ralfy review 1063 – Kilkerran 12yo @46%vol: (2025)

KNOB CREEK® AND ELI MANNING TEAM UP TO ELEVATE BIG GAME CELEBRATIONS WITH BOLD PICKS ON THE FIELD AND IN YOUR GLASS

Bold Picks celebrates those who boldly stick to their standards and drink what tastes right with a limited-edition Knob Creek^® Single Barrel Bourbon, hand-selected by football legend, Eli Manning.

CLERMONT, Ky., Jan. 23, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — As excitement builds for the 2025 Big Game, Knob Creek^®, an original offering of The Small Batch Bourbon Collection™ and leading American Whiskey, is proud to partner with football legend and New Orleans native, Eli Manning, to introduce Knob Creek^® Bold Picks. To inspire fans to make confident choices, stick to their standards, and savor the perfect pour during the Big Game, Knob Creek^® and Eli Manning introduce ELI MANNING’S 2025 BOLD PICK, a limited-edition Knob Creek^® Single Barrel Bourbon available in select markets nationwide.

Just as Eli Manning’s bold moves have defined unforgettable moments on the field, Knob Creek’s^® bold, full-flavored bourbon elevates celebrations worth savoring. During the Big Game, while some fans reach for the usual, this limited-edition offering honors those who stay true to their own bold picks—whether that means cheering for the underdog or enjoying a glass of Knob Creek^® to elevate the moment.

“As the founding house of Small Batch American Whiskey, our family knows bourbon as well as Eli knows football, so it is an honor to collaborate on this Knob Creek^® limited-edition ELI MANNING’S 2025 BOLD PICK release,” said Eighth Generation Master Distiller, Freddie Noe. “It was a pleasure to welcome Eli to our campus and into the rackhouse, where, together, we developed a full-flavored single barrel bourbon that truly stands out. I’m confident football and bourbon fans will enjoy it as much as we do and I know it’s a whiskey that would make my grandfather and Knob Creek founder, Booker Noe, proud.”

Hand-selected by former professional quarterback and self-proclaimed bourbon fan, Eli Manning, alongside Eighth Generation Master Distiller Freddie Noe, ELI MANNING’S 2025 BOLD PICK is patiently aged for a minimum of nine years in American white oak barrels and bottled at 120 proof, offering a full-flavor liquid that showcases the unmatched quality and craftsmanship for which Knob Creek^® is known. With its complex balance of vanilla and oak, it delivers a rich and unforgettable tasting experience that will elevate game-changing occasions.

“I partnered with Knob Creek^® because it’s my favorite bourbon. Every sip is full of rich, bold flavor, making it perfect for celebrating life’s big moments and wins,” said Manning. “Whether it’s the 9-year-old in an Old-Fashioned or sipping 12-year-old neat for something a little more special, Knob Creek^® is always my go-to, and I’m excited for fans to try my single barrel bold pick.”

Knob Creek^® Single Barrel Bourbon: ELI MANNING‘ S 2025 BOLD PICK is bottled with the following characteristics:

• Proof: 120
• Aroma: Rich vanilla and butterscotch, with subtle cherry and leather notes.
• Taste: Toffee and honey upfront, layered with dark stone fruits and dark chocolate hints.
• Finish: A spicy kick of cinnamon and black pepper, with brown sugar and espresso, leaving a lingering warm taste.

Leading up to the Big Game, Eli Manning will make bold, unapologetic picks around the last playoff games culminating in the Big Game. By celebrating underdog victories and game-winning moments, his picks embody the bold spirit of Knob Creek^®, inspiring fans to make daring decisions of their own. Fans can follow along on Instagram @KnobCreek for his latest insights.

For those looking to make their own bold picks, Knob Creek^® is offering a chance to win an exclusive experience at the Fred B. Noe Distillery, the homeplace of bold bourbon. The winner and three guests will go on a private tour to gain an inside look at the warehouse selection process and the craftsmanship behind Knob Creek’s® renowned flavors, along with airfare, hotel, transportation, and a $1,000 gift card to the American Outpost gift store. Fans can enter the sweepstakes via https://boldpicks.prod.fooji.com/ until February 10, 2025. Entrants must be 21+.

