“The Eagle Has Landed” | Caol Ila 8 Year Old 2012

On July 20th 1969 Apollo 11 lunar lander call sign ‘Eagle’ undocked from command module Columbia and went into lunar orbit.

The World held its breath and watched.

Landing on the lunar surface, commander Neil Armstrong proclaimed

“Houston, Tranquillity Base here. The Eagle has landed.”

The eight bottling for the TWB Apollo series is from the darkest sherry cask whisky we have ever seen.

A total eclipse of driftwood bonfire layered in craters of sherry and gingerbread – delicious!

Shop – Caol Ila The Eagle Has Landed – £125 / €136* / $137*

Firstly a big hello to all our lovely customers.  We hope you have been keeping well.  Things have been quiet our end but most importantly we just hope everyone is keeping safe and as positive as can be in this time.

We couldn’t not release something for Christmas and came across a leaking cask so we have a very special low run of Laphroaig 2006.

– Laphroaig 2006  –
Aged 14 Years

Distilled 14.8.2006 – Bottled 16.8.2020 – 40.3%vol – Cask No. 01 – 48 bottles

£90

Click here to buy

Bartels Whisky

4 The Old Glebe

Loughborough, LecLE12 8LB

United Kingdom

Free, Next Day Delivery.
(order before 12pm)

New go-to winter warmers

It’s time to wrap up! Explore our new arrivals at Loch Fyne and keep yourself warm with delicious drams from Glen Moray, Glen Scotia and many more.

Shop New Releases ›

Blue Spot
£75.00

The return of a classic! Last seen in 1964, Blue Spot is distilled at Midleton distillery in Ireland and matured in a combination of bourbon, sherry and Madeira casks, reflecting the history of its wine-merchant creators Mitchell & Son.

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Glen Scotia 30 Year Old
£850.00

With just 500 bottles available worldwide, this 30-year-old single malt from Glen Scotia is a rare beauty! This expression was laid to rest in single sherry hogshead on 21st December 1989 for three whole decades.

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Glen Moray 2006
Sauternes Cask
£79.95

Aged for 14 years in five sweet Sauternes wine casks, this expression strikes a perfect balance between Glen Moray’s signature Speyside style and the honeyed sweetness of France’s most famous dessert wine. Enjoy festive flavours of dark chocolate, caramel, Seville orange and spice. Delicious!

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GIVE WEMYSS MALTS THIS CHRISTMAS

This year, we’ve put together our favourite Wemyss Malts gifts for every whisky lover. Whether they’re an avid collector, or newly discovering whisky, we’ve got the gift for them.

EXPLORE OUR WHISKY FINDER

Start Shopping – All New Releases

Christmas can be a busy time; shopping for presents, preparing the dinner and choosing the perfect festive tipple, so let the Society do some of the work for you with our Christmas flavour guide. We’ve matched a Flavour Profile to every part of the festive celebrations, from party food, to Christmas Eve dinner to the big day itself – so you can easily find the perfect accompaniment to your occasion.

SEE OUR CHRISTMAS FLAVOUR GUIDE

VIEW ALL WHISKIES

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

Bimber Distillery reveals Re-charred single casks 

Re-charred Oak Casks #68, #143 and #144 will be available to purchase directly from the distillery from Thursday 10^th December 2020 

Concluding release of 2020 marks the end of highly successful first year for London craft distillery For Immediate Release

London’s award winning Bimber Distillery today announced the upcoming release of three single cask single malt whiskies drawn from the distillery’s remaining stock of re-charred oak casks.

Three exceptional casks from Bimber’s small inventory of hand-charred casks were reserved during the creation of the distillery’s popular maiden Small Batch release in October 2019. Following an additional year of maturation, these casks are now being made available as cask strength, single cask expressions.

The three new releases will be available to purchase directly from Bimber’s website from Thursday 10^th December. They are limited to one bottle per person and priced at £85.

The casks were hand charred by Bimber’s on-site coopers to level #4 char – also known as ‘alligator char’. This deep charring process caramelises the wood sugars, promotes greater interaction between the spirit and the oak and adds a layer of filtering carbon to the internal surfaces of the barrel.

The influence of this intense char has imparted incredible richness and distinctively sweet notes into these single malt whiskies. All of which perfectly marry with Bimber’s fruit-forward, spice-led house style.

Speaking of the upcoming release, Bimber spokesperson Matt McKay said: “We’re delighted to end what has been a tremendous year for Bimber with these very special single cask whiskies. The Small Batch edition of our Re-charred Oak Casks released last Autumn was a first taste of our single malt for many whisky lovers. Over the months since, we’ve received many requests to produce more of this popular expression – and so we’re now truly excited to unveil these three single cask editions.

He added: “It has been a challenging year for everyone involved in the industry and so we’re eternally grateful for all the support that the whisky community has shown us. We’re very eager to see how the growing cohort of Bimber fans react to these final releases of 2020.”

Notes

Re-charred Oak Cask – Single Cask Releases December 2020 

Tasting notes (for Cask #144)

NOSE: Flambe orange peels, bruised apples and pineapple juices mingle with split vanilla pods and singed honeycomb. Cracked black pepper and oak smoke are tempered by rich toffee and creamy nougat.

PALATE: Jammy hedgerow berries, red apples and banana peels are combined with burnt toffee and butterscotch sauce. Prominent, characterful nutmeg and pepper wood spice runs through delivering both impact and a lively freshness.

FINISH: Sustained char and spice balances perfectly against lingering fruitiness and unctuous vanilla.

