Relaxed virtual Milk and Honey tasting

The very relaxed people of the Milk & Honey Distillery in Israel have asked us if they could host a tasting just for the Maltstock community. Of course we said yes!

The tasting will be on Sunday 26 April 15.00 CET. It will be on Facebook, for everyone to join in and learn all about the very interesting things they do at the Milk & Honey Distillery. Tomer Goren will host the tasting, he is the head distiller. We know him as very knowledgeable, passionate and relaxed!

As mentioned, everyone can join in! With or without a relaxed dram. To make it even more enjoyable, the relaxed Milk & Honey people have also sent over 20 tastings sets. These are available at cost (€ 20,- including shipping).  But we only have a very limited amount of these tasting sets available and we would like to give everyone an equal chance of getting one.

How can you get your tasting set?

Well, easy, by simply being relaxed! Send us a picture of you, relaxed, with a Maltstock logo clearly visible. This can be the Maltstock glass, the (virtual) flyer, a polo, whatever, be creative! Post it on our Facebook page with #StayRelaxed.

Please post if before Sunday 19 April midnight CET. On Monday we’ll select the most relaxed photos and contact you for your address. We’ll send out the tasting sets the day after, so they should be with you before the tasting.

So tune in on our Facebook page, Sunday 26 April 15.00 CET and learn all about the very relaxed and interesting Milk & Honey distillery!

Stay healthy, stay relaxed and look after each other!

Annette, Bob, Klaas,Stan, Teun

Thank you to everyone for your incredible support and understanding throughout this difficult time. The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted all of us personally, economically and emotionally. We know you may have questions regarding our auctions and we wanted to address these as best we can in the current circumstances. Please be reassured we will return, and when we do – it will be with the same high quality auction you have come to expect from us.

Q: Why are auctions postponed? 

It’s been asked why we have taken the decision to postpone our auctions as a result of the COVID-19 crisis while other auctions are still running. There are a number of reasons for this. Firstly, and above all else is the safety of our team, suppliers and customers. Each and every bottle that is bought and sold undertakes a journey with us. When we receive a bottle it’s booked in and checked by our expert handlers. Every bottle is then individually processed through photography with descriptions before making its way into the auction. Throughout the auction we carry on this process for the following month. At auction end our finance department track payments and process for all of our buyers and sellers. Each order is then passed to our logistics team who process shipping worldwide, liaise with our couriers and packing team who then carefully pack the bottles ready for uplift. This process has ensured over the years that we have the highest quality offering for our customers globally, it’s a team effort to process every single lot that features in our auction. Could this be done from home? Not without comprising the quality of listings, the safety of lots and efficiency of the auction.

Following government advice we absolutely could not ask our team to come into the office to process the auction (as much as they would love to!) to protect them and their families during this difficult time. As much as we love a good dram, and in line with government rules, we simply cannot justify the auction as essential work at this time.

We are always very transparent with our business, we were the first whisky auction site in the UK and the original idea was honestly never really about making money, it was about sharing a passion for whisky with the world, while making auctions accessible for all. That’s why our fees are always the same for everyone, regardless of size or value of collection.
It’s that ethos that has seen our auction grow from hundreds of lots per month to thousands worldwide. We always aim to do the very best for all of our customers, buyers and sellers.

The COVID-19 crisis has put financial pressure on people all over the world, could we be confident going live that transactions would be successful? In a fast changing economic climate a bidder could very well find themselves unable to pay, a seller may not get the price they had expected or indeed may not be paid by the buyer, which makes it a disappointing scenario for everyone. Our extensive courier network are working hard to cope in exceptional circumstances but again, taking capacity from them for non essential services and needs to ship bottles would in our view be the wrong thing to do in the current climate.

Q: When will auctions restart?

We would love to be able to give you a definitive date however we are in the same situation as everyone else, we await government advice as the COVID-19 situation develops. We are simply following government rules that all non-essential business should close and for the reasons above we cannot work from home without compromising the quality of our auction. We are awaiting the review later this week on lockdown measures and if there is any indication of an end date we will be very quick to let everyone know. Our auctions are simply paused, not cancelled. Within days of being advised that it’s safe to return we can have our auction live. Auction 108 will go live as originally planned. All bottles are currently stored in our climate and light controlled secure storage facility. You can rest assured your bottles are safe and fully insured.

We appreciate that this is a difficult time for everyone and we truly hope you understand that by postponing the auction we are not only following Government rules we are putting people before profit, the health and safety of everyone involved has got to come first.