Knob Creek^® Single Barrel Bourbon: ELI MANNING‘ S 2025 BOLD PICK is available for a limited time at local retailers in three key locations, with a suggested retail price of $59.99 for a 750mL bottle:

• The New York Metro area, where Eli built his legendary football career.
• New Orleans, Eli’s hometown.
• Los Angeles, a beloved sports hub known for their bold spirit.

For more information about ELI MANNING’S 2025 BOLD PICK and Knob Creek’s^® award-winning* bourbon and rye portfolios, please visit www.KnobCreek.com or visit us on Facebook and Instagram @KnobCreek.

About Knob Creek^® Bourbon
Knob Creek^® has set the standard for super-premium whiskey for three decades by crafting extraordinary full-flavored bourbon with a rich taste. Knob Creek^® bourbons and ryes are patiently aged to perfection in new, maximum charred American Oak barrels to impart the biggest and fullest flavor on their whiskey. No matter the expression, Knob Creek^® is crafted without shortcuts and embodies the pre-Prohibition style that founding distiller Booker Noe created in 1992. Since then, Knob Creek^® has lived up to such standards with the introduction of Knob Creek® Straight Rye Whiskey in 2012, and later on, Knob Creek^® Single Barrel Select Rye Whiskey. In recent years, Knob Creek^® announced the permanent addition of Knob Creek^® 12 Year Old Bourbon and launched three limited releases, Knob Creek^® 15 Year Old Bourbon, Knob Creek^® 18 Year Old Bourbon, and Knob Creek® Bourbon x Rye. Knob Creek has continued to build out its rye portfolio; the brand announced the addition of an age statement to its flagship rye whiskey, Knob Creek^® 7 Year Old Rye Whiskey, and released Knob Creek^® 10 Year Old Rye Whiskey.

About Suntory Global Spirits
As a world leader in premium spirits, Suntory Global Spirits inspires the brilliance of life, by creating rich experiences for people, in harmony with nature. Known for its craftsmanship of premium whiskies, including Jim Beam^® and Maker’s Mark^®; Japanese whiskies, including Yamazaki^®, Hakushu^®, Hibiki^® and Toki™; and leading Scotch brands including Laphroaig^® and Bowmore®, Suntory Global Spirits also produces leading brands such as Tres Generaciones^® and El Tesoro^® tequila, Roku™ and Sipsmith^® gin, and is a world leader in Ready-To-Drink cocktails, with brands like -196™ (minus one-nine-six) and On The Rocks™ Premium Cocktails.

A global company with approximately 6,000 employees in nearly 30 countries, Suntory Global Spirits is driven by its core values of Growing for Good, Yatte Minahare and Giving Back to Society. The company’s Proof Positive sustainability strategy includes ambitious goals and investments to drive sustainable change and have a positive impact on the planet, consumers and communities. Headquartered in New York City, Suntory Global Spirits is a subsidiary of Suntory Holdings Limited of Japan. For more information, visit www.suntoryglobalspirits.com

*Further information on Knob Creek® awards can be found at www.knobcreek.com
Knob Creek^® Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey, 60% Alc./vol. ©2025 James B. Beam Distilling Company, Clermont KY.

Equinox & Solstice Winter 2024 Edition Bunnahabhain 11 years old

This is our Winter 2024 edition of Equinox & Solstice series. It’s a 2013, 11 year old, peated Bunnahabhain matured in sherrywood.

To make this we combined a 1st fill Oloroso sherry hogshead of lightly peated Bunnahabhain Ardnahoe, with a 1st fill PX sherry hogshead of heavily peated Bunnahabhain Staoisha. This mix was left to marry for a couple of months, before being bottled at this series’ trademark easy dramming strength of 48.5%.

It’s a big, rich, velvety and generously peaty Bunna, full of comforting smoky warmth and nicely assertive and salty sherry character. A perfect companion for winter nights and good cheer.

