The Malt Maniacs, in a burst of energy, have published another epistle, this time on “Does Age Matter?” by Serge Valentin. http://www.maltmaniacs.org/whisky-articles/Malt-Maniacs-2010-04-Does-the-age-of-Scotch-whisky-matter.pdf

LOUISVILLE, KY—Heaven Hill Distilleries, the nation’s largest independent family-owned and operated distilled spirits supplier, announced a partnership today with the Louisville Arena Sports and Entertainment Properties (LASEP) to sponsor two new clubs at the KFC Yum! Center, the state-of-the-art arena opening in downtown Louisville in the Fall of 2010. Heaven Hill signed a 10-year commitment to create and sponsor the Evan Williams Bourbon Bar and the Burnett’s V Lounge, two upscale clubs that will be located at the East and West Event Levels of the arena and accessible only to lower level Club Seat Holders.

The new KFC Yum! Center, which will offer state-of-the-art amenities and technology, is one of the centerpieces of downtown Louisville’s redeveloped waterfront and has garnered national praise for its design and functionality. Heaven Hill, a proud corporate citizen of Kentucky and Louisville since the company’s founding just after the end of Prohibition, will be creating its first branded club concepts to support two of the distiller’s top brands—Evan Williams Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey, the second best selling and fastest growing Bourbon in America, and Burnett’s Vodka, one of the top selling vodkas in the nation and the 14th largest overall distilled spirits brand in the US.

The Evan Williams Bourbon Bar, a brand name which honors Kentucky’s first distiller of 1783—whose distillery stood within 300 yards of the new arena on the banks of the Ohio River—will be rendered in warm brown and red Bourbon tones featuring barrelhead décor and wood paneling. It will feature Evan Williams Bourbon, the second-largest selling Bourbon in the United States and the world, as well as several other top brands from the world’s second-largest inventory of aging American Whiskeys, such as Elijah Craig, Old Fitzgerald and Bernheim Wheat Whiskey.

The Burnett’s V Lounge, named after Burnett’s Vodka, the company’s top selling brand, will utilize a clean and crisp brushed silver and white color palette with a design reminiscent of the “ultra-lounges” of Las Vegas. It will offer a full range of traditional cocktails as well as newly-developed drinks featuring Burnett’s Vodka and Gin, PAMA Pomegranate Liqueur, Hpnotiq Liqueur and Lunazul Tequila. Both clubs will be available exclusively to holders of lower level Club Seats, and will also offer a range of dining options.

“Heaven Hill Distilleries’ partnership with the Louisville Arena Authority is tangible evidence of our company’s commitment to the Louisville community, where our distillery and sales and marketing headquarters are located,” said Max L. Shapira, President of Heaven Hill. “Through our Evan Williams Bourbon Bar and our Burnett’s V Lounge, we are pleased to be part of this exciting new addition to Louisville and the Commonwealth of Kentucky.”

Founded in 1934, Bardstown, KY-based Heaven Hill Distilleries, Inc. (www.heavenhill.com) is the nation’s largest independent, family-owned and operated spirits producer and marketer and the world’s second-largest holder of Kentucky Bourbon. Heaven Hill’s diversified portfolio of brands includes The Christian Brothers Brandies; Evan Williams and Elijah Craig Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskeys; Burnett’s Vodkas and Gin; Hpnotiq Liqueur; PAMA Pomegranate Liqueur; Lunazul and Two Fingers Tequilas, and Dubonnet Aperitif.

Heaven Hill reminds you to “Think Wisely. Drink Wisely.”

Open invite to Glenfiddich Brand Ambassador story telling evening

This is a quick message and open invite to a story telling event with the Glenfiddich brand ambassador, Jamie Milne on July 15th in London.

As a quick introduction, I’m Richard Galbraith, I work for a communications agency in London called Ditto, we help brands tell their story through multiple mediums both offline and online.

Each month we hold a story telling event called Campfire in our own studio in north London, called the Lighthouse. So far this year we have played host to a number of different people, from Dr Barry Gibb, originally a molecular biologist and neuroscientist before leaving academic research to eventually become Science Multimedia Editor at The Wellcome Trust, through to Agents of Change a group of renegade artists who’s art is in changing space itself.