We thank everyone for the hundreds of messages, emails and calls of support throughout this trying time and we sincerely look forward to welcoming you all back to our auctions very soon. It goes without saying that our team are as frustrated as you are, we are passionate about what we do and we hope that you understand our position. We are all in this together.

Wishing you all the best from Glasgow, stay safe and well and we look forward to getting back to normal as quickly as we safely can.

Sincerely

Thomas Gardiner
Scotch Whisky Auctions

Smokehead TV is back for episode 2 this Sunday 19th at 5pm – ‘Rock-in cocktails’ featuring friend of Smokehead – Gaz Jones.

Gaz is an ambassador for Coca-Cola Signature mixers – delicious little bottles of delight co-created with top mixologists to mix with premium dark spirits. We’ll be unleashing our High Voltage Smokehead and showing you what drinks harness its electrically smoky appeal. And paying tribute to music tracks that we at Smokehead think capture our upbeat outlier way we like to look at things.

Mikey Sim will be mixing Smokehead cocktails along to the tracks and if it all works out – it’ll be amazing! Grab a bottle and join us this Sunday.

Stay safe, stay indoors, Smokeheads.

SHOP NOW

During this challenging time, £1 from the sale of each bottle purchased from www.smokehead.com will be donated to the Drinks Trust and The Ben to support their mission of providing care and support to our hospitality colleagues.

SUPPORT U.S. BARTENDERS BY BLENDING YOUR OWN WHISTLEPIG WHISKEY AT HOME

Flaviar crowdsources new WhistlePig HomeStock Whiskey from armchair blenders

Flaviar, the world’s largest spirits community, has teamed up with WhistlePig Whiskey, the leading  distiller in the fast growing, ultra-premium and luxury rye whiskey category, to deliver scores of ‘Blend your own whiskey kits’ direct to its members’ doors this month ahead of a virtual blending event intended to lift spirits in this difficult time of social distancing.

Flaviar will provide a rare opportunity for spirits lovers to come together and participate in an innovative blending experience. Following on the heels of the award-winning Farmstock Series, which WhistlePig previously used as their innovative blending platform, the crowd creation of WhistlePig HomeStock Whiskey will harness the creativity of whiskey lovers from across the U.S., calling on them to select their perfect combination of Rye, Wheat, and Barley Whiskey.

The result will be a unique, limited whiskey release, WhistlePig HomeStock Whiskey. Available this Spring, WhistlePig will donate 20% of online bottle sales via Flaviar and Caskers to the United States Bartenders’ Guild (USBG) Foundation’s Bartender Emergency Assistance Program providing funds for its COVID-19 Relief Grants that will assist those currently out of work or in financial distress due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Flaviar members can apply online to receive their blending kit, complete with blending tools, component base whiskeys and instructions from WhistlePig’s Master Blender, Pete Lynch. They can then put their exacting taste buds to the test and see if they have what it takes to create a winning blend. Flaviar members will be encouraged to donate at various touch points in the campaign including during the live blending session and when purchasing a bottle of WhistlePig HomeStock.

Flaviar’s community of whiskey enthusiasts will submit their preferred blend to an expert panel for consideration and tune in for a live-streamed tasting at the end of April. The top three blends crowd-sourced from members will be recreated live on air by WhistlePig’s Pete Lynch, with members able to blend and taste alongside them, then vote for their favorite in a live poll. The winning recipe from this virtual crowd-blending experiment, will then be bottled and released as WhistlePig HomeStock Whiskey, Blended Together, While Apart.

Pete Lynch, Master Blender at WhistlePig Rye Whiskey: “The most important thing we can do right now is stay home. By inviting people to blend whiskey at home, we hope to create a sense of community among fans, while raising some valuable funds for our friends in the bar industry. FarmStock has been one of our most exciting whiskey journeys, and we’re thrilled to partner with Flaviar to continue that story with HomeStock.”

Grisa Soba, co-founder of Flaviar adds: “If someone asks ten year’s from now, ‘what did you do during the lockdown? I bet they won’t expect you to say ‘I learned how to blend a whiskey’. Our members have pretty refined palates and so we’re confident with a little guidance from Pete, the concoctions they craft at home will ensure WhistlePig HomeStock will be a dram to savor.”

The WhistlePig HomeStock Blending Kits are available exclusively to Flaviar members to claim until April 17, 2020. To join Flaviar and experience great events like ‘HomeStock’ live blending, plus a quarterly spirits delivery shipped direct to your door, monthly shipping credits and access to a curated range of craft spirits, hidden gems and classic favorites and more, visit Flaviar.com.

https://flaviar.com/whistlepig-crowdblending

ABOUT FLAVIAR 

Founded in 2012, Flaviar is the world’s largest premium spirits club, with operations in the US and Europe. Flaviar offers a better way to experience fine spirits.

