Glengoyne serves up latest Teapot Dram

Glengoyne Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky will unveil the latest batch of its coveted Teapot Dram this week, just in time to toast the festive season.

Matured in first fill Oloroso sherry oak casks, Glengoyne Teapot Dram V is teeming with brown sugar, sweet fruits and soft spices, with a natural colour of dark mahogany. Bottled unchillfiltered and at cask strength, just 3,138 bottles of Teapot Dram V will be released, available exclusively from the Glengoyne Distillery shop or at Glengoyne.com.

The Teapot Dram was created in tribute to an old Glengoyne Distillery tradition: for over 150 years, workers would be given three fingers of whisky, three times a day. The less seasoned workers would, to save face, discreetly pour some of theirs into a copper teapot on the windowsill. Their older colleagues – veterans of the dram, one and all – would intersperse official drams with unofficial “cups of tea” from the teapot, ensuring none went to waste. Iain Weir, Marketing Director for Glengoyne, said: “There’s a great affection for the Teapot Dram among Glengoyne enthusiasts, and we are sure this edition will be warmly received. It’s a whisky with a great story behind it, and one that’s very special to everyone at Glengoyne because it brings to life the history of the Distillery and the whisky-makers who preceded us.

“With Christmas and New Year around the corner, this would make a really special gift for whisky lovers – and with just 3,138 bottles in this batch, it’ll be an exclusive one too.”

Glengoyne Teapot Dram V is bottled at 59.6% and, because the daily dram would never be taken from an old cask, this is a deliberately young and bold malt. It will retail at £90.

Glengoyne Distillery is owned by one of Scotland’s leading independent, family-owned distillers, Ian Macleod Distillers. Glengoyne runs the slowest stills in Scotland to build up fruity richness and fill the finest Oloroso Sherry casks.  No one takes more time and care.

www.glengoyne.com

TASTING NOTES:

Appearance

Dark mahogany

Nose

Porridge topped with brown sugar; rum and raisin ice cream; strawberries with a sprinkling of pepper

Taste

Initially sweetness gives way to rich, spicy oak, cinnamon swirl and walnuts

Finish

Massively long. Oak gives way to pepper then, after a considerable period, fresh pears wish you a fond farewell.

Notes to Editors:

Glengoyne, being uncompromising in its pursuit of excellence, runs its stills slower than any other distillery in order to create the rich, bold flavours for which the brand is known. The Glengoyne Highland Single Malt range is matured in the finest oak casks from within its traditional dunnage warehouses.

With seven new wonderful whiskies to choose from, picking the perfect present may be puzzling. Focus on the flavour profiles and dig deep into the tasting notes and you’re sure to find the perfect gift for giving – especially to yourself!

AND FOR EVERY BOTTLE PURCHASED UNTIL DEC. 24, WE’RE DONATING $10 TO BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS CANADA!

CASK No. 7.139  SALSA VERDE

11 years old; 1st fill barrel; 60.5%; Young & spritely

Fresh and green; eucalyptus and melon-cucumber smoothie followed by buttered croissants, whilst strawberry, basil and mint whizzed through the mouth neat. Water turned the aromas and flavours more herbal, crème de menthe and salsa verde with cayenne pepper in the finish.

CASK No. 64.75  FEAST OF FRUITS

12 years old; 1st fill barrel; 60.8%; Spicy & sweet

Three fruit marmalade, strawberry banana milkshake and fruit flavoured herbal shisha tobacco were followed on the palate by watermelon with ground pepper, salt and lime. Water changed the aroma to American pancakes with blueberries and the flavour became a mango banana juice.

CASK No. 55.38  FLAMING RED WINE PUNCH

15 years old; 2nd fill Sauternes hogshead; 58.1%; Spicy & sweet

Boozy rum baba, seriously sherried jelly berry trifle and a Feuerzangenbowle (flaming red wine punch!) made the taste fruity and spicy. Water added sweetness in the form of a spicy sponge cake and a Planter’s Punch to finish. This whisky previously inhabited an ex-bourbon refill hogshead.

