This week Joe Ellis reviews Old Pulteney 17 Year Old.

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Bowmore 25 Year Old Burns Malt

1990 vintage single refill bourbon barrel bottled June 2015. A delicious example of the Islay favourite bottled at natural cask strength.

Buy – $196.85

Laphroaig – a significant birthday

This year’s Islay Festival is one of anniversaries and milestones. Along with Kilchoman’s 10th birthday and Jim McEwan’s retirement there are a pair of big-number celebrations: the 200th anniversaries of the founding of both Ardbeg and Laphroaig. We’ll have more about Ardbeg tomorrow, but for now we’re going to focus on Laphroaig.

It’s no secret that I’m a big Laphroaig fan. In fact, if you’re reading this on the day that it hits the blog – Tuesday 26 May – I’m probably at the distillery and almost certainly drinking Laphroaig. While I’m partial to a dram or two of their whisky, it’s only since starting at TWE and learning the finer points of whisky drinking from my former colleague Tim that I truly learned to appreciate Laphroaig’s whisky. Tim’s well known for his obsession – and his love letter here on the blog shows the depths to which he has fallen – but he’s not an isolated case, and the distillery has a long history.

The distillery during Feis Ile 2014

Founded in 1815 by Alexander and Donald Johnston, the distillery stayed under family ownership until the 1950s. Donald took sole ownership in the 1830s, but tragedy struck in 1847 when he died after falling into a vat of boiling ale. Neighbours Lagavulin stepped in to help, which planted a seed of rivalry between the two distilleries. While Donald’s son Dugald started managing Laphroaig in 1857 when he hit 21, Lagavulin remained the sales agent for the whisky he produced. In 1907, the Johnstons decided to take back the agency and Lagavulin owner Peter Mackie took the matter to the courts. Laphroaig won, and Mackie retaliated by blocking their water supply. They ended up in court again, and Laphroaig were victorious for a second time.

Mackie was not to be beaten and built a new distillery in the grounds of Lagavulin: Malt Mill. It had copies of the Laphroaig stills and was intended to produce a spirit to rival his neigbours. It wasn’t a great success, and by 1962 all of the distilling equipment had been removed – the buildings are now the Lagavulin visitors centre. While it may not have beaten Laphroaig, it has become a mythical distillery – helped to wider fame recently by Ken Loach’s film The Angel’s Share – with various old bottlings claimed to be whisky produced there.

Bessie Williamson at Laphroaig in the 1960s

In 1954, Ian Hunter, a cousin of founder Donald Johnston’s daughter Isabella, died, leaving the distillery to his PA and secretary, Bessie Williamson. She arrived at the distillery in the early 1930s and had been day-to-day distillery manager since the beginning of the Second World War.

When Williamson took over as owner, Scotch whisky was starting to explode. She’d seen the way the tide was turning, and was one of the key figures in promoting Scotch overseas, becoming the Scotch Whisky Association’s US spokesperson in 1961. While she sold her stake in the distillery to Long John in the 1960s and 1970s, she continued as managing director until she retired in 1972, an influential 40-year career in the whisky industry behind her.

Sales and acquisitions continued from the 1970s up until the present day. Last year, as part of the Suntory acquisition of Beam Global – who bought Laphroaig from Pernod Ricard, who in turn bought it from Allied, who had bought it from Long John – Laphroaig became part of the newly created Beam Suntory, and a stablemate of rival Bowmore, based just a few miles down the road.

Throughout its modern history, the core bottle of the Laphroaig range has been the 10 Year Old. It’s a Marmite dram, medicinal and smoky in a way that’s a shock to those not used to it. While its character has changed over the years, as production has varied and tastes have changed, it’s still the flagship, showing off what the distillery has tried to do in each era. Here’s where they are currently:

LAPHROAIG 10 YEAR OLD, 40% ABV

Nose: Singed lemons, cresosote-painted fences and pink shrimp sweets. There’s wood smoke and bung-cloth, with TCP and seaspray, as well as sweetness – toffee and candied citrus peel.

Palate: Oily on the palate, with charcoal and coal stoves to start. It’s not as sweet as on the nose, with layers of smoke, brine and hints of smoked fish. The initial dryness gives way to some gently fruity notes, with waxy apples joined by candied lemon and bitter Seville orange.

Finish: Barrel char, cinnamon spice and hints of fruit. A bonfire sits on the tongue, slowly fading to sweet anise.

Comment: Not as fruity as some of the older bottles, focusing on the core Laphroaig medicinal character with wood smoke as backup. Intense, distinctive and definitely Laphroaig.