Flaviar members enjoy a full suite of benefits including quarterly tasting boxes and full-size bottles sent directly to their home, invitations to exclusive virtual spirits events, access to rare and original spirits available only to members, free shipping, over 200K member reviews and more.

Flaviar is here to help more people try more new things more often. Flaviar membership is $300 per year, or $95 a quarter.

For more information visit www.flaviar.com You’ve got to try this!

ABOUT WHISTLEPIG RYE WHISKEY

Founded in 2008, WhistlePig Rye Whiskey is the premier aged rye whiskey, featuring the bold and often untapped flavor of rye. WhistlePig Whiskey is leading a surge of innovation in the emerging field of North American whiskey. As the most decorated rye whiskey – having received the coveted ‘Best in Show Whiskey’ title from the 2017 San Francisco World Spirits Competition, WhistlePig is widely viewed as the world’s finest Rye. With the opening of its distillery on its 500-acre Vermont farm in the fall of 2015, WhistlePig has also become one of the leading farm-to-bottle rye whiskeys in the world. For additional information please visit whistlepigwhiskey.com. Please enjoy WhistlePig Rye Whiskey Responsibly.

ABOUT THE UNITED STATES BARTENDERS’ GUILD

Founded in 1948, the United States Bartenders’ Guild®️ is a non-profit professional society of bartenders and other hospitality professionals uniting the hospitality community to advance professional bartending. The USBG believes that every US bartender achieves greater personal and professional success by connecting to diverse local and national hospitality communities. Through our network of over 40 communities nationwide, the USBG connects members with peer-to-peer learning, expert instruction, community service projects, and skills-based competition. Learn more at www.usbg.org.

ABOUT THE USBG NATIONAL CHARITY FOUNDATION:

The USBG National Charity Foundation’s mission is to advance the lifelong stability and well-being of service industry professionals through education and charitable activities. The Foundation accomplishes this mission through programming that focuses on social responsibility, community service, and philanthropy. You can learn more about the NCF at www.usbgfoundation.org.

ABOUT THE BARTENDER EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE PROGRAM:

The purpose of the Bartender Emergency Assistance Program is to assist those in the bar industry who are in need of assistance as a result of a catastrophic event or an emergency hardship. Fire, weather, medical, national crisis, or a family emergency, the BEAP is here to assist bartenders in their time of need.  Our goal is to assist as many qualified industry members as possible each and every year. We are striving to ensure that the BEAP is sustained as a safety net for those in the industry who need it most. Our hope is that you will support us to “help us serve those who serve us.” www.usbgfoundation.org/beap

Hello D&M Customers,

We have made a small change here at D&M during the California Shelter in Place and wanted to let you know about it. For the first three weeks, we were shut completely to limit the spread as well as exposure during this time. In chatting with some of our peers and pleasant competitors in the city, we have decided to allow for pickup during limited hours and with a skeleton staff at the front door. We are currently open for pickups of previously purchased items Tuesday through Saturday 12pm to 5pm. We have also instituted free in city delivery for orders over $200, and as always we will happily ship orders to you as well.

I know that this is a change from what we sent out to you a couple of weeks ago, but this has been a time of shifting directives and best practices. We are wearing masks and donning gloves as we pack your orders, and doing all we can to stay safe and keep you safe as well. We, like our public leaders, are not recommending travelling far distances to pick up items, but if you live in the neighborhood or San Francisco and would like pick up at the door, we stand by to assist you, from a 6+ foot distance.

In this time of physical distancing we can be social, so if you would like to email us, or call just to say hello, or even to praise the quality of your most recent home cooking endeavor, please do so as well.

Warmly, and wishing you all to be well,

Mike and Karen Politz and the Staff at D&M

D&M, 2200 Fillmore St, San Francisco, CA 94115

TOKYO — Friday 10 April 2020 – Inspired by the new Japanese drink trend of ‘On-nomi’, dekantā TV’s ‘Japanese Whisky Lockdown’, presented by Japanese comedian Kilara Sen, will bring entertainment to Japanese whisky fans in isolation across the globe.

