Keen to explore the powerful, smoky style of peated whisky but not sure where to start? Spring is a great time to start exploring smoke, so we’ve highlighted some lightly peated drams perfect for those new to the world of smoky single malts.

Build up your palate with subtler expressions that show classic peatiness balanced by clean and pure fruity notes. Our top picks include single malt Scotch whiskies from the likes of Bowmore and Balvenie, the richest of Johnnie Walker’s blended whisky roster, an earthy single malt from Seattle’s Westland distillery and a smoky Japanese single malt from Nikka’s Yoichi distillery.

  EXPLORE PEAT AND FRUIT  

Is it time for your next dram? As well as the best of what Scotland, American and Ireland have to offer, we have plenty of fine drams from across the world that prove whisky is a truly global spirit. To try and tempt you back, we’ve rounded up some of our favourite world whiskies here at The Whisky Exchange.

These include a great expression of rye whisky from Denmark, a popular grain whisky from Japan’s Nikka, a sherry-bomb single malt from Switzerland and a New Zealand single malt made with malted barley smoked with Manuka wood.

If you’d prefer a more experimental whiskey for your next bottle, try a Finnish rye whiskey from The Helsinki Distilling Company, finished in ex-Carribean rum casks, or Version Française’s Eddu buckwheat whisky, which has been matured in an ex-Cognac cask.

EXPLORE WORLD WHISKY

Global winner of the Icons of Whisky Independent Bottler of the year award

Lady of the Glen was named the Icons of Whisky Independent Bottler of the year at the 2022 Whisky Magazine Icons of Whisky awards held at the Honourable Artillery Company (HAC)
City Road, London.

Returning to London as an in-person event, the global awards ceremony saw the announcement of the World Whiskies Awards and the Icons of Whisky global winners.

Following the team winning the Icons of Whisky Independent Bottler of the year Scotland category we were submitted into the Global category which took place in London. The winner was selected by blind tasting review of stock and an application so we were over the moon to win based on our spirit quality!

Paul, Gavin, Alex and I would like to thank all of our customers over the years for buying our bottles and supporting our business. We would especially like to thank Scotland’s distillers and the cooperages around the world that create the capacity for us to create our spirit!

Thank you ~ Gregor

Knob Creek 12 Year Old Small Batch 100 Proof Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey (750ml) 95 $64.99 View

95 points Whisky Advocate

 Until now, most Knob Creek has been bottled at 9 years of age or younger for good reason: There’s no guarantee that bourbon will taste good after a dozen years in the barrel—let alone great. This one is richly complex from the start: York Peppermint Pattie, raisins, baking spice, dark chocolate-covered cherries, iced tea, and tobacco barn appear on the nose, followed by a chewy, full palate laden with cinnamon, allspice, and ginger, and perfectly balanced with sweet berry cobbler, chocolate ganache, and caramel. The finish goes on and on. Add in a fair price and excellent availability as part of Knob Creek’s core lineup, and only one question remains: What are you waiting for? *#2 WHISKEY OF 2020* (SSB, Winter 2020) 

K&L Notes

#2 Whiskey Advocate Whiskey Of The Year 2020. The return of the age statement! As we’re now over a decade into the whiskey boom, and producers have done everything possible to massively increase supply, we are finally reaching a point where there are enough aged stocks for brands to bring back long-gone age statements, or to introduce ones. Knob Creek hits the scene now with a much sought-after 12 Year Old age statement. This is classic Kentucky bourbon at its best.

Booker’s “Noe Strangers Batch” #2021-04 Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey (750ml) Bottle only – no packaging $99.99 View

Knob Creek 15 Year Old Limited Edition 100 Proof Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey (750ml) $119.99 View

The oldest bourbon to be released by Knob Creek, this whiskey is assembled from the best barrels nestled deep in the center of the rackhouse. At 100 proof and with several more years of barrel age than Knob Creek’s standard release this is a smooth yet powerful expression of one of America’s top craft bourbons.

Bardstown Bourbon Company “Collaborative Series – KBS Stout” Founder’s Stout Beer Barrel Finished Straight Bourbon Whiskey (750ml) $149.99 View

The latest addition to BBC’s Collaborative Series is a 10 year Tennessee Straight Bourbon (84% corn/8% rye/8%malted barley) finished in Founder’s Brewing’s KBS Stout barrel.

