Our Top 10s for October
Check out our favourite bottles this month selected by our head buyer Dawn Davies MW. For the whisky drinkers, our top picks feature special offers on single malts from Caperdonich, Highland Park and Arran.
KARUIZAWA DISTILLERY 17 Year Old 1996 SMWS 132.4 (2013) Cask #132.4
KARUIZAWA 17
1996 Vintage
Sherry Butt
£4,800.00
Karuizawa 17 Year Old 1996 vintage Japanese single malt whisky. Single refill butt #132.4 bottled 2013 by the The Scotch Malt Whisky Society. 346 bottles. Karuizawa Distillery was established in 1956 to the north west of Tokyo, Japan but closed in 2001. Karuizawa Distillery sat at an altitude of 850m on the foothills of the active volcano Mount Asama and drew its water from the mountain’s slopes.
A spicy and smoky Highland Park single malt matured in a combination of 80% first-fill sherry and 20% refill sherry casks. Expect a rich whisky with notes of sweet smoke, maraschino cherries, dark chocolate and black pepper spice. A sherried release from Highland Park, Dark Origins is a combination of 80% first fill sherry casks (of which 60% is European oak and 20% American) and 20% refill sherry. A dark expression which fits in with the distillery’s origins – founder Magnus Eunson being a smuggler who worked in the darkness of night.
Chivas Brothers, the Pernod Ricard business dedicated to Scotch whisky, today announces plans for its first distillery on the isle of Islay.
The new distillery marks the first time Chivas Brothers will introduce an Islay whisky to its Scotch portfolio, rounding out its offering of globally recognised malts and blends which include The Glenlivet, Royal Salute, Chivas Regal and Ballantine’s. A leader in sustainable Scotch, Chivas Brothers has an ambitious goal to be carbon neutral in distillation across all of its sites by the end of 2026. In alignment with this target, design of the Islay project – and any future new-build distillery – will be carbon neutral in distillation from inception.
The distillery, which will be located on the picturesque site of Gartbreck Farm, west of Bowmore at Saltpan Point on the shore of Loch Indaal, will enjoy stunning views facing Bruichladdich and Port Charlotte across the loch. Once operational, its production will focus on Islay single malt, celebrating the region’s distinctly smoky and peated profile.
The land purchase signals Chivas Brothers’ long-term intent to become part of the fabric of Islay, as it has been for decades through Speyside and the surrounds.
Jean-Etienne Gourgues, Chairman and CEO at Chivas Brothers commented
“This is an important new chapter in the Chivas Brothers story. The introduction of an Islay whisky completes our comprehensive and award-winning Scotch portfolio. As a business built on hundreds of years of heritage, it also gives us the opportunity to do something we rarely do, which is to start from scratch.
“Here on Islay, we can create a blueprint for carbon neutral distilling and continue to usher in this era of sustainable Scotch. We are committed to Scotch, to the Islay community and the landscape that makes it the perfect place to continue our vision to shape the future of whisky.”
Full plans for the site will be revealed in due course.
Why learn about whisky?
I’ll give it a good go, but I don’t think you’ll ever get to the bottom of knowing every single thing there is to know about whisky!” Ever wondered why whisky is such a rich and worthwhile topic for study? We brought together a group of whisky experts and asked them why they love to learn more and more.
A definition up for discussion?
Did you know that the current definition of single pot still whiskey does not accurately reflect the historical mashbills distilled across Ireland over the last two hundred years? Matt Healy (Certificate in Irish Whiskey teacher) highlights the upcoming public consultation period and the benefits that a potential change in definition would bring.
Let’s talk about… barley
Make sense of how barley – a cereal packed with starch – is used by distillers in the Scotch whisky production process in this barley explainer video from one of our whisky lecturers, Vic Cameron.
The Scotch whisky distilleries using worm tub condensers
Shell and tube condensers are modern, easier to repair/replace and thought to provide better copper contact than traditional worm tub condensers. Some distilleries do still use the worm tubs, however, and maintain that they affect the characteristics of their spirit (texturally complex, meaty and sulphury are the typical notes given).
See you in November?
Huge thanks to the terrific candidates who joined us for a packed week of Diploma courses at Arniston House last week. It’s always a pleasure to teach such enthusiastic learners from around the globe. The November Diploma in Single Malt Whisky course (Thu 16 & Fri 17) is your last chance to join us in-person to study this year. So come along and earn your SQA-certified whisky diploma – our highest award – with us in spectacular surroundings with 15 likeminded Scotch whisky lovers.
WELCOME BACK TO THE VAULTS!
We are delighted to welcome you back to the Members’ Room at The Vaults. Our new bar is fully stocked with even more of our one-of-a-kind whiskies than before.
Our pop-up Members’ Room downstairs has now closed as we are now able to return to a full kitchen service upstairs, complete with some new additions to our menu. Our live music events will be back from Tuesday 3 October in a new space upstairs!
Please book a table for drams or food HERE.
We are looking forward to seeing many of you at our sold out 40th anniversary party on Saturday 30 September. Please note that The Vaults is closed for the whole day but re-opens again as normal from Sunday 1 October at 12.30pm.
Our staff can’t wait to see you in the Members’ Room upstairs, and we’re ready to host you for drams, bottles or food – stay tuned for more photos and updates!