SHOP NOW

Timorous Beastie

Glen Moray Warehouse 1 Peated Rioja Cask

Bottling Notes:

Soft and gently smoked, their single malt is crafted from a lightly peated spirit aged in bourbon casks, then finished in Rioja red wine casks.

Cask Type: Rioja Wine

Distilled: 05.03.2012 Bottled: 22.08.2023

Cask Strength | Natural Colour | Non-Chill Filtered | Peated

Tasting Notes:

Nose: Subtle peat smoke entwines around aromas of toffee, fairground candy floss and orchard fruits.

Palate: Gentle bonfire hints lead on to soft suggestions of plums and cherries, followed by tannins, a subtle acidity and spice.

Finish: Long and lingering, as smoke floats over tobacco and more sweet stone fruits.

58.8% ABV

SHOP NOW

SPOTLIGHT ON ISLAY

The island of Islay in the Inner Hebrides is known for heavily peated whiskies with a distinctive sense of place. So, if you like your single malts on the smoky side this is the perfect place to look. But what many people don’t realise, is that not all Islay whisky is smoky.

Our carefully curated selection of bottlings from Scotland’s whisky isle ranges from totally unpeated drams with notes of sea air and soft fruit to powerfully smoky styles reminiscent of beach bonfires and barbecued meats. Read more to explore this fascinating island and the distilleries that made it famous the world over.

DISCOVER

SHOP NOW

Limited K&L Exclusive Whiskey

Kanosuke “A Pacific Ocean Collaboration” K&L Wine Merchants & Acorn LTD ex-Cognac Finished Single Barrel Cask #21494 Strength Non-Chillfiltered Japanese Single Malt Whiskey (700ml)

($209.99)

From the cutting-edge Kanosuke Distillery, founded by second-generation distiller Kanosuke Kosama, this innovative project began in 2018 and has quickly earned a reputation for producing meticulously crafted, modern whiskeys. At K&L, our goal is always to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to great products at great prices. This Kanosuke collaboration has been in the works for some time, and we are thrilled to finally introduce what we believe to be one of the most exciting projects coming out of Japan today.

This project, a partnership between K&L, Acorn Ltd.—an incredible Japanese retailer, importer, and independent bottler—and Kanosuke, is truly a Pacific Ocean collaboration. With only 530 bottles released, this bottling is not available anywhere else in the United States. Given its rarity and exceptional quality, we have no doubt that “A Pacific Ocean Collaboration” will become a prized collector’s item. We hope you enjoy this extraordinary selection as much as we do.

The spectacular Kanosuke Distillery combines tradition and innovation like no other in the world. Located just a short drive from the southern city of Kagoshima, the prefecture is the heart of Japan’s distillation industry. The heat and humidity of Kyushu Island create an environment that’s better suited for whiskey distillation than for the long, slow fermentations required for high-quality sake. The renowned Kozuru Shochu was created by Kanosuke Komasa and holds the distinction of being the first barrel-aged shochu in Japan. The distillery bearing Komasa-san’s name is the vision of his grandson, Yoshitsugu Komasa. In many ways, it represents the fulfillment of his grandfather’s legacy and is named in honor of the man who pioneered barrel-aging spirits in Japan.

A key to their success lies in the use of Miyake copper pot stills, each with distinct neck shapes and lyne arm angles, which allow for a wide range of variations in the distillation process, resulting in complex, layered spirits. The distillery is situated in a coastal region where the climate is characterized by peaceful summer waters and intense winter winds. This creates a unique microclimate within the prefecture’s subtropical environment, with dramatic seasonal temperature swings that are ideal for whiskey aging. Additionally, the nearby sea spray imparts a mineral-rich, subtly salty influence on the maturation process, giving the whiskey its unmistakable character.

This particular bottle spent 33 months maturing in ex-bourbon barrels before being finished for 32 months in cognac casks, for a total of 5 years and 5 months in oak. The outturn was just 530 bottles.

