Starward – a New World Whisky

Australian whisky is on the up. This is far from a new thing, with Sullivans Cove French Oak picking up the World’s Best Whisky award at the World Whiskies Awards in 2014 and more distilleries springing up all the time. Despite the success, it’s still difficult to find Australian drams on the shelves on the UK. However, we have had a new one arrive recently – Starward from the New World Whisky Distillery.

I first heard about the whisky a couple of years ago, and more than anything, the bottle design grabbed me. I’m a sucker for beautiful labels and Starward ticks all the boxes – star maps, a pretty font and a name that’s a single letter away from being Star Wars. Unfortunately, it wasn’t available in the UK so I just lusted after a bottle from afar, keeping an eye on their website for news, and hoping that it also tasted good…

My wait, and yours, is now over, as Starward has made its way to the UK.

Unlike most Australian distillers, New World Whisky is based on the mainland, in Melbourne. It’s about as close to Tasmania – Australia’s distilling heartland – as you can get without falling into the sea, but has a different climate, thanks to being sandwiched between the cool sea and the country’s hot interior.

It’s a very Australian whisky, made with local barley and matured in apera casks. Apera’s a term that most people haven’t heard before – it’s the new name for Australian sherry. There are strict rules in Europe about where sherry can be made (which you can learn more about in my posts on sherry casks) so to be a good global citizen, and to open the door for exporting it to Europe, the Australian lawmakers have decreed that locally produced fortified wine can no longer be called ‘sherry’ and will henceforth be called ‘apera’. Be warned: if you ask for apera in Australia you will almost certainly get a blank look – other than on the labels, the name change doesn’t seem to have got all that far…

Starward’s whisky is exclusively matured in old apera casks – the average age is more than 20 years old – and the casks are recoopered, resized and retoasted before being filled. They also use a variety of different sizes of cask which, along with Melbourne’s changeable climate, gives New World a good range of styles of spirit to play with when creating their whiskies. Outside of the current release of Starward, they’re still experimenting, with other types of cask quietly maturing, including some Australian Shiraz wine casks – the first release has already appeared, and it’s gone down very well. There’s definitely more to come.

STARWARD MALT WHISKY

Nose: Sweet shop notes leap out of the glass – tins of travel sweets and candy necklaces – accompanied by candied flowers, spiced sponge cake with butter icing and jam filling, sugar-dusted puff pastry, sultanas and a touch of gooey caramel.

Palate: Thick and sweet, with golden-syrup sandwiches (on brown bread), malt loaf, ginger cake, speculaas and lebkuchen biscuits, and a background hint of black liquorice. As that calms down, the liquorice slowly becomes more minty and menthol, with a touch of milk chocolate and cherry jam sneaking in around the sides.

Finish: Fresh and leafy to start, with mint slowly fading to a sweet and chocolatey end.

Comment: While the spiciness on the palate suggests that this whisky is youthful, it has definitely picked up a lot of flavour in its time in wood and combines freshness with complexity. There’s a marked contrast between nose, palate and finish, but each element works well. In short – I’m a fan. It was worth the wait.

Reasonably priced at about £50, it’s now firmly on my list of world whiskies to recommend – tasty, pretty and not too dear.

It seems I am not their only fan, with Diageo’s Distill Ventures recently investing in the company. With some new cash behind them, as well as some rather canny early-days management of both money and casks, I’m hoping to see lots more from Starward and New World Whisky. Hopefully their next release won’t take quite as long to get to the UK.

