ONE YEAR ON AND MATURING WELL

70,000 visitors and 80,000 litres of spirit produced during The Lakes Distillery’s first year 

England’s largest whisky distillery raises a glass as the country’s newest single malt whisky reaches a major milestone in its maturation and is already surpassing the distiller’s high expectations.

The Lakes Distillery started production of its Lakes Single Malt in December 2014, the same month it officially opened its doors to visitors. The spirit, which will officially become whisky after three years maturing in oak casks, will be ready for drinking from spring 2018. Early feedback from the distillery’s team, which includes some of the UK’s most foremost whisky experts such as Dr Alan Rutherford and Chris Anderson, is The Lakes Single Malt is on track to be one of the finest.  ‘After only one year maturing, already it is smooth and sweet and very drinkable’ says Distillery Manager John Drake. ‘It is quite outstanding.’

Founder and managing director of The Lakes Distillery, Paul Currie, who founded and ran the award-winning Isle of Arran Distillers before opening England’s largest distillery, said: “This has been a phenomenal year for the business – the reaction from the drinks industry, the public and the local businesses in the North West has been fantastic.

“We feel honoured to have been awarded a string of accolades from different industry bodies in our first year. Our spirits have picked up awards at the IWSC and International Spirits Challenge (ISC), while the Bistro at The Distillery has been listed in Hardens and the Michelin Good Food Guide 2016 and picked up Open Table Diner’s Choice Awards several months in a row.”

In just 12 months, The Lakes Distillery has also become one of Cumbria’s leading tourist attractions welcoming more than 70,000 visitors through its doors. Meanwhile the acclaimed Bistro at The Lakes Distillery has built up a tremendous reputation being popular with tourists and locals, thanks to head chef Andrew Beaton, with renowned chef Terry Laybourne overseeing the bistro. The Lakes Distillery has also been named as a ‘Top 50 Cumbrian Icon’ in only its first year.

Paul continued: “We are situated in one of the most stunning places in the world which we think gives us a real edge and that, combined with the unique spirits we are producing, makes us a strong contender in this industry. Our aim is to ensure The Lakes Malt is recognised as one of the finest malt whiskies in the world, making us a challenger to Scotland.”

Already the creators of artisan spirits The Lakes Gin and The Lakes Vodka, The Lakes Distillery offers a blended British Isles whisky called The ONE which is currently available in a limited edition sherry cask finished bottle, marking the distillery’s first birthday.

For more information on The Lakes Distillery, please visit http://www.lakesdistillery.com/ or for further details on The Bistro at The Lakes Distillery, please visit http://www.bistroatthedistillery.com/.

Picture caption 1: The Lakes Distillery team in the warehouse with managing director and founder Paul Currie with Nigel Mills Chairman of The Lakes Distillery (L-R) in the centre.

For more information on The Lakes Distillery, please visit www.lakesdistillery.com

For further details on The Bistro at The Lakes Distillery, please visit http://www.bistroatthedistillery.com/ 

• The Lakes Distillery, England’s newest craft distillery, opened to the public in December 2014. The Lakes Single Malt began production on 16th December 2014 and will be available late 2018, and its blended whisky from the British Isles, called The ONE, the Lakes Gin and the Lakes Vodka are available to buy now.
• Six miles from Keswick along the A66 or a similar distance from Cockermouth The Lakes Distillery is next to Bassenthwaite Lake, in an area of unimaginable beauty encircled by Cumbrian fells
• The experienced team behind the Lakes Distillery includes managing director Paul Currie who co-founded the Arran Distillery, Master Distiller Chris Anderson with over 30 years’ experience and Alan Rutherford a former Production Director of Diageo who renovated the historic buildings of an old Victorian Model Farm next to the famous river Derwent and are producing a new world-class blended whisky, single malt, gin and vodka.  The Lakes Distiller has John Drake, from Cumbria, as their Distillery Manager.  Tour and Retail Manager Brian Hill has worked in the Scotch whisky tourism industry for many year
• The water from the famous River Derwent, with its source high up in the fells, a team steeped in experience of producing spirits, and perfect conditions for distilling create a very special range of spirits
• National retailers Harvey Nichols and Majestic now stock The ONE and The Lakes Gin in all stores.  Fortnum & Mason also have The Lakes Gin on its shelves
• The Bistro at The Distillery is overseen by Michelin star chef Terry Laybourne and won OpenTable Diner’s Choice Award for three months running in Cumbria and Keswick.  The Bistro at the distillery employs local staff and offers indoor and outdoor dining options.  Early evening menu offers 2 courses for £15.95 and 3 courses for £18.95.

