Whisky Wednesday will return next week.

Managing Director of malt whisky specialists to retire 

The Managing Director of renowned single malt whisky specialists Gordon & MacPhail is to retire later this year, it was announced today. 

Michael Urquhart will hand over to the Elgin-based firm’s current Chief Operating Officer, Ewen Mackintosh, in September.  

Mr Urquhart, a member of the third generation of the Urquhart family which owns Gordon & MacPhail, joined in 1981 as Finance Director after qualifying as a Chartered Accountant. 

In 2007, he became joint Managing Director with his brother David. Since 2012 he has been the firm’s sole Managing Director. 

Mr Mackintosh, 46, who is from Elgin, has spent his entire career at Gordon & MacPhail after joining as a graduate from St Andrews University.  

Mr Urquhart said: “After 33 years – most of my working life – with Gordon & MacPhail, it is time to hand on the reins. It is gratifying to be able to do so at a time of such strong, sustained growth in the company. 

“I’m particularly pleased that I will be succeeded by Ewen, who has been an instrumental figure in the company since 1991. 

“He was a member of the team which restored Benromach Distillery after we purchased it in 1993 and has looked after our bulk whisky stocks and product quality.  

“He is a very safe pair of hands and it will very much be business as usual for Gordon & MacPhail.” 

Mr Mackintosh, who was recently made a Master of the Quaich in recognition of his exceptional contribution to the Scotch Whisky industry, said: “It will be a very rare privilege to lead this unique and well-respected company. 

“Along with my colleagues I will continue to promote our values of investing in quality for the long-term and look forward to helping Gordon & MacPhail grow and develop.” 

Mr Urquhart, who has travelled the world promoting single malt whisky, said he was very proud of the Queen’s Award for Enterprise in International Trade awarded twice to Gordon & MacPhail, in 2009 and 2013. The company exports to more than 60 countries. 

Mr Urquhart was made a Master of the Quaich in 2012 and presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2013 by The Whisky Advocate, one of North America’s leading drinks publications.  

His daughter Laura is among several members of the fourth generation of the Urquhart family now working for Gordon & MacPhail. 

Mr Urquhart, who chairs the Highlands & Islands committee of the Scottish Council for Development and Industry (SCDI), added: “I will remain active in the community and continue to serve the whisky industry where I can, including remaining on the management committee of the Keepers of the Quaich. I will also be non-executive director of Gordon & MacPhail.”

The last couple of months have been constant and it’s quite a relief to finally get back behind the desk. May was officially Whisky month and I had the opportunity to work with BBC Radio Scotland’s Kitchen Cafe to produce a five part series discussing the different regions. Later in the month I had the chance to debut on BBC Breakfast which was focussing on food and drinks in Scotland and filmed at Peterhead Fish market. Naturally we had to include whisky although it may have proved too much for many before their breakfast! 

It was also a pleasure to be involved with the tantalising food pairings created by The Scotch Malt Whisky Society for their successful Clans and Drams celebration. The campaign was launched at Whisky Lounge in Edinburgh in great style and visitors were treated to buffalo burgers, haggis, sausages and smoked salmon to accompany their drams. 

The first weekend in May took me to the Spirit of Speyside Festival to take part in a variety of events and host the first collaboration between a bunch of great whisky girls. Johanne McInnes (Whisky Lassie) opened the day with huge style, followed by Alwynne Gwilt (Miss Whisky) who charmed her crowd with delectable chocolate and despite the warm room neither melted.  Angela D’Orazio from Mackmyra distillery concluded the day with a range of her bottlings, with a couple of malts from closer to home. 

Whisky month rumbled on taking in the Glasgow Whisky show and in between I squeezed in visits to Deanston, Glenrothes, Strathisla, Aberlour, Knockdhu, Glenfiddich and Ballindalloch.   

