Unbroke and a quality dram.

“The Arran masterclasses will be a great chance for people to learn more about the history and heritage of our national drink, and we are looking forward to enjoying the cocktails inspired by their whisky and Burns himself on our opening night.”

Burns Unbroke open to press and invited guests on Wedneday 24^th January and runs at Summerhall from 25 January – 10 March 2018, with the majority of performance events focussed around the weekend of 26-28 January.

The Arran masterclasses will be held in the Anatomy Lecture Theatre of Summerhall at 6:30pm on four dates; 26^th January, 1^st February, 15^th February and 1^st March 2018. Tickets are priced at £10 which includes five tasting drams and a cream liqueur. The tasting lasts approx. 1hr 30mins. 

Tickets are available here.  

Notes: For more information visit www.arranwhisky.com

Accolades for Isle of Arran Distillery include Winner for: Best New Exporter (2004), Queen’s Award for International Trade (2005), Scottish Distiller of the Year (2007) and Scottish Drinks Producer of the Year (2007.)

Scottish Field Visitor Experience of the Year 2014 & 2015.

Product awards include: Best Whisky Liqueur (2007), ‘Best Single Malt Scotch 12 Years & Under’ for The Arran Malt Amarone Cask Finish (2008) ‘Best Single Malt Scotch 11-15 Years’ for The Arran Malt Sherry Single Cask 1998 (2010) and ‘Best Single Malt Scotch 11-15 Years’ for the Icons of Arran Peacock (2011.) ‘Double Gold Award’ for Arran’s 14 Year Old Single Malt and ‘Gold Award’ for Arran’s 10 Year Old Single Malt at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition (2012). Double Gold in FiftyBest.com awards (2012). Double Gold Medal for the 12 year-old Cask Strength in the San Francisco World Spirits Competition (2013). Double Gold for both the 10 year-old and 12 year-old Cask Strength at the China Wine & Spirits Best Value Awards 2014.

The Whisky Exchange Blog Review of 2017

It was a busy year, 2017. Lots of new things to drink, lots of tastings to attend and lots of new posts on the blog. So, before we properly commit to 2018 (it’s only a day old, and we’re not sure of it yet) here’s what happened last year:

Jim Murray…in January?

It’s no secret that our annual posting of Jim Murray’s picks for the whiskies of the year is one of our most popular posts. But last year we got a triple dose of Jim, with an exclusive two-part interview popping up in January. It gave us an insight into Mr Murray’s take on the whisky world as well as what the front cover of the Whisky Bible 2017 was all about – yellow eyes and Jim as Luke Skywalker? Part 1 and part 2.

Despite claims to the contrary, Jim’s eyes do not glow in real life

And then, of course, there were the 2018 picks themselves themselves – Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible 2018 winners. In usual fashion, the World Whisky of the Year is one that’s not easy to find here in the UK, but with the next two spots going to Redbreast 21yo and Glen Grant 18yo we have a chance of seeing whether we agree with Jim – when they’re back in stock…

People

We met lots of interesting drinks people this year. While we managed to have a chat with a few of them – Buffalo Trace’s Drew Mayville, Benriach and Glendronach’s Stewart Buchanan, Cotswolds’ Dan Szor, Old Pulteney’s Malcolm Waring, and Ardbeg and Glenmorangie’s Brendan McCarron – we also convinced some others to write us guest posts: Sexy Fish’s Jerome Allaguillemette and his love of Japanese whisky and Compass Box’s John Glaser’s on the importance of blended whisky,  We even managed to convince TWE boss Sukhinder Singh to write about whisky investment and his love of Irish whiskey. Hopefully we’ll see more from him in the new year…

The cornerstones of the year

There are a few events that pop up each year that we really like. First was Feis Ile: the Islay Festival of Music and Malt. While we generally see it as a whisky festival, there’s loads going on during the week, and The Whisky Exchange was up on Islay running a pop-up old and rare whisky bar. We’re still working out if we can make it again this year, but in the meantime you can live vicariously through my pictures of the trip.

Port Ellen in the sun. Can you spot the excitable Whisky Exchange events manager?

Next was my favourite launch of the year, the Diageo Special Releases. Ten great whiskies, including the now-obligatory ‘annoy the whisky geeks’ entry: Collectivum XVIII – a blended malt made up of whisky from all 28 of Diageo’s working malt distilleries. I liked it… You can find the remaining bottles from this year’s line-up on our Diageo Special Releases 2017 page.

And not forgetting our Whisky of the Year, as chosen by our customers: Bowmore 15 Year Old. They may have taken the word ‘Darkest’ off the label in the latest rebranding, but it’s still the same great combination of sherry, fruit and gentle smoke that we know and love. A worthy winner.

2018…

We’ve got The Whisky Show: Old & Rare in February and the 10th anniversary edition of The Whisky Show in October already in the calendar. Along with that, we are lining up loads of great tastings in central London – sign up here to be the first to hear about them. We’ve got a load of great new Whisky Exchange exclusives on their way and the ‘save the date’ emails have already started arriving from the producers for new releases, so we certainly won’t be lacking for tasty things to drink.

Happy New Year!

Burns Night in Soho

On Thursday 25th January 2018, Blade Hairclub in Soho will be raising a glass to the famous bard, Rabbie Burns. Celebrating with whisky tastings and cocktails, the evening is sure to attract both Scots and Londoners with a penchant for whisky alike.

Priding itself as stocking some of the best whisky selections in town, Blade’s owner Stroo has stocked his subterranean bar with a fine hand-picked selection of whiskies from across the world. Personal favourites include the Bunnahabhain 26, Springbank 15 and Kilkerran 12.

