Ralfy meets up with the latest ‘version’ of a big peat-hitter with Ralfy Review 686 – Laphroaig 10yo @40%vol (2017)

Highland Park Valkyrie

The first in the Viking Legends series from the Orkney distillery, this Island single malt dials up the Orkney peat to give a richer, honeyed sweetness than the 12 year old. Matured in a combination of first-fill American sherry oak, bourbon casks and Spanish sherry oak as well as a selection of refill casks, the packaging has been created by Danish designer, Jim Lyngvild, who is of Viking lineage himself.

£54.99 Buy Now

Highly limited availability
Orders will be dispatched week beginning 2nd October

Great new whiskies from Blair Athol, Ben Nevis and Port Charlotte

10th Anniversary Releases

Last remaining bottles of the first three Whisky Barrel exclusives.

Dumbarton 30 Year Old 1987  – Buy £102.96

Irish Single Malt 13 Year Old 2003 – Buy £48.79

Laphroaig 6 Year Old 2011 – Buy £46.19

George Dickel “K&L Exclusive” 9 Year Old Single Barrel #7234K1002 Tennessee Whiskey (750ml) SKU #1323085

When you talk to passionate Bourbon drinkers today, most of them are looking for the rich, sweet, bold flavored, high proof editions that seem to have completely evaporated from today’s market. Part of the reason the Van Winkle expressions (and the Weller Bourbons by default) became so beloved, besides the pull of pop culture, has to do with their sweeter profile due to the lack of rye grain in the mashbill as a balance. While not technically categorized as Bourbon (Dickel does by Tennessee whiskey even though it qualifies as such), the distillery’s high corn, low rye mash of 84% corn, 8% rye, and 8% malted barley results in a whiskey brimming with sweetness with less of the peppery and herbaceous elements. The only thing that’s ever kept Dickel from becoming the next big thing in the American whiskey scene is the low proof, but that’s where the company’s single barrel program comes in: each K&L selected single cask of Dickel comes with a 9 year old aged statement and a 51.5% ABV, dialing up the sweetness and sending serious Bourbon fans into a frenzy. Barrel #1002 is for oak fiends who looked for the heaviest, most saturated single casks for their next needed fix. The profile begins with huge aromas of wood and polish and the oak simply explodes on the midpalate with the higher proof dialing it up on the finish. The corny sweetness does its best to penetrate the surface, but it keeps getting punched down by endless amounts of char and oak spice. It’s a monster!

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Limited Editions from Springbank & Octomore

Peat fans from across the spectrum rejoice! Today we have two brand new releases from the lightly peated Springbank and the super heavily peated Octomore. Both are limited editions from much-loved distilleries so you’ll have to be fast to get one for yourself!
Stock highly limited.  Only available while stocks last.

Springbank  14 Year Old
Bourbon Wood

This single malt from Campbeltown’s oldest operational distillery has spent 14 years in bourbon wood maturing in Springbank’s warehouses. Distilled two and a half times in the lightly peated style that is characteristic of Springbank, only 9,000 bottles are available worldwide at a strength of 55.8% abv.  £70 Pre-Order Now.  Stock will be dispatched week beginning 2nd October.  Limited to one per customer.

Octomore  Masterclass_08.3
Islay Barley

Peated to a whopping 309.1ppm, this 5 year old from Bruichladdich’s Octomore range has been distilled using barley from one farm, one field and one vintage. Distilled in 2011 from the 2010 harvest, this Islay single malt has been matured in a combination of ex-bourbon American oak and European oak ex-Pauillac, Ventoux, Rhone and Burgundy casks. Bottled at 61.2% abv, free from chill-filtration and artificial colouring.

£165 Buy Now

A SENSORY JOURNEY OF DISCOVERY

The Macallan has built a reputation on its robust and complex flavours. And whilst it is natural to focus on the palate in the enjoyment of whisky, we crafted Edition No. 3 to bring to life the flavour experience of The Macallan through aroma; using Roja Dove’s expert sense of smell to create the latest unique expression in the series.

Use our interactive Nosing Guide to learn more about the individual scents and tasting notes in Edition No. 3 – and share your own sensory journey.

“We have worked together to master the balance of taste and aroma, resulting in an incredibly flavoursome, fresh and citrus whisky with enveloping sweetness. Edition No.3 is an exceptional example of the Whisky Maker’s art.” – Roja Dove

Edition No. 3 will be available in specialist whisky retailers and premium bars globally. A limited number of bottles will also go on sale in The Macallan Online Shop, with delivery to selected countries. We will be in touch later this year with further details.