Email: wine@klwines.com
Phone: (877) KL-WINES (Toll Free 877.559.4637)
K&L Wine Merchants 3005 El Camino Real Redwood City, CA 94061 USA
San Francisco, Redwood City, Hollywood CA

CHIVAS BROTHERS BRINGS HOME A COMPLETE ABERLOUR A’BUNADH COLLECTION

AND CELEBRATES AN INDUSTRY ICON AT SPIRIT OF SPEYSIDE WHISKY FESTIVAL 2022

Chivas Brothers, the Scotch Whisky business of Pernod Ricard, unveils its line-up of in-person events at this year’s Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival. The events will take place at its world-famous distilleries across the Scotch heartland of Speyside between 27th April – 2nd May 2022.

The Scotch producer is offering festival-goers the first-ever opportunity to taste a flight of the rarest and finest whiskies from the Aberlour A’bunadh (“Original”) collection. A cult classic among whisky fans, a full collection of all 71 Aberlour A’bunadh expressions released to date was recently brought home to Aberlour after being acquired through whisky broker Mark Littler LTD. The only known and available series (outside of the Chivas Brothers archive) will be selectively and exclusively accessible to whisky fans and Scotch enthusiasts at the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival ‘Celebrating 25 Years of A’bunadh’ inaugural tasting session on Thursday 28^th April. Inspired by the iconic A’bunadh’s aromatic richness, the evening will include a dining experience in the Fleming Hall, paired with five different expressions of this collectable Speyside single malt.

The full Aberlour A’bunadh collection will then be made available for special tastings at Aberlour distillery until the whisky is gone.

This year’s festival also marks Alan Winchester’s swansong, as the Master Distiller of The Glenlivet prepares to embark on a new chapter in his illustrious 45-year career in the Scotch whisky industry. Fans will get a rare opportunity to delve into Alan’s career, listen to his personal highlights and celebrate his invaluable contribution to whisky-making at the ‘An audience with Alan Winchester’ event, held at The Glenlivet Distillery on Friday 29^th April at 5:30pm.

New whisky discoverers and discerning drinkers alike are invited to explore, taste, and learn about the renowned Speyside region in some of Chivas Brothers’ brand homes. Through expertly guided tastings and historical experiences hosted by head distillers and ambassadors at The Glenlivet, Aberlour and Strathisla visitor centres, whisky lovers will be fully immersed in Scotland’s water of life and rich culture, while soaking up Speyside’s beautiful scenery.

In addition to learning about the craftsmanship behind some of Chivas Brothers’ world-renowned whiskies, visitors will be able to purchase their favourite blends and single malts from the shops at each site, including select and unique batches of Aberlour A’bunadh and the Distillery Reserve Collection – a carefully curated selection of 48 new single cask expressions from Chivas Brothers’ 13 single malt distilleries.

Graeme Cruickshank, Aberlour Master Distiller, commented: “We couldn’t be more excited to welcome fans back to our distilleries for the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival 2022 to celebrate Scotland’s national drink. This year’s festival is extra special for us, as we finally get to share the only known full Aberlour A’bunadh collection for Scotch fans to taste and we raise a toast to the man-of-the-hour, Alan Winchester, and his impressive career. We look forward to sharing our rich Scotch heritage over the long weekend, and welcoming visitors to our brand homes to explore, taste and learn more about Speyside.”

For event tickets and more information around the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival 2022 please visit: https://www.spiritofspeyside.com/festivals/whisky

 All distillery exclusive bottlings are also available for purchase at Aberlour, The Glenlivet and Strathisla online stores below:

Aberlour: https://www.aberlour.com/en/distillery-reserve-collection/

The Glenlivet: https://www.theglenlivet.com/en-UK/buy-now

Strathisla: https://www.chivas.com/en-GB/page/strathisla-eshop

The full event line-up includes:

THURSDAY 28 APRIL 2022

Celebrating 25 Years of A’bunadh

Time: 7pm – 10pm

Location: Charlestown of Aberlour, The Fleming Hall

Ticket: £250

Buy tickets here

A must for the A’bunadh fan. Join our Master Distiller, Graeme Cruickshank, in conversation with Chris Brousseau (Archivist), Caris Simpson (Brand Ambassador), and the Visitor Centre team in celebrating the twenty-fifth anniversary of our iconic Aberlour A’bunadh.

