Top Picks
Johnnie Walker Green Label 15 year old Blended Malt Whisky 750ml ($55.99)
94 points Wine Enthusiast: “This maple syrup-toned spirit is a blend of Islay and Speyside malts, with no grain whisky added. The result is an effortless mix of lightly smoky and oaky caramel notes, and a smooth, velvety feel. A splash of branchwater amps up the peat quotient.” (09/2011) 89 points Whisky Advocate: “Just as complex as Johnnie Walker Gold, but fuller and more richly textured. (Not surprising, given that there are no grain whiskies in Johnnie Walker Green.) This is one of the finer vatted malts on the market. Its flavors are well-integrated. You’ll find creamy toffee and nougat at its core, which is then layered with notes of vanilla, mint, fresh brine, and even a hint of mustard seed. Excitingly fresh and vibrant on the finish. A whisky for both the blend and single malt drinker. (Vol. 14, #2) ” K&L Notes: Special order items are not in stock and are dependent upon quantity available from distribution. All special orders are final and non-refundable. Top Blended Whisk(e)y – 2006 San Francisco World Spirits Competition. The preliminary aromas are an interesting mix of paraffin, toasted cereal and dried tobacco leaf; more minutes resting in the copita stimulate fragrances of summer grass, vegetable oil, light toffee and oak. Palate entry is off-dry and a touch toffee/nougat-like; at midpalate the oiliness/oakiness noted in the latter stages of nosing come to the fore as tastes of sweet butter, oleo margarine and black pepper vie for flavor dominance. Finishes chewy and a tad honeyed.
Scotland – Single Malt Scotch
Bowmore Legend Islay Single Malt Whisky 750ml ($23.99)
The Bowmore Legend is an absolutely delicious Islay whisky. It’s got the perfect amount of smoke and the right amount of richness. At this price, we had to taste it against Johnnie Black and there’s really no comparison. The Walker Black, being a blend, is tasty enough, but it thins out at the back when the malt turns into grain. The Bowmore Legend being 100% single malt whisky is simply more exciting and smoother on the finish. Being someone who loves oily, smoky, and fruity flavors in my malt, I can’t think of a better deal for a bottle of whisky since I started working at K&L. This is cheaper than Glenfiddich 12!!! Kudos to Morrison-Bowmore for finding new ways to work with retailers and bring consumers some financial relief. (David Driscoll, K&L Spirits Buyer)
1995 Mortlach 17 year Duncan Taylor Dimensions Single Malt Whisky 750ml – 4 available ($134.99)
This meaty Mortlach comes from Duncan Taylor’s high quality “Dimensions” line. It exemplifies this rare and wonderful distillery perfectly. Bottled at cask strength, availability will be very limited.
United States – Bourbon and Rye
2002 Evan Williams Single Barrel #726 K&L Exclusive Bourbon 750ml ($26.99)
Our first ever Evan Williams exclusive barrel is here. Enchanting as it is affordable, Evan Williams is one of America’s great whiskies. Here we have a single barrel that we selected after combing through countless samples. While the standard Evan Williams is great and bottled one barrel at a time, occasionally you get a bottle that just out shines the rest. Trying to find another bottle from that same cask is next to impossible. What we have is an entire cask of this superior quality, one that will certainly be compared to the best offerings from this famed brand to date. It’s extremely limited yielding less than 16 cases. This is one of the more elegant Evan Williams, I’ve come across. Easy and approachable, but with tons of depth. Some tropical citrus flavors, mark the overal honey and spice. The palate shows great depth, although it’s not one of these sticky bourbons. The sweatness is balanced by a lovely exotic tea element, not bitter, but a bit tanni c. It all come together with a lovely drinkable balance and a totally lack of any heat at all. This is painfully easy to drink. Be very careful!
Smooth Ambler Old Scout 11 Year Old Bourbon 750ml – 6 available ($69.99)
BACK IN STOCK… (items we’ve carried in the past that have just arrived again)
Bourbon and Rye
Old Potrero Single Malt 18th Century Style Whiskey 750ml – 2 available ($69.99)
The fascinating spirit represents Anchor Brewing Company’s attempt to re-create the original whiskey of America. This release was distilled in a small copper pot still at Anchor’s distillery on San Francisco’s Potrero Hill, from a mash of 100% rye malt. Rye was the grain of choice for America’s first distillers, and using a mash of 100% rye malt produces a uniquely American whiskey. 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–but 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.
Scotland – Blended Scotch
Black Bottle Blended Islay Scotch Whisky 750ml – 11 available ($19.99)
Black Bottle is the staff favorite for a peaty style blended whisky. Seven Islay distilleries all in one bottle, how can you go wrong and for this oustanding price! In 1879 Gordon Graham of Aberdeenshire created Black Bottle whisky for his own pleasure. It almost immediately changed his life. Not only did he now have a splendid blend to enjoy in his evenings, it was so outstanding that he became famous throughout his village, and then Scotland. He soon abandoned his regular tea making and blending business to concentrate on fine whisky. Black Bottle is a unique and accessible tribute to the much-revered Islay malts bustling within it. Smooth, bold and balanced, it is uncompromising and flexes its rich credentials at every sip. And its muscular physique hasn’t gone unnoticed: Black Bottle has been described as having a “quite brilliant array of Islay-iodine and smoke notes”, in Jim Murray’s Classic, Blended Whisky. Color: Rich gold Nose: Warm, smoky and peaty Body: Clean and round with profiles that marry the nose. Finish: Intense Peatiness – 5 Sweetness – 7
Johnnie Walker Gold 18 Year Old Blended Scotch Whisky 750ml ($75.99)
93 points Wine Enthusiast: “This amber blend of 15 whiskies, each aged at least 18 years, yields a mellow, balanced mix of sweet caramel, raisin and smoky notes, all lingering and pleasing.” (09/2011) Whisky Advocate: “An example that older, more expensive isn’t always better, this 18 year old gem is as good as many blends twice its price. The foundation of Johnnie Walker Gold is delicate, clean, and honeyed, along with a fresh sea character (from Clynelish?) that provides a youthful zing. Notes of vanilla, shortbread, tropical fruit, freshly cut hay, marshmallow, and even a hit of peat, round out the palate. Its finish is subtly complex and nicely balanced. The blend has improved nicely over the past several years. (Vol. 15, #2)”
Scotland – Single Malt Scotch
Tobermory 15 year old Unfiltered Island Single Malt Whisky 750ml – 6 available ($129.99)
Tobermory 15 Year has the prestigious distinction of being the only single malt ditillery on the Isle of Mull, 70 miles north of Islay on Scotland’s west coast. The name Tobermory is a Gaelic word meaning “well of Mary.” The distillery was built in 1798 in an area known as “Ledaig” (pronounced “Lechig”) which means “safe heaven.” This new release is produced from Scottish unpeated malted barley, un-chill filtered, natural colour and 46.3% alc/vol. 90-95 points and Highly Recommended Wine Enthusiast: “Fragrances of butterscotch, brown butter, toffee, dried pears and apple, as well as salt and old oak notes. Palate entry is toffee and butterscotch laden; midpalate is concentrated, toasty, buttermilk-like and full-weighted. Ends up heavily in the marzipan/light caramel/toffee “sweet zone” which, while not for everyone, works for me.” (12/09)
United States – Bourbon and Rye
Michter’s 10 Year Old Single Barrel Bourbon 750ml – 5 available ($89.99)
Good ol’ Michter’s 10 year old. Back in stock for a limited time.
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