JANUARY UPDATE: 5 UNDER £50

The darkest, coldest and leanest month of the year is coming to a close but, even with belts tightened after the holidays, gorgeous whisky doesn’t need to be out of reach. These modestly priced but meticulously crafted drams will brighten and warm the bleakest day – only a handful left…

Spicy & sweet

85.33 Poolside posing in Beverly Hills
Bathing beauties on shiny waxed wooden decks and freshly cut lawns. Glossy apples, cherries, ginger…
Age: 9 years
Cask: First fill ex-bourbon barrel
Price: £45.10

Young & spritely

70.12 Heady, Zingy and Fizzy
A strong exhilarating aroma greeted the Panel and got us all very excited. It was an array of heady aromas…
Age: 9 years
Cask: Refill ex-bourbon barrel
Price: £47.50

39.119 Strictly whisky
A polished, real wood, oak parquet dance floor with tropical, fruity and perfumed aromas surrounding the dancers let us drift off as we carried on daydreaming…
Age: 10 years
Cask: Refill ex-bourbon hogshead
Price: £47.00

Light & delicate

58.18 Toffee and sunny, runny honey.

The nose conveys camomile, lemon and laundry freshness and abundant fruity sweetness (jam tarts, Danish pastries, vanilla slices…
Age: 9 years
Cask: First fill ex-bourbon barrel
Price: £47.90

Juicy, oak & vanilla

39.115 Straight up-and-down.
Grass cuttings and dustiness of a village green cricket ground with aromas of linseed oil and leather…
Age: 10 years
Cask: Refill ex-bourbon hogshead
Price: £47.00 

Browse Current Outturn >
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Contact: sales@smws.com or call 0131 555 2929 (Mon-Fri 9am-4.45pm).

Visit the Society 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

www.ralfy.com gets mixed messages from smelling and tasting an expensive blend with Whisky Review 570 – This is not a luxury Whisky

Introducing Whisky Hammer – an exciting new whisky auction website, launching 1st February 

www.whiskyhammer.co.uk is an online malt whisky auction service, specialising in rare and collectable bottles. Based in North East Scotland, Whisky Hammer aims to offer a premium service for buying and selling whisky at auction. If you are looking to SELL, Whisky Hammer can offer a suite of seller benefits to help maximise the value of your bottle, including;

 – Introductory 0% seller commission offer

– Seller loyalty programme “Hammer Points” – providing commission credits for  regular sellers

– International exposure via unique online auction platform

For more information, check out www.whiskyhammer.co.uk

Distilling Hunter Laing & Co: Islay Ventures!

Posted by Chris in Whisky News

This week Joe Ellis reviews Hankey Bannister Heritage Blended Scotch Whisky

https://youtu.be/1FBsPpl4J70

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It’s January 25th, it’s Burns Night, and it’s precisely three years since our first distillation and cask filling – which means today, our first drop of spirit magically becomes whisky! It’s a hugely exciting moment for Wolfburn and for all our followers around the world – and we would like to say a heartfelt thank you for all the compliments and words of encouragement over the past 36 months; at times we have been almost overwhelmed with support and comradeship. In this edition of the Laydown: Win a cask head! A small test of your whisky-making knowledge – with a unique prize; the head of one of Wolfburn’s first casks, painted and stencilled with your name on it, as a wee celebration of our first three years of production. Next, Wolfburn round the world – a list of countries in which you’ll find our whisky for sale. And finally: a brief recap of our first madcap years – how Wolfburn went from greenfield site to fully fledged whisky producer.

Happy Burns Night to all our followers!

Slàinte

The Wolfburn Team

Here are some new Whisk(e)y arrivals at the
Park Avenue Liquor Shop

We’re going to need a bigger wall!

With a massive Winter storm bringing much of the east coast to a standstill – most everyone is stuck inside. So we thought we’d bring the store to you and share some of Park Ave’s newest arrivals accumulating on our shelves like falling snow. Some fun reading for those who may need to hunker down and fight-off cabin fever.  (Or need to order some)* As a Special blizzard promotion – Any of the listed items are available at 10% Off when ordered online. Some of these are very limited so we cannot guarantee availability. (we’re looking at you Kavalan!)

Enter the discount code: STORM (all caps). The promotion ends 1-27-2016

Please reach out with any questions.

