Welcome to our newest series! Over the next six weeks, we’ll be reviewing and assessing the Pappy Van Winkle range and in all honesty this is something that I didn’t think we’d be able to do at any point with this channel. Starting off with the 10, we’ll be walking you all through the 12, 15, 20, 23 and something special at the end as well. Keep an eye out for the whole series over the next few weeks and we can all discuss how spectacular these bourbons are to drink! 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GskpP9rEyaw – Sit down interview with, Preston Van Winkle.  

http://thewhiskeyjar.com/ 
http://www.flagtimefilms.com/
https://www.facebook.com/whiskytube/
 
https://youtu.be/9ljRDVIawHo

The Whisky Exchange Quiz of the Year – how’s your whisky knowledge?

This week saw the inaugural Whisky Exchange Whisky Quiz of the Year. Five intrepid teams gathered in our Covent Garden shop to do battle for the honour of being crowned as the first champions.

The quiz in full flow…

Across six rounds, complete with ‘guess which whisky is in your glass’ as the final task in each, our teams put up a valiant fight against quizmaster and shop assistant manager’s Chris Bolton’s occasionally very hard questions and even worse jokes. In the end, while ‘Glenlivet Let Die’ walked away with a bottle of Glenfarclas 15yo for the evening’s best team name, it was ‘For Peat’s Sake’ that took away the grand prize: tickets to The Whisky Show.

The quiz will return next year, but for now, is your whisky knowledge up to scratch? Here are my favourite 12 questions of the evening, a mix of the taxing and comparatively easy. If you score more than eight, then you’d be in with a chance of winning…

Question 1

Who is this former distillery manager?

Question 2

Which Macallan does Daniel Craig drink whilst starring as James Bond in Skyfall?

Question 3

Which whisky distillery holds a Royal Warrant, and who are they ‘by appointment to’?

Question 4

Name the song and artist

Question 5

How many stills are used in Springbank’s complex distillation process?

Question 6

What name is commonly given to the waste liquid left in a wash still after distillation?

Question 7

What is the name of the single malt whisky produced at Pradlo distillery in the Czech Republic?

Question 8

Which distillery houses these stills?

Question 9

Which Indian whisky became the biggest-selling spirit in the world in 2014, replacing Smirnoff vodka?

Question 10

The Girvan grain distillery in Ayrshire was once home to which closed single malt distillery?

Question 11

Who is this?

Question 12

Which family has been associated with the Springbank distillery since it was founded in 1828?

You can find the answers here. How did you do?

You can sign up to our events mailing list to hear about the next quiz and lots of other tastings here, or see what’s available at the moment on our events page.

We’ve released six preview bottles from September Outturn, each with luscious sweetness and lip-smacking spice. Perfectly balanced and full-bodied, these comforting whiskies warm the heart with some stimulating spice – star anise, brandy snaps, ginger, cinnamon, fennel and coriander seeds.

A great opportunity to buy before next month’s First Friday but be quick to order, only a limited number of bottles are available ahead of the full Outturn release on Friday, 1 September at 9am.

VIEW OUTTURN

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

Mark’s Whisky Ramblings 172: Vega 23 Year Old 1993 North Star Spirits

Mark Dermul, Belgian whisky blogger, tries Vega, the new blended malt from North Star Spirits. It was distilled in October 1993 and bottled in May 2017, composed of only Speyside malts that matured on American oak and sherry casks. The result left him flabbergasted. Vega, by the way, is the 5^th brightest star in the sky – in the constellation Lyra – some 25 light years away from earth, twice the size and twice as hot as our own sun. That’s good to know…

https://youtu.be/SvdGmXAEb9c

Hi folks, that’s us live with the 77th auction! Enjoy!!

Benriach 15 Year Old Pedro Ximenez Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky (750ml) (Elsewhere $80) ($49.99)

The Benriach distillery makes one of the most delicious and classically Speyside single malts in the business. The 15 year old Pedro Ximenez edition takes that classic malty character and adds the richness and texture of Spain’s sweetest sherry to the mix, elevating the flavors from solely vanilla and barley into chocolate, mocha, and fudge. Normally priced at eighty dollars or more, this is a deal you won’t want to miss.

David Driscoll | K&L Staff Member | Review Date: August 19, 2017

Wowee wow…these opportunities are few and far between these days, but every now and again you get lucky. As many of you know, the BenRiach Group sold to Brown-Forman recently and, if you’re not intimately familiar with the liquor business, Brown-Forman is distributed by a different company than Anchor, who was the previous importer. What happens every now and again is that the new distributor refuses to buy the old inventory from the previous supplier, which sometimes (but not always) results in a fire sale. Since I happened to be in the right place at the right time, I made an offer for the entire lot and they took the deal! Simply put: THERE IS NOTHING THIS GOOD FOR THIS PRICE IN SINGLE MALT WHISKY RIGHT NOW. Benriach, who also owned Glendronach distillery, makes textural, rich, and mouth-coating whiskies and this 15 year old sherry-finished edition offers the sweetness and intensity of Pedro Ximenez like icing on top of a malty, vanilla-laded cake. Rich and supple on the palate, this is a throwback malt for a throwback price that is simply too good to miss. Buy six bottles if you can afford to. You’ll want to keep some of these hidden away for a rainy day.

INCHMURRIN 2001  15YO SINGLE CASK TWE EXCLUSIVE

£79.95

BUY NOW »

‘A grown-up Inchmurrin, mixing gummi bears and orchard fruit. Juicy and delightful’

BILLY
WEB CONTENT EDITOR

This year, we’re honouring our distillery team, in the best way we know how.

The realities of living on a remote island in a small community mean that everyone has to work together for the benefit of one and all. Nowhere is this bond stronger than at Jura Distillery. We’re marking the distillery team’s dedication and craftsmanship with a very special limited edition release, created in their honour.

On 6th February this year, the Jura Distillery team got together to try five whiskies and choose the next Limited Edition bottling. Their choice is a whisky that is a true product of its environment, full of the spirit of celebration, and the perfect tribute to the passion and tenacity each person brings to every last drop of our whisky. We can’t wait to hear what you think.

One And All – Coming 1 September 2017

Westland Distillery Core Range Collection

With an RRP of around £80, we’ve got a limited quantity of stock available on offer, of this magnificent tasting set from Westland Distillery. One 20cl bottle each of American Oak, Peated & Sherry Wood, each bottled at 46%.

BUY NOW

Royal Lochnagar 19 Yr Cadenhead Single Malt Scotch Whisky

Distilled: 1996 Bottled: 2015 56.6% ABV Recharred Sherry Butt.

The nose of this 19 year old has aromas of fresh fruits, sweet peat, ocean breeze and a light floral element. The palate is initially pretty with stone fruits, peat and a saline edge with turns toward savory grains on the finish. The addition of water adds body and highlights the salty edge on the palate. D&M Tasting Notes

$129.99 Buy now