Jolly Toper’s whisky tastings normally take place on Thursday nights from 7:30pm until approximately 10pm at The Kilderkin 65/67 Canongate, Royal Mile, Edinburgh, (they do a mean pizza). For more details on the tastings themselves please click here

P/O/U/R/S = Peaty, Old, Unusual, Rare and Sherry cask matured. Recently many people have requested the exact nature of the line up at the ‘pours’ tastings remain secret so a proper ‘blind’ tasting can be held. However I understand some attendees would be more comfortable knowing which drams were to be tasted before committing to attending. If you don’t want to know the confirmed line up contact us before checking the details listed below.

* = £3 discount for first timers and members. Membership costs £10 for 13 months.

Future dates

P/O/U/R/S 06/03/14 £25/22*

Glentauchers 15yo cask strength sherry cask bottled by Gordon & MacPhail for The Whisky Exchange – a true sherry monster, not for everyone but very much for me.

Invergordon 25yo cask strength single grain from Whisky Broker

Glen Elgin 22yo rum cask full strength Cadenheads

Craigellachie-Glenlivet 14yo Bourbon hogshead 53.3% –  bottled to mark the 10th anniversary of Cadenhead’s Berlin shop, only 18 bottles in the UK

Lagavulin 12yo cask strength Diageo Special Release 2013

Marie Curie fund raising tasting Thursday 13.3.14 £15 – 100% of money taken goes to the charity

Longrow 7yo October 2000 – January 2008 5 1/2 years in refill Bourbon then 1 1/2 years fresh Gaja Barolo 55.8% 12120 bottles. I love this stuff, the flavour just keeps on going.

Tomintoul 14yo 46%

Tomatin 15yo 43%

Clynelish 16yo 46%

Century of Malts 40%

P/O/U/R/S 20.3.14 £YBC*

Marie Curie fund raising tasting Thursday 27.3.14 £25 – 100% of money taken goes to the charity SOLD OUT!

P/O/U/R/S 3.4.14 £TBC*

P/O/U/R/S 17.4.14 £TBC*

P/O/U/R/S 1.5.14 £TBC*

P/O/U/R/S 15.5.14 £TBC*

THE BEST CADENHEADS HAS No. 3 21.05.14 £TBC

Those whisky daft Danes are back with the usual request – pour the 5 best drams Cadenheads currently have – hang the price.

P/O/U/R/S 29.5.14 £TBC*

P/O/U/R/S 12.6.14 £TBC*

P/O/U/R/S 26.6.14 £TBC*

P/O/U/R/S 10.7.14 £TBC*

P/O/U/R/S 24.7.14 £TBC*

The Glenlivet Talk & Tour: Whether you missed it or simply miss it.

On February 1st, we invited our community into Speyside for an exclusive experience: a live-streamed tour and first-hand look at life at The Glenlivet Distillery. We explored its passages, heritage, and the behind the scenes process, while our Master Distiller Alan Winchester shared his knowledge in a live Q&A session. What transpired was a brilliant exchange of lessons, laughs, and tales of “The Single Malt that started it all”.

Relive some of the best moments from The Glenlivet Talk & Tour with Alan Winchester.

WATCH NOW

Welcome to the 35th auction and another selection of jaw-droppingly rare bottles, both very old and very new – mixed with hard-to-finds, easy-to-buys and everything in between. Stars include a Speyburn Macallan from 1945 and the latest from the Masters of Photography series – The Elliot Erwitt. There are two from 1957 – a Bowmore and an Auchentoshan, there’s a Lochside 47 year old and a North British 50. We also have a Bowmore Bi-centenary, a Bowmore President’s Selection Keizo Saji’s Cask and a 30 year old Sea Dragon. 

A lovely Talisker 8, a Highland Park 1958 17 year old in the dumpy bottle, and a 40 year old Glendronach will surely catch the eye. We have two scarce SMWS Anniversary bottlings, a Glen Moray and a Teaninich, a Glen Mhor 30 and the lovely Lagavulin 12 year old White Horse. 

A couple of others worth mentioning include a very,very scarce Duncan Taylor No 1 blend at 33 years old – from the days before the Shand family bought the company from John Gross, and a highly sought-after Glenallachie 9 year old produced by Scotland’s top alt rockers, Mogwai who have signed the label. Glenellachie shows up again in the shape of a 35 year old from 1967 and there are two Signatory Rare Ayrshire, one a 35 year old, the other 36. Signatory features again with a lovely double bottle lot from Littlemill and Dunglass. And from Balblair a 1966 38 year old. 

We have been very encouraged with the response from our news that we can now ship more easily, and more competitively, to the USA. See the full postage rates under Charges on the front page. And don’t forget: we are also now offering insurance on your bottles, at a cost of 3% of the final price. 