* Yeah sure we’ll make this bottle part of the Promo too:)

Cheers!
Jonathan & Eric
The Park Avenue Liquor Shop
270 Madison Avenue (corner of 39th St)
New York, NY 10016
212-685-2442
jonathan@parkaveliquor.com
eric@parkaveliquor.com
www.parkaveliquor.com

Glendronach 15 Year Old
Tawny Port Finish: $105/btl

Glendronach 15 year old Tawny Port finish continues the new distillery owner’s plans of taking the bourbon-matured whisky in line with their idea of the traditional taste of Glendronach. This bottling has spent the last few years aging in Tawny Port casks, picking up lovely red fruit flavors.  NOSE: Stewed plum, raisins/sultanas, and fine chocolate provide lovely depth and structure. PALATE: Fruit shortcake drenched in vanilla custard, with hints of dried figs, dates and wild strawberries. Smooth tannins and light acidity highlight a wonderfully long finish.

Glenfiddich 14 Year Old ~
Bourbon Barrel – U.S Exclusive:
$80/btl

Malt Master, Brian Kinsman patiently waits for 14 years as this whisky matures in ex-bourbon American Oak casks, then finishes the whisky in deep charred new American Oak barrels supplied by The Kelvin Cooperage in Louisville, KY. The result is a rich, sweet and vibrant single malt hat delivers beautifully complex flavors of woody spices combined with ripe summer fruit, resulting from the spirit’s interaction with the casks.  NOSE: Deep vibrant vanilla notes with hints of citrus, caramelized brown sugar and cinnamon. Baked apple and ripe summer fruits and balanced with the rich oaky aromas. PALATE: Beautifully rich and sweet with layers of creamy toffee, woody spices, candied orange peel and fresh toasted oak.

Stoll & Wolfe American Whiskey: $62/btl

Commemorating local distilling traditions dating back to 1753; this blend of American Whiskey represents collaboration across generations and traditions to preserve the history and future legacy of Pennsylvania Craft Whiskey. Casks were selected and blended by Dick Stoll, trained by C. Everett Beam, and recognized as the distiller of AH Hirsch bourbon in 1974. Batch 1 of Stoll & Wolfe is a blend of 2 1/2 year MGP* Bourbon (75% Corn, 21% Rye, 4% Malt) and 2 year Straight Rye Whiskey from Death’s Door Distillery.
*Read more about MGP in our other American Whiskey bottle featured.

Highland Park ‘Freya’ Valhalla Series Collection: $310/btl

For the third release in the acclaimed Valhalla Collection, Highland Park has turned its attention to the mesmerising Norse Goddess of Love, “Freya”.  Freya’s feisty personality has inspired a full, rich and complex single malt with a lingering beguiling finish.
Tasting Notes: NOSE = Almond and Madagascan vanilla. White chocolate followed by candied cherries makes way for a vibrant wave of mango and melon, riding upon a cloud of cream soda.  PALATE = Orange peel, butterscotch and rose petals provide the sweetness along with orange blossom and ginger. Lively popping candy, lemongrass and tropical fruits are lightly shrouded in peat smoke. FINISH = Complex and beautiful, the finish gives lingering spice and soft peat smoke intertwined with soft orchard fruits, toasted coconut and a light char.

Metze’s Select Limited Edition Straight Bourbon ~ 2015 Medley: $77/btl – Limited availability

Although the MGP Distillery in Lawrenceburg, IN is relatively unknown. Many whiskey circles recognize MGP as ‘the’ chief supplier of white label product for brands including Angel’s Envy, Bulleit, High West and Smooth Ambler. Greg Metze has been the master distiller at MGP Distillery and an employee of the Lawrenceburg, IN facility since 1978. His ‘Metze’s Select Indiana Straight Bourbon Whiskey 2015 Medley’ is crafted from a blend of three high-rye bourbons distilled at MGP (38% bourbon distilled in 2006 with 21% rye, 3% bourbon distilled in 2006 with 36% rye, and 59% bourbon distilled in 2008 with 21% rye).

As a result, this ‘Medley’ has a nose of both sweet and spicy notes, highlighting caramel, vanilla, cinnamon and hazelnut. The palate is creamy and smooth, with hints of apple pie and breakfast cereal. The finish is accented by amaretto and crumb cake.
Bottled at 93 proof and limited to just 6,000 bottles worldwide.