As a very special year at Ardbeg draws to a close, I think it’s fair to conclude that 2015 will go down in history as one of our finest.

This was the year we celebrated the past, present and future of Ardbeg. So join me for one last trip through time, as I share my favourite moments from the past 12 months…

We glimpsed the future…

On 30th May 2015, a record-breaking 15,000 Ardbeggians came together to celebrate Ardbeg Day.

Everywhere we looked, we found Committee Members embracing the spirit of Ardbeg’s bicentenary year. From robots, time travel tunnels and Shortie Circuit racing, to the uncorking of Ardbeg Perpetuum, it gave me tremendous pleasure to see the Committee celebrating in true Ardbeggian style.

Thanks to you, our 200th Anniversary marked not only the biggest Ardbeg Day ever, but quite possibly the best. You can re-live the highlights here

….and tasted the past

This year, Jackie and I had the privilege to host not one, but three special 200th Anniversary dinners here at the Distillery. These were truly momentous evenings, and we were delighted that so many Committee Members brought and shared rare expressions from over the years. My thanks to all those who made the journey to be with us.

…as the Ardbeg Haar rolled in

Committee Members across the world were among the first to experience the incredible Ardbeg Haar – a unique way to ‘sip’ a cloud of Ardbeg. We look forward to rolling it out to more Ardbeg Embassies next year. Take it from me, it’s an experience not to be mist!The final, final frontierExactly 3 years, 7 months and 27 days after Ardbeg spirit blasted into orbit, Dr Bill Lumsden published his highly anticipated White Paper on the mysteries of micro-gravity maturation. As our adventure in space came to an end, we launched one final, fleeting Committee bottling of Ardbeg Supernova.

If you haven’t already done so, I recommend watching our Final Frontier Film: the Pier Review, starring none other than Dr Bill Lumsden and two equally eminent peers.

In conclusion…

On behalf of everyone at the Distillery, I’d like to wish every one of you a happy new year, and thank you for making 2015 so momentous. How can we possibly top it next year? We’re just going to have to keep you in the dark a little longer…

Slàinte!

Micky Heads

Committee Chairman

(Please click HERE fro details on the Ardbeg Committee)

Whisky wander: a Spirited Journey Through the Past Century with Alwynne Gwilt

The world of whisky is an ever-changing place. From the popularity of blends, through to the rise of single malts and the growth of world whiskies, it’s been one heck of a tasty ride for whisky consumers this past century. In this Grand Tasting, Miss Whisky Founder & Editor, Alwynne Gwilt, returns for her third year to Victoria Whisky Festival, to take attendees through the thrilling history of whisky since the late 1800s. Learn about the art of blending, hear tales of Prohibition secrecy and success, discover how consumers turned their palates to single malt, and find out about the future of whisky. CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS

Thursday January 14^th, 2016

www.victoriawhiskyfestival.com

Scotland

Glengoyne 25 Year Old Single Malt Whisky (750ml) $299.99

K&L Wine Merchants
http://www.klwines.com
Phone: 877-KLWines (toll free 877-559-4637)
Email: wine@klwines.com
San Francisco, Redwood City, Hollywood CA

Happy New Year from everyone at the Kensington Wine Market!  

2015 has been an exciting year full of big changes for the Kensington Wine Market. We would like to thank our customers, suppliers, agents and friends for all of their support and patronage in 2015.  

Our year started with a bang when Whisky Magazine ranked us Second in the Icons of Whisky Rest of the World, Whisky Retailer of the Year Single Outlet. We were surprised and very honoured by the recognition. We launched a revamped www.kensingtonwinemarket.com website in March which we are very proud of. We are continuing to improve and build on it moving forward. On April 1, Andrew Ferguson, our world renowned whisky expert and employee of 13 years, purchased the Kensington Wine Market. Andrew is hoping to build on the sterling legacy of Nancy Carten who founded the business in 1992. Nancy continues to remain involved at KWM during this period of transition. Later in the year Kensington Wine Market was awarded Calgary Area Retailer of the Year by the Alberta Liquor Store Association. The best recognition comes when given by your peers – making this a very humbling honour. We also were thrilled to add two talented new members to our team, Evan Eckersley and Bryan Childs. Both bring an expertise in wine to our shop, with Evan also specialized in whisky and Bryan coming from a bartending background. 