Japanese spirits e-commerce site dekantā today launch their online channel, ‘Japanese Whisky Lockdown’, offering an eclectic mix of comedy, whisky news, live music, and cultural trends, such as face yoga, in a bid to ease the boredom of lockdown for Japanese whisky and culture fans internationally. With bars, pubs and restaurants closing across the globe due to the COVID-19 outbreak, a new trend has emerged in Japan to allow people who are social-distancing to enjoy a drink with friends and family while chatting via video messaging apps. The trend is called ‘On-nomi’ (オン飲み), which means ‘online drinking party’, and it was the inspiration for dekantā’s new entertainment channel.

Hosted by Yokohama-born stand-up comedian Kilara Sen (Asia’s Got Talent, Laugh Factory 2016 Shortlist for ‘Funniest Person in the World’), ‘Japanese Whisky Lockdown’ will air on the dekantā website and social media channels every Friday at 8:30pm EDT, starting Friday 10 April 2020, with episodes available on-demand after that date. Each episode will raise money for Wellcome’s COVID-Zero Fund, with dekantā pledging to match donations from viewers. In the first episode, Kilara Sen will be receiving a lesson in face yoga from Healthy & Beauty Specialist and Face Yoga Instructor Koko Hayashi (Keeping Up With Kardashians; Shark Tank), alongside dekantā Founder and Director Makiyo Masa, getting a dance lesson from outspoken, independent singer-songwriter, rapper and producer GIRLI (“between PC Music, bubblegum pop, punk and rap, each one treading a line between catchy and deliberately discomforting,” The Guardian), and hearing the latest Japanese whisky news from drinks blogger ‘Whiskey Richard’ (nomunication.jp). “If hearsay is to be believed, alcohol is a tonic against viruses, and of course, laughter is always the best medicine – so our show will keep you in peak physical condition!” said presenter Kilara Sen. “Japanese Whisky Lockdown will be partly like a fast-paced variety show, partly like a big whisky tasting with your friends on video conference. We will be blending both Japanese and international humour and culture, in perfect harmony, just like a fine Japanese single malt.”

Japanese whisky specialists dekantā have an international community of clients who are referred to as the ‘dekantā family’. Founder Makiyo Masa and the wider dekantā team have previously enjoyed connecting with clients through social media, newsletters, client events and the dekantā blog, which covers Japanese whisky news and topics of wider Japanese culture. “I hope our new channel will help bring the international dekantā family even closer together in these challenging times,” said dekantā Founder and Director Makiyo Masa. “Kilara Sen is an exceptional talent, and a bright-shining personality to bring some joy and laughter into people’s lives, covering both in-depth Japanese whisky features and rib-tickling comedy sketches.”

To view episodes of dekantā TV’s ‘Japanese Whisky Lockdown’ and more information about the channel, visit dekanta.com/tv.

Japanese Whisky Lockdown Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wlOJ7LYWI0

Kilara’s showreel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6GH3VQbPro

youtube.com/kaoricomedy
instagram.com/kilaracomedy
twitter.com/kilaracomedy

About dekantā

dekantā offers the world’s largest online selection of authentic Japanese spirits and, since the opening of its online store in 2015, has delivered to 127 countries across every continent in the world. A family owned and run business, dekantā’s founders have been selling collectibles since 1985 and specialize in rare, collectible, and new release single malt Japanese whisky. dekantā offers worldwide delivery on an extensive range of Japanese single malt whisky, Japanese grain whisky and Japanese blended whisky, in addition to Scottish whisky released for the Japanese market only. More recently, Japanese wine has been introduced through the dekantā Cellar, and spirits from wider Asia through dekantā Oriental.

dekanta.com

Follow dekantā on Twitter: @dekantawhisky 

Like dekantā on Facebook: facebook.com/dekantawhisky/

Iron Smoke Distillery Launches Drink Recipe & Tipping Website to Support Bartenders Globally

‘SmokeOutCovid19.com’ will support bartenders across the world affected by the Coronavirus

Fairport, NY — Iron Smoke Distillery launched a new website aimed at helping out-of-work bartenders affected by the Coronavirus. SmokeOutCovid19.com is a portal/host for instructional drink-making recipes and videos uploaded by bartenders. Site visitors can donate directly to out-of-work bartenders and service industry workers.

Since the site launched on March 26th, nearly 100 bartenders from states across the country have joined to share their specialty drinks, connect with others, and receive tips from grateful (and thirsty) patrons,

Iron Smoke Distillery created the site in partnership with Managed Services Team as a way to offer support and assistance to people who have lost their livelihood during the difficult times created by the Coronavirus. The restaurant and beverage industry has been disproportionately hit as measures are implemented to reduce the risk and curb the spread of the virus. SmokeOutCovid19.com’s mission is to help supplement lost income, perhaps teach people a new skill, and allow them to continue to enjoy one of life’s best pleasures– a properly made cocktail.