This Burns Night, Blade is inviting every guest through the door to indulge in whisky tastings coupled with delicious whisky cocktails.

Blade Hairclub is an innovative bar and hair concept, combining great cuts and treatments from a bright young team of talented stylists, with an invitation to indulge in a meticulously curated drinks menu, created in-house and served from a cosy bar.

HOW TO HOST

YOUR OWN BURNS SUPPER

This month we’re giving thanks for the extraordinary life and work of Robert Burns, the ploughman poet whose life and work is remembered on or around 25 January, the anniversary of his birth in 1759.

The Burns Supper is a worldwide event and has grown to include certain key elements. But as a maverick himself, we’re confident Burns would have approved of any form of celebration – as long as it includes a few drams.

If you can’t make it to one of the Society’s official events, why not organise a Burns Supper of your own?

READ 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

24-25 FEBRUARY 2018, 11.30AM 6.30PM
THE GRAND CENTRAL HOTEL, GLASGOW

TICKETS ON SALE NOW!

BOOK YOUR TICKET

GORDON & MACPHAIL CONNOISSEURS CHOICE 50TH ANNIVERSARY
MASTERCLASS ON SALE NOW
SUNDAY 24 FEBRUARY, 11AM 12.30

Gordon & MacPhail is one of the best-known names in the world of independent bottling. Founded in 1895, it is one of the oldest bottlers, with more than 100 years of selecting and bottling great whisky. Among them is the Connoisseurs Choice range, a landmark in the whisky world, now 50 years old. In this tasting we will try whiskies from across the years, finding out what has made the series so successful.

Here’s the incredible line-up:

Ardbeg 1974 bottled 2003

Laphroaig 1969 bottled 1986

Ledaig 1972 bottled 1989

Glenburgie 1968 bottled 1989

Benromach 1965 bottled 1979

Mortlach 1936 36yo (Black Label)

BOOK NOW

THE WORLD PREPARES FOR CELEBRATIONS TO MARK INTERNATIONAL SCOTCH DAY ON FEBRUARY 8^th 2018 

LONDON, JANUARY 8 2018: Scotch, the world’s favourite whisky, will be celebrated across the globe on Thursday 8^th February with a series of events to mark International Scotch Day.

Now in its second year, the day is a true celebration of Scotland’s greatest gift, cementing Scotch’s status as both the world’s favourite whisky and the perfect drink to be shared with good company, wherever, whenever.

Celebrations will take place in homes, bars, clubs and events across the world, as Scotch aficionados, enthusiasts and fans alike raise a glass to their favourite whisky.

Ronan Beirne, Global Brand Marketing Director at Diageo said: “Last year we launched International Scotch Day and its huge success proved what we at Diageo already knew – the world loves Scotch. This year is going to be even bigger, with celebrations taking place globally, from Scotch Whisky tastings to opening the doors to Diageo’s archive in Scotland, free passes to distillery visitor centres and celebrity events in cities from Manila to Johannesburg”.

International Scotch Day is an opportunity to celebrate the world’s favourite whisky and to shine a spotlight on the entire Scotch Whisky category. The popularity of Scotch has been built through its integrity, quality and authenticity, and no other spirit can offer as diverse a range of tastes, textures and flavours.

Ewan Gunn, Global Scotch Whisky Master from Diageo commented: “Scotch is made all the way across Scotland – from the romantic west coast, through the whisky heartland of Speyside, to the vibrant urban central belt of Scotland, and though it is made here, it belongs to the world and is truly the world’s favourite whisky.  Hosting International Scotch Day for a second year shows how confident we are about the popularity of this truly international drink.”

2018 celebrity ambassadors and global locations will be revealed in February.

Join the celebration and get involved by using #LoveScotch #InternationalScotchDay and #jointhecelebration. For more information visit facebook.com/LoveofScotch

Please drink responsibly.

NOTES

People interested in visiting the Diageo archive on February 8^th should email archive.menstrie@diageo.com to secure a ticket.  There is no charge, but places are limited.

Diageo distillery Visitor Centres will be open free of charge on February 8^th, 10^th and 11^th. The Visitor Centres are at Blair Athol, Caol Ila, Cardhu, Clynelish, Cragganmore, Dalwhinnie, Glenkinchie, Glen Ord, Lagavulin, Oban, Royal Lochnagar and Talisker. Places are limited. Details will be announced in due course.

About #LoveScotch:

LoveScotch is about getting the world talking, thinking and trying the world’s favourite whisky and celebrates all that gives scotch its unique character, flavour and personality. The LoveScotch annual event, International Scotch Day on February 8^th, is a day for people everywhere to join in and celebrate during the week of the birthday one of the world’s most influential Master Blenders – Alexander Walker the son of John ‘Johnnie’ Walker. 

About Diageo:  Diageo is a global leader in beverage alcohol with an outstanding collection of brands including Johnnie Walker, Crown Royal, JεB, Buchanan’s and Windsor whiskies, Smirnoff, Cîroc and Ketel One vodkas, Captain Morgan, Baileys, Don Julio, Tanqueray and Guinness.  Diageo is listed on both the London Stock Exchange (DGE) and the New York Stock Exchange (DEO) and our products are sold in more than 180 countries around the world. For more information about Diageo, our people, our brands, and performance, visit us at www.diageo.com. Visit Diageo’s global responsible drinking resource, www.DRINKiQ.com, for information, initiatives, and ways to share best practice.

Celebrating life, every day, everywhere.