2015 was not without its challenges, but it was also full of rewards and successes. We have an excellent team as we look towards 2016, and everyone is excited about the year ahead. We look forward to working with all our partners, agents, friends and customers to continue offering the best service in Calgary. 

We wish everyone a Safe, Prosperous and Very Happy New Year. 

Sláinte! 

Andrew Ferguson and the Team at Kensington Wine Market

www.kensingtonwinemarket.com

If ever a year arrived promising opportunity for Canadian whisky, 2016 is it. Once again, sales are increasing: for top shelf whiskies surging up by double digits.

It’s not that Canadian whisky is suddenly getting better. Canada has always made connoisseur quality whiskies. What has changed is that bartenders and aficionados are discovering and pouring these great whiskies. Want to see why the insiders are so excited? Taste a few of these:

Gooderham & Worts is a new whisky with a long history. Dr. Don Livermore, the master blender at Hiram Walker Distillery in Windsor, Ontario, created it in 2015. Dr. Don applied two decades experience as a whisky maker and his Ph.D. in brewing and distilling to create this masterpiece. He often draws on more than a century of whisky recipes (and trade secrets) found in the Hiram Walker archives, but this juicy four-grain whisky is his alone. Balance, complexity, mouth feel, flavour: it is just gorgeous.

Alberta Premium Dark Horse has become the favourite of Canadian bartenders for making cocktails. It is also a fine sip on its own. A classic high-rye whisky (92%), it is rich in the spices, flowers, earthiness and sweetness that discriminating drinkers demand in their rye-based cocktails. In the U.S. you can find it in liquor stores labeled as Alberta Rye Dark Batch (darn those trade marks!).

Canadian Rockies 21 year old is all corn whisky. Tuned to a discerning Asian palate, with its subtle exotic fruits it is lush in the mouth and rewards thoughtful drinkers with a new flavour palette for the own palates. This is the Canadian whisky that Taiwan’s top bar tenders and connoisseurs are raving about.

Crown Royal Hand Selected Barrel is as small batch as it is possible to be: single barrel whisky from the makers of Canada’s best selling dram. Crown Royal calls this whisky “Coffey Rye” as it is distilled in an ancient Coffey still, filling the still house with aromas of chocolate and ripe bananas. Once bottled, each batch really has its own personality, some deep in bourbon territory while others are rich in the flavours of traditional rye.

Forty Creek Three Grain Harmony is the most recent special release from Forty Creek distillery in Grimsby, Ontario. These annual releases tend to sell out quickly so if you can’t find one, their Confederation Oak or Double Barrel whiskies each represent the distillery well. Recent releases tend to evolve in the glass after you pour them so maybe pour two – one to enjoy now and the second to follow it.

Canadian Club 100% Rye is likely the best value for money of any whisky on the planet. This is connoisseur quality whisky priced for new drinkers. All the classic rye notes are there along with the beautiful synthesis of butterscotch, fruit, spice and grain that defines the Canadian Club house style.

Collingwood 21-year-old Rye was a one-off from Brown-Forman. Last year’s Canadian Whisky of the Year in the Canadian Whisky Awards, it sold out quickly most places, but was still on store shelves in Texas, in December. If you see a bottle, for Pete’s sake, don’t hesitate, buy it and enjoy.

These are just a few of the Canadian drams worth tasting in 2016.

Whatever you favour, Happy New 2016.

Happy New Year from The Jolly Toper

http://www.jollytoper.com

We’d like to take a moment to thank you, our customers, for all your support. We’ve had a great year serving you and we greatly look forward to continuing to provide the best selection and service possible for all your party needs. With New Year’s Eve almost here, we have a few great drink ideas for you to have on hand while ringing in 2016! Cheers and have a most Happy New Year,

–The Party Source Liquor Department

www.thepartysource.com

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

Whisky Tours by Paul & Liz

http://www.whiskytours.scot/ & http://www.mcleanscotland.com/