CASK No. G8.6  JAZZED UP BANANA SPLIT

26 years old; refill hogshead; 59.7%; Juicy, oak & vanilla

The nose suggests sawdust on soft fruits (plum, peach, pineapple) and baskets of dried flowers, then buttered popcorn, potpourri and sumptuous banana splits. The palate balances sweetness (butterscotch, toffee, candy necklaces) with chili jam, tree bark and menthol vapour rub.

CASK No. 1.190  SMOKY CHIPOTLE BLOODY MARY

21 years old; refill hogshead; 56.2%; Spicy & sweet

Eccentricity at its best! Aromas of beef mince curry, crayfish cocktail and sweet herbal sausages were followed by a hot/cold sensation in the mouth. With water everything changed; prawn cocktail chips and crab cakes with sweet chili sauce.

CASK No. 53.236  CULINARY CANNONBALLS

16 years old; refill hogshead; 64.1%; Lightly peated

The flavour cannon, loaded with dark fruits soaked in rum, flambéed banana, prawn tempura and toffee, was lit by a fuse of muscovado sugar. A sweet smoke explosion shook the ground filling the air with ash, chewy soot, gunpowder remnants, rye bread and spun sugar.

CASK No. 3.270  SURF N TURF IN A CAMEL’S SADDLE BAG

18 years old; refill butt; 55.8%; Oily & coastal

The nose has odd combinations – honey-coated kippers, toffee Pavlova, Fisherman’s Friends, syrupy campfire waffles, surf and turf and camel saddle bags. The palate has barbecued prawns, treacle toffee, ginger cake, prunes, leather, cigars, dark rum – and big sherry and smoke.

SMWS Canada

FESTIVE FAVOURITES

For the whisky connoisseur in your life

THE GLENTURRET BOTTLE YOUR OWN  

A personalised, single cask edition complete with a hand written label detailing the name of the person the bottle was filled for and the bottling date. Our latest exceptional cask has been named after the Scottish actor Gerard Butler who has close connections to the local area. Get your bottle of bottle your own here.

THE FAMOUS GROUSE 40YO DECANTER

Just 276 decanters have been created. Each whisky in this rare blend was carefully selected for its unique character. Hand-engraved with a Scottish silver stopper and luxury wooden gift box, the bottle comes complete with a certificate of authenticity. Get your limited edition decanter here.

THE GLENTURRET FLY’S 16 MASTERS EDITION

Inspired by a photo, unearthed from the back of a cupboard at Scotland’s oldest working whisky distillery, dating from 1905 and featuring 16 stillmen, along with a collie dog this whisky is the winner of Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible Liquid Gold Award 2017 and comes beautifully presented in a handmade tweed gift bag. Purchase your bottle here.

DON’T FORGET

To guarantee delivery in time for Christmas, orders have to be placed online by December 20th 2016.

If you’re ordering for delivery in the UK you still have time to get those last minute Christmas gifts so long as your order is with us by 12 noon on Wednesday 21st December and you select Parcelforce 24 hour service.  Alternatively, the shop will be open up to 6pm on Christmas Eve so if you want to call in and have a dram while you choose some last minute presents or a bottle for yourself then we’d love to see you.  The shop will then be closed for the Christmas period, re-opening on Tuesday 3rd January 2016 (see online for full details of our opening times).  Please note, that from January 2016 our new opening hours will be 8am to 6pm Monday to Saturday, and closed on Sundays.

Below are a few of our latest arrivals to have a browse through to give you some inspiration.  They range from the very affordable new Tomintoul Tlath through to the very special, and rarely seen, Speymalt Macallan 1945.  Don’t forget, we don’t just sell whisky – check out our Christmas gift guide for all sorts of goodies.

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and hope your Christmas stocking will be full of lots of lovely bottles of your favourite drams!

Sláinte!

Fran and Ken

Arkwrights Whisky and Wines

www.whiskyandwines.com

DARK SPIRITS HOLIDAY GIFT IDEAS

 Scotch – A Distinguished Dram

Duncan Taylor Glenrothes 45yr – This is a whiskey for a collector. The Tantalus line of single malts from Duncan Taylor are all very rare and very old. Each bottle is a hand blown decanter bottle and is set in a handmade Tantalus constructed from the actual cask the whiskey was aged in! Glenrothes is a special Highland Single Malt producer, and this is a special bottling of their whiskey.

