This week Joe Ellis reviews Ridgemont Reserve 1792 Barrel Select Bourbon 

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Dear Society Members,

I hope things are well with you all and the Winter weather hasn’t been too harsh on you so far! We have had a lot of rain in Campbeltown recently causing the worst flooding in around 30 years but everyone has been kept safe and the whisky has not be harmed so there is no need to panic!

I’m just sending a quick newsletter today with the latest releases from Springbank Distillery. These will be the final three new releases for 2014.

We have two new bottlings due for release on Monday (17th November). Firstly we have the Springbank Green. This is a 12 year old whisky which was made with organic barley, been fully matured in bourbon casks and has been bottled at 46% ABV. There will be 9,000 bottles available for worldwide distribution. The retail price for the Springbank Green is £60.00 and unfortunately Society Members will not receive the 10% discount on this. The tasting notes for the Springbank Green are as follows:

Nose: This whisky has a real Springbank nose, earthy, peat with a salty coastal influence.

Palate: The palate is fruity; apricots and peaches are accompanied by buttery, creamy nutty shortbread. This is a lip licking whisky, oily and chewy.

Finish: The finish is long, smooth and complex with a lingering sweetness and saltiness.

In Autumn 2015, we will release another version of the Springbank Green, again made with organic barley. This time however, it will be 13 years old and 100% matured in sherry casks. More information will of course be given nearer the time of release next year.

The second new release next week is the eagerly awaited Springbank 25 year old. This has been matured in a combination of bourbon and sherry casks before being married in port casks for the final few months of maturation. It has been bottled at 46% ABV and is limited to only 1,200 bottles for worldwide distribution. The price of this is £350.00 and again, unfortunately there will be no discount offered on this. The tasting notes for the Springbank 25yo are as follows:

Nose: The nose is rich with a peated port influence. It’s redolent of the dunnage warehouse in which it was matured. Fruity too, but this time berries to the fore: blackberries, cranberries and strawberries.

Palate: The port wine influence is perfectly balanced with flavours of sherry, plum jam, blood oranges and pink grapefruit.

Finish: The finish is long, soft and elegant, with earthy, peaty and woody qualities.

We will release another batch of the Springbank 25yo in Autumn 2015 and again, more information will be given closer to the time.

As mentioned, both of these bottlings will be released this coming Monday. As well as being distributed throughout our UK and worldwide stockists, they will of course be available in our three UK Cadenhead shops as well as our European Cadenhead shops in due course.

If you would like to order the Springbank Green then let me know and I can organise this for you. The Springbank 25yo however is going to be extremely limited (to get a idea of this – only 180 bottles will remain within the UK) so if you are interested in buying this then please contact our shop directly as I will not be able to keep track of how many they have sold and I imagine it will sell out very quickly. The Campbeltown shop number is +44 (0) 1586 55 1710 (option 1).

The third and final new release which is going to be bottled in the next couple of weeks meaning it should be available start-mid December is Spirit of Freedom – “the 45” blend consisting of 45 different whiskies from across Scotland. This is being bottled following the Scottish Independence Referendum on September 18th 2014, in support of the 45% of the voting population who said “Yes”. This will retail at £25.00 per bottle and Society members will receive their discount on this meaning it will cost members £22.50. If you would like to reserve a bottle of this then please let me know as I can add you to a reserve list and contact you when it becomes available.

Anyway, that is all for the moment – please contact me if you have any questions.

Have a good weekend!

Best regards,

Mairi

Mairi Paterson

For the Springbank Society

To join the Springbank Society please contact them at society@springbankwhisky.com

www.ralfy.com gets all peaty and peatified with peatalicious Whisky Review 501 – Laphroaig 10yo @ 40%vol:

Ballechin 10yo – smoke not on the water

The past decade has seen a huge rise in the popularity of smoky whisky. This jump is one of the main reasons why we’ve seen prices for Islay whisky shoot through the roof in recent years, but fortunately, Islay isn’t the only source for a smattering of smoke.

