Whiskey Channel Delivers Breaking Reports in Unprecedented Quality

Bardstown, KY- Singlemalt TV, the world’s only online television channel exploring whiskies of the world, generated widespread acclaim last week when they presented full, breaking coverage of Bardstown’s Kentucky Bourbon Festival. The breadth and timeliness of the coverage, coupled with exemplary quality are unprecedented in the whisk(e)y industry.

Singlemalt TV launched in 2006 with an initial focus on Scotch Whisky, the fledging site founded by veteran Director of Photography and IPTV pioneer Rob Draper, quickly gained recognition for its HD originated, exclusive programming. For two years Singlemalt TV continued to focus on Scotch Whisky, with an occasional foray into American Whiskey and bourbon. It was last spring when crews journeyed to Kentucky to film a Wood and Whisky feature in conjunction with Morrison-Bowmore that the bourbon industry became a focal point for Singlemalt TV. Following the completion of the Morrison-Bowmore project, Singlemalt TV scheduled a round of distillery shoots in Kentucky. As soon as the footage aired on the channel it became evident that Bourbon was a huge hit with the website’s formidable global audience.

Last week Singlemalt TV took their full show on the road, working round-the-clock from a historic former library in downtown Bardstown as preparations for the 18th Kentucky Bourbon Festival commenced. Camera crews worked to capture all the offerings of Bourbon Country, shooting at distilleries and on Louisville’s Urban Bourbon Trail in the days leading up to the festival.

After filming a live webcast each morning, camera crews set out on assignment to various locations around the region. Upon returning from each location, crews turned over their footage to a video editor working from the Bardstown headquarters who meticulously cut each segment for a nightly show. For six days and nights Singlemalt TV’s on-location staff worked to deliver exclusive up-to-the-minute coverage of the KBF
as it unfolded, maintaining their exacting broadcast-caliber standard throughout.

To date Singlemalt TV has continued to experience record site traffic. The tremendous response from the Bourbon Industry and regional tourism agencies has been mirrored by the feedback received from viewers in 120 countries. Even Kentucky’s Governor Steve Beshear, who recently declared September “Bourbon Heritage Month,” took a moment to chat with Singlemalt TV about the importance of bourbon to the area. Bourbon insiders have described Singlemalt TV as the “buzz” of the industry, and future plans for more exciting endeavors in Kentucky are already underway.

Notes:
1. www.singlemalt.tv
2. Singlemalt TV is a Visionmill Productions company.
3. All material on Singlemalt TV is original and copyright.
4. For further information email jenna@singlemalt.tv

New Whisky Ratings  – Spirit Journal Sept 2009
 
Springbank 11 Year Old Madeira
5 STARS HIGHEST RECOMMENDATION
“Finshes long, chewy, buttery, and ideally sweet yet crisp”
SRP $99
This was a limited release from Springbank, get your hands on a bottle while you can! 
 
Springbank 18 Year Old
5 STARS HIGHEST RECOMMENDATION 
“Ooooh, this lovely, biscuity nose […] entry is nothing short of delicious as the taste profile goes caramel sweet, tangy/salty and baked […] concludes as warm as embers in the throat, semisweet, and demarara sugar-like. To use the most technical term I can think of: wowee-wow-wow-wow.”
 
Duncan Taylor Cameronbridge 1979 Cask #3584 Single Grain
4 STARS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
“Whoever claims that grain whiskies can’t hold their own against single malts should sample this dandy whisky.”
SRP $180
 
Duncan Taylor Dalmore 1990 Cask #D311
4 STARS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
“Finishes on a semisweet note that very piny / cedary / resiny”
SRP $128
 
Duncan Taylor Royal Lochnagar 1990 Cask #355
4 STARS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
“Wow, the entry, the midpalate, and aftertaste are dynamite.”
SRP $174
 
BlackBull 30 Year Old Blended Scotch Whisky
4 STARS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
“Entry is very sweet in a high cocoa content dark chocolate way rathen than a sugary manner […] an intriguing blend with lots going for it.”
SRP $199

www.preissimports.com

Malt Whisky Yearbook 2010 has been sent to the printers and the first copies are expected 1 October.

Four years have passed since the first edition of Malt Whisky Yearbook saw the light of day, and the book has become an authoritative guide that whisky enthusiasts worldwide look forward to each autumn.

The fifth edition, Malt Whisky Yearbook 2010, is as always fully revised and packed with new and up-to-date information on whisky distilleries from all over the world. Distinguished whisky writers such as Charles MacLean, David Stirk, Gavin Smith, Ian Buxton, Dominic Roskrow and Ian Wisniewski contribute with initiated features penned exclusively for the Yearbook.