We look forward to seeing what the distillery’s 200th anniversary brings, with a 15 year old already sold out and the promise of more to come. Hopefully while you read this, I am sat on the pier at Laphroaig with a glass of something special in my hand. Don’t worry, I’ll probably fall in the sea in a moment and karma will be fulfilled.

www.ralfy.com visits an old friend with Whisky Review 542 – Ardbeg 10yo malt re-reviewed 2015

Jim McEwan, production director at Bruichladdich (until 23 July 2015, at least)

The opening weekend of the Islay Festival isn’t normally a time for sadness, but yesterday saw the end of an era: Jim McEwan hosted his final warehouse tasting at Bruichladdich. While we don’t expect Jim to disappear when he retires in July, it was his final tasting while still the distillery’s production director. However, he treated the occasion as he always does: as a time for celebration. Whisky was drunk, toasts were toasted and the crowd helped give him a roaring send-off. It’s all a long way from where he started his whisky journey, back in 1964.

Islay-born, at 15 years of age he was ‘just a skinny little guy’ and was taken on as an apprentice cooper at Bowmore. ‘I wanted to be one of those tough guys, and smoke a pipe and drink whisky,’ he told me at a recent tasting at The Whisky Exchange Shop. ‘I never smoked a pipe, but I acquired a taste for whisky.’ In those days there were more than 800 coopers in Scotland, and it was a lucrative business, ‘paid by result’, with apprentices doing the hard jobs that helped the journeymen make their bonuses.

Things haven’t changed too much in the Bowmore warehouses since Jim’s days as cellar master

Jim graduated to being a journeyman and later became cellar master at Bowmore, taking over from his mentor, David Bell – the oldest working cooper in Scotland, who retired aged 70 years old. ‘I’ll never forget the day,’ Jim recalled. ‘He came up to me with the keys in his pocket for all the warehouses, [put them in my hand] and said, “It’s your turn now, Jim.”‘

At 28 he moved to Glasgow to train as a blender for Morrison Bowmore, whose business was booming. He nosed up to a 1,000 casks a week, helping to build blended whiskies designed by the master blenders to be shipped around the world. He worked his way up to chief blender at Morrison Bowmore, but after eight years on the mainland he got the opportunity to return home.

‘I got the call to go back to Bowmore and take over as distillery manager. I couldn’t believe it. I never thought this would happen in my lifetime. A boy from Bowmore, who started work with a hole in his trousers; a skinny little runt who’s returned home. I said yes immediately.’

Japanese drinks giant Suntory had just taken over, and with McEwan at the helm they invested heavily, creating the Bowmore we know today. Along with refurbishing the distillery, they made sure that they spent wisely on Jim’s passion: casks. ‘[Suntory] were very generous about buying casks. No holds barred. If you wanted sherry butts, you got sherry butts; if you wanted port pipes, you got port pipes.’

However, Jim was not to stay on the island, and became a roving ambassador for Bowmore. He travelled the world, teaching drinkers about whisky and ‘bringing Islay malt to people who had no idea what Islay malt was’. However, things were happening on the opposite side of Loch Indaal to Bowmore, and the next step of Jim McEwan’s career called.

Bruichladdich distillery – the next stage of Jim McEwan’s career

‘At this stage I’d been 38 years at Bowmore and I loved working for Suntory, but it was a killer on the road. So I got this phone call from Gordon [Wright, of independent bottler Murray McDavid], and he said, “There’s some of us getting together and we’re going to buy Bruichladdich. Would you be interested?” Immediately my heart said yes.’

The purchase went through, and the revitalisation of Bruichladdich begun. However, it wasn’t all plain sailing, as Jim recalls: ‘I remember walking through the gates on 6 January 2001. I couldn’t believe it: it was a bombsite. Derelict. Ghosts everywhere.’ However, the local community were behind them, and work began. Within a few months the distillery was on its way to being restored.

‘There was something about the guys, their attitude and their passion that said ‘you can move a mountain’. And we did. On 26 May that year, at 7.29 in the morning the first new spirit ran down the line. The rest of the distillery was a state, but we were making whisky again.’

One thing that makes Bruichladdich stand out from almost all other distilleries on Islay, is the lack of peat in their whisky. With six out of the island’s eight distillers producing heavily peated spirit, they picked up criticism for being against the regional style, which Jim wasn’t standing for: ‘I was tired of people saying that Bruichladdich wasn’t a true Islay as it wasn’t peated. From 1881 to 1960 it was peated. I resurrected a peated malt and called it Port Charlotte to stop those people. Then I decided to make Octomore to shut everyone up for ever.’