Bourbon and Rye…With a Twist

Whistle Pig Old World Straight Rye 12yr TPS Blend – This is a treat, and it was a treat to make! We received a kit with individual bottles of WP 12yr Port, Sauternes, and Madeira finishes and a graduated cylinder. From there we played mad whiskey scientists and blended to our palates content. What we decided on was 40% Madeira, 45% Sauterne, 15% Port. The result is a full-bodied rye that has all the spicy edges rounded off, a rich and deep flavor of fruit and spice, and a long finish that keeps you coming back for more. It’s a special bottle of unique rye and only available here at The Party Source!

Jefferson’s Reserve Bourbon Groth Barrel TPS Private Barrel – This is private store selection of Jefferson’s Reserve that has been aged in a Napa Cabernet Sauvignon barrel from Groth Cellars! The bourbon is soft and full bodied with a nice base of caramel and baking spices. Layered in are flavors of red fruit and a kiss of tannin to balance out the sweeter caramel and red fruit notes. Overall it’s a delicious and unique bourbon that is great for winter sipping.

thepartysource.com

95 Riviera Drive, Bellevue, KY 41073  (859) 291-4007

Ralfy talks about tasting with Whisky Review 614 – Ralfy’s Whisky Tasting Event 2016

Yamazakura Blended Whisky

Yamazakura is a blended whisky from Japan, created from a combination of four malt & grain whiskies. Yamazakura takes its name from two Japanese symbols, ‘Yama’, meaning mountain and ‘Sakura’ which refers to cherry trees, symbol of ‘ephemeral beauty’.

Only £46.39

Day 20 of the Scotch Whisky Advent Calendar 

Scotch Whisky Advent Calendar 3rd Edition Day 20 Blog #155 – Secret Spirits 26 Year Old Speyside Single Malt

Welcome to the second ever cask for Secret Spirits and of course with yours truly being in full control (I use that term extremely loosely) of what gets chosen and where everything ends up on our 25 day countdown I just had to have a whisky that could make it into the final week.

26 years old from an undisclosed distillery in Speyside. I can tell you that is an old distillery that was founded in the mid 1800’s and that it has been known for innovations through the years. There you go can’t say more than that you will have to do the rest of the detective work.

Secret Spirits Speyside 26 Year Old aged in a refill Bourbon cask # 5575 and bottled with no caramel or chill filtration at the cask strength of 55.9%

Color:   Rich Gold

Nose:   Bread and Butter pudding complete with warming spices and raisins topped with cream.

Palate:   Richer on the palate than the nose lets on. Reminds me of going into World of Spice in Seattle, seems like a multitude of different spices all vying for attention at once. Sweet and savory, naughty and nice. Just a great rich flavor.

Finish: Stewed citrus medley with a brown sugar infusion.

This is one multi layered whisky and looking back at my tasting notes from January when I had this sample in front of me I can see why we eagerly grabbed this cask.

Even though we have started off with two “Secret” whiskies I do promise that in the future we will have something with a distillery name on the label. Both these whiskies were too good to pass up and we thought it fitting to have both of them Secret this time around.

On this day in the 2nd edition we had the absolutely stunning 25 Year Old Aromatic Orange Tobacco Glenrothes from Wemyss Malts (I still have a bottle). It was such a shame that we only got 6 bottles in Canada.

For those of you that loved our Speyside 26 Year Old Single Malt please email me at jonathan@secretspirits.com and I can direct you to a retailer that will fulfill your needs.

Lets see how Whiskylassie is doing over there in the East with today’s dram here.

I have to say that being in a position to add Secret Spirits name to the high quality independent bottlers that we are sourcing whisky from is an absolute privilege. I have to continually pinch myself make sure that I’m not dreaming as this wonderful spirit called whisky has taken Cindy and I to places and people that we would never have had the pleasure of making part of our lives.

Thank you so much for supporting us in this endeavor and for your kind comments and feedback over the years. I am looking forward to adding another couple of Secret Spirits whiskies to the mix in 2017 and promise to search high and low for some exceptional casks.

Tomorrow we are in for a treat as we hit hump day and start the downhill run to Christmas. A final offering from the folks at Wemyss lies in your little day 21 cubby hole. No peeking.