Malt Whisky Yearbook 2010 lists hundreds of whisky shops, whisky sites and new bottlings. A comprehensive summary of the whisky year that was and all the latest statistics is also included. Nearly 200 tasting notes describe the flavour of single malts from all working distilleries in Scotland and Ireland. Finally, with more than 500 colour photographs (most of them new since the last edition), Malt Whisky Yearbook 2010 is as much an essential reference guide as a book to read for pleasure.

www.maltwhiskyyearbook.com

The Independent Bottlers’ Challenge 2009:
The Society Scoops Five Fantastic Awards and a Bottler of the Year Title

Just this week the results were out for Whisky Magazine’s Independent Bottlers’ Challenge 2009.  It seems not only do you love our single cask, single malt whisky, the judges love it too!

“The benchmark for Independent bottlers”, the Society scored highly in this year’s competition with five awards and a Bottler of the Year title for the Island region (non-Islay).

Of course only Society members can get their hands on these starlights.  Some casks are sadly gone but for the others the last few bottles are available to buy NOW.  But hurry, once they’re gone, they’re gone forever!

Island (Non Islay):    Independent Bottler of the Year
12 Years Old and Under:   121.28 Banderas in a Tuxedo – GOLD
19 Years Plus:                    4.131 An Artist’s Retreat –  GOLD

Campbeltown:
12 Years Old and Under:   27.72 Harbour-side Harmonies – SILVER
13-18 Years Old:               93.35 Men Wrestling on a Pebble Beach – BRONZE

Highland:
13-18 Years Old:                125.18 Chocolate Valentine – SILVER
Every, single cask a WINNER
As you know we never play favourite when it comes to our delicious single cask malts.  We believe every, single cask to be a winner – passed and approved by the Society Tasting Panel.  With 69 single casks available now in our online shop, why not pick yourself a champion choice.

There’s still time to register, you could WIN £50
If you haven’t already registered online with us a plethora of exciting features await.   Simply follow our guide to registering in our log-in section by clicking on the log-in help question marks.

If you register before Fri 2 Oct you stand a chance of winning a Society e-voucher you can redeem on the new site.  The first 10 names randomly drawn will each recieve a £50 e-voucher, the next 100 collecting £10 e-vouchers.

Visit http://www.smws.co.uk/ to join the Scotch Malt Whisky Society today!

Greetings to all Society members.   You may be wondering why on earth you are getting so many newsletters just now.    Well the sun is shining and we have news we wish to share with you,  as it  happens,  rather than giving you old news.

FROM FRANK

This week has been pretty hectic at Springbank Distillery as we are taking delivery of around 60 tonnes of barley which is being grown locally to Campbeltown.

The barley type is Westminster which is a recognised malting strain.   Grown by local farmer David Young at Langy farm on a south west facing field overlooking Machrihanish Bay,  the crop is very good.

The weather has been really kind over the past two weeks which has meant that the moisture content of the harvested barley is fairly low at arount 16 – 17%.

Stuart Robertson and his staff at the distillery have been kept busy receiving the barley and drying it in our kiln to a moisture level of 12% prior to puting it into storage where it will remain for at least the next three months.   After that time the barley should have come out of dormancy and be ready to malt.

During May and June 2010 this malted barley will be used to produce Springbank™, Longrow™ and Hazelburn™ spirit.

We are delighted with the news this week that Whisky Magazine has awared J & A Mitchell with “Distiller of the Year 2010”.    This is somewhat of a double celebration as Pete Currie was also voted “Young Brand Ambassador of the Year 2010” by Whisky Magazine.   Pete and Stuart Robertson were on hand in Glasgow last weekend to pick up the awards.

Springbank Distillery had to take some hard decisions a couple of years ago and decided to cut back in production mainly due tothe high cost of utilities and barley.   Some people in the distilling industry thought that this was a backward step and we did receive some criticism at that time.  We took the view that it was pointless distilling until prices stabalised.   That has now happened and we are continuing with production at both our distilleries.

Peter Currie has certainly made his mark during the time that he has spent with us and has become respected throughout the Whisky World as a Sales and Marketing Manager who has an in depth knowledge of Scotch Whisky.

Frank

HAIRY BIKERS

You may remember that the Hairy Bikers were featured in a recent newsletter, when they paid a visit to Springbank and filmed the distillery for part of their “foodie” programme.   The were presented with some Springbank which they promised they would use in one of their cooking “lessons”.   We have now been advised that the programme featuring Springbank will be aired on Friday 25th September on BBC 2,  “The Hairy Bikers” Food Tour of Britain”  which you will be able to watch again through i player

SOCIETY BOTTLE

Well, the jury is now out, the miniatures have been dispatched to the tasting panel, so when they have tasted, deliberated and decided, they will e mail their results to me and the cask which is deemed the “chosen one” will be gently set aside to await the printing of labels, then bottling.

