A fantastic Charitable Limited Edition from Big Peat, celebrating our Nation’s Heroes. You can be part of choosing the charity via an on-pack QR Code and via Big Peat’s Social Media. The whisky itself is an earthy peat smoke and brown sugar sweetness!
Hand-Selected by Our Spirits Buyers: Smooth Ambler
5 Year Old “Old Scout” Single Barrel Bottlings
“We’ve tasted through literally dozens of barrels to select these few excellent choices,
so you can drink with confidence.” — Andrew Whiteley, K&L Spirits Buyer
NOTE: Our walk-in retail locations are currently closed. We have curbside pickup and low cost (often free) delivery options available in ZIP codes where we can ship lawfully, including anywhere in California. We can also include any new or existing will call orders in your delivery batch. Choose local delivery at checkout to learn if you qualify.
Smooth Ambler’s “Old Scout” lineup is a throwback to the excellence of their aged MGP bourbon, which used to define the character of our wildly popular Faultline bottling. After a break to let the whiskies age, we’re thrilled to announce that we have five new K&L exclusive single barrel selections ready for your enjoyment. The original Old Scout was released at 5 years old back in 2011, and we’ve followed the same path here, with all these bottlings clocking in at the same age. While still young, these bourbons show remarkable depth and provide a preview of the inimitable character Old Scout has to offer. Our buyers have chosen what they think are the best five barrels to be had, and all offer unique variations on a common theme. May we suggest that a five-part side-by-side tasting might be in order? Snap these bottles up now to experience the nuances of Old Scout.
After years of pining for the days of bourbon yore, we’ve finally come full circle to re-release the Ol’ Old Scout in its original form. There’s been tons of confusion on the market due to Smooth Ambler’s recent release of a large parcel of Tennessee bourbon, which was acquired from the famous distillery at Cascade Hollow, but this product is not that. Those whiskies are much loved by certain folks but show a completely different character than the original Old Scout. The brand became famous for bottling excellent bourbon and rye sourced from a fine distillery in Indiana. Those excellent whiskies were once the backbone for our now extinct Faultline Bourbon. Until now they haven’t had enough aged stock to spare single barrels for this program. Now that their stocks are finally coming of age, they’ve re-released these excellent bourbons at a respectable 5 years of age. This is the very same age that the original Old Scout was released way back in 2011. We’re very lucky to have scooped up several barrels before the rest of the market has realized that these are back on the table. We’ll likely continue to see the age statements on these excellent whiskies increase over the years, but even now the stupendous complexity of these bourbons at this lovely, youthful age is extremely satisfying. This High Rye bourbon (36% rye) was barreled in Char #4 on 11/17/14 and bottled 7/31/20 at 118.4 proof. With a loss of 27%, it yielded only 192 bottles.
David Othenin-Girard | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: March 18, 2021
This gorgeous barrel of MGP bourbon is as classic as they get. The nose has surprising lift coupled with some cocoa powder, maple wood, and a big burnt Seville peel. Then come some pungent tropical fruit and a bevy of exotic spices (tons of cinnamon), plus some salted caramel. On the palate, it stays ultra-lifted and bright. The orange peel remains along with some gorgeous barrel spice and hints of white pepper and fresh herbs. This one is a bit pricklier than some of the darker, richer barrels we’ve had, but if you’re a fan of a kick of spice and don’t want something too sweet, this the barrel for you.
Andrew Whiteley | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: March 17, 2021
Perhaps my favorite cocktailing barrel of the current lineup. The higher proof helps this whiskey sit up straight in any mixed drink. I particularly like this with a sweeter style vermouth, since the whisky itself has the gusto. If you like your whiskey to push you around and assert itself, look no further. Cinnamon, sweet nutmeg, and allspice notes battle it out with all variety of peppercorn. The barrel notes sand the harder edges down with a little coconut and vanilla salve. Let your inner bartender go wild.
Andrew Whiteley | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: March 17, 2021
If you’re struggling to pick between our incredible selection of Smooth Ambler barrels, don’t stress too much. We’ve tasted through literally dozens of barrels to select these few excellent choices, so you can drink with confidence. The intrigue of these barrels is in the subtlety of the differences. All show a seriously robust spice profile and a hearty helping of quality American oak. The insane thing is that they’re here and available at an absurdly sharp price. Anything but new-make MGP is tough to find these days, and anyone who has it wants to charge an arm and leg because they can. John Little and the Smooth Ambler team haven’t cornered the market on great MGP whisky; they’re just among the few producers willing to sell it at fair prices and unadulterated cask strength. We saw the opportunity and stocked up while the gettin’ was good. If you insist on needing a barrel note, #24270 is a Werther’s Original caked in green peppercorn.