Old Potrero: 18th Century Rye: $90/btl ~ Limited availability

This spirit represents Anchor Brewing Company’s attempt to re-create the original whiskey of America. 18th Century is distilled in a small copper pot still at Anchor’s distillery on San Francisco’s Potrero Hill, from a mash of 100% rye malt. Aging in handmade oak barrels–lightly toasted in the traditional manner–imparts a wonderfully subtle flavor to this 18th-century-style American whiskey. (In the 18th century, barrels were made by heating the staves over a fire of oak chips, allowing them to be bent and formed into a barrel shape. During this process, the inside of the barrel would become toasted- not charred.) For aging, Anchor chose several uncharred oak barrels-both new and used to achieve the balanced complexity that complements this whiskey’s unique heritage.

Scapa ‘Skiren’: $100/btl

Scapa Skiren is a honey’d single malt which has been distilled in the whisky industry’s only remaining working Lomond Still. It was matured in first fill American oak casks, bringing plenty of vanilla and honey notes to the table. Its name comes from the Old Norse word for “glittering bright skies”. Nose = Raw honey and fresh cream. Hints of apple, a touch of anise and some crushed nuts.  Palate = More honey warmth and fruit salad  richness. Sparks of juicy pear and light vanilla. Touches of oak develop further on, bringing some balancing spice. Finish = Medium length and a bit sweet, with the oak carrying through.

Kavalan Sherry Oak:
$185/btl ~ Very limited availability

Kavalan Sherry Cask Taiwanese Single Malt Whisky is made entirely in Taiwan from malted barley that is imported from Scotland. Following fermentation, the wash is distilled through lantern-shaped copper-pot stills that were previously used at the Glenlivet Distillery. Due to the small size and shape of the stills, the whisky interacts with the copper, resulting in an incredibly pure and fruity flavor profile. After distillation, it is aged for approximately three years in ex-sherry casks and bottled at cask strength. The whisky has an aroma of red fruits, sherry and oak, along with notes of fresh tobacco, chewy leather and spice cake on the palate. The finish is thick and intense, bringing citrus, cloves and ginger flavors.
Won Gold Medal at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition in 2014.

The promotion ends 1-27-2016. Remember, this offer is while supplies of each item listed lasts. Due to ever-changing inventory we cannot guarantee bottle availability. Just because it is still on our site doesn’t mean didn’t run out – it happens and we will let you know. We are not responsible for any typographical errors or the conspiracy behind the firing of Cavs coach David Blatt. Please contact the store with any questions about this email or any 80s Pop-culture.

The Park Avenue Liquor Shop | 212-685-2442 | 212-689-6247 | parkaveliquor.com

Bowmore 25 Year Old 1990 Burns Malt

Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky

 $200.29

Bowmore 25 Year Old 1990 vintage Islay single malt Scotch whisky. Single refill boubon barrel #1163 bottled June 2015 for our exclusive Burns Malt® series.

Bowmore Distillery was established on the Isle of Islay off the west coast of Scotland by John Simpson in 1779. Situated in Bowmore by the shore of Loch Indaal it is the oldest working distillery on Islay and one of the oldest malt whisky distilleries in Scotland. Bowmore Distillery continues to produce a proportion of its malted barley on its own traditional malting floors and malt kilns. Visitors are welcomed in the Bowmore visitor centre where distillery tours are available in addition to Bowmore Distillery cottages to rent. Bowmore Distillery is a participant in Feis Isle, the Islay Festival of Malt and Music.

Watch our Burns Night film – made by you

“And then, O, what a glorious sight!” Our Burns Night film is here – starring you, our Glengoyne Family members.

Watch now > 

Congratulations to Martin from Sweden who won the Glengoyne 15 Year Old Single Cask for his fantastic Burns rendition on guitar and to runners-up Tom from the USA and Ian from the UK.

We propose a toast: to all the honest men and bonnie lassies who took part, from all around the world.

Sláinte!

Robbie Hughes

Distillery Manager