While Scottish islands are best known for smoke (Islay in general, Talisker from Skye, Ledaig from Mull, Highland Park from Orkney), the use of peat to dry barley was once more widespread across Scotland. While that died out with the introduction of smokeless fuels many years ago, the tradition has been revived in more recent years due to more people liking the taste of smoky malt. One mainland distillery which has been producing peated whisky for longer than most is Edradour, and it’s now released something that’s virtually unique in the current crop of smoky Highlanders – a heavily peated malt with an age statement: Ballechin 10 year old.

Ballechin casks, doing that thing that casks do – sitting still and not doing very much

Ballechin is the name Edradour gives to itspeated whisky, in turn taking the name from one of the lost farm distilleries that sprung up around Pitlochry in the 1800s. Alfred Barnard visited Ballechin during his grand tour (documented in The Whisky Distilleries of the United Kingdom) and specifically noted that its malt kiln was ‘heated principally with peat’, giving some sense to the use of the distillery’s name for Edradour’s spirit. The original Ballechin closed in 1927, and the spirit now made under the same name first flowed around 2003, shortly after the current owners, indie bottler Signatory, took over.

Ballechin has released a variety of different bottlings over the years, but this is the first ongoing release with an age statement – the decade milestone. It’s heavily peated – at least 50ppm which puts it up with the smokiest whiskies on Islay (Octomore excluded, of course) – and matured in a mix of first-fill and first-refill casks, made of European and American oak, with the emphasis on the latter. It’s bottled with no colouring at 46%, and isn’t chill-filtered, all things that should keep us geeks/connoisseurs happy.

Ballechin 10yo, 46%, £45.45

Nose: Woodsmoke, lime jam and a touch of brine – if I didn’t know this was made about as far from the sea as you can get in Scotland, then I’d reckon it was from the coast. Some dark-chocolate richness sits underneath a sweet-but-sour centre, with a linseed oil and malty top coat.

Palate: Soft, rounded and sweet to start, with a pleasantly oily mouthfeel and some cinnamon spice growing over time. Chocolate limes, caramel and lemon cream make up the body, with more oak, grass and burning hay building to bonfire-like proportions.

Finish: Medium/long, with grassy peat smoke, citrus peel, dark chocolate, liquorice and lingering earthiness.

Comment: I wasn’t sure what to expect, but this definitely hits the spot. Young and fresh, but with a nice weight behind from the sherry casks in the mix. Spicy, smoky and zesty.

You can find the Ballechin 10yo and the rest of the Ballechin range over on our shiny new website.

GLENFARCLAS 1966 FINO CASK 50.5%

Speyside whisky producer Glenfarclas have introduced a 1966 fino Sherry cask expression as the first part of a new series.

A total of 1,400 bottles have been filled from four  fino casks which were discovered in the Glenfarclas warehouses last year. 300 are available to the UK market and we have 3 left of our own allocation.

“We didn’t realise we had this,” admitted George Grant, sales director at Glenfarclas. After realising that a group of casks had been seasoned with something other than the oloroso Sherry more normally used by the brand, the team consulted diaries kept by Grant’s grandfather and discovered that he had purchased some fino casks from an Edinburgh broker.

Pointing to the lighter fino character that appears on the nose in contrast to the brand’s typically richer style, Grant suggested that the familiar Glenfarclas expression then emerges on the palate, although he added: “it doesn’t have the bitter chocolate flavours.”

Each bottle is packaged in a black box bearing a silver coin which features an image of John Grant, who founded the distillery six generations ago. It marks the first in a series of six different Glenfarclas special releases, one for each generation of the family. “Another one is coming on board that is going to be totally different,” hinted Grant at the future development of this series. Although confirming that the distillery had produced fino cask-aged whiskies before, Grant noted that these had been “much younger” expressions than the new release.

“We did an experiment with different casks and realised that oloroso matched our whiskies best,” he recalled. “Most people like a fuller flavour but there are always people looking for something different.”