But enough blethering. Our standing advice applies – jump in and have a good rummage around – there’s bound to be something that catches your eye. And get bidding – don’t lose your bottle! 

Kind regards from Glasgow 

The SWA Team

The 35th Auction

Another unique selection of cask strength drams is on its way to us. 

Here are the details for the event:

Date:              Friday March 7^th, 2014

Time:              6:30pm to 8:00pm

Location:       The Strath Ale Wine & Spirit Merchants, 919 Douglas Street, Victoria (Please check in the Store for the exact room location)

Price:              $35 each for Members & Partners, $45 for Non-Members/Guests   

REGISTRATION:   

1. Space is limited so you must register. (Guests are welcome, but subject to availability.  Members have priority.)
2.  To secure your place you need to pre-pay

Please email, drop into the store or phone with credit card details

Email: whisky@strathconahotel.com or Phone: 250-370-9463 

Once your seat(s) are paid for by phone you will receive an email confirmation from me and this is your virtual Ticket.  If you pay in person in the store you will receive a receipt. 

Thank you to those members who have already registered and paid. 

We are also accepting bookings already for April, when First Friday falls on April 4^th.

IMPORTANT: 

Please remember these are cask strength whiskies, so you should not be driving home after the tasting. 

Slainté! 

Colin Southcombe
General Manager
The Strath Ale Wine & Spirit Merchants
919 Douglas Street, Victoria BC, V8W 2C2
Tel: 250-370-9463
Email: whisky@strathconahotel.com

February Auction goes live today, 21^st February 2014, at 13.00! 

http://www.whiskyauctioneer.com/ 

Our February auction contains almost 250 lots including a very rare Talisker from 1973 (1 of only 100 bottles) exclusive to Oddbins, a variety of Dalmores, Bowmores, some very old Macallan’s and the desirable Laphroaig 1960 Vintage Reserve (40 Year Old) to name a few. 

Registration is Free!

WORLD WIDE SHPPING IS AVAILABLE 

With over 10 years of experience in the whisky industry, Whisky Auctioneer specialises in auctioning whisky whether it be fine, old, rare, collectable or affordable.  Formed in 2013 and based in Perth, central Scotland, we aim to be the most comprehensive website for the buying and selling of whisky online. 

Happy Bidding!

Whisky Tasting 

WHAT 5 choice drams from William Cadenheads new bottling program, all single cask, cask strength, non-chillfiltered and naturally coloured 

WHERE at The Kilderkin, 65/67 Canongate, Royal Mile, Edinburgh 

WHEN on Friday 21st February at 7.30pm 

DETAILS  £22 for first timers and members or £25 ffor returning non-members, membership cost £10 for 13 months 

Auchentoshan 21yo 1992 – 02/14 162 bottles 51.8% Bourbon barrel

Canadian Indian Corn from Potters Distilling Company, Kelowna, British Columbia 24yo 126 bottles 56.5%

Laphroaig 22yo 1991 – 02/14 168 bottles 49.8% Bourbon hogshead

Tamdhu-Glenlivet 22yo 1991 – 02/14 258 bottles 57.0% port cask

Glenlossie-Glenlivet 20yo 1993 – 02/14 Bourbon hogshead 252 bottles 53.3% 

http://www.jollytopertastings.co.uk/

Our next tasting is this Wednesday
Wednesday 19th of February: Society Tasting (6.30pm in Bookends, @Butchart )

Come along to the FIRST whisky tasting event of the year.
We will have some super whisky on offer.

Tickets will be on sale at the door, so please come on time
As per usual, £3 for 4 whiskies
or £4 for non members

ALL members must renew their membership for this year.
Please see details below about how to do this.

HOW TO BECOME A MEMBER OF THE MALT WHISKY SOCIETY

We also need to get EVERYONE to become a member of the Malt Whisky Society.
To do this follow these simple steps:
1. Go to www.ausa.org.uk
2. Register a new account
3. Search for “Malt Whisky Society”
4. Add “Malt Whisky Society Student Membership” (£2) to your basket (like amazon.com)
5. Go to your basket – you MUST add “Societies Union” membership (£2) before you can pay
6. Follow payment instructions – you NEED a credit/debit card to pay.
7. Bring along your reference on a bit of paper/your mobile phone to the next whisky event and we will give you your membership card.

CASH PAYMENTS
It is possible to pay for membership with cash at the Butchart Reception desk during opening hours.

Yamazaki Cask Collection 2013 Masterclass – Sunday 23 February at 3pm

The team at Tomoka Spirits Boutique in St. Albans, Hertfordshire are delighted to announce a very special tasting of the Yamazaki single malt whisky Cask Collection 2013.

We will be guided through the whiskies by Suntory’s UK ambassador, Zoran Peric. The line-up includes the highly sought after Yamazaki Mizunara cask and is definitely one not to miss!