Jamie

This time around, Thursday July 15th, as mentioned, we have Jamie Milne, brand ambassador for Glenfiddich in the UK and as you can imagine, a passionate whisky lover. We thought you and your readers may be interested in coming down to the Campfire event where Jamie will talk on how he went from an aeronautical engineering degree to travelling the UK helping people learn about whisky on behalf of the worlds most popular single malt.

There will be (some) samples, food, and generally a good evening to be had by all. A short video introduction we did with Jamie is on our video channel here:

http://www.ditto.tv/campfire/category/storyteller/jamie-milne-storyteller/

If you are interested in coming, or think you may blog about the event to let your readers know, can you let me know, and if you have any other questions, feel free to get in touch.

The event will start at around 7:30 with people taking their seats around 8 for the experience, there is no need for a ticket or to book, only to come down with a relaxed attitude with the intention of meeting some interesting people and having some fun.

The address of our studio is: The Lighthouse, Canonbury Yard, 190 New North Road, London N1 7BJ – just around the corner from the New North Star pub.

Thanks for your time, looking forward to hearing back from you and if you have any other questions or comments then please let me know.

Regards,
Richard

EPISODE 268

George Washington’s estate at Mount Vernon is a unique part of American history, and for the first time since Washington’s distillery burned down in 1814, whiskey distilled at Mount Vernon went on sale this week. Just 471 bottles of rye whiskey using the original Washington recipe sold out within two hours, and this episode includes some of the festivities as well as tasting notes for the whiskey.

Episode #268 is now available on-line 

Visit WhiskyCast at www.whiskycast.com

July 2010

TO ALL CUSTOMERS

Dear Client

For the month of July we believe we have an interesting and really wide ranging selection to offer you comprising
(1) one new DOUBLE BARREL, (1) one outstanding Islay based OLD & RARE, (9) nine OLD MALT CASK bottlings, (5)
five under the Advance Sample 20 cls) with (2) two PREMIER BARREL offerings, (2) two Cigar Malts and a selection
of (7) seven for the PROVENANCE label.

The Tasting Notes for OLD MALT CASK follows:

OMC1853 LINKWOOD BOURBON 13 year old
Nose: Richly toffee’d + vanilla, citrus and barber shop smells.
Palate: Mouthcoatingly vanilla’d + an overload of ginger/spices.
Finish: Here the palate is replicated – but more sweetly. (F)

OMC1876 LOCHNAGAR 13 year old
Nose: Fresh, spicy, citric with barley and sugar.
Palate: Sugary initially then softly fruited and gristy.
Finish: Spicy with cough drop flavour+ a waft of dry smoke. (F)

OMC1852 LITTLEMILL 18 year old
Nose: Fresh, green malt sweetness + citrusy character + toffee
Palate: Still fresh, now fruity – trifle style (vanilla, fruit jelly and cream!)
Fi nish: Remains sweet with a long spiced style + vanilla + caramel (J)

OMC1879 LOCHSIDE 18 year old
Nose: Old fashioned hairdressing? – spiced – grassy and gristy.
Palate: Subtle with mocha + an oily, nutty and barley quality.
Finish: Warm spices+vanilla pods+burnt pancake (F)

OMC1863 ABERFELDY 26 year old
Nose: Fresh & fragrant – carries an orange blossom style + barley sugar
Palate: Clean, still fresh + a citrus quality, like a flamed orange peel
Finish: Attractive sweet style, with orange pith and an oaky tang (J)

OMC1868 CAOL ILA 26 year old
Nose: Sweetly phenolic, briny, peppery + late ozone.
Palate: Mouthcoatingly oily with coal dust and more late peat.
Finish: Now drier + concentrated peat/ash/sweet seaweed. (F)

OMC1866 GLEN MHOR 27 YEAR OLD
Nose: Distinctly toffee’d, fresh & clean, with a gristy sweet style
Palate: Honey sweet character runs to a toffee & ginger quality
Finish: Long, still spicy + a cedar wood + camphor(?)and coffee style. (J)

