Mark’s Whisky Ramblings 154: Vote Mark for Whisky Ambassador Belgium 2017

Mark Dermul, Belgian Whisky blogger, wants your vote! That’s right, he needs your help. He has just been nominated for Whisky Ambassador for Belgium 2017 at the Belgian Whisky Awards. So please be so kind as to visit http://whiskyawards.be/ and cast your vote. You will find that you need to go through only 4 screens – very easy – and vote for four categories, including Whisky Ambassador. Check out this video to find out how to do just that and let’s get Mark that much coveted title! Much appreciated!

New Cadenhead’s

40 new bottlings from Scotland’s oldest independent whisky bottler including Glen Grant 31 Year Old, Tomintoul 30 Year Old, Invergordon 43 Year Old plus Glen Ord, Arran and Glenrothes – there is something for everyone!

SHOP CADENHEAD’S NOW >

Anti-Valentine’s cocktails – don’t think pink

Not everyone likes sweet, pink and fizzy. Hallmark certainly isn’t my idea of a romantic sentiment, and it’s OK if it’s not yours, either. But it does make Valentine’s Day a tricky one to celebrate if you have someone in your life who genuinely prefers you to all other human beings they’ve met and yet you don’t want to drink Strawberry Bellinis or sit in a bar draped in love hearts. I will be especially avoiding waiters with cupid wings this year as well.

So, whether you’re staying at home and fancy yourself as a bit of a bartender or beelining for a bar that isn’t making anything pink and sparkling, here are some classic cocktails to know and order (or make) which won’t make you groan, cringe or run a mile from.

Diamondback

The Diamondback combines rye whiskey, apple brandy and Yellow Chartreuse

Less ring bling, more Luke Cage ferocity. This spicy, rich cocktail combines rye whiskey, apple brandy and Yellow Chartreuse to make a Manhattan-style drink which is perfect for an after-dinner tipple.

Make it at home: 60ml rye whiskey 15ml apple brandy 15ml Yellow Chartreuse

Penicillin

Smoky, spicy and sharp – everything a Hallmark card isn’t. The Penicillin is one of a bare handful of drinks considered a modern classic, and is credited with introducing peated whisky to the cocktail canon. Combining ginger syrup, peated Scotch, lemon juice and honey, it’s stunningly delicious and completely different from anything you’ll have tried.

Make it at home: 40ml blended Scotch whisky 10ml peated Scotch whisky 20ml lemon juice 10ml honey syrup 10ml ginger syrup

Jane Ryan is editor of DrinkUp.London – a daily-changing website showcasing the very best of the capital’s drinks scene.

Mark’s Whisky Ramblings 153: Arran 20 Year Old 1996 for MMM

Mark Dermul, Belgian whisky blogger, tries a 20 years old Arran that he bottled himself with his pal. MMM has just released their 5^th bottling: an Arran 20 Year Old 1996 at cask strength, a whopping 54,1%. This is one of the first Arran 20 years old ever released and Mark & Manny are very proud of that fact. ‘And wouldn’t you know? It’s a beauty – if I say so myself.’

https://youtu.be/0cWD38uBFbo

The Milroys Insider
Patricks Picks. Vol.3

SPRINGBANK 25
(Only 2 available)

Springbank 25 Year old 2017 release Campbeltown single malt Scotch whisky. Matured in sherry, bourbon & then married in refill Port casks. Just 900 bottles available worldwide.

BUY NOW

Tasting Note by The Producer

Nose: Lots of fruit with a mixture of grapefruit peel, dried tropical fruits, wine gums and a touch of cassis.

Palate: Orange peel, honeycomb, brandy snaps, black pepper and tobacco leaf.

Finish: Mineral notes combining with fennel, tea leaf and leather against a background of soft burning embers.

Springbank distillery is one of the last surviving producers of Campbelltown Single Malts. The distillery, located on the Kintyre peninsular, produces three distinct types of Single Malt Whisky. Their story spans centuries of whisky history and five generations of one family; the Mitchells. Now the oldest independent family-owned distillery in the country, they’re proud to share the story of Scotland’s most handmade whisky with enthusiasts across the world.

Bruichladdich Laddie 10

Just in time for our Bruichladdich tasting on the 13th of February we have the Laddie 10 year old in stock.

“The gorgeous light honey colour of this unpeated Islay dram draws you in to this delectable malt whisky. Creamy floral notes that we know from the classic laddie are followed up by unexpected sweet fruit flavours. A winning combination.”

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Ralfy analyses the prices in the U.K. of malts and has a very good experience with Ralfy Review 623 – Glenlivet 18yo @ 43%vol

Our second year of release is upon us! 2016 was a truly remarkable year – Wolfburn is available in 21 countries around the world and, with a lot of help from our friends and colleagues, we managed to smash our Year 1 forecast. Our whisky was warmly received by, well, pretty much everyone! Northland, Aurora and the first of our Kylver series all received excellent reviews. We love making it, and seems people everywhere love drinking it. So now it’s onwards and upwards into 2017.

In this edition of the Laydown:

• Success! Wolfburn’s Northland expression cleans up in two prestigious competitions.

• Kylver explained – the history and background of the collectible Wolfburn series.

• Win! We were deluged with entries to the last competition – so we’re repeating it. Here’s your chance to test your knowledge of Wolfburn and win a box of delicious Aurora-infused Caithness chocolates.

The early part of the year is always a busy time. Here’s where you’ll find us out and about:

Viking Line Whisky Cruise and Festival – 16-20th February

WhiskyLive New York – 1st March

WhiskyLive Washington DC – 11th March

Whisky Festival Noord Nederland (Groningen) – 24/25/26th March

WhiskyLive London – 31st March

Slàinte

The Wolfburn Team

Morning all! Right, Littlemill, not a common place distillery in anyway at all. Triple distillation up until the 1970’s, three different spirits being produced again until the 1970’s and then a very sad end, being shut down in 1997 and later burn down in the early part of the naughties. A good friend of the channel has donated this sample to me and I’m more than happy to get my teeth around it, this is the first Littlemill that I’ve ever tried and I can’t wait to share the results of it with you. Enjoy! 

THE REVIEW

Extraordinary Complexity Defined

In our latest collaboration, we threw down the gauntlet to one of the most technically advanced and luxurious timepiece creators in the world – URWERK.

The challenge was to take the ubiquitous whisky flask and transform it far beyond the expected.

The result? An extraordinary masterpiece in luxury design and one of the most intricate and technical whisky flasks ever made. A statement of what can be achieved when whisky mastery meets obsessively engineered horology.

Intricately composed of over 150 individual parts, The Macallan x URWERK Flask brings together the art and science of both whisky making and horology.

A machined aluminium, titanium and stainless steel work of art, features include dual chambers which allow you to carry two of your favourite whiskies, switching easily between them.

Limited to 500 worldwide, each flask embodies an exquisitely creative and technical process, where the obsessive pursuit of perfection is evident in the final product.