UK vlogger Joe Ellis continues his “Month of Arran” and reviews the Arran 12yo Cask Strength Batch 3

http://youtu.be/mkBaEC1LUF4

http://Facebook.com/whiskytube

http://Twitter.com/whiskytube

Cheltenham and The Varsity Match
It has been a busy week for Glenfarclas sponsored sport. On Thursday Oxford University won 33-15 against Cambridge University in the 132nd Varsity rugby match. Whilst this afternoon Sire Collonges won the Glenfarclas Cross Country Handicap Steeplechase at Cheltenham Racecourse.  

New Listings this Christmas
We are pleased to advise that Glenfarclas is now available at Marks & Spencer in the UK. Look out for the limited editon 2003 Vintage bottling, which is exclusive to the store. In Sweden Glenfarclas 12 Years Old 350ML joins the 17 Years Old 350ML in the Systembolaget.

Experience the Festive Spririt of Independence
For those planning to visit Speyside over the Christmas holiday, this year our Christmas open day will be on Monday the 30th of December. We will be open from 11AM to 3PM, with Distillery tours at 11.30AM, 12.30PM, and 13.30PM. This is subject to the weather so if in doubt please check www.twitter.com/glenfarclas or call 01807 500345 after 11AM on the day.

The visitor centre will be open on weekdays from 10AM to 4PM up until Thursday the 19th of December, and then be closed from the 20th December to the 6th January (except the 30th December), with normal winter hours resuming on Tuesday the 7th of January 2014. 

Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival
Looking further ahead the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival will run from the 1st to the 5th of May 2014. Events will be available to preview at www.spiritofspeyside.com from the 28th of January, with ticket sales starting on the 1st of February 2014.

We have some of the oldest, rarest and most highly sought after whiskies anywhere in the world. If you are looking to make a big impact this Christmas for that someone special look no further… Free postage on all orders over £50.00

The Balvenie 40 year old Batch 7
£2999.99 Click here buy

250 bottles created from a combination of 3 x American oak and 3 x Sherry casks bottled at a natural cask strength of 48.5% volume. One of the most collectable whiskies available anywhere! If you want to try the ultimate look no further. This is stunning!

Talisker 30 year old £275

This Talisker 30 year old is bottled in 2010 at natural cask strength of 57.3% volume. One of only 2958 with each bottle individually numbered. Drinks well at full strength. Slow but consistent, with autumn berries and dried fruit. Cherry stones. Cooling at first, then becoming hot and lively. Water (add only a little) brings up a pleasant smooth texture. It’s now quite sweet and again cooling to start (tart au chocolat) then warming overall, with some salt, a trace of acidity and some very measured, slightly sooty, smoke.
Click to buy

Bowmore 1989
A delicious feast of smoke-infused blood orange, winter spices, black truffles and walnut oil. A whisky to warm the coldest Islay night, this limited edition Bowmore Single Malt has been matured exclusively in port casks for 23 years, giving it a deliciously dark colour and remarkably rich flavour.

Click here to buy:
Only £398.99 per bottle

Talisker 1985 27 Y.O

A supreme Talisker; wonderfully classic in style and as sophisticated as its peers but with an extra ‘chilled’ self-assurance and even an edge of darkness. A malt that lives life to the full and doesn’t take itself too seriously: it’s also ever-so-slightly edgy, with suggestions of a volcanic heritage.

Click here to buy
Only 475.00 per bottle

Glenlivet Cellar Collection
NOSE: Initial burst of sweet fruity homemade blackcurrant jam followed by notes of tangy orange flavours and freshly baked gingerbread. PALATE: Perfectly balanced, mouthwatering, fills the mouth with incredibly fruity flavours of blackcurrant and pear. Full of life with a spicy and zesty sparkle, complemented by nuances of soft peppermint. FINISH: Incredibly long and dry
Click here to buy
Only £69.99 per bottle

We have a fabulous selection of Whiskies, as you would expect from Nickolls and Perks – Finalists in the  national Drinks Retailing Awards for Spirits 2014. Just click on the image above or here  to view our very special seasonal offers. From all of the staff at Nickolls & Perks, have a very MERRY CHRISTMAS…

Christmas Gift Ideas from Milroys

It’s the most wonderful time of the year to drink fabulous whisky and spirits with friends,and give delightful gifts…or you can always just treat yourself…Please contact lee.tomlinson@milroys.co.uk or call 0207 437 2385 for more information.

Classic Malts Gift Set – The Gentle Collection

For gentle souls, a refined, medium bodied selection of drams to sit back and relax with

3 x 20cl of:
Glenkinchie 12 (Lowlands)
Dalwhinnie 15 (Highlands)
Oban 14 (Highlands)
£38.95

Auchentoshan 12 year old

This has been given a good dose of sherry finishing, adding oodles of honeyed, nutty notes to a wonderfully integrated texture and body. Fragrant, smooth and deliciously easy dramming.
RRP £31.95
Sale Price £29.95

High West Campfire

Seriously good blend of straight Bourbon and Rye, with plenty of spice and floral notes from the corn, and unmistakable touch of smoke from the Scotch. Definitely unique, unforgettable and delicious.
RRP £55.00
Sale Price £50.00

Glen Garioch 1978, Single Cask

An extremely rare limited edition of just 146 bottles exclusively for Milroy’s of Soho. An elegant Glen Garioch with fruity finesse. Notes of fine eau de vie, dusty melon candy fuses with traces of wood-smoke, leaving a gentle finish of heather honey and clean powdery icing sugar.
RRP £300.00
Sale Price £250.00

Celebrate the holidays with a great gift at a great price.