Tastings have included Iain Burnett chocolate and whisky at The Aviator Hotel in Farnborough, and a perfume and whisky adventure at Skene House in Aberdeen. A fund raising dinner took me to a fascinating exhibition event called ‘Scotland in Angola’ where I entertained an audience from the society of Luanda, including local artists and their work, the  British Ambassador and representatives from the Halo Trust. 

Like blended whisky, I really enjoy collaboration and I have teamed up with the Pommery Champagne Cafe Bar at the Signet Library for the month of August. On Sunday afternoon we are bringing together cocktails, chocolate and whisky. In the evening it’s officially single malt Sunday with Scottish tapas to compliment the experience. All the tickets are available through the Fringe office and I look forward to seeing your in this classic library space.   

Please contact me if you would like to discuss any ideas for tastings, events or anything in the good name of whisky. It’s still work in progress but I now have a dedicated page for The Whisky Belle on Facebook. Stay cool! 

Annabel

The Whisky Belle 

www.thewhiskybelle.com 

ROCK TOWN BOURBON SOCIAL

The Athenaeum Hotel, 116 Piccadilly, Mayfair, London

“AN EXCLUSIVE FOOD PAIRING EVENING”

July 4^th, 2014 at 7pm 

Little Rock, AR – (June 19, 2014) – On July 4th, as America celebrates Independence Day, the Athenaeum Hotel and Apartments will re-commence their popular Whisky Socials, aptly offering guests the chance to sample the delights of some of the world’s finest Bourbon Whisky from Rock Town Distillery, based in Little Rock, Arkansas. As is tradition, the evening will feature a specially prepared menu, with each course designed by Head Chef David Marshall and Whisky Sommelier Ivo Silva to complement the flavors and depth of the accompanying spirit. 

The Athenaeum’s distinguished Whisky Sommelier, one of only two in the UK, will be on hand to guide the guests through the legendary distilling and blending process that is used to create one of the most popular drinks in the world. Guests will be able to sample the different Bourbons produced by Rock Town Distillery with tasting notes to introduce guests and guide connoisseurs. Despite its relatively recent arrival onto America’s burgeoning craft distilling scene, Rock Town’s impact has been immediate and far-reaching with the remarkable capture of the World’s Best Bourbon prize at the World Whisky Awards 2013 – a landmark achievement quickly followed by a Double Gold medal at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition. 

Rock Town is the first legal distillery in Arkansas since Prohibition and today makes the state’s only bourbon whiskey. Phil Brandon, Rock Town’s Founder and Head Distiller, will discuss the whiskies during the meal, take questions and share his stories about the wild world of whisky. 

Whisky Social tickets are priced at £55 per person. Ticket price includes cocktail and canapés on arrival and a full 3-course dinner with specially paired Whisky. 

See the menu here: http://www.athenaeumhotel.com/media/573387/rocktown-bourbon-menu.pdf 

For more information and to book a ticket, visit: http://athenaeumhotel.com/food/offers/whisky-socials/ 

ABOUT the athenaeum 

The fabulous 5 star Athenaeum hotel and apartments on Piccadilly is your home away from home in London. It offers you a huge choice of rooms, luxury suites and townhouse apartments, all with stunning leafy or Mayfair views. Here, you’re in the middle of everything. You’re right opposite the Royal Parks and Buckingham Palace. The Anthenaeum is down the road from museums and galleries, the chic-est shops and Theatreland, and just a few stops from the City, Soho and Canary Wharf. 

ABOUT ROCK TOWN DISTILLERY 

Rock Town Distillery produces the award winning Brandon’s Vodka, Brandon’s Gin, Arkansas Bourbon, Arkansas Hickory Smoked Whiskey, Arkansas Rye Whiskey, Arkansas Lightning, and Rock Town Vodka which are distributed in Arkansas, Tennessee, Illinois, Missouri, Mississippi, Oregon, Texas, Georgia, Florida, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and the United Kingdom. 

