Grant’s in Russian with Valentina

Hi all,

After the U.S. and Taiwan, it is now the turn of the Grant’s family in Russia to steal the spotlight, courtesy of our charming Russian ambassador, Valentina Naumova. For those of you with confident Russian skills, the video below shows Valentina introducing three of our blends and discussing glassware and the use of ice….

http://blog.grantswhisky.com/2012/05/grants-in-russian-with-valentina/

Kind regards,
Ludo

Loch Fyne Whiskies Stocks ‘Bell’s Decanter – The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee’

Bell’s Decanter – The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee
40% abv
£79.90 inc vat
£66.58 ex vat

You may view the latest post by clicking HERE

Best regards,
Loch Fyne Whiskies
david@lfw.co.uk

English Whisky at TWE Vinopolis

While we’re busy running around at HQ finishing up some SEKRIT PROJECTS (of which more will be heard shortly…) the folks down at our Vinopolis shop have been continuing running their series of rather excellent tastings, celebrating St George’s Day … Continue reading >>

BenRiach Maltings

We are really excited to officially announce that the BenRiach Distillery is going to start making its own malt again. We will be one of only a handful of distilleries in Scotland with our own maltings. An update from our distillery manager, Stewart Buchanan:

As you all may be aware we have been working hard since the Christmas shutdown getting the BenRiach maltings back up and running. We have been going through the whole system and apart from the odd belt, bearing and a bit of elbow grease, all the conveyers and elevators are now running smooth. Surprisingly, after being shut for the best part of 13 years, the machinery is all in great condition!

The next stage is to get some weight on the system to see how it runs under stress. I have 3 tonnes of barley sitting ready to go for a whirl round the floors, and it will be great to hear its blood pumping and the old place coming back to life.

The Kiln is working well: the compressor started at the first attempt and when the fire is stoked up the old baffles and fan maintain the heat perfectly. The slightly harder job is to erect a scaffold platform on the underside of the kiln floor to do some maintenance on the diffuser and the floor itself. The maintenance is the easy bit, getting the scaffold in through the hearth is a bit trickier! All going well, it should all be ready in around 10 days maximum.

We also have been very lucky with the running side of the plant; the 80’s brewer at BenRiach, Robert Fleming now the manager at Tomatin distillery, took a rummage through his loft and came up with some great information; old steep charts, floor times and temperature log books and kiln charts. Also BenRiach’s ex maltster Andrew Anderson has popped in and given us more personal knowledge of the building – the things that can’t be learnt from any book!

This is all invaluable hands-on knowledge and will make the learning curve not quite as steep as it could have been. The mild winter weather has been kind to us; all the boys have mucked in, giving up their weekends to cleaning and painting the place throughout. As a result, the place is looking great if I do say so myself!

We may also have been left some other things from yesteryear ……. As some of the boys worked late into the night painting around the steeps, footsteps and voices where heard over at the kiln area on the other side of the building. Thinking it was myself or Les, our engineer, they headed over for a blether, finding no one….They thought we had left and went back to the job in hand. On the second time they heard the noises they shouted over but no reply….On the third time, the paint brushes were dropped and a hasty exit was made! Was it the wind…..???

I shouldn’t be telling you this story, now I’ll never get anyone to turn the floor and stoke the kiln on night shift!!!

Until the next update, Slainte!

Stewart Buchanan, BenRiach Distillery Manager

www.ralfy.com takes you on a trip to Speyside with Whisky Review #269 – Cragganmore 12yo (Speyside Region) …. lovely stuff!

The Whisky Shop 

Talisker Isle of Eigg

Talisker Distillery was founded by two brothers from the Isle of Eigg – Hugh and Kenneth MacAskill who has settled on Skye in 1825. The millennium bottling has been prepared for the Isle of Eigg Heritage Trust to mark its historic purchase of the Island. Bottled at 60% volume. Click here to read the full article

The Whisky Shop
www.whiskyshop.com

Shackleton

Mackinlay’s Rare Old Highland Malt
Limited edition bottling

Special commemorative bottling of a truly unique blended whisky liquid.

Faithful reproduction of the actual Mackinlay’s whisky taken on the ill-fated Shackleton Antarctic expedition to the South pole in 1907.
Presented in a replica bottle and wooden case – just as Shackleton left it.

“The most exciting find of scotch whisky since days began”

Tasting notes:

Colour – Light honey, straw gold with shimmering highlights.

Nose – Soft, elegant & refined. Delicate aromas of crushed apple, pear and fresh pineapple arouse the senses. The spirit is exciting and vibrant with attractive notes of oak shavings that release hints of buttery vanilla, creamy caramel and nutmeg. A whisper of marmalade, cinnamon and even a tease of smoke, ginger and muscovado sugar completes this spectrum of delight.