The Scotch Malt Whisky Society, The Vaults, 87 Giles Street, Leith EH6 6BZ
Contact: sales@smws.com or call 0131 555 2929 (Mon-Fri 9am-4.45pm). Visit the Society at here for membership information
This is your chance to join and to take advantage of their great offers!
Spot the SMWS bottles in this amusing You Tube video
Great Value Whiskies Under £80
At The Whisky Exchange, we believe that excellent whisky doesn’t always have to come with an extravagant price tag. We’ve put together a selection of our favourite value-for-money whiskies, all under £80 and hand-picked by our head buyer Dawn Davies MW.
Whether you’re looking for a gift or something new for your whisky collection, you’re sure to find a bottle that fits your budget without compromising on taste. Explore our full list of great value whiskies from Scotland and around the world featuring some of our bestsellers.
GORDON & MACPHAIL Tomatin 32yo
1989 Vintage
£635.59 / $657* / c$1,066* / €741
Tomatin 32 Year Old 1989 vintage Speyside single malt Scotch whisky. Single refill American hogshead #4226 bottled December 2021 by Gordon & MacPhail for the Connoisseurs Choice series. 217 bottles.
Nose: Dried mango and lemon peel aromasbalanced by cracked black pepper. Rich green apple comes to the fore alomngside subtle demera sugar.
Taste: Sweet seville orange intertwines with ripe banana and chilli spice. Bricght baked apples complement grapefruit zest and a hing of tobacco.
Finish: Full and slighty dry with pineapple and mature oak.
Tomatin Distillery was established in 1897 and operated with two stills until 1956 after which there were frequent and numerous additions culminating in 23 stills in 1986 making Tomatin the largest distillery in Scotland at that time. However, eleven were subsequently closed and it is currently equipped with twelve but operating with eight. Tomatin Distillery is a Highland distillery situated close to the Cairngorms National Park and, sitting at an altitude of 315m, it is the third highest distillery in Scotland. The official range includes Tomatin 12 Year Old, 18 Year Old and the peated Cu Bocan range.
Introducing Founder’s Highlights
Regular update
from Dan
This week marks the first in what will hopefully be a regular series of random thoughts, impressions and musings which my marketing team suggested is called “Founder’s Highlights”.
When the idea was suggested to me, I immediately agreed since – as anyone who’s met me knows – I love nothing more than sharing the ups, downs, joys and challenges of the amazing journey we’ve been on for over 10 years ever since I first had the idea to open a distillery in the Cotswolds.
September is always a busy month as the late Summer torpor gives way to the busiest time of year and the start of the “whisky season”. Highlights of last week included an excellent “day in trade”, meeting with bartenders and shop owners in London with our brilliant new brand ambassador Katie. It’s been too long since I last did this and there is truly no better way to spend your time as a founder as it involves direct contact with customers and consumers, and also a chance to take the pulse of the market and understand whether our brand remains relevant (the answer to which I can happily report seemed to be a resounding “yes”!).
The second half of the week was spent in Edinburgh attending the annual Worshipful Company of Distillers’ Scottish Dinner at the Signet Library, where as Renter Warden I had the honour to personally greet over 200 guests representing the breadth of the whisky industry. There were also visits to the new Port of Leith Distillery as well as the wonderful Holyrood Distillery. Port of Leith – a 9-story purpose built vertical whisky distillery – is one of the few projects that is so ambitious as to make me feel comforted I’m not the biggest dreamer of them all. Holyrood’s experimental quirkiness and use of novel yeasts and mashbills was equally fascinating and inspiring.
This week has been focused on finalising work on our exciting wetlands effluent management project, on reviewing business development and challenges faced in the difficult current sales environment, and lastly on reviewing our “wood program” for next year, i.e. the casks we’ll need to have on hand to fill the projected amount of whisky we plan to produce. That is by far the most satisfying job as it’s all about the future, and the endless possibilities of the different whiskies we’ll be nurturing over the years to come.
I hope you’ve all had a good week and I promise that future missives will be shorter!
Cheers
Dan
AN ELEMENTAL CONNECTION
Our whiskies are elementally connected to the place from which they are forged, The Glenrothes Estate. The fresh spring water from the grounds of our Estate is naturally filtered through millions of years of rock as it makes its way to our distillery, resulting in water that is remarkably soft and free fro
m impurities. This water is fundamental to the elemental elegance that is the signature of our house style. Envoys of our Estate itself, The 18 and The 25 express the iconic experience of The Glenrothes.
THE 18
The 18 symbolises The Glenrothes’ unquenchable desire to learn and progress.
After 18 years of patient pursuit our whisky appears in a new state. Brighter notes become more subtle. A deeper fragrance blooms and lingers. Flavours unfurl with unexpected dimensions.
Our award-winning single malt has been re-imagined with an elegant new presentation. The iconic silhouette of the bottle remains but is now housed in a cylindrical cannister, a stylish nod to the oak casks in which the whisky has matured. It is etched with the topographic contours of The Glenrothes Estate, the source of our extraordinary spring water which is elemental to our smooth and fruity signature style.
THE NEW 25
After nearly 150 years of whisky making on our private estate in Rothes, Speyside, we’ve learned true wisdom is knowing when to work and, crucially, when to wait.
Thousands of interactions over decades of lived experience creates in us the confidence to make room for beauty only time can touch. After a quarter century of waiting, the elegance of our whisky intensifies. Flavour and fragrance mingle and melt in sumptuous harmony.
Delicate Decadence born from the wisdom to wait.