OMC1865 TOMINTOUL 40 year old
Nose: Carries barley sugar – sweet warm spices + light oakiness.
Palate: Drier than anticipated – warms to honey + mellow spices.
Finish: Lightly smoked – oily – and still oaked. (F)

OMC1875 SPEYSIDE’S FINEST SHERRY MATURED 42 year old
Nose: Sugary – fruity – nutty – oaky – and spicy!
Palate: Carries steamed fruit pudding – cinnamon – oak & spice.
Finish: Now drier – still spiced – lightly smoked + cloves. (F)

PROVENANCE Tasting Notes are as follows:

PRV0628 AULTMORE SHERRY 9 year old
Distinctly spicy and sweet as it opens – then more of a macerated fruit content comes through with more spice all
on the nose. The palate is more Sherried than the colour suggests – being sweet, smooth and rather fruity – even
with some light camphor and late dulcet barley sugar. The finish replicates the palate nicely. (F)

PRV0630 DAILUAINE 9 year old
The nose opens with a fresh, then musky character plus marzipan and candied plums appear running to rhubarb
crumble! The palate carries a ginger spice character and develops to a rich chocolate & toffee liqueur quality. The
finish is still sweet with a chewy cedar wood tang. (J)

PRV0632 ROYAL BRACKLA 10 year old
Fresh and clean on the nose, runs to a sweet fruity style –just like opening a bag of wine gums! Still sweet on the
palate, now honeyed, and carries to a gristy quality. The finish is round and mellow with a ripe pear style. (J)

PRV0629 ALLT A’BHAINNE SHERRY 12 year old
The nose opens sweet and spicy, reminiscent of freshly baked waffles with toffee and cream on top. The palate is
round with a fresh, sherbet quality and runs to spicy vanilla tablet. The finish is medium long, still sweet, with a
buttery cookie dough character. (J)

PRV0625 BEN NEVIS 12 year old
The nose opens with a yeasty, sweet character – maybe even home baked waffles, and develops to spiced pears in
syryp. The palate is still sweet and carries to macerated oranges with a barley sugar quality before a hint of smoke
appears. The finish is spicy with an attractive sweet and oaky character that lingers on. (J)

PRV0633 GLENCADAM 12 year old
The fresh, clean and floral nose is attractive and carries a barley sweet, creamy character. The palate is still sweet,
now more vanilla’d and lightly spiced in style, and runs to poached fruit in syrup. The finish is malty, sweetly
spiced, and develops a later orange tang. (F & J)

PRV0627 MACALLAN 12 year old
Clean and gristy, even with some barley sugar on the nose. Whereas, the mouth feel is round and viscous –
similarly so the palate which is lusciously sweet (blossom honey style) plus an interesting spiciness – all leading to a
slightly drier, still spiced – maybe camphor? – finish (F)

The five 20 cl ADVANCE SAMPLES are:

SMC0365 ALLT A’BHAINE (Sherry) 12 year old
SMC0368 AULTMORE(Sherry) 9 year old
SMC0366 BEN NEVIS 12 year old
SMC0369 DAILUAINE 9 year old
SMC0367 HIGHLAND PARK 11 year old

The one 20 cl CIGAR MALT is:

MSW2788 AULTMORE 9 year old
Nose: Sweetly spiced+macerated fruit.
Palate: Distinctly sherried – fruity & barley sugared.
Finish: Replicates the palate neatly (F).

The one 70 cl CIGAR MALT is:

OMC1858 AULTMORE 9 year old
Nose: Sweetly spiced+macerated fruit.
Palate: Distinctly sherried – fruity & barley sugared.
Finish: Replicates the palate neatly (F).