David Othenin-Girard
K&L Spirits Buyer | Review Date: January 22, 2025

When I began selecting single casks for K&L over 15 years ago, the idea was to build the sort of traditional merchant bottler of yore. One of my former colleagues used to like to compare us to the Berry Bros of the US, though I always envisioned we’d emulate the famous importer/bottlers of Italy and Japan. One of those incredible organizations that I’ve always kept an eye on is the wonderful Acorn Limited. Founded in Saitama in 1996 by Seishi Tsuta, they’re importers, retailers, and independent bottlers. The care and quality that they put into every bottling is second to none. If you’ve ever seen an Acorn bottling, you can be certain the liquid inside is of top quality. I’m honored to have had the opportunity to collaborate on this special cask.

Kanosuke was the perfect bridge for our two organizations. This incredible distillery is doing everything right, and both Acorn & K&L have been champions from the very start. This dual label release—one for the US market and one for the Japanese market—is truly a first. Acorn, who has already sold their entire stash, has held back some of the Japanese labels for US customers who can make the trip. If you’d like to travel to Japan to procure the other half of this historic barrel, please email me to find out how. They will hold for us if we let them know soon.

Onward to the liquid! One of the fabulous things about a new distillery of quality is discovering exactly what they can do. This barrel, finished for nearly 3 years in high-quality cognac casks, is totally distinctive. While our ex-bourbon/shochu barrel felt quintessentially Kanosuke, this one offers a completely different take. Because Kanosuke has 3 different spirit stills, we may continue to see exciting new styles coming out of the distillery for years to come. One constant here is the incredible quality.

The color is a deep gold (0.8). The nose immediately hits with fresh stone fruit, but then pulls back on the fruit and brings forward a wild ocean-y character. The confluence of sweet stone fruit and salty seashore exemplifies the distillery’s region, where the Kagoshima plum’s tart and salty character meets the rugged coast. This interplay between the sweetness of fruit and deep umami is what drew me to this cask and also reminds me of some of my favorite malts in Scotland—Ben Nevis, Clynelish, Old Pulteney.

On the palate, the tension remains: the freshness of fruit up front dissolves into a complex umeboshi, zingy yuzu marmalade, sweet barley tea, and pungent minty citrus peppercorn on the finish. This is somehow both out of the norm for Kanosuke, but so meaningfully of this place. An exceptional barrel and a true honor to have been involved with these two wonderful organizations.

Email: wine@klwines.com
Phone: (877) KL-WINES (Toll Free 877.559.4637)
K&L Wine Merchants 3005 El Camino Real Redwood City, CA 94061 USA
San Francisco, Redwood City, Hollywood CA

Old Particular

18 Years Old Midnight Series

This complex Single Grain was first distilled at the Port Dundas Distillery in July 2004 and was finished in a PX Sherry Butt. The resulting, rich spirit boasts sugar candy, with flamed orange peel and an unexpected espresso shot.

A special collection within our Old Particular – Exceptional Single Cask – range, the Midnight Series is named in honour of the darkest time of night…

Instantly recognisable via their black labels and addition of a “Midnight” illustrated stamp, these unique Single Cask bottlings are exceptionally dark in colour and rich in flavour, owing to their Sherry cask heritage.

SHOP NOW

Whether you’re a new member or a seasoned Society drammer, our philosophy remains the same: we’re all about whisky with a taste for adventure. How your adventure looks is up to you, but with the first Outturn of the year now live, there’s no better time to get involved.

READ THE NEW OUTTURN

TAKE ME TO THE BOTTLES

Our Outturn Podcast is ideal for exploring what’s ahead in each month’s Outturn. This month hosts Calum and Richard are joined by their Society colleague Anna Rebecka Grahn to try the latest bottlings. Watch it on our YouTube channel and subscribe to stay up to date with all our latest videos.

TUNE IN

The Scotch Malt Whisky Society, The Vaults, 87 Giles Street, Leith EH6 6BZ

Contact: sales@smws.com or call 0131 555 2929 (Mon-Fri 9am-4.45pm). Visit the Society at here for membership information

This is your chance to join and to take advantage of their great offers!

Spot the SMWS bottles in this amusing You Tube video