He’s still obsessed with casks…

Jim McEwan retires on 23 July 2015, exactly 52 years since he started as a cooper’s apprentice. With their whisky range in place and new owners Rémy Martin allowing Bruichladdich to be ‘unafraid of the bankers’, as Jim puts it, they are stronger than ever and ready to start a McEwan-less existence. That said, we doubt they’ll get rid of him completely – he does live next door.

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The ebay Laphroaig 30 Fraud and K***********a 

An adventure in whisky by an anonymous whisky buyer 

In 2004 year during two separate transactions (in March and July) I purchased three bottles of Laphroaig 30 year old from a seller on ebay named K***********a (Mt. K***********a is a fairly large mountain in B******)* for £160 &  £120 and duly sent off the payments to him in the Edinburgh area. I directed that the first two bottles be shipped to my friend in Swindon as I live in North America and would not be in the UK until August. For the second transaction in July I asked that the bottle be shipped directly to my hotel in Edinburgh as I would be there in early August. As you may be aware it is illegal to mail alcohol to North America and I did not want to risk having the bottles confiscated and destroyed. All very complicated, but worth it for such fine malt and at such a reasonable price. Yes, I should have known that perhaps the price was a little too good for what I was receiving however there have been some genuine malts sold on ebay lately at very good prices, so this sale fit the trend. When the first two arrived in Swindon I asked my friend if they were in wooden display boxes and she replied no, however I knew that early Laphroaig 30 came without boxes, so all seemed to be on the level. However for the my second transaction K***********a had included a picture of a current Laphroaig 30 including the box but all three bottles were identical without boxes and white instead of green capsules.

During the subsequent months I watched with growing suspicion as the K***********a sold more and more Laphroaig 30’s, Royal Warrant’s and Laphroaig Highgrove’s. He seemed to have a never ending supply so I emailed him and asked if he worked for “Allied” (Allied-Domecq, who own Laphroaig). I know that distillery workers sometimes receive gifts from the employer to mark special occasions and they have been known to sell them to collectors. However he just seemed to have too many bottles. IfK***********a had simply changed his ebay name every two or three sales he might have gotten way scot free, no pun intended. He duly replied to my email and asked who “Allied” was and I replied that “Allied” was the owner of Laphroaig. He then replied “Ah yes, Allied” and that he worked for Chivas as a blender and he was receiving the bottles in trade from his buddies who were blenders at other firms. Now if I know that Allied-Domecq own Laphroaig then I’m almost 100% sure that a blender at Chivas based in Scotland working in the whisky industry should know full well who owns what in the industry.

By now I was really suspicious but there was nothing I could do until I went to Edinburgh in August and collected the bottles. Subsequently I arrived in Edinburgh and the bottles of Laphroaig were waiting for me in my hotel room, my friend in Swindon having timed the shipping perfectly to coincide with my arrival. As I eagerly unpacked the bottles I noticed that the bottle from the second purchase was in a Laphroaig 10 tube with the label stripped off. By this time all alarm bells were ringing at full pitch however a visual inspection of the bottles yielded no clues, the bottles looked 100% genuine. There was only one thing I could do at that point and that was to open a bottle and try some Laphroaig “30”. Now I’ve been fortunate to sample Laphroaig 30 on several occasions and this Laphroaig 30 was simply not right, it actually tasted like the 10 year old, it was not as refined and it did not have the sweet notes that I remembered. Undaunted I forged ahead and drank the rest of the bottle during my visit to Edinburgh, after all it was Laphroaig but not the 30. However with every dram I knew I was not drinking Laphroaig 30 and I’d been defrauded somehow.  However I was simply too busy in Edinburgh to do anything about it , that would have to wait.

On my return to North America I further examined the remaining bottles for any flaws that would give me a clue to the fraud and I came up with the idea of emailing the stenciled lot number,  LU19855,  to Laphroaig via their website and Allied Distillers Limited subsequently confirmed that the lot had been bottled February 2, 2004 for the German market and that it was a bottle of ….10 year old.

Consequently I was in contact with Pete Harvey, Anti Counterfeit Manager for Allied Domecq who instructed me to contact Philip Scatchard, Director of the International Federation of Spirit Producers, the IFSP is an industry body and deals with matters of this nature. I made it clear from the start that I was not looking for compensation from Allied-Domecq and that I simply wanted this person stopped.  Philip Scatchard advised me of the following;

“At this stage of the enquiry it is a “Civil Issue” and to elevate it we need you to report the case to Edinburgh Trading Standards/Consumer Services as they are the local enforcement authority to where you received the offending bottle. Would it be possible, on your return to Edinburgh, to take the bottle to the following address and raise an official complaint. This will effectively raise it to “Criminal Status”. It will also help with the chain of evidence and is better than returning the bottle to Allied Domecq.”