Whisky Advocate magazine is America’s leading whisky publication. It’s the number one source for whisky information, education and entertainment for whisky enthusiasts. And for a limited time only, you can take advantage of this exclusive offer. Order a 1-year subscription for $18.00 and get a second subscription at no extra charge. That’s two gifts for the price of one!

2 GIFTS FOR THE PRICE OF 1!

Give the gift of Whisky Advocate magazine this holiday season! Ordering is simple. And secure.

Want Us to E-Mail Your Recipient a Gift Card? It’s Easy!

Don’t wait another day. Giving a gift subscription is fast and convenient. We’ll even email a gift card announcing your thoughtful gift. But hurry. This offer will only be available for a limited time.

www.ralfy.com explores the eccentric side of a malt with Whisky Review 416 – Edradour Ballechin Sauternes cask No:8

 Merry Christmas

from

IT’S NOT TOO LATE TO SEND A FEW LAST MINUTE PRESENTS…

Click the link below to get a few last minute Christmas presents delivered ready for the big day! Last orders 19th December.

Christmas 2013 Open Hours

Closed 25th/26th December & 1st January
Christmas Eve – Last Tour At 12Noon.
Doors Close at 2pm

VISIT THE ONLINE SHOP

rye SNAP! heat SNAP! light tarragon SNAP! oak SNAP! and a warm wrap-up finish SNAP! Full house, flavors over sensations.

Few Spirits Rye Whiskey 46.5% ABV.   

Solid, chunky bottle with idiosyncratic whiskey inside. Straightforward rye crisps out of the glass in no-nonsense style; dry grain, sweet grass, and light but insistent anise almost wholly drown out the barrel character. The mouth is as dry and spicy-medicinal as the nose hints at, laying down character like a winning hand: rye SNAP! heat SNAP! light tarragon SNAP! oak SNAP! and a warm wrap-up finish SNAP! Full house, flavors over sensations. Clean and interesting. Nicely played.

89 points  Lew Bryson, Advanced Whisky Advocate.

Reviewing craft-distilled American whiskeys is still a matter of degrees, especially when the craft distillers venture into the stylistic territory staked out so strongly by the established traditional distillers. The benchmarks of bourbon and rye are well-known, and to openly declare your competition with them is to invite direct comparison. I call it the “Evan Williams Test”: is this craft whiskey good enough that I’d buy a bottle of it instead of yet another $14 bottle of the reliably well-made Evan Williams Black? Only the very best craft whiskeys can stand up to that.

By that test, Few Spirits Rye is clearly in the top tier of current craft whiskeys.

Although it’s young, the whiskey is well-made and clean in character, not funky and flawed, which still counts for a lot these days. As I said in my review (an 89 score), “Straightforward rye crisps out of the glass in no-nonsense style; dry grain, sweet grass, and light but insistent anise almost wholly drown out the barrel character.” It’s backed up on the palate, where you’ll get more rye, some tarragon and dry mint spice, and then some oak in the warming finish.

That light barrel character is hardly surprising in a young rye, and we’re not going to see much but young whiskey out of craft distillers for a while yet. So high marks to Few Spirits for making a very good young rye, one I’ve been using as a benchmark ever since I tasted it. — Lew Bryson 

Bear witness to the revival of rye. Born of the hearty grain, our generous rye content is married with the sweetness of corn for a genteel interpretation of the venerable spirit. Aged in air-dried oak barrels, its spicy character transcends mere resurgence. This is the renaissance of rye. FEW Rye Whiskey.

Let yourself linger in our world a noble time where old souls don evening attire and drink in good company. Complex flavors from a simpler period, nothing brings the world into focus like the silky depths of a hand-crafted, small-batch spirit. Travel back and take a stroll through the streets of a city’s fair.

As the Temperance Movement approached boiling point, America’s most beloved liquid vice found itself under heavy siege. While connoisseurs saw abstinence creep across the country, the city of Chicago began its preparations to host the most elaborate of fairs.

Only a few miles North, Frances Elizabeth Willard and her league of temperance supporters had turned Evanston into a stronghold for their cause. 
Founded as a dry community, Evanston was home to many influential advocates for Prohibition who effectively kept the city free of alcohol for more than one hundred years.

Though the city legalized drinking in the late Nineties, it took the perseverance of our Master Distiller, Paul Hletko, to reverse the antiquated liquor laws. With roots going back to some of Europe’s fabled brewing families, Paul and FEW Spirits have marked the end of Evanston’s Prohibition and given the city its very own craft distillery. 

Get your bottle today!

Few Spirits Rye Whiskey – $62.99

Whisky Ramblings Via Video #72

Mark Dermul, Belgian whisky blogger, tries a black whisky. Who remembers the dreadful Loch Dhu 10 Year Old? After being withdrawn from the market years ago, the Danish company Mac Y comes up with a new black whisky: Cu Dhub, Gaelic for black dogs. Not from Mannochmore, but from the Speyside Distillery this time. Wonder if it is any better? 

http://youtu.be/BGwj2tLCaA8