David Othenin-Girard | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: March 18, 2021
In many ways, this barrel feels the most typically “MGP.” The nose wafts out of the glass with plenty of caramel and spicy oak, hints of dill, and orange peel in the background. As it opens the vanilla takes along with the clove and cinnamon. On the palate, sweet brown sugar and dark cherries couple with that big vanilla continuing throughout. Clove runs through the entire thing with a rich caramel aroma balancing on the medium-long finish. Very personable and approachable. An easy one to recommend to anyone, even a bourbon novice.
David Othenin-Girard | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: March 18, 2021
This barrel is a nice contrast to several of the others that hinge on the big orange peel and toasted vanilla flavors. Here we’re much more on the woodsy and baked fruit notes. Dark wood spice, underbrush, baked apples, old teak, and varnish. On the palate, we’re still on the richer side of things with significant weight and big spice. A dark cherry sweetness keeps it balanced and builds into a menthol and red fruit finish. Long and lingering, it doesn’t have the grip you might expect on the strong entry. The diversity of flavors we see across these barrels is so incredible, despite their similar specs. Each one offers something new and exciting.
David Othenin-Girard | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: March 18, 2021
This barrel shows yet another diverse set of flavors compared to its compatriots. On the nose, big sugar candies, sweet poached pears, hints of licorice, and fresh oak. On the palate, it’s very creamy and rich with an almond buttery quality that doesn’t exist in any of the other barrels. Round and sweet but not lacking in spice considering the high rye. There’s subtle funky earthiness that kind of reminds me of Wild Turkey. If the other barrels don’t sound up your alley, with their red fruit or orange peel characters, this might be the perfect choice for you. You can feel the textural richness that the additional evaporation has created, but it still has that kick that so many bourbon drinkers love.
Andrew Whiteley | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: March 17, 2021
Coming in at a very pretty 112.6 proof, this barrel riffs on the high rye spice but with a cooler palate. It’s more cocoa dust and caramelized citrus peel. The freshly ground pepper and savory, fresh cut grass note balances well with the citrus, which makes itself known on the nose, palate, and finish.
Say hello to Benriach Smoke Season: an intensely smoked small-batch release that celebrates this much-loved Speyside distillery’s sweet peat, distilled at Benriach in the summertime. Created with 100% peated malt.
Benriach Smoke Season has been double matured in both American virgin oak and bourbon casks and bottled at 52.8% abv. Spectacular stuff. The nose has orange peel, chocolate and rich caramel. The palate is decadently layered with sweetness from the virgin oak casks, with dark vanilla and stewed apple, alongside dry oak, woody smoke and gentle spice. The finish is nutty with a smoky peppercorn aftertaste.
Get this in your glass.
We’ve delved into our historic stocks to bring you two new gems from our Vaults Collection this month. As pieces of whisky history, the bottlings will change your appreciation of these two classic distilleries, and are not to be missed.
These beautiful Old & Dignified drams will be amazing enough on their own, but as a game-changing experience, we’ve looked at how they could pair up perfectly with an Iberico ham, a rich cheese or even a barbecued steak.
Check out the website for more and take your appreciation of these incredible bottlings to the next level.
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
BIG PEAT HONOURS PANDEMIC HEROES
WITH LIMITED EDITION CHARITY BOTTLING
The family firm behind award-winning Islay Malt brand, Big Peat, today announces a charitable bottling in honour of the heroes of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Big Peat “Heroes” Limited Edition will result in a bulk sanitiser donation to the value of £10,000.00 being made to a leading UK charitable organisation by Douglas Laing & Co.
Packaged in a rainbow-coloured premium gift tube, the Heroes Edition shows Big Peat himself tearing open his doctor’s coat to reveal a superhero costume underneath. The Whisky inside is a marriage of Single Cask Single Malts only from Islay, offered at 48% alcohol strength, without colouring or chill-filtration. It is limited to just 1,500 bottles and is exclusively for the UK, with the sale of each bottle contributing the equivalent of £6.67 worth of sanitiser to a worthy cause.
Says Cara Laing, Marketing Director and third generation in her family business, “When our Board met to establish our priorities for 2021, we unanimously agreed that we are focused on making tangible contributions to the UK’s recovery from recent catastrophic events.
We gathered our wider team on a Zoom call and between us, we came up with a number of initiatives – from donating to the BEN Society in support of the recovery of Scotland’s licensed trade, to offering our warehouse space for mass-vaccinations – plus Big Peat’s Heroes commemorative bottling. Every single individual in key worker roles deserves to be honoured, and this limited edition bottle is designed to do exactly that, by donating a substantial volume of hand sanitiser to a charity chosen by our consumers”.