Rock Town Distillery, Arkansas’ first legal distillery since prohibition, is located in downtown Little Rock at 1216 E 6^th Street, Little Rock, AR 72202.  The distillery is open for tours 7 days a week. To find out more please visit http://www.rocktowndistillery.com/

www.ralfy.com talks about ships in bottles with Whisky Review 466 – Dimple 15yo Blended Scotch Whisky

The relationship continues with the Cutty Sark Clipper ship…

Having been originally named after the Cutty Sark Clipper ship, our two brands have always had a relatively close relationship.

After an extensive six-year conservation project, the Clipper was re-opened two years ago and is maintained by the Cutty Sark Trust as part of Royal Museums Greenwich. Much like our whisky brand, the Trust is constantly looking for ways to stand out from the other visitor attractions in London and has taken a pioneering approach to its marketing.

Several international sponsors, including ourselves (Cutty Sark), have supported the Trust to ensure the ship is open for visitors all year round.

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

Happy Birthday to PennyPacker Bourbon!

It has already been a full year since PennnyPacker Kentucky Straight Bourbon has been launched in the U.S. market in May 2013. Over the course of the past year, PennyPacker has received tremendous feedback, including 91 Points from the Tasting Panel Magazine, 87 Points from Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible, Three Stars in the Spirit Journal’s Hall of Fame Issue among several other awards. PennyPacker has also been reviewed and featured on several websites and blogs, including WhiskeyIntelligenc.com, Bourbonblog.com, BourbonandOak.com, DrinkHacker.com, and many more.

With National distribution, PennyPacker has made its way from New York to California with appearances in various Chain Retailers such as Total Wine & More, Spec’s, Kroger’s, and more. PennyPacker is also being featured in bars and restaurants across the nation as a house-pour bourbon or used in Specialty cocktails, including “Blackberry Fig Infused PennyPacker” at Sip Rooftop Bar in Greenville, SC and the “Spring Packer” featured at The Strand Smokehouse in Astoria, NY.

What’s more is that out of approximately 130 labels imported/distributed by Niche Import Co. PennyPacker Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey has quickly made its way into the Top 5.

On the rocks. Neat. In a fancy cocktail. In a simple mixed drink. However you drink it, raise your glass, and join us in wishing PennyPacker aHappy 1st Birthday!

Niche Import Co.
At Niche Import Co., a woman owned company, it is our mission to form strategic partnerships with international wine and spirit producers from around the world to import, define, find and maintain distribution channels for high quality specialty brands in the U.S. market.

We are determined to offer outstanding service and competitive pricing to our clients through a dedicated understanding of our brands, their history, the market and target end-user within each geographic region in order to give them the energy, focus, and resources they require to thrive and grow.

Quality in your glass; quality in life. Drink responsibly.

To learn more about our products and services, please visit: www.ourniche.com

New Elements Of Islay – Billy Abbott edition!

The Elements of Islay range of whiskies is one that’s very close to my heart. While it’s bottled by our sister company, Speciality Drinks Ltd, the TWE Blog team often help out when putting together a new release. The first whisky I helped select after starting work in the drinks industry was Kh1, a surprisingly hard choice between three excellent cask samples, and the Elements have stuck with me ever since. From Kh1 onwards, I’ve at least had a taste of the new releases before they’ve hit the shelves, and have offered up my palate to help choose casks and decide which whiskies to vat together for the various releases. However, the latest batch are a bit more special to me than the previous ones – these have my name on the bottle.

The Elements are a range of whiskies whose labels tell you very little about what’s in the bottle. There’s no age statement, no cask number(s) and, most importantly, no distillery name. There is a code, which is fairly easy to work out, but the whiskies are put together to show off some great flavours without the preconceptions you might otherwise get from the label.

Annoyingly for Speciality Drinks, buying Islay whisky has become increasingly difficult over the years, with many distilleries stopping sales back in the early 2000s. Fortunately, they started stocking up before then, and there’s still at least a few years’ worth of releases to come.