This was excellent as I was returning to Scotland in mid September (I know, lucky bast*rd, two trips to Scotland in two months). Pete Harvey drove up from Bristol to meet with me in Edinburgh at the SAS Radisson Hotel to examine the offending bottle. He duly pronounced both the bottle and the labels to genuine however mis-matched as a 30 label should not be on a 10 bottle. We both speculated on how the counterfeiters had acquired the genuine labels which was of great concern to Allied-Domecq. We then drove down to Edinburgh City Council Trading Standards/Consumer Services where we met with two investigators and I swore out an official complaint and turned over the remaining bottle as evidence. In conversation Pete told me a number of interesting things; that Allied-Domecq were bidding on K***********a’s current auction and that K***********a was going to be visited by several branches of enforcement in due course. It was also noted that K***********a had sold more than maximum allowable of 6 bottles in a year without a license. His life was about to become complicated.

I returned to North America the next day and kept an eye on K***********a ebay sales and one day suddenly they all stopped! I took this as good news and that he’d had a visit from the authorities. Pete Harvey later telephoned me to let me know events were progressing nicely but he could not divulge details at the moment but would let me know all the details as soon as he could.

By  researching K***********a’s ebay feed back left by him (he seemed to be quite diligent in leaving feedback) for his victims I found 23 transactions involving 27 bottles of various high value Laphroaig’s for a total of £2840 however there were a further 18 transactions that have been closed off and I could not access the details. The potential profit for all 41 can only be speculated on.

They say there is risk in life and there are certainly risks associated with buying over the internet however I have subsequently bought several bottles from different sellers that were all genuine and I will not let one bad seller ruin ebay for me. I also informed ebay as to what the seller had been doing in my case but they could care less, ebay simply wants its commission and could care less than buyers are being defrauded.

Sent to ebay 26/10/2004;

The seller has sold approx 27 bottles of Laphroaig Single Malt Whisky labeled as 30 year old. On inspection these bottles have proved to be 10 year old bootless with 30 year old labels. This has been confirmed with the distillery by the lot numbers laser etched on the bottles. The value the seller has received for these fake bottles is approx. US$5000 and possibly more. I have sworn out a complaint with Edinburgh Trading Standards/Consumer Services against the seller who lives in the Edinburgh area. This complaint effectively raises the issue to criminal status.

Why this seller is still allowed to sell on ebay eludes me as he has defrauded so many buyers, violated Laphroaig’s trademark and spoilt eBay’s name.

I have complained to ebay in the past about this seller (K***********a) without a word. Further more because the fraud was discovered after 90 days I am not covered by ebays buyer protection.

*The ebay name has been edited due to the fact that the current user of the same name on ebay has only been a member of ebay since 2007 and is unrelated to the events described in this article. Subsequently ebay stopped the selling of alcohol in many jurisdictions. This article was originally published closer to the dates listed above and appears here merely for educational purposes.

Spirit of the Month – Michter’s *1 Unblended American Whiskey

A slight change for June’s Spirit of the Month. Previous months have seen gin and vodka take centre stage, but this time round, we’ve gone for an American whiskey from Michter’s.

Michter’s US*1 Unblended American Whiskey doesn’t have any grain whiskey in it, but can’t call itself a bourbon as the spirit is not aged in new oak – a stipulation for all US bourbon. Instead, the liquid is aged in ‘bourbon-soaked’ barrels, and the result is a very sweet and fruity whiskey, with plenty of toffee and butterscotch flavours.

MICHTER’S US*1 UNBLENDED AMERICAN WHISKEY, 41.7%

Nose: Pronounced candied sweetness, like Fruit Salad sweets, along with subtle peachiness, barrel-char notes and a faint buttery note. There’s plenty of sweet cinnamon and nutmeg and also a hint of fresh menthol and candied orange peel.
Palate: Soft mouthfeel, with a good balance between sweet spice and gentle fruitiness. The spiciness takes charge, accompanied by notes of barrel char and a pleasant note of leather and tobacco, but there’s more than enough toffee and butterscotch notes to sweeten things up. Very easy drinking.

Finish: Well balanced, with the sweet spices gently fading.