Consumers are invited to vote for the charity of their choice via an on-pack QR code and Big Peat’s Social Media. The firm says it reached out to scores of UK charities, and arrived at a shortlist that includes: Erskine – caring for veterans of the British Armed Forces; Marie Curie – providing care and support for those with terminal illness and their families and Hearts & Balls, delivering financial and emotional support for rugby players affected by catastrophic injury.
Big Peat Heroes Edition will be available from late March from specialist spirits retailers across the UK and online, with an RRP of £45. Donations to Erskine, Marie Curie and Hearts & Balls can be made via the links below.
• Erskine.org.uk
• Mariecurie.org.uk
• Heartsandballs.org.uk
ABOUT BIG PEAT
Instagram: @bigpeatwhisky
Facebook: /bigpeat
Established in 2009 by Douglas Laing & Co, Big Peat has amassed a somewhat cult following throughout his tenure in the world of Whisky. The multi award-winning small batch Scotch is a marriage of Single Cask Single Malts distilled only on Islay, including those distilled at Ardbeg, Bowmore, Caol Ila and Port Ellen Distilleries, amongst others. Celebrated for “his” trademark smoky, sooty, ashy and sweet flavour profile, Big Peat is proudly offered at high alcohol strength and always without colouring or chill-filtration.
ABOUT DOUGLAS LAING & CO.
Douglas Laing & Co. is a leading independent Scotch Whisky distillery, blender and bottler specialising in the selection and release of Single Cask Single and Small Batch Malt Scotch Whiskies.
The company was founded by Fred Douglas Laing in 1948 and is still owned and run by the Laing family – Fred Laing Jr and his daughter Cara Laing.
The company philosophy is to bottle the way the distiller intended – at a high strength and without chill filtration to preserve the robust and unique character of the Whisky. Douglas Laing’s industry reputation and many awards is testament to this ethos.
Douglas Laing’s Remarkable Regional Malts, the Ultimate Distillation of Scotland’s Malt Whisky Regions, encompasses The Epicurean Lowland Malt Scotch Whisky, Timorous Beastie (Highlands), Scallywag (Speyside), The Gauldrons (Campbeltown), Rock Island (Islands) and Big Peat (Islay).
Beyond its Blended Malts expertise, the award-winning Douglas Laing portfolio also includes Provenance, Premier Barrel, Old Particular, Xtra Old Particular and XOP Black, collectively known as the firm’s “Exceptional Single Casks”.
LINDORES ABBEY DISTILLERY SIGNS EXCLUSIVE CASK SUPPLY AGREEMENT WITH TORO ALBALÁ
The first of the Pedro Ximenez casks from Toro Albalá being filled by Martin Johnson, father of co-founder Helen McKenzie Smith, who is the same age as the 1937 cask credit: F.D Young Photography
The first of the Pedro Ximenez casks from Toro Albalá being filled by Martin Johnson, father of co-founder Helen McKenzie Smith, who is the same age as the 1937 cask credit: F.D Young Photography
Lindores Abbey Distillery announced today that it has secured an exclusive cask supply contract with Bodegas Toro Albalá in Montilla Moriles. Under the agreement, Lindores Abbey Distillery will have exclusive access to a wide range of ex-Bodega Butts for maturing and finishing their single malt.
The legendary Bodegas, perhaps most famous for its 1946 Don Convento which scored 100 points in Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate guide, is seen as a perfect partner by Lindores Abbey Distillery founder, Drew McKenzie Smith.
“Toro Albalá and Lindores Abbey Distillery are the perfect match. Both are family-run companies that place an emphasis on producing the very finest product. We have been looking to form long-term agreements with the finest wine producers, and this is the first of these. You cannot do better than 100 Parker points, and we are sure that these casks, which are exclusively from PX, will be the perfect partner for our award-winning new make spirit.”
A team from Lindores will be visiting the Bodega in Montilla in October (travel restrictions permitting) to personally select and collect the further of the casks, some of which have lain in the Bodega for more than 70 years.
“We cannot wait to get some casks back over here and filled. Ex-Bodega Butts containing wines like the Don PX are so difficult to find nowadays, so we are thrilled,” Drew said.
Export Director for Toro Albalá Antonio Sorgato is equally enthusiastic. “To reach an agreement with Lindores is great. It’s a perfect arrangement for us. Being associated with Lindores Abbey Distillery and the abbey where whisky production in Scotland was first recorded is something special. We know the quality of our wines and really look forward to seeing how the casks will work in Scotland.”
The first single malt from Lindores Abbey Distillery, the spiritual home of Scotch whisky, will not be offered for public sale – the run of 1,494 bottles will be exclusively available through membership of the 1494 Society. The historic bottling will be launched in March 2021.
