1995 Glendronach 18 Year Old K&L Exclusive Single PX Barrel Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky 750ml ($149.99)
Good grief, Glendronach keeps bringing the hits. We’ve been obsessed with Glendronach since our first visit to the distillery in 2011. They’ve revamped this distillery, investing in the highest quality wood, using meticulous warehouse management to get the very most out of old stock and continuing to pump out some of the finest juice in Scotland. This year’s offering was aged in Pedro Ximenez casks and shows a totally different type of sherry influence from last year’s powerfully masculine dry oloroso cask. What we have here is the perfect sweet sherry nose, filled with dense dried plums, spiced pears, subtle flintiness, and a rich creamy core. On the palate, the baking spices really explode fresh clove, nutmeg, and freshly dried stone fruits. This balance between spices, dark exotic oak tones, and powerfully rich fruit is the hallmark of Glendronach. I think this cask will be the best received Glendronach yet.
Lagavulin Distiller’s Edition Single Malt Whisky 750ml ($109.99)
The 2013 limited edition is here, loaded with the Pedro Ximenez sherry from the double barrel maturation. Big, cakey, and round with tons of richness. This whisky is always a big hit. We’ve been getting about five requests a day for this lately, so it appears the DE Lagavulin is the new hot thing on the street! Personally, I have always felt that the DE over did it on the PX sherry, but I finally got around to tasting this year’s expression and I was quite taken aback. This 2013 edition is exactly what I hope Lagavulin with extra sherry will taste like, but never seems to actually do. A burst of rich raisiny sherry comes first with all the classic Lagavulin smoke and brine on the back end. The fudge lingers long on the finish, mingling between cocoa and campfire smoke. I’ve found that previous editions have overdosed on the sherry and drowned out the peat. Not this one. It’s perfectly harmoneous. It’s totally balanced and right where it need s to be. I think it might be the best Lagavulin I’ve tasted in years. Much better than the standard 16 in my opinion. Fans of the distillery will be very pleased. This whisky is delicious. (David Driscoll, K&L Spirits Buyer)
Elmer T. Lee Single Barre l Bourbon 750ml (Ships as 1.5L) ($27.99)
97 points Wine Enthusiast: “Complex and addictive. Scents of cinnamon, hazelnuts, and dried fruit precede big flavors: cinnamon spice, raisinated and plummy, like Madeira or Sherry. Long finish, with a bit of a bite.” (09/2010) K&L Notes: Medium gold in color. The nose brings notes of butterscotch, clover, vanilla and old leather. The big body displays a palate with an almost wine-like character that balances intense fruits, honey and vanilla with a light spiciness that shows off the distiller’s craft. The finish is long and warm.
Anchor White Christmas White Whiskey 750ml ($49.99)
K&L was the first store to have this in stock and we took as much as we can get of it! Anchor Steam releases a Christmas Ale every year and it’s always one of my favorite parts of the holiday season. I’ve been drinking this beer with my dad every Xmas since I was 21. Last year Anchor had a few hundred bottles left over that they decided to distill secretly into a very, very, very small batch of bierschnapps, or white whiskey – depending on which title sounds more appealing to you. I got the chance to taste it this morning and, while I don’t often advocate on behalf of white dog, this tastes very much like the beer itself. That clove, nutmeg, and foresty goodness are all there within the spirit itself. Now please note: this isn’t going to go down as the best whiskey of the year. It’s just a super-limited, fun experiment from a Bay Area legend. An iconic beer distilled into something fun for fans of the brand. LIKE ME! Anchor made around 600 bottles: TOTAL. We’re getting a large chunk of that, but that’s still not very much! (David Driscoll, K&L Spirits Buyer)
K&L Wine Merchants
http://www.klwines.com/
Phone: 877-KLWines (toll free 877-559-4637)
Email: wine@klwines.com
San Francisco, Redwood City, Hollywood CA