That’s all our exciting news for this week.

If you have any comments, etc, as usual e mail me on society@springbankwhisky.com

Slainte

Janet
for Springbank Society

Please contact Janet via the above email address to join the Springbank Society.

http://www.springbankwhisky.com/

From Nick White, Managing Director, A. Dewar Rattray Ltd:

The awards of The Whisky Magazine’s annual Icon’s of Whisky and Independant Bottlers Challenge competiton were announced last week.
 
Dewar Rattray has again won a significant number of medals for our Dewar Rattray Cask Collection and the regional award for Islay:
 
Independent Bottler of the Year for Islay
 
Gold Medals:     

Bowmore 1991, #2060 (DRCC17)

                           Bunnahabhain 1976, #6223 (DRCC16)

                            Glenrothes 1990, #35460 (DRCC18)

                            Ben Nevis 1996, #1670 (DRCC16)

Silver Medals:   

Arran 1996, #723, (DRCC17)

                        Pulteney 1982, #502 (DRCC18) 

   
Bronze Medal:   

Dufftown 1976, #7753

 
We have also acheived the Winner in the Tastings, New Release, section in the current Whisky Magazine, Issue 82, for the Pulteney 1982, #502.

For Immediate Release
Contact: Svend Jansen

Public Relations Manager

Brown-Forman Corporation

502-774-7825

Canadian Mist Whisky Announces “Double Gold” Sweepstakes

Winner Will Travel to San Francisco for a Chance at Big Cash

Louisville, Ky. (September 14, 2009)  –  At the 2009 San Francisco World Spirits Competition, only one Canadian whisky brought home the coveted Double Gold Medal: Canadian Mist. Now consumers will have the opportunity to bring home their own “Double Gold” in the Canadian Mist Whisky “Double Gold” sweepstakes.

Consumers can register online at www.canadianmist.com/doublegold for the chance to win a trip for two to San Francisco from February 18-21, including roundtrip airfare and lodging.

While in San Francisco, the randomly selected winner will be taken to a pre-designated location where he or she will have one hour to search for up to 100 gold-colored coins numbered 1-100. After the search, he or she will select 10 coins from all the coins they find. If the two numbers randomly drawn before the search match the numbers on two of the winner’s selected coins, the contestant will win two gold bars valued at over $700,000.

 “This sweepstakes will give one lucky consumer the chance of a lifetime to win two gold bars that could change their life forever,” said Alan George, Brand Director for Canadian Mist Whisky. “With Canadian Mist bringing home Gold Medals at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition in three of the last four years, this sweepstakes reinforces the superior quality and exceptional value it brings to our consumers on a daily basis.”

Entries must be received by October 31, 2009 in order to be eligible for the drawing. You must be of legal drinking age and a legal resident of the United States to enter. Visit www.canadianmist.com/doublegold for more information or to fill out an entry form.

About Canadian Mist

Canadian Mist is an award-winning whisky distilled in Collingwood, Ontario with water from the pure Georgian Bay. Brown-Forman Corporation is a diversified producer and marketer of fine quality consumer products, including Jack Daniel’s, Canadian Mist, Southern Comfort, Finlandia Vodka, Early Times, Old Forester, Fetzer Wine and Korbel California Champagnes. For more information, visit www.canadianmist.com.

###

 _______________________________________________________

Enjoy Life. Drink Mist Responsibly.

Imported and Bottled by Brown-Forman Beverages, Canadian Whisky, A Blend, 40% Alc. by Volume, Louisville, KY ©2009 CANADIAN MIST is a registered trademark.

Svend Jansen

PR Manager – Canadian Mist, Early Times & Old Forester

Brown-Forman

850 Dixie Highway

Louisville, KY 40210

Office, (502) 774-7825

Mobile, (502) 744-0462

svend_jansen@b-f.com

A NUMBER of fine and rare BenRiach and GlenDronach malts are set to be one of the highlights of Whisky Live Paris this month.
 
French whisky lovers are looking forward to sampling some of the vintage expressions which have been maturing in GlenDronach’s Aberdeenshire distillery over the last forty years.
 
Regional Sales Director James Cowan said: “Whisky Live provides the ultimate whisky experience and continues to be one of the leading consumer and trade-based whisky shows globally.
 
“France has long been regarded as the leading Scotch Whisky market worldwide and it is essential that we have our brands on display on this key date in the annual calendar of events.
 
