ralfy.com tries a good Ardbeg !

https://youtu.be/ln7ZLtJM98Q

WOOD YOU BELIEVE IT? THE GLENALLACHIE DISTILLERY UNVEILS NEW RANGE OF SIGNATURE EXPRESSIONS 

Billy Walker’s wood management expertise on show with the
launch of The GlenAllachie Wood Finish range

The GlenAllachie Distillery is extending its range of whiskies with the launch of its first-ever range of limited edition wood finishes.

The GlenAllachie Wood Finish range comprises the 8 year old Koval Rye Quarter Cask Wood Finish; the 10 year old Port Wood Finish; and the 12 year old Pedro Ximenez Sherry Wood Finish.

This trio of signature expressions of The GlenAllachie Distillery’s finest single malt whiskies highlight the wood management expertise of Master Distiller, Billy Walker.

The 8 year old Koval Rye Quarter Cask Wood Finish (RRSP: £54.99) was first matured in American oak wood barrels and then underwent an additional maturation period in organic Rye quarter casks from Chicago’s Koval Distillery. The greater liquid-to-wood ratio in the smaller casks means that the rich spicy flavour of the Rye is released more rapidly.

With its distinctive ruby red colour, the 10 year old Port Wood Finish (RRSP: £54.99) was first matured in American oak barrels before being re-racked into vintage Ruby Port wood pipes sourced in North Portugal. The Port wood influence adds flavour, depth and complexity to the whisky, with sweet notes of heather honey, butterscotch and treacle.

The 12 year old Pedro Ximenez Sherry Wood Finish (RRSP £58.99) is a rich sumptuous whisky with great depth. This whisky was matured for over ten years in American oak wood barrels before its additional maturation in Pedro Ximenez puncheons. This process enriches the flavour, creating a sweeter, fruitier whisky.

To create the new range of wood finishes, Walker first hand-selected barrels from among the 50,000 casks in the 16 warehouses on site at the distillery near Aberlour for the additional maturation period. Casks were sourced from a variety of bodegas and distilleries that shared Walker’s culture of careful wood management and with whom he had established relationships with through his long career in the whisky industry.

The length of time spent in each of the special casks varies, with Walker constantly monitoring the whisky to decide when it’s ready.

Commenting on the new range, Walker said: “I’m incredibly excited to unveil this new range featuring GlenAllachie’s first-ever range of wood finishes. Wood management is something I’m very passionate about and we invest a substantial amount of time and money into sourcing exceptional casks from all around the world. I look for casks that will complement and enhance the GlenAllachie spirit, with the different woods making a greater, or sometimes subtle, influence, and taking us on a journey of new flavours.”

“The rich golden Rye Quarter Cask delivers a hit of spice and cloves with classic GlenAllachie characteristics of honey and butterscotch, whereas the ruby red Port Pipe has a sweeter and fruitier flavour, with honey, damson and rose hips. Finally the Pedro Ximenez, deep rich mahogany in colour, delivers what the eye promises; raisins, sultanas, toffee and dark chocolate. With this first release you can see the impact that a quality and carefully chosen cask can have on our whisky, from the amazing array of colours to the intensity of flavours in the final whisky.’’

Further information on the distillery and company can be found at www.theglenallachie.com

Facebook – @TheGlenAllachie

Twitter – @TheGlenAllachie

Instagram – @theglenallachie_

TASTING NOTES

8yo Koval Rye Wood Finish 

10yo Port Wood Finish 

12yo Pedro Ximenez Wood Finish 

In Pursuit of Something GreaterThere comes a point in every journey, and any endeavour, where bold decisions must be made. With the help of Dutch film-maker Juriaan Booij, we’ve created a film about two decisive turning points that have helped define the course of The Macallan.

The first of these touches on the origins of our decision to use sherry-seasoned oak casks, tracing this pursuit through to today where you meet one of our team, David. He’s responsible for ensuring the best European oak is used in the cooperages of Jerez de la Frontera. Here, the oak staves are turned into casks, filled with sherry and held for two years before making their voyage to the North of Scotland and our Distillery on the River Spey.

The second decision centres on our new Distillery, the destination of our casks. You will meet George, our Head of Engineering, who helped us to build a new brand home that embodies our pursuit of the exceptional, designed in harmony with the beauty of our natural surroundings and providing a foundation for future generations.

WATCH THE FILM

Port Ellen 39 Year Old Untold Stories: The Spirit Safe

Distilled in 1978 at the iconic Port Ellen distillery on Islay, this limited edition has been produced from the original distillery’s last remaining stocks. Set to re-open in 2021, Port Ellen was almost lost to history when it closed in 1983.

This expression has been aged for 39 years in a combination of American oak ex-bourbon casks and refill European sherry casks. Limited to just 1,500 individually numbered bottles, Port Ellen 39 Year Old Untold Stories: The Spirit Safe is presented in a stunning case complete with two sets of keys, in homage to the real spirit safe at the distillery.