Taste – With a generous strength of 47.3% this gives the spirit plenty of impact on the palate but in a mild warming manner. Harmonious and exhilarating. Whispers of gentle bonfire smoke slowly give way to spicy rich toffee, treacle and pecan nuts. These enticing flavours linger lovingly on the palate but are soon combined by a sensual, complex array of creme brulee, orange rind and freshly baked bread. It is a remarkable tapestry of tantalising taste sensations which truly rewards the palate

£97.99 inc VAT

CLICK HERE TO BUY NOW

Hello Fellow WhiskeyLovers – 

An enthusiastic, if somewhat belated, “Happy May Day” to you all.  

As any of you may are probably aware, “May Day” is related to the Celtic festival of Beltane and the Germanic festival of Walpurgis Night.   Despite considerable time spent in consternation yesterday afternoon, I was unable to find  a finer way to celebrate the day than to raise a glass of whisky…and so I did.

Feeling in the mood for a “local” whiskey, a few moments of thought culminated in my snatching a bottle I acquired this past February when Ian Buxton, in the US for a few distillery visits and Burns Nights, and I hopped in my car and drove a couple of hours north from my home to visit with distillery founder Ralph Erenzo and the team at Tuthilltown Spirits. 

Ian and Ralph and a Chuckle

For those of you not familiar with Tuthilltown, the distillery is located in the exquisitely beautiful Hudson Valley region of  NY state, and was the the first whiskey distillery to open in New York since prohibition. The distillery is located adjacent to the Tuthilltown Gristmill, a 220 year old landmark listed on the National Register of Historic Places, that used waterpower to render local grains to flour.

In 2001 Ralph Erenzo and Vicki Morgan acquired the property and with the help of partner Brian Lee,  converted one of the mill granaries to a micro-distillery.  Two and a half years later, Tuthilltown Spirits produced their first batches of vodka from scraps they collected at a local apple slicing plant.

The distillery now produces a whole range of spirits, from fruits grown at orchards less than 5 miles away and grain harvested by farmers less than 10 miles away, that include a rum and vodka, Baby Bourbon, Manhattan Rye, and of course a Single Malt.  Which brings me to this weeks Whiskey Selection featured whiskey: Tuthilltown Spirits Hudson Single Malt Whiskey

Hudson Single Malt Whiskey is made with whole ground malted barley and nothing else and is aged in small new oak casks. The new oak contributes a deeper woody affect to the spirit, and aging this way is a departure from traditional single malt “Scotch”. But what is truly amazing and innovative is the use of sound to expedite the aging process.

The Ceiling and Speakers in the Aging Room

The aging room has four large speakers in the corners.  At night, as Ralph explained to us, they pump a steady stream of the loud, bass-resonating-cask-vibration-causing music into the room. This causes the liquid in the barrels to vibrate and ripple, thereby exposing more liquid to more wood….faster.

The result is single-malt whiskey that is an American reinterpretation of traditional Scottish and Irish whiskies. Bottles at 92 proof, Hudson Single Malt stands up nicely to a splash of water, which releases aroma and softens the spirit on your lips.   Produced in very small batches, Hudson Single Malt is a terrific whisky that should be a proud American addition to your bar.

And with the help of our man Nicky The Neck” – who has a friend who’s got a friend – we’ve been able to acquire a limited quantity of the whiskey at a phenomenal price: Tuthilltown Spirits Hudson Single Malt Whiskey for $39.95/ bottle. 

I urge you to give this wonderful American interpretation of single-malt whiskey a try.  You will be very glad you did. 

And until next week…have fun!

Doug StoneFounderForWhiskeyLovers.com 

Pierre Hermé Paris & La Maison du Whisky present a gift coffret

Pierre Hermé Paris & La Maison du Whisky composed a gift box in December 2008. Holiday periods are an opportunity for brands to partner to offer gift-boxes and the like. The French pastry chef Pierre Hermé released a whisky and … Continue reading →

The sale includes around 300 bottles of Whisky divided into 63 lots. The full catalogue can be found here and as ever I will send out a complimentary catalogue to those who want one.

Some of the highlights in the sale for me include the immaculate bottle of 1930’s Johnnie Walker Red Label which I personally took out of its original ‘Merry Christmas from Johnnie Walker’ wooden packing crate before the sale.

There is also a good selection of Macallan including the Royal Marriage, a few variants of their Over 25 Year Old Anniversary Malt (including a miniature), and even a bottle and matching miniature of Private Eye.

There is also a Highland Park 1967 Distillation, Bowmore Bicentenary 1964 Edition, Laphroaig Unblended 10 Year Old, etc.

There are also very large quantities of good vintage and drinking whisky, and as ever, many lots are sold without reserve so please make sure you leave bids even if they are cheeky ones; sometimes they win!