“Although the majority of whisky sold in France is blended whisky, single malt Scotch Whisky is fast becoming a fashionable beverage within the young to middle-aged consumer groups. We hope that both BenRiach and GlenDronach will be well received by all those who visit the stand over the exhibition weekend.
 
“This year’s exhibition has significant interest to us and we will be showcasing the newly-released GlenDronach 15-year-old and 18-year-old expressions together with some fine and rare vintage editions which will appeal to all malt whisky enthusiasts and collectors alike.”
 
Amongst many of the products being presenting are:
 
BenRiach 12yo ‘Sherry Wood’ matured
 
BenRiach 16yo
 
Birnie Moss ‘non aged’
 
GlenDronach 15yo

GlenDronach 18yo
 
In addition, James and his team will be sampling some astonishing vintage expressions from 1971, 1972 and 1996.
 
WhiskyLive Paris takes place at Pavillon Gabriel, 5 avenue Gabriel, 75008 Paris, from Saturday 26 – Monday 28 September 2009.
 
Ends                                       14 September 2009
 
INFORMATION – James Cowan, 01324 682220

http://www.glendronachdistillery.com/

http://www.benriachdistillery.co.uk/

http://www.whiskylive.fr/index.php

Springbank Society Newsletter Part 2

Poor Ranald didn’t get a chance to put his contribution into the newsletter, and we don’t wish to offend him, so he’s getting one all to himself (well nearly).

Out and about

Ranald is going to have a very busy few weeks with lots of whisky fairs and tastings around the world. He will be at the Stockholm Beer and Whisky Festival on the weekends of September 17th-19th and 24th-26th, and in between those dates he will be holding tastings for whisky clubs around Sweden. Ranald will be in Soderkoping on Sunday 20th September, Kalmar on the 21st, Helsingborg on the 22nd and Malmo on the 23rd.
He’ll then have a few days at home to recover before heading to America for a week of tastings in Chicago, Las Vegas and Los Angeles before attending Whisky Fest San Francisco on Friday 16th October.
Then it’ll be off to Milan in Italy for the Milano Whisky Festival at the end of October and back to the USA for some work on the East Coast around Whisky Fest New York on Tuesday 10th November.
If you would like more information on any of these forthcoming events just get in touch and we’ll give you any information that we can.

Next Society Bottle

For those members who go onto the Forum you will have seen that we are having a wee “tasting panel” to give some members a chance to make a contribution to the chosing of the next cask for the Society bottle.   The panel has been chosen – it was the first 20 Society members who posted a reply on the Forum, and very quick you had to be to be amongst the first 20.

We plan on doing things like this on a regular basis, so, as well as getting a newsletter, there will be features in the Forum for members to get involved in.

If you are not a regular visitor to the Forum, and would like to be involved in future happenings, get yourself on at www.springbankwhisky.com and join in.   You never know you might be lucky to get on the next panel.

Slainte

Janet
for Springbank Society

To join the Springbank Society please contact Janet at society@springbankwhisky.com
*********************************************************
J & A Mitchell and Co Ltd, The Tasting Room, 9 Bolgam Street, Campbeltown, Argyll, PA28 6HZ
Registered in Scotland, registration number 3582
Tel :   + 44(0) 1586 552009   Fax :  + 44(0) 1586 553232  website  http://www.springbankwhisky.com

GlenDronach malt whisky is set to benefit from a major £7m investment this autumn.
 
It’s part of the strategy by the owners of the Aberdeenshire distillery to restore the malt to its former glory and accelerate its growth in new markets worldwide.
 
Forty years ago, GlenDronach was amongst the top five most popular malts in the world. Now a £5m investment in sherry casks over the next four years and a further £2m on brand promotion and extra staff will boost the sleeping giant, says MD Billy Walker.
 
“In recent years, GlenDronach has fallen out of view but it has maintained a kind of cult status. This new investment returns it to centre-stage.
 
“It’s testament to our ambitions as a small, niche distiller. We are making sure the whisky coming through is of the highest quality and the new sherry casks will be at the heart of maturation, imbuing the whisky with its distinctively sweet, fragrant and fruity taste.”
 
When Mr Walker and his associates bought GlenDronach last year, there were less than 20,000 bottles sold worldwide. This year, having added a number of new expressions like the 15 and 18 year-old, GlenDronach will sell around 150,000 bottles. By 2014, the aim is to sell some 250,000 bottles.
 
The company currently employs thirty people and is now looking for a further five.
 
Mr Walker added: “We’re pursuing our dream – to sell fine malt whisky all over the world and put GlenDronach back where it belongs.”
 
Pic shows GlenDronach’s Regional Sales Director Alistair Walker.
 
ends                                       11 September 2009
 
INFORMATION – Alistair Walker, 01324 682220 http://www.glendronachdistillery.com/