See you on the morrow

Cheers

Jonathan – taster of secrets

http://www.singlemalting.com/category/whisky-advent-calendar-2016/

The Lakes Distillery means business with new Master Blender.

In a significant move towards affirming its status as a world-class distillery, The Lakes Distillery, Cumbria’s only distillery, has appointed a new Master Blender.

DHAVALL GANDHI has taken the blending helm at The Lakes Distillery and aims to help guide it to further success. Dhavall joins the multi-award-winning team in the run up to the release of the much-anticipated The Lakes Malt – Cumbria’s only single malt whisky – in May 2018.

As well as being a Chartered Scientist in Whisky Distilling – and alongside a wealth of qualifications including a Master’s Degree in Brewing and Distilling from the globally renowned Heriot-Watt University and an IBD diploma in Distilling – Dhavall brings with him high level experience from both the US Management Consulting sector and the Scottish whisky industry, having left industry giants Macallan to take up the role at The Lakes Distillery.

Prior to working with Macallan, Dhavall held a range of Technical and Supply Chain strategy roles at Heineken.

Bringing a unique blend of exceptional expertise in; finance, creative strategy and distilling science, Dhavall has been appointed by the team at The Lakes Distillery to make the most of his rare cocktail of skills and drive both the brand and its products forward into the future.

Dhavall said:

“I’m looking forward to helping to create something new from the ground up and to having the rare opportunity to influence the house style of The Lakes Malt.

“The Lakes Distillery is a well-executed project and a Cumbrian success story. The state-of-the-art distillery offers a blank canvas and a potential for creativity that is unrivalled within the industry. This is my opportunity to continue telling the story through our brands.”

Paul Currie, Managing Director of The Lakes Distillery said:

“We are delighted that one of the leading Master Blenders in the whisky industry has now joined our team.

“Dhavall will play a key role in ensuring that every bottle of each of our brands is of the very highest quality and he also brings many innovative ideas to ensure that all our products – whisky, gin and vodka – always offer something very special and unique. With our first official Lakes Malt to be launched in 2018, Dhavall joins us at a very exciting time.”

The Lakes Distillery, which is chaired by esteemed North East entrepreneur Nigel Mills, is Cumbria’s first whisky distillery for over 100 years. It produces a range of award winning spirits including The ONE – the first British blended whisky, The Lakes Gin and The Lakes Vodka. The Lakes Distillery also boasts a world class Visitor Centre offering tours and tastings and a Bistro overseen by Michelin-star-winning Executive Chef Terry Laybourne.

To find out more please visit www.lakesdistillery.com/.

Glenfiddich Experimental Series

Now back in stock, the incredibly popular Glenfiddich Experimental Series combines the brand’s passion for pushing Scotch whisky boundaries and collaboration with trailblazers from the whisky world and beyond.

Orders will be dispatched the week commencing 19th December for delivery in time for Christmas.

Free delivery on UK orders over £100 Worldwide delivery available

Project XX

Project XX (“twenty”) is the result of one of the most ambitious malt experiements undertaken by Glenfiddich. Bringing together 20 whisky experts from 16 countries around the world, Project XX is a combination of each expert’s selected cask from the Glenfiddich warehouse, carefully married together in a small batch vatting by Malt Master, Brian Kinsman.

Deep gold in colour, this Speyside Single Malt has the classic Glenfiddich fruitiness on the nose with hints of apple blossom and ripe pear, balanced with oak, creamy vanilla and subtle spice. The palate is refined and balanced with candy floss sweetness complemented by toasted almonds, cinnamon and a rich vanilla oakiness. The finish is long lasting with sweet oak notes lingering.

£50 Buy Now

IPA Experiment

The world’s first Single Malt Scotch Whisky finished in India Pale Ale craft beer casks. This expression is the fruit of a collaboration with a local Speyside craft brewer and imbues the whisky with zesty citrus and tangy hops from the oak casks that previously held a bold Speyside IPA.

With delicate ripe green apple, pear and spring blossom on the nose, a vibrant citrus note followed by sweet vanilla and fresh hops on the palate and a long lasting sweetness with subtle green hops on the finish, this unique single malt is bottled at 43% abv.

£45 Buy Now