WHISKY TRAVELLERS FROM NORWAY

We were very happy to look after a second group arriving from Norway in two days! To be brief, here is where they visited; Glendronch distillery, a traditional harbour pub in Portsoy, Speyside cooperage, Glen Grant, Glenfiddich, Aberlour distilleries, in addition to our friend’s shop in Dufftown, where they tried on kilts! With really good evening meals, fantastic whiskies at our great pubs, more whisky in the vehicle and of course great scenery! Our driver guide took very good care of them, while Liz and Paul looked after our other Norwegians friends – the whisky curlers (that’s another story).

Here is what they sent us once home; “Hi again, yes we have now recovered from a great and interesting trip, with a lot of new experience, and a very good tour leader/driver! The trip was fantastic, and enjoying, with a good variety of happenings. As this was our first time in the highlands, we think the program in general was good. And we did suggest a couple of things we would like to do, outside of program, and this was no problem. Thank you very much for the present you arranged for Frode, very surprising for him, and he thought this was a great thing! We will have no problems recommending you for others, and when we come back, we will get in touch. Here you have some pictures from our trip! Happy & smiling people in whiskey land! And, thanks again for a perfect tour guide / driver! Regards from Åge Skår”

Where did they stay? Based in Elgin, a great base for exploring Speyside, Moray and Aberdeenshire.

We arrange tours of Scotland – specialising in whisky tours – all year round, we have another tour arriving at the end of November, meanwhile – Liz and Paul will be heading north into Speyside mid – December for the MCLEANSCOTLAND STAFF Christmas outing! This year this consists of a couple of days away with two whisky schools (brush up time) a distillery or two, just to say hello and of course plenty of superb Scottish food and drinks! Slainte

www.mcleanscotland.com whisky tour specialists in Scotland.

CURLING & WHISKY in Scotland, October 2014.

We were hosting a curling team from Norway who just happened to like a dram now and again! Carl, Calle, Morten and Erik wanted to come over (again) and do some curling with local Scottish teams. We, of course obliged them and added in whisky – as you do. Thursday 30 October; The guys arrived into Aberdeen, we then drove south towards the County of Angus. With some local sightseeing en route, the first stop was Brechin, Glencadam whisky distillery. The tour was with Douglas Fitchett, Distillery Manager. Glencadam first opened in 1825, in the ancient city of Brechin. It was little more than one year after the Excise Act of 1823 legalised distilling. Glencadam is now the only distillery in the county of Angus, an area of the Highlands region of Scotland between Dundee and Aberdeen. Glencadam Single Malt has always been premium whisky for blending, and as such was highly sought after for some of the world’s most prestigious blends. Glencadam was finally bought by Angus Dundee Distillers on 1st June 2003, an independent Scottish company. Angus Dundee restarted production immediately, and we released our first ever single malt product, Glencadam Single Malt Scotch Whisky Aged 15 Years, in December 2005. This was subsequently re-launched in November 2009 with new packaging, alongside the release of a 10 year old expression. The current multi-award winning range includes Age 10, 15 and 21 Years expressions are good, WE TASTED THEM ALL along with a new make spirit. The most popular dram on the day was Aged 14 Years Oloroso cask finish. We all (except Paul who was driving) had a good tour and taste here, many thanks Douglas and his team. We then drove south to Broughty Ferry where a grand lunch was taken at the Ship pub, the @Ferry was also where they stayed overnight. Liz lives in the ‘Ferry, so we were well covered for local news and where to eat and drink.

Friday 31 October; we started the day with a visit to St Andrews   Eden brewery/distillery, a tour (doesnee take long) until 10am by then we can legally drink samples – we did! Beers by the way and gins, no whisky as yet. Kevan the general manager guided us around the site and the drinks, you can read an interview with Kevan on angelswhiskyclub soon. It is an up and coming distillery, small but with a great future!   From here we drove to Perth, Dewar’s Ice Rink, where a curling bonspiel at 12.45 had been arranged, with another match at 3pm, sharing a few laughs and drinks with your opposing teams in between rinks. The guys had brought over bottles of aquavit for their Scottish teams! Returning to the ‘Ferry for overnight. More drams!