The evening, hosted by Caris Simpson, explores A’bunadh from its beginnings. Graeme Cruickshank takes you into the heart of our spirit while Chris Brousseau adds the historical soul.

Celebrating the original Sherry cask bottlings created by our founder, James Fleming, every batch of A’bunadh is unique. His ethos of placing exceptional quality above all else is still upheld by those who continue to craft Aberlour’s spirit. The celebration will be held in the Fleming Hall, built in his memory for use by the community he loved.

The evening includes a flight of our rarest and finest batches. This first-ever sampling is combined with a dining experience inspired by our iconic A’bunadh’s aromatic richness. Each guest will also take away a bottle of the latest A’bunadh batch available in our Visitor Centre.

FRIDAY 29 APRIL 2022

Under Lock and Key

Time: 10:30am – 1pm

Location: The Glenlivet Distillery

Ticket: £200

Buy tickets here

Join our Master Distiller, Alan Winchester, on his swansong at The Glenlivet to discover the truth behind generations of struggles between patrolling excise officers and our distillery team in this wild, rugged landscape.

Along the journey you’ll meet some of Alan’s esteemed colleagues, with over 120 years of whisky experience between them, as we see our infamous sma’ still at work and visit both our original Minmore Still House and 1824 distillery site.

With “dramming” ceased on several occasions, experience first-hand the bold and inventive ways our whisky was smuggled, pilfered, and syphoned, not only in 1824, but up until the late 1970s.

This incredible opportunity includes a tasting of once-in-a-lifetime whiskies and a signed bottle of The Glenlivet 12 Years Old Licensed Dram limited edition to celebrate Alan’s closing hurrah.

(Not suitable for non-walkers)

Sleeping Giants

Time: 2.30pm – 5pm

Location: Strathisla Distillery, Visitor Centre

Ticket: £250

Buy tickets here

Great whiskies have hearts of oak. Character-building, flavour-creating wooden casks racked silently in the shadows and stillness of a bonded warehouse. Each one carefully nurturing new spirit for as long as it takes. You really must experience the atmosphere, so for the first hour of this event, Brand Ambassador, Caris Simpson, will accompany you out from Strathisla to Mulben, where Ross and Duncan, from our North Operations team, will reveal fascinating insights about cask selection and the long maturation process.

On returning to our Visitor Centre Boardroom, you’ll explore the results of this highly skilled craft. Chivas Regal blending expert, Kevin Balmforth, will guide you through tastings of five aged editions from the Distillery Reserve Collection. Then, moving on to the Chivas Cellar in Warehouse No.3, we’ll offer you a farewell dram drawn straight from the cask, together with Strathisla 25 Years Old, a 50cl bottle, to take away with you.

An Audience with Alan Winchester

Time: 5.30pm – 7pm

Location: The Glenlivet Distillery

Ticket: £25

Buy tickets here

Alan Winchester, Master Distiller of The Glenlivet, will soon be leaving us in person, though never in spirit. We’d love you to join us and raise a dram in celebration of his invaluable contribution to whisky-making: mashman, brewer, stillman, distillery manager and master distiller… As we open the big, red book on his 45-years in the industry, providing a unique, never to be repeated experience to delve into his knowledge and stories. So, this is a rare opportunity to hear Alan’s anecdotes, his views on the industry’s past – and future – and ask him those burning questions. Hosted by Director of Blending, Sandy Hyslop, and Alex Robertson, our Head of Heritage, Education and Archives.

High Spirits

Time: 8pm – 10pm

Location:  Aberlour, The Fleming Hall

Ticket: £50

Buy tickets here

Our exhilarating night ‘flight’ around Speyside is prepped for departure, with Ethan Miln heading the cocktail cockpit team.

Day job? Brand Ambassador for Ballantine’s. Highly trained, global outlook, fun to fly with.