£4,500

Mark’s Whisky Ramblings 263: Port Charlotte 16 Year Old 2001 The Heretic

Mark Dermul, Belgian whisky blogger, tries the Heretic! This was the Feis Ile 2018 release from Port Charlotte (from the Bruichladdich Distillery, of course) and is, according to the label ‘the last of the first’, meaning the last casks of the first distillate. It’s a vatting of American oak, rum casks and even French wine casks.

https://youtu.be/9IADgrNz2Rc

Douglas Laing unveils Scallywag “The Chocolate Edition” #2 ahead of World Chocolate Day

Independent Scotch Whisky firm, Douglas Laing & Co. today unveils Scallywag “The Chocolate Edition” #2 Speyside Malt ahead of World Chocolate Day on the 7th of July 2019, exclusively for DouglasLaing.com.

Matured predominantly in Spanish Sherry Butts for 10 Years, the resulting 2009 Vintage Whisky is said to hold within distinct tasting notes of melted milk chocolate, dark treacle and rich stewed fruits. With only 500 bottles available from Sunday 7th July, the hotly-anticipated release is expected to be met with high demand following the sell-out success of the first edition from the previous year.

Each bottle will bear a gold foiled label featuring the familiar Scallywag Fox Terrier upon a background of mouth-watering melted chocolate and be presented in a black printed gift bag. In line with the Douglas Laing philosophy to bottle Scotch Whisky “as natural as it gets”, this release is offered at a high alcohol strength of 48%, aged for 10 years and proudly without chill-filtration.

Chris Leggat, CEO of Douglas Laing & Co. said, “Since the launch of Scallywag “The Chocolate Edition” in 2018, we have been inundated with requests for more! Edition number two features a unique marriage of heavily Sherried Single Malts from some Speyside’s finest distilleries, specially selected for their indulgently cocoa-rich qualities. We had great fun and spent hours perfecting this product. The result is a seriously moreish dram and a great example of why blending Single Malts is really special.”

Scallywag “The Chocolate Edition” #2 will available on DouglasLaing.com from 11am on Sunday, the 7th of July, 2019. 

ABOUT DOUGLAS LAING:

www.douglaslaing.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/scallywagwhisky

Twitter: @remarkablemalts

Instagram: @remarkable_malts

Douglas Laing & Co. is a leading independent Scotch Whisky blender and bottler specialising in the selection and release of Single Cask Single and small batch Malt Scotch Whiskies. The company was founded by Fred Douglas Laing in 1948 and is still owned and run by the Laing family – Fred Laing Jr and his daughter Cara Laing.

Douglas Laing’s Remarkable Regional Malts, the Ultimate Distillation of Scotland’s Malt Whisky Regions, encompasses The Epicurean Lowland Malt Scotch Whisky, Timorous Beastie (Highlands), Scallywag (Speyside), The Gauldrons (Campbeltown), Rock Island (Islands) and Big Peat (Islay). Beyond its Blended Malts expertise, the award-winning Douglas Laing portfolio also includes Provenance, Premier Barrel, Old Particular and XOP, collectively known as the firm’s “Exceptional Single Casks”.

On sale now

FOOD PAIRING
WITH CRAIGELLACHIE AND ABERFELDY MASTERCLASS

Whisky is not just for after-dinner drinking and Dewar’s global malts ambassador Georgie Bell will show you why. With a range of tasty pairings, she will demonstrate quite how well whisky works with food.

 Food Pairing with Craigellachie and Aberfeldy

Host: Dewar’s global malt ambassador Georgie Bell
Saturday 28 September, 2.45pm-3.30pm
£35

For too long whisky has been considered “just” an after-dinner drink. No more! From chocolate to cheese, you can pair almost anything with whisky. Brand ambassador Georgie Bell will be bringing a range of whiskies from Aberfeldy and Craigellachie to show how well you can pair food with a dram.

The Line-up

Aberfeldy 12yo
Aberfeldy 16yo Madeira Cask
Aberfeldy 21yo
Craigellachie 13yo
Craigellachie 17yo

Book now

Please note: you must also have a Saturday ticket to Whisky Show to attend this class.

28-29 SEPTEMBER 2019
11.30AM – 6.30PM

Old Billingsgate
1 Old Billingsgate Walk, London EC3R 6DX

Book now

GlenAllachie Wood Finishes

The first ever Wood Finish Series from Billy Walker and his team at GlenAllachie Distillery. Three new expressions, each spending time in specially selected casks. Koval Rye casks, Ruby Port wood pipes & Pedro Ximénez sherry puncheons have been used for this first round of special releases…

Buy Now

BenRiach Batch 16
At Loch Fyne Whiskies

Don’t miss out on Batch 16 of BenRiach’s highly rated bottling series. Master Blender Rachel Barrie brings together 24 hand-selected casks showcasing the richness and diversity of BenRiach Distillery. Click the button below to shop the full BenRiach Batch 16 range.

Buy Now