Michter’s US*1 Unblended American Whiskey is currently £4 off, priced at £47.45. If you like it, it’s well worth trying the rest of the range; they really are good. Head to The Whisky Exchange website for more info.

A GATHERING OF OCTOMORE

FOR PEAT’S SAKE! (apologies…)

As the fug of smoke clears, a bottle stands tall and proud on the horizon, resplendent in matt black – Octomore – the super peated single malt.

Fans of the peat will be well aware of this smoky monster, and those who shy away from Islay malt will cower from it in fear. Where George T Stagg is as big as Bourbon gets, Octomore takes the mantle for Scotch whisky; cask strength and supercharged with peat smoke, big is as accurate a description as you can give it.

We always get requests for this smoldering megadon and usually we only have availability close to release dates. However, for once the stars have aligned and we have an unprecedented four expressions for sale. From recent releases through to an exceptional independent bottling, your peat cravings can finally be satisfied!

SMOKE ON THE WATER

Bruichladdich Octomore 6.1 Scottish Barley, 57%

On its release this single malt held the record for the peatiest whisky produced, that is until Bruichladdich went and broke their own record! As you might expect this malt has notes of coal, rich peat and even a hint of parmesan. Despite its extraordinary peating level there is a sense of poise and balance. With a little time in the glass and a splash of water, gentler notes of kiwi fruit and barley join the symphony of flavour.  £94.25

Bruichladdich Octomore 6.3 Islay Barley, 64.5%

With a volcanic peat leavel of 258ppm this Octomore is BIG (record breakingly so!) but again with more balance than you would expect. In the words of our shop manager this Octomore “Floats like a butterfly, stings like a brick in a brioche bun!” (he doesn’t get out much…). Weighing in at 64.5%abv it takes water like there’s no tomorrow if you are so inclined.£150 

Bruichladdich Octomore 7.1 Scottish Barley, 59.5%

A recent release of the Bruichladdich behemoth that is Octomore. Like all that have come before it this Octomore offers masses of smoky peat with a sweeter undercurrent. This bad boy rocks in with a hearty ppm of 208, with earthy peat on the nose (surprise surprise) followed by touches of apple, caramel and grist. Well structured, rolling peat smoke and cask strength, there isn’t much not to like! £107.95

 Bruichladdich Octomore 6 Year Old, Sauternes Cask, Rest & Be Thankful, 64%

We haven’t seen much independently bottled Octomore around so we were pretty chuffed to find this little number from the Rest And Be Thankful Whisky Company. Excitingly this has been matured in ex-Sauternes casks which lend this monster a wonderful honeyed character! The sweet wine cask maturation seems to tame the peat without swallowing it, and nicely demonstrates the wider potential of this infamous Islay malt! £184.95

Glenlivet 12 Year Old – time to say goodbye

The Glenlivet has decided to discontinue its 12 Year Old in the UK and Germany

After much hesitation and the odd denial here and there, it’s official: The Glenlivet 12 Year Old will soon no longer be sold in the UK. Instead, Glenlivet will be focusing attention on its no-age-statement Founder’s Reserve bottling, but here and in Germany, the 12 Year Old will be discontinued.

Here at TWE, we think that the 12 Year Old will be much missed, particularly given that for many drinkers, the expression would have been their first foray into the world of single malt whisky. The 12 Year Old is still a huge seller in the US, so unsurprisingly, it will still be available there.

Why is Glenlivet 12 Year Old so popular? Let’s stop and think. Firstly, the name – it’s easy to pronounce. Here in the UK, we may mock virtues like that, but across the world, having a brand that people can pronounce and ask for with the minimum of fuss counts for a lot. Secondly, the taste – it’s a gentle Speyside whisky with plenty of soft fruit, grassy floral notes and just a hint of spice, so if you’re not used to strong, challenging flavours, it’s ideal.

This is what we think:

THE GLENLIVET 12 YEAR OLD, 40%

Nose: Very fresh and inviting. Soft fruity notes of apples and pears at first, joined by subtle citrus aromas and a mildly herbaceous, grassy, floral note.

Palate: The rich sweetness of fresh pineapple is balanced by faint toffee and caramel, then refreshing green-apple notes. There’s a subtle toasty, buttery note, as well as a hint of nutmeg.

Finish: Everything in balance, with the generous fruitiness slowly fading.

Comment: An ideal introduction to Speyside single malt, this is a gentle dram with elegant fruit and floral notes.

We are still selling Glenlivet 12 Year Old, and will continue to do so until we can’t get any more! It’s available to buy from The Whisky Exchange website, and at the time of writing, we have a special gift pack with two glasses for just £1 more.