Your route? The Glenlivet, Aberlour, Glenburgie, Strathisla. Discover each spirit’s true character through crafted bespoke drinks and in-flight insights from our deep-knowledge crew.

Cocktail service, music and food – all complimentary.

Check-in online – right now.

SATURDAY 30 APRIL 2022

Pioneering Spirit

Time: 1pm – 2pm

Location:  The Glenlivet Distillery

Ticket: Free

Get tickets here

Who doesn’t love a dram? Call it uisge beatha, the water of life, whisky…Scotland’s national drink is known worldwide as a very special part of our culture. But what does it have to do with archaeological digs and the National Trust for Scotland?

Pioneering Spirit is a unique research project led by The National Trust for Scotland in partnership with The Glenlivet that aims to unearth the real history of whisky. Pairing archive research with archaeological digs at the original distillery site of The Glenlivet and National Trust for Scotland locations, the project is uncovering the illicit stills and forgotten bothies that were used to illegally produce and smuggle Scotch whisky across the Highlands in the early 1800s.

Join The Glenlivet’s Brand Ambassador Caris Simpson as she talks with Master Distiller Alan Winchester and The National Trust for Scotland’s Archaeologist about Pioneering Spirit, the impact of illicit whisky distilling on Scottish history and how The Glenlivet’s founder, George Smith, risked life and liberty to produce illicit single malt whisky that came to represent Speyside’s signature style.

40% Off a Collector’s Trophy Whisky from Kavalan
Kavalan Solist “Moscatel” Cask Strength Single Barrel Taiwanese Single Malt Whisky (750ml) (Previously $500) ($299.99)
“The recent release of single casks from the King Car Distillery are without a doubt some of the most special bottlings that have ever come to market.”
— David Othenin-Girard, K&L Spirits Buyer

We’ve seen some truly incredible single casks from Kavalan come through our doors over the past several years, but few (if any) of them stack up next to this most recent series of releases. The port pipes, ex-bourbon casks, and sherry butts have always been splendid as expected, but none have actually surprised our spirits team as much as this highly unusual and unique Moscatel cask. Far from an overblown, blousy, floral bomb, there is the typical Kavalan poise and grace that has won this iconic distillery its countless accolades and awards over the years, including the 2021 Distillery of the Year at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition. As David Othenin-Girard describes this 2021 SFWSC double Gold Medal winner, “I find a host of outrageous dried and fresh fruit flavors condensed into one of the most precise and delineated deliveries I’ve ever seen.” The truly astounding feature here is the incredible 40%-off pricing that outdoes the market by a long shot. Collectible whiskies like this very rarely come up at such discounted pricing, so any savvy collector looking to maximize their purchasing power should beat a quick path and secure their bottles today.

Kavalan Solist “Moscatel” Cask Strength Single Barrel Taiwanese Single Malt Whisky (750ml) (Previously $500) ($299.99)

93 points Whisky Advocate: “Rich and intense nose, with paradise cake, honey, dried apple, plum, and crème dabricot. The mouthfeel is dry, nutty, and fruity, with a silky consistency. The cask strength is more noticeable here, but as it dissipates, there is some late complexity of plum skin and coffee bean with wave after effortless wave of flavor lasting for minutes on end. Finish is hot and nutty, with moist coffee grains. (JM)” (04/2017)

David Othenin-Girard | K&L Spirits Buyer | Review Date: April 04, 2022

The recent release of single casks from the King Car Distillery are without a doubt some of the most special bottlings that have ever come to market. The Moscatel is easily the most approachable and decadent of the new special single casks from Kavalan. I was worried we’d get too much floral, perfumed quality out of this cask, but instead, I find a host of outrageous dried and fresh fruit flavors condensed into one of the most precise and delineated deliveries I’ve ever seen. Expect an intensly concentrated orchard of of figs, plums, guavas, and peaches on your palate. No wonder this whisky won double gold at the SF World Spirits Competition.

Email: wine@klwines.com
Phone: (877) KL-WINES (Toll Free 877.559.4637)
K&L Wine Merchants 3005 El Camino Real Redwood City, CA 94061 USA
San Francisco, Redwood City, Hollywood CA

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