Tickets are £20 per person and are strictly limited. Please email us on billmccoy@tomokaspiritsboutique.co.uk or call on 01727 894869 to find out more and book your tickets.

Tomoka Spirits Boutique
5A Christopher Place
St. Albans
Hertfordshire AL3 5DQ
01727 894869

Birthday alert… Spirit of Toronto turns TEN!!!

It’s incredible to think that ten years ago the first Spirit of Toronto Whisky Gala took place at Roy Thomson Hall. Year after year it’s been our pleasure to showcase some truly stellar whiskies and fine spirits to our ever growing audience, including the first ever public tasting of Highland Park 40 Year Old, the first Canadian tasting of the Generations Glenlivet 70 Year Old and the king of cognac, Louis de XIII de Rémy Martin.

We’re also pleased to have held Canada’s only dedicated whisky auction which raised over $7000 for the Parkinson’s Society of Canada on behalf of the late whisky writer Michael Jackson.

That said, the many friends that Spirit of Toronto has made along the way are the true highlights of the past ten years. Those of you who not only return every year, but come back with your family, friends and colleagues in tow. It is with you in mind that we look forward to presenting a birthday bash that you will be talking about for the rest of the year…

Tickets on sale Monday, March 24

Tickets for this year’s Spirit of Toronto Annual Gala go on sale Monday, March 24 at 10:00am sharp. Once again tickets will be sold through Roy Thomson Hall’s box office online, by telephone and in person at 60 Simcoe Street. Those of you subscribed to this list will receive an automatic email notification the night before.

The complete schedule for the Spirit of Toronto 2014 Masterclass Series is also close to being confirmed. For those of you in need of some hints, I can report that this year’s tutored tastings will see some of you visting Italy, while some of you will take on the role of master blender. And then there are the lucky few who will be afforded a rare opportunity to travel back in time. All will be revealed in the coming weeks when Spirit of Toronto’s new website is published in March.

Coming in from out of town?

No need to wait to arrange your travel plans, once again we have discounted rates being offered by our hotel partners, and both are within walking distance of Roy Thomson Hall.

The Fairmont Royal York is right next to Union Station and is offering attendees rooms at $159 per night. You can book online by clicking here or by calling the hotel directly at 416-368-2511 and quoting “Spirit of Toronto”.

The Marriott Residence Inn Downtown Toronto is 3 blocks from Roy Thomson Hall and has a limited number of Studio Suites with full kitchen and living area available for $159 per night which includes WiFi, highspeed internet and a hot buffet breakfast. These can be booked by calling the hotel directly at 416-581-1800 and quoting “Spirit of Toronto” or by clicking here.

Single Minded 2014: A Modest Guide to Really Good Whisky

For those of you who can’t wait until May, the 2014 edition of Single Minded is now published and available to order online through Amazon Canada.

Based on more than ten years worth of tasting and travel in the world of whisky—both as an enthusiast and in my role as executive producer of the Spirit of Toronto—this is a no-nonsense guide to the affordable, everyday whiskies that I hold to be every bit as good (and often better) as bottles costing twice the price.

In short, this is my love letter to whisky, featuring those bottles I have purchased myself and enjoyed at my leisure… what I’d invite you to taste should you drop by for a wee blether as my Scottish friends like to say.

The Relaxed Whisky Weekend

6 – 8 September 2013

Hi there,

Just a very quick update from the Maltstock headquarters.

It’s just 7 months till Maltstock 2014, be there or be square!

We are very happy to confirm that this year’s breakfast will be served by Wullie Macmorland, proud owner of the Hielander Scottisch Restaurant and organizer of the yearly held Hielander Whisky festival both in Alkmaar. Wullie will cook for us the world famous full scottish breakfast, twice! Owww yeah!

Hielander Whisky Festival will actually be held this week. Maltstock as always will be present with a couple of nice people and a table full of whisky for you to enjoy. Come and visit us!

We redesigned Maltstock.com lately. Visit our new site at www.maltstock.com. We are still working on some of the features, but it’s a great site already.

Although the shop is offline due to maintenance: the tickets are flying out!
Please, if you want to come, send an email to: shop@maltstock.com

Thanks!

Maltstock will be present at the following festivals as well:
Whisky in Leiden – 12\apr\2014 – http://www.whiskyinleiden.nl/
Internationaal malt whisky festival Gent – 8\9\maart – http://whiskyfestival.be/
Whisky festival noord Nederland – 28\29\30\maart – http://www.wfnn.nl/
Spirit of Speyside Whisky festival – 1\2\3\4\5\mei – http://www.spiritofspeyside.com/

See you at one of these great festivals

And we hope to see you at Maltstock 2014 of course!

Annette, Bob, Jeroen, Klaas, Stan and Teun

http://www.maltstock.com