Each time a batch of Elements of Islay bottlings is put together, Speciality Drinks approaches someone associated with the world of whisky to taste and approve the whisky in the bottles, and have their name on the label. They started with Charlie Maclean, the current king of whisky writers, and have since had luminaries from across the industry: writers Dom Roskrow and Ingvar Ronde, Islay super-fan Gordon Homer, collector Hideo Yamaoka and, for the last release, my colleague Ollie Chilton, who now looks after the Elements range.

I helped out with the selection of the whiskies this time – a hard task that involved accepting glasses pushed into my hand by Ollie, and offering up opinions on the liquid therein. Afternoons were spent blending various casks to find a mix that was better than the sum of its parts; single casks were compared and contrasted; judgements were made as to whether whiskies would get better with more time in the cask. At the end of the process, with four whiskies selected and ready to go, I was asked if I’d be the one to approve the drams this time and have my signature on the label.

I obviously said yes.

This latest release definitely tends towards the heavier and smokier end of the Islay spectrum. There’s nothing light and grassy or even delicately peaty this time, although there is a spot of Br4 and some Bw1 left if you’re looking for something along those lines. This release is about powerful flavours and the more traditional distillery characters.

One thing to note, before I drop in some tasting notes: I can’t give out much information on these whiskies other than what’s on the bottle. There are two reasons behind this:

1. It’s part of the ideology of the range. We have selected single casks and small vattings of whiskies to show off what we consider to be the best that the distillery can produce. That can be along the same lines as official releases, or something totally different, but in the end we just focus on flavour and character.

2. I don’t know much about them other than what they taste like – the focus when creating the whiskies was the flavour and character, and that’s what I had to hand about each whisky when tasting them.

Ar4, 58.1%. £89.95

There’s not much whisky from Ar floating around, other than the casks hidden in their warehouses, and it’s been hard to get hold of for a while. Fortunately, Speciality Drinks have some squirreled away and we had a few samples to choose between for this release. After Ar3′s sherry-heavy approach, to the point of being a bit much for me (despite my love of the combination of peat and sherry), this one goes for a much cleaner and more traditional take on the distillery’s character:

Nose: Earthy and sweet – peat fires and barley sugar. Behind that is spiced vanilla sauce and brioche, with leafy notes and touches of smoky bacon.
Palate: Softer than expected from the nose at first, but still solidly smoky. However, intensity builds, with lemon zest and vanilla accompanied by growing medicinal peat and charcoal. Remains quite sweet, with barley sugar notes balancing the bitter char, and touches of aniseed and cinnamon developing.
Finish: Long and sweet, with anise, liquorice and menthol, although lighter than that might sound and quite sharp. Some darker notes develop as it fades.
Comment: A great example of whisky from the distillery as well as being a bit different. Powerfully flavoured but easy drinking and with a great finish.

Bn6, 56.9%. £49.95

Again, this one is a departure from previous releases from Bn, and looks very much towards the distillery’s usual style. Rather than big peat and bourbon casks, as several of the previous releases in the range have veered towards, this is all about sherry and spirit character.

Nose: Dark dried fruit to start – sweet and spicy. Some more tropical touches develop: dried mango, papaya and pineapple kubes. Spiced fruit loaf (lightly toasted), orange zest and a hint of cocoa appear later on. Surprisingly light and zesty, although with a solid sherried weight behind.
Palate: Sweet and buttery to start: Eccles cakes, Victoria sponge with raisins. Cadbury’s Fruit and Nut, liquorice touches and some developing leafy notes.
Finish: Lingering spice and damp oak, with burnt raisins, a touch of apple and some dark liquorice as it fades.
Comment: Well-balanced sherry influence gives some intense and dark flavours, while allowing some of the fruity nature of the spirit to shine through.

Cl6, 61.2%. £59.95

The folks at Speciality Drinks really like whisky from Cl, and over the years we have spent a lot of time blending and tasting whisky from the distillery. A few years ago, we helped put together a release for a different range of whiskies in the Speciality Drinks portfolio, and in the process of doing so came across a few excellent casks that we put to one side for later use – Cl6 is from one of those special ones. There’s not much of it, as the cask wasn’t particularly full, but it’s probably my favourite of this release.