GO TO THE GUIDE

LEARN MORE

Last Remaining Stock

Our last bottles of Highland Park Valkyrie are now only £54.99 – get one for yourself now before the horns sound, the sisters of Brünnhilde gather and the Valkyries ride off for good!

Next day UK delivery available International delivery

 Highland Park Valkyrie

The first in a new series of Viking Legend releases from the Orkney distillery, this Highland Park single malt is matured in a combination of first-fill American oak sherry, Bourbon and Spanish oak sherry casks as well as a selection of refill casks. Presented in packaging created by Danish designer Jim Lyngvild, with inspiration drawn from the ancient Hammer Stone of Gotland and a Viking pendant from Upland, Sweden.

An intense, sharp tang of sweet green apples opens the nose before ripening lemon notes. The creamy vanilla palate brings oriental spices, sweet preserved ginger, dark chocolate and hints of liquorice. The long, lingering finish has waves of aromatic smoke and richly ripened fruit.

£54.99 Buy Now

Online price only – last remaining bottles

https://youtu.be/KrFELkgl_kc

Well, we’ve done it. The full, standard range (minus the rye) of PVW bottling’s. It’s been an honor to get to try all of these bottles to such a degree and be able to showcase them all for you folks!

This is nowhere near as dry as you’d think it would be, it’s actually unexpectedly sweet. Butterscotch, milk chocolate and a lovely tingle of barrel spice that picks up some of those sweeter notes and transports them into a new level of complexity, in what is the oldest bourbon I’ve ever knowingly tried. I hope you all enjoyed the series, cheers!

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The Glenrothes online shop is now open. 

To celebrate the transition of The Glenrothes from Berry Brothers & Rudd to the Edrington Group, we are contacting you as a loyal follower, to offer you the first chance to purchase the exclusive #SingleCask8377. Distilled on All Hallow’s Eve in 1985 with a limited release of just 200 bottles.

#SINGLE CASK 8377 A 32 year old Glenrothes | Speyside single malt scotch whisky

Non-chill filtered, natural in colour and bottled at cask strength, this is a distinctive expression which boasts an abundance of flavour.

We can now offer you the chance to purchase and enjoy the ethereal nature of this Glenrothes single cask, with fruity notes of mango and kiwi, resinous cedar character, and hinting gently at jasmine. Finishing firmly with fresh tobacco and lingering woody spices.

Limited to a release of 200 bottles. £375.00 Price includes UK VAT and duty ABV: Cask Strength approx. 50% | Volume: 70cl

ORDER NOW

For the first time in a long time, we’ve got a permanent new member of the Ardbeg portfolio to tell you about. This isn’t some new committee release or another $100+ bottle of limited edition, space-themed, gimmick-oriented Islay malt. This is the new “An Oa,” a reasonably-priced and absolutely delicious new addition to the trio of 10 year, Uigeadail, and Corryvreckan that not only brings value back into the LVMH peated empire, but also seriously flavor and enjoyment. Believe it or not, it’s not always easy to enjoy a bottle of whisky when it costs you three figures, you can only buy a limit of one bottle, and you’re scared to drink each sip for fear you’ll never be able to replace the experience. With the An Oa, Ardbeg is bringing not only functionality back to their core range, they’re bringing fun and flavor, to boot. The An Oa is the best new Ardbeg I’ve tasted in more than five years and it’s the roundest and easiest to drink of the regularly available editions. While it doesn’t pack the power that both the Uigeadail and Corryvreckan offer with their bold proofs, it makes up for it with richness and a rounded sweetness on the finish. You get all the peat, brine, smoke, and salt that you could ever want, but with more texture and perhaps finesse-not something we normally associate with the beastly Islay profile. In any case, this is the first bottle of Ardbeg in some time that I’ve been adamant about buying for my own personal daily enjoyment, not just my collection.

Ardbeg “An Oa” Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky (750ml) – $59.99 – From the distillery: a welcome new addition to the Ultimate range. Ardbeg An Oa is singularly rounded, due in no small part to time spent in our newly established bespoke oak Gathering Vat where whiskies from several cask types – including; sweet Pedro Ximenez; spicy virgin charred oak; and intense ex-bourbon casks, amongst others – familiarize themselves with each other. The result is a dram with smoky power, mellowed by a delectable, smooth sweetness. Hallmark Ardbeg peat, dark chocolate and aniseed are wrapped in smooth, silky butterscotch, black pepper and clove, before rising to an intense crescendo of flavour. Bottled at 46.6%