Saturday 1 November; From the hotel, we travelled to Arbroath for some sightseeing and ataste of the local seafood, we had a very nice lunch with drinks. Then we headed north to Forfar for a curling session. After drinks with the opposite team, again a bottle of aquavit showed up, we returned to the ‘Ferry overnight again. Dinner enjoyed at the Ship after a few drinks at The Fort pub, Balvenie Carribean cask and Doublewood, superb!

Sunday 2 November; From the hotel, we travel back to Aberdeen for your flight home. En route we stopped at Dunottar castle for a dram or two! Sad to see them go, but a great tour yet again, lots of fun.

Drams on the road included; Kavalan Single Malt Whisky – water is essential to whisky production, it follows that the character of the water used can have a considerable influence on the profile of the spirit. The founder of the Kavalan distillery has spent years searching for the perfect site, with the ideal water supply. He chose Yilan as the site for its abundant supply of cold, spring water flowing through the Snow Mountain. Kavalan, the earliest tribe that inhabited Yilan, represents sincerity, honesty, and the spirit of step-by-step cultivation. The effort goes into every drop of new make spirit and every seasoned cask we choose. Coupled with the mastery of the blender, they ensure the silky smoothness and distinctive flavours of Kavalan whisky. Glen Elgin, Glen Elgin Distillery nestles quietly in the heart of Speyside approximately 3 miles south of Elgin on the road to Rothes. The architect, Charles Doig, stated it would be the last one built in Speyside for 50 years. His prediction was remarkably accurate with Tormore being the next distillery built, in 1958. Until the 1950s the distillery was entirely operated and lit by paraffin. All machinery was driven by a paraffin engine and a water turbine. It was a full-time job to keep the paraffin lights burning. The distillery has a huge storage capacity for malted barley. The 36 malt bins can hold 400 tonnes – more than the 3 other distilleries in the Elgin group combined. However the ISR (intermediate spirit receiver) which collects the spirit from the stills is very small and has to be pumped empty 3 times a day. The Glen Elgin spirit and wash stills are similar in size and shape, although the spirit stills have a flatter pot. There is a gentle incline on the lyne arms which lead outside to the worm tubs. The distillery operates a balanced distilling process: each wash back provides 6 individual charges for the wash stills; two wash distillations make up the charge for a spirit distillation. This makes for a busy shift in the still house with 9 separate still charges to be made. Using worm tubs to cool the distilled vapours, as opposed to condensers, adds a depth and richness to the spirit. An added bonus are the fresh water shrimp which thrive in the tubs. Ledaig, Situated on Scotland’s picturesque west coast lies the island of Mull, home to Tobermory, and the Maclean’s – is without doubt one of Scotland’s most beautiful and charming distilleries. Built in 1798, The Distillery is quite unique to other distilleries as it produces two very distinct single malt Scotch Whiskies, Tobermory single malt, which has an extremely smooth taste profile and the robustly peated Ledaig single malt. We know it well! The Madeira finish single malt Welsh whisky defines our ‘house style of whiskies’. Distilled in our unique copper pot still, matured in bourbon barrels, finished in rich Madeira wine casks and bottled at premium strength, this single malt whisky is smooth, light in character and softly golden in colour. Penderyn Welsh whisky, Madeira Single Malt At a generous 46% ABV, it has a classic freshness with whiff’s of cream toffee, fruit and raisins. The Gold Medal award winning single malt whisky from the only distillery in Wales, distilled single malt whisky is matured in bourbon barrels and finished in Madeira casks to impart a generous flavour of subtle complexity. Yummy!

Would you like to become a member of our whisky club ? http://www.angelswhisskyclub.com/ an online whisky club, giving details of new whiskies and developments in the whisky world. Or come on tour with us?

AT THE SAME TIME our (friend, tour guide & driver) took another whisky tour, again from Norway. This is another story to look out for. http://www.mcleanscotland.com/

News from the Distillery Team:

The winter season is always a busy one for James and the team at The Distillery.  When we wrote to you in the summer, building work was on hold for our new warehouse number 5 whilst the Golden Eagles welcomed their young.  We are pleased to announce that they are now the parents of two new eaglets and building work is back full steam ahead!  The plans for our VIP Tasting room are well on track and our order for two new stills has been placed.  We are looking forward to taking delivery of these in 2016 and increasing our capacity in line with the projected demand in the future.