Notes
The first release from Lindores Abbey Distillery, the spiritual home of Scotch whisky, will be exclusively available through membership to the 1494 Society. Lifetime membership costs £500 and includes a numbered bottle of our first ever whisky release, priority access to all future numbered bottlings, lifetime free access to the distillery, a donation to the preservation of the Abbey ruins, a tree planted in your name in our Abbey orchards, and an exclusive invitation to the annual Bear Burning party.
Joining the 1494 Society means becoming part of the Lindores Abbey family and accompanying us on our journey to revive the spiritual home of Scotch whisky and celebrate Lindores’ primordial role in whisky history.
Only 1,494 Memberships to the 1494 Society are, and will ever be, available – once they are all spoken for, there will be no way to procure a bottle of the first release directly from Lindores Abbey Distillery. Only a fraction of membership places remain, and we expect these to be sold out by the time we release our first whisky in March.
ITS BACK…
The English – 11 Yr
11 yr old is back; after the success of the 2020 initial release, it is with great delight that we can finally release the 2021 bottling.
The official tasting notes talk of baked apples and hints of almonds but they don’t convey the sublime rich oiliness of this whisky – we are incredibly proud to once again launch this showcase of our distillers fine work.
The 2021 bottling is limited to just 3600 bottles. The joy of whisky is the history that passes by whilst we wait for it to mature; The year we distilled this whisky Prince William get engaged, Cameron become prime minister, Downton Abbey hit our screens, the Iceland volcano caused travel havoc…time has little meaning in the creation of a single malt whisky.
Only 3600 bottles released.
£59.95 70cl 46% ABV
Don’t forget that we are offering FREE delivery on all orders over £75 for Mainland UK Delivery.
Tasting Notes: A complex nose with citrus, baked apples and hints of almonds give way to a taste that is fruity with some lovely oak overtones; all ending with a rich, oily and slightly dry finish.
The English – 11 Year Old
£59.95
Single Cask #6
This will be our sixth ever official single cask bottling and second 100% Rye that is exclusively available at the distillery and online. This rare bottling consists of only 150 hand numbered bottles. The whisky is made from 100% rye and picks up influences of bourbon from the American oak cask and malt whisky from the aromas in our warehouse. Sweet, spicy and complex, this whisky is a unique and fascinating addition to your Shelter Point collection. We expect this go fast and due to the limited quantity. To secure your bottle please go to our website – Shelterpoint.ca
Cheers,
Jacob Wiebe
Looking for your favorite bottle of whiskey? In a world filled with e-commerce platforms and coupon sites you would think it would be easy to locate hard to find bottles. Unfortunately, tracking down some bottles is still a daunting task. Most people still have to hop from site to site to find what they need. It is also almost impossible to know if your favorite bottles are on sale unless you happen to visit a website at the right time.
GABA App makes shopping for whiskies so much easier. For nearly three years, our platform and mobile bottle locator have helped customers discover small batch whiskies, allocated spirits, and great deals.
Michelle, the founder of GABA App, recognized the need for a mobile bottle locator after consulting for small wine & spirits brands for over ten years. Tasked with locating bottles for clients, she found herself visiting multiple stores or websites, only to find that the product was out of stock or unavailable.
Digitally-savvy shoppers value platforms that quickly help them find what they’re looking for, especially if the items are on sale. This is why search engines and coupon sites are so popular. Unfortunately, these tools are not optimized for spirits customers.
GABA App addresses these needs by offering a mobile bottle locator that alerts you when hard to find bottles are available, being sampled, or put on sale. It’s as simple as following your desired bottles and setting up an alert. Shoppers can also accumulate rewards points towards future purchases.
GABA App covers most NYC neighborhoods, with shipping options enabling even further reach to many states.
GABA App is available for free in the Apple store, and the Google Play Store. You can also visit their web platform at www.gabaapp.com.
If you would like to be notified about our allocated whiskies first hand please send an email to support@gabaapp.com Subject: Allocated Whiskey List
Celebrating well-aged and unique casks from Gordon & MacPhail. This Glen Grant 1980 vintage, aged for 40 years in a refill American hogshead. Filled 22nd February 1980 and bottled 7th October 2020 yielding just 105 bottles at 44.8%.
Nose : Citrus zest aromas combine with pineapple and subtle white chocolate. An undertone of green apple develops giving way to coconut and fresh herbs.
Palate : Soft pepper leads to smooth flavours of dried bananas with a hint of smoke. Sweet tropical fruit combines with rich orange and baked pear.
Finish : A medium-bodied finish with lingering mixed nuts and cocoa powder.