Nose: White toast, apple jam and freshly cut ferns. Pine needles and subdued pine smoke sit underneath with barley sugar and rich-but-thin caramel. Some minerality develops – granite and flint – along with mulchy leaves. It’s quite fragrant, with the darker notes propping up the lighter elements.
Palate: Powerful. There is some heat from the high ABV, but above that floats delicate flavours: white chocolate, honeysuckle, sweet apple and white grapes. Underneath there are darker notes, with dark chocolate, charcoal, liquorice and burned-meat umami. Water simplifies things, helping the flavours to integrate, although at the cost of the more subtle notes.
Finish: Soft and very long: green plum, green wood, cinnamon, hot chocolate and chocolate cookies, with a hint of cherry menthol.
Comment: Subtle, despite its high ABV, and as long as you can get past the strength, it’s very rewarding. Fortunately, it also takes water well, becoming much more approachable for those times when you don’t want to think too hard.

Lp5, 52.4%. £69.95

Again, a return to distillery form for this one. It’s not sherried, unlike previous batches, and it doesn’t go towards a far-out flavour profile – it’s a classic, sweet and fruity example of whisky from the distillery. It’s from a small batch of casks, bottled after being selected in a blind tasting.

Nose: Sweet smoke and classic medicinal touches: fresh bandages, sea spray and ozone. Aniseed balls sit up front, with richer flavours behind – Victoria sponge and digestive biscuits.
Palate: Big mineral hit to start, with cracked granite and seaside rock pools. Sharp peat smoke comes in, with sweet earth and touches of sweet-cure bacon. It’s quite intense, with developing aniseed, darker grainy notes and touches of Fisherman’s Friends. Water dims the spiciness and dials up the sweetness, while maintaining the smoke and sharp edges.
Finish: Salty liquorice, damp earth and mouth-drying smoke.
Comment: Classic, focused and intense. One for lovers of old-school medicinal peat.

Work is already in progress to select the next whiskies to bottle in the range. A few promising cask samples have appeared and more are on the way down from Scotland as I type. Even though it’ll be someone else’s name on the bottle next time, I’ll still keep a watchful eye on the process. Watch this space.

Originally published on The Whisky Exchange Blog – New Elements Of Islay – Billy Abbott edition!

FAIRGROUND THRILLS: THE BIG DIPPER

An adventure unlike any other: get ready to experience spikes of adrenaline and intenstine-twisting thrills, we’re dipping the prices on our summer selection of fairground flavours. Hold on tight for a white-knuckle ride – thrill-seekers can enjoy a 20% saving on these Panel-picked bottlings. Leave behind your everyday world and go head-first into flavour… enter ‘BIGDIPPER’ at our online checkout.

Be first in the queue, this fairground attraction ends Thu 26 June

Sweet, fruity & mellow

94.4 Ode to Autumn
WAS £92.40 BUY £73.92

Browse more old & dignified sale bottles HERE

Spicy & sweet

72.35 Pink Grapefruit Granita
WAS £110.30 BUY £88.24

Browse more spicy & sweet sale bottles HERE

Spicy & dry

28.24 Curiouser and curiouser
WAS £82.80 BUY £68.64

Deep, rich & dried fruits

9.76 Out of Africa
WAS £92.40 BUY £73.92

Old & dignified

35.101 Oh How Joyfully
WAS £280.00 BUY £224.00

Browse more old & dignified sale bottles HERE

Light & delicate

7.96 Subtle quality in a lady’s handbag
WAS £85.30 BUY  £68.24

Browse more light & delicate sale bottles HERE

Juicy, oak & vanilla

64.51 Tuck-time in a stately home
WAS £87.20 BUY £69.76

Lightly peated

44.59 Lime marinated grilled chicken
WAS £87.20 BUY £69.76

Something different: Grain Whisky

G4.5 Sweet and Spicy
WAS £83.10 BUY £66.48

Browse SALE

Browse all bottlings

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