Brand new warehouse 6 is serving us well and is now home to our short term cask storage and cask finish whiskies.  It has provided us with just the flexibility we needed in this area and we are delighted with the progress we have made this year. For the time being, the winter weather seems to be slowly creeping up on us and this is the time of year that our Distillery team work on distilling our peated Single Malt, The Machrie Moor, just before the closure in January for our maintenance and cleaning work.  The smell of fruity peated whisky in the air on a crispy winter morning is quite something!

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New Octomore from Bruichladdich – the peatiest whisky of all time

Bruichladdich may have reduced their myriad number of bottlings in recent years, but they still know how to grab a headline or two. The progressive Hebridean distillers have just unveiled two latest additions to the range, one of which is the most heavily peated whisky of all time.

The first, 2008 Port Charlotte, uses Islay barley from six farms, and is matured in a mixture of US and European oak. The second, Octomore 2009 Edition 06.3, uses barley from Octomore Farm and is cut with Octomore spring water, so they could have called it Octomore³. Its peating level is 258ppm (parts per million) – as a reference point, Laphroaig and Ardbeg usually come in at between 40-60ppm (with the odd exception, like the 100ppm Supernova).

Port Charlotte 2008 Islay Barley, 50%, £54.95

Nose: Subtle smoke at first, then clean, crisp notes of pears and apples, plus grainy cereal. Very elegant and fresh – this has a definite spring in its step.
Palate: Very fruity on the palate, with fresh apple and melon, ably supported by oaty, biscuit notes. Peat is more apparent than on the nose, but is still restrained, and doesn’t dominate. Don’t add water – this dram doesn’t need it, and holds up far better without it.
Finish: Fresh and fruity, with a wisp of smoke and barley adding complexity.
Now on to the big boy. Peating levels can be a touch misleading, as we investigate here, but there’s no getting away from it: at a whopping 258ppm, the 2009 Octomore is the most heavily peated whisky of all time. Proceed with caution.

Octomore 2009 Edition 06.3 Islay Barley, 64%, £145

Nose: Deep breath… I’m expecting a peaty riot, but instead there’s a deliciously rich waft of barley, a touch of Germolene and then an aromatic fruitiness takes hold.
Palate: Big, big flavours! Chewy malt, honeycomb, stewed fruit and fresh cherries. Then sweet spice from the oak (cinnamon and nutmeg), but there’s nothing here that takes away from the vivacity and vibrancy of this whisky – it is bursting with life.
Finish: Layers of peat, fruit, spice and perfume go on and on. Quite something.
Comment: It is staggering that a 64% abv whisky can be drunk without water, but it’s true in this case. In fact, a small drop helps, but just a touch – to drown this dram would be criminal.

I was expecting a blast of peat, sure, but did I expect a whisky of such depth and complexity? No. It’s always good to be pleasantly surprised. It’s also reassuring that the folks at Bruichladdich have ensured that rather than just cranking up the peating levels for its own sake (for peat’s sake? I’ll get my coat), they’ve made a whisky that delivers a swathe of rich flavour, too.

Both of these whiskies are available on The Whisky Exchange website now, and they’re really rather good.

Introducing The 1824 Masters Series

They say all good things come in threes, and today we’re rather excited to introduce not one, not two but three stunning new whiskies, Rare Cask, Reflexion and No.6. The three whiskies, together with The Macallan M, complete the incredible 1824 Masters Series.

Our whisky maker Bob Dalgarno has expertly crafted each of the whiskies to create the Series which truly honours the beautiful spectrum of natural colour in our unique single malt, bringing to life the interaction of our peerless spirit and exceptional oak casks. Sitting above the innovative 1824 Series, The 1824 Masters Series will take whisky lovers on a journey through increasingly dark and complex single malts beginning with Rare Cask followed by Reflexion then No.6 and finally to the pinnacle of the entire Series, M.

Reflexion and No.6 will be available worldwide, whilst Rare Cask will initially be available exclusively in the USA and China from specialist whisky retailers and selected bars. Explore the range at The Macallan.com