CEO and Founder, Tommy Brunett said “To address the new catchphrase – ‘We’ll all get through this together’ – we as a company wanted to create a united front of friends, families, regular guests and fans of each and everyone of these champions of the service industry to help support them in this time of desperate need for a financial life jacket. This will also be glorious for people who are stuck at home for awhile and need cocktail ideas as well.”

Bartenders who are interested in participating can upload recipes and/or videos by making a free account and connect their Venmo or PayPal account to receive donations. All proceeds will go directly to the participating bartenders. Those looking to help can visit SmokeOutCovid19.com to look for drink recipes and videos and “tip their bartender” by donating to their individual page.

The new website comes in conjunction with the announcement that Iron Smoke Distillery will pivot to hand sanitizer production. In conjunction with Rochester Midland Corporation, they will produce hand sanitizer en masse for communities where it is most needed. 2,000 bottles of the first production will be donated to local first responders, and each subsequent batch will have a portion earmarked for community donations.

About Iron Smoke Distillery

Based in Fairport, NY Iron Smoke Distillery produces distinct world-class bourbons and whiskeys that can be enjoyed neat or in classic cocktails. They produce the multiple award-winning whiskeys, including Iron Smoke Straight Bourbon Whiskey, Iron Smoke CASKet Strength, Iron Smoke Single Barrel Special Reserve, Rattlesnake Rosie’s Apple Pie Whiskey and Rattlesnake Rosie’s Maple Bacon Whiskey in their 21,000-square foot facility. As a New York State small-batch farm distillery, Iron Smoke uses local ingredients from Finger Lakes family farms within a 50-mile radius of our distillery. The stripped mash from production is returned to the farms to be used as feed for their livestock. Their tasting room, the “Watering Room and Sideshow” features a fully licensed bar with all New York State Wines, Beers, and Spirits as well as weekly live music and world-class entertainment. Winners of the prestigious Double Gold in last year’s North American Bourbon & Whiskey competition, recipient of a 95.5 rating in the 2018 Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible and named Forbes Magazine one of the “10 Best Bourbons Outside of Kentucky.”

John Distilleries Manufactures Hand Sanitizers to Combat COVID -19

India’s leading alco-bev establishment – John Distilleries Pvt Ltd announces the production of hand sanitizers at its distilleries in Bangalore, Davanagere and Goa. These supplies will be donated to healthcare institutions in India to help overcome the shortage of hand sanitisers due to the Covid-19 outbreak.

John Distilleries is joining hands with the Government to combat the shortage of hand sanitizers by using the extra neutral alcohol (ENA) at its facilities to manufacture Alcohol Based sanitizers.

‘The demand for sanitisers especially in healthcare institutions is growing rapidly, and we would like to provide our facilities and services to assist the Government in overcoming this short supply. During these critical times, we believe it is our duty to do what we can to help authorities fight this pandemic successfully,’ said Paul P John, Chairman- John Distilleries Pvt. Ltd.

While John Distilleries is taking on this social responsibility in India, The Sazerac Company, North America’s largest producer of distilled spirits and investor in John Distilleries, is taking on massive production of hand sanitisers to combat demand across America. John Distilleries still recommends that washing your hands exhaustively with soap and water is the best way to clean hands. Hand sanitizers are suitable in the absence of water.

About John Distilleries

Established in 1996, John Distilleries grew to be a leading spirit company in less than a decade, not just in India but across the globe. With a dedicated team of nearly 2000 employees working across 10 manufacturing units spread over 7 states across India, John Distilleries has a strong portfolio of brands in various liquor categories including the globally renowned Paul John Single Malts. For more details, please contact publicrelations@jdl.in

Get ready, we’re bringing Smokehead to you.

For the next few weeks we’ll be hosting a variety of Instagram live events including tastings, boilermakers, cocktail making sessions, food, music, interviews with fellow Smokeheads, giveaways and other cool Smokehead stuff.

Grab a bottle and tune into our first Instagram live on Sunday 12^th at 5pm with our brand ambassador Mikey Sim and custom Ducati aficionado, Tyler Lunceford. We’ll be talking the Original Smokehead, and maybe getting a bit sidetracked.

If you need a refill, head over to Smokehead.com, and we will do our best to get a bottle to you before we go live.

SHOP NOW

During this challenging time, £1 from the sale of each bottle purchased from www.smokehead.com will be donated to Drinks Trust to support their mission of providing care and support to our hospitality colleagues.

Stay safe, stay indoors, Smokeheads