Cask #68 

70CL/58.1%ABV

1. OF BOTTLES 295

RRP £85

Cask #143 

70CL/58.4%ABV

1. OF BOTTLES 299

RRP £85  

Cask #144 

70CL/57.9%ABV

1. OF BOTTLES 303

RRP £85

Release date: Thursday 10^th December. Available directly via www.bimberdistillery.co.uk  

About Bimber  

Bimber Distillery produces world-class single malt whisky, handcrafted with passion in West London. As a leading distiller of English whisky, we combine generations of rich distilling heritage with the finest quality ingredients to create the ultimate craft whisky experience.

NEW! Bushmills Causeway Collection
2001 Feuillette Cask

Introducing Bushmills 2001 Feuillette Cask: a Whisky Shop exclusive and the first product to launch in the UK as part of the Bushmills Causeway Collection – a new range of rare and unique single malt whiskeys inspired by the natural wonder of the Giant’s Causeway.

This one-of-a-kind whiskey has been aged for over 17 years in oloroso sherry butts and bourbon barrels before final maturation for over two years in a rare feuillette cask ­– the first ever red wine cask finish from Bushmills.

Expertly crafted by award-winning Bushmills Master Blender Helen Mulholland, this is some highly limited liquid – a single cask of just 168 bottles has been produced, at a cask strength of 49% VOL. Get ready for an intense palate of almonds, crème Anglaise, maraschino cherries and rich Christmas cake.

Bushmills 2001 Feuillette Cask
The Whisky Shop Exclusive

£200.00

Buy Now ›

A Tantalizing Unsherried 28 Year Expression from a Speyside Icon
1992 Probably Speyside’s Finest (Glenfarclas) 28 Year Old “Old & Rare” K&L Exclusive Single Barrel Cask Strength Single Malt Scotch Whisky (750ml) ($179.99)
“It’s hard to argue for a better value in the 2020 whisky landscape than this.”
— Andrew Whitelely, K&L NorCal Spirits Buyer

For time-sensitive bottles this December, please get your orders in early. Thanks and happy holidays! We appreciate your business. 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.

Not only is the 1992 Probably Speyside’s Finest (Glenfarclas) 28 Year “Old & Rare” bottling about as rare as hen’s teeth, it is also one of the sharpest Scotch buys we’ve encountered in 2020. Glenfarclas rarely releases casks to bottlers and never with the Glenfarclas name on it. Making it all the more unique, this is an unsherried cask, which allows one to experience the malt in its full, unadulterated beauty. Similar casks, when you can find them, often come with a price tag of $400 or more, making this deal all the more remarkable. But price and rarity are only part of the story here, as this single cask exclusive is downright delicious. A dazzling dram through and through, it combines wonderfully expressive fruit with a cascade of exotic spice. Balanced and pure, this 28 Year Old would be a welcome addition to any Scotch collection. If you wish to experience the nuanced side of Glenfarclas, this is your perfect chance.

1992 Probably Speyside’s Finest (Glenfarclas) 28 Year Old “Old & Rare” K&L Exclusive Single Barrel Cask Strength Single Malt Scotch Whisky (750ml) ($179.99)

The renowned old distillery in Ballindaloch does not generally sell their whisky to blenders. When they do, it will never include the famous name that the family regards as its exclusive trade property. For that reason, this incredible single malt will never be sold to blenders or bottlers with the distillery name included. We, in fact, have never been offered this whisky by any of our partners in Scotland before as a single malt, although a few of our partners do sell similar whiskies. If you know the exceptional Blairfindy malt from the Blackadder brand, you’ll be well aware of the quality this cask represents and since that whisky sells stateside for upwards of $450 for the same age statement as this, we think we’ve got a pretty good deal going here. It is, indeed, unusual to see this distillery filled into non-sherry cask in general, but there’s something extremely satisfying about experiencing this incredible malt in a completely mature unsherried style. The depth of the spirit itself truly shines through here in a way that the distillery bottings don’t express. The result is a whisky whose bold malt character has been tamed into deep expressive fruit and nuanced complexity unlike any we’ve ever sold before.

Andrew Whiteley | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: December 02, 2020

This whisky immediately makes me feel like a kid in a candy store. The excitement upon opening it was intense. The color is pure joy—a cross between goldenrod and marigold. The first nosing completes the candy store picture by screaming peach rings. It’s creamy and luscious and is an extremely easy drinking 47.4% ABV at cask strength. The cask influence is relatively minimal, especially when compared to most bottlings of Glenfarclas which typically feature some sherry maturation. The refill barrel really makes way for the complexity of Speyside’s Finest to shine after 28 long years in cask. It’s one of those whiskies that is incredibly hard to break apart into individual descriptors because everything is so perfectly integrated. The fruitiness is unmatched. There are stone fruits, citrus, berries, ripe sweet persimmon, and a touch of the tropical. The barrel spices are there, but seamless. Under all that fruit is sweet cinnamon and nutmeg, vanilla, allspice. Milk chocolate and more cream linger on the finish. It’s a beautiful dram and wildly underpriced. It’s hard to argue for a better value in the 2020 whisky landscape than this.

Exclusive Apollo 10
Back Home. Almost.

“Snoopy” Strathmill 14 Year Old 2006

Fifty-one years ago Apollo 10 pioneered a full dress rehearsal for the first historic moon landing. Lunar module, dubbed “Snoopy” stopped short of landing on the lunar surface. As ‘Snoopy’ docked with command module ‘Charlie Brown’, Pilot Eugene Cernan proclaimed “Man, we is back home. Almost.” The seventh bottling in the Apollo series is a dark sherry butt from the Strathmill distillery located in the heart of Scotch whisky country. Sweet fruit cake, fudge, tobacco, spices and sherry soaked raisins. Marvellous!

Shop – Strathmill Back Home. Almost. – £125 / €138* / $140*