OLD & RARE Tasting Notes follow:

O&R0100 PORT ELLEN 30 year old
Still fresh and briny on the nose, it carries dry sand and a citric lime-y style …. not massively Islay in character yet.
But on the palate it is peppery, peaty and warmingly spiced as it is held – running then to subtle light tarry and
creosote engine room flavours. On the finish all these combine to create a warm spiced, ashy, sooty character. (F)

Lastly, the PREMIER BARREL Tasting Notes are (with apologies):

PBR0078 BRAEVAL 11 year old
Bravo! A breathtaking Braeval! Subtly sweet scented spices balance a bastion of barley – no bunkum! No badinage!
or balderdash! Try tackling the tantalising (treacle?) toffee too: totally tremendous, truly! (F)

PBR0079 BUNNAHABHAIN 12 year old
Go for the “full Bunna”! familiarly fresh, saliently salty, celestially clean – with oscillating ozone and a halcyon
herbal heritage ….. it portrays a palpable packet of peat. (F)

That was a lot of reading for you – for which accept our repeated apologises. As always we hope to be of assistance to you and send you our best regards,

Fred Laing

A HIGHLIGHT OF OUR 10TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATIONS!

Jim McEwan Special Tasting & Dinner

The Fern Resort, Orillia Ontario Canada

 SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 25 2010

Registration  6 pm       Dinner  7 pm

Enjoy an evening of mirth, music and malts with Bruichladdich’s Master Distiller plus a three-course dinner & coffee/tea

Members  $60      ~      Guests  $70

Book now — seating is limited

First come, first served — NO payments at door

All inquiries to Ed Patrick, president@thequaich.com

Visit the Companions of the Quaich at http://www.thequaich.com/

The Malt Maniacs have published a new epistle by Louis Perlman on whisky & grumpiness.

http://www.maltmaniacs.org/whisky-articles/Malt-Maniacs-2010-03-Whisky-and-Grumpiness.pdf

Tullibardine is situated on the site of Scotland’s oldest brewery dating back to the 12th Century, and from where in 1488 the beer was bought by King James 1V on his way north from Stirling Castle for his coronation at Scone. The Distillery was converted in 1947 by William Delme Evans, mothballed in 1995 and re-opened as an Independent Distillery in 2003. Specialising in premium quality, exclusive and rare single malts, Tullibardine and its excellent 1488 Visitor Centre and Café can be found on the A9 between Perth & Stirling in the village of Blackford. The various malts on offer come from the purest highland spring water from the Ochil’s and are uncomplicated, light, fruity with a mellow flavour and are easy to drink when young and have an amazing ability to age gracefully.

Recently Tullibardine released its first bottling comprised of single malt distilled under the new management, this has been called the “Aged Oak Edition” and it retains that elegant style of Tullibardine.

The Production team is headed by David Myles who used to work at Tullibardine before it was closed and he has a great team of 4 Still men and 3 Mash men to assist him. Meanwhile the Distillery is lead by John Black, who has over 50 years of experience in the industry from time spent in Speyside, the Highlands and Islay. He may not have made many of the different bottlings that have been released by Tullibardine since 2003 but he certainly knows what a good single malt should taste like and the success of many of the single cask releases have been down to John’s selection of casks to be bottled.

busy busy

So far this year Tullibardine has been tasted at Festivals and events all around the world including – Victoria, Banff, Vancouver, Calgary, Winnipeg, Toronto, New York, Chicago, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Groningen, Maastricht, Arnhem, Ghent, Kortrijk and Milan. Look out for more information on where to find Tullibardine on their Facebook page as well as on Whisky Intelligence (Hey! That’s us!).

Victoria Whisky Festival Tullibardine Grand Tasting

History of Tullibardine Distillery

Tullibardine distillery is situated in the village of Blackford in Perthshire and lies on the site of Scotland’s oldest brewery dating back to the twelfth century.

Blackford

10th Century – A Nordic tragedy

The village of Blackford was given the name as far back as the 10th century when the wife of the Nordic King Magnus, reputedly fell off her horse and drowned while crossing a ‘ford’ in the area. The tragedy was said to have deeply affected the king and the area was referred to hereafter as ‘black ford’ or as it is now known Blackford. A mound, which can be seen from the grounds of the distillery, reputedly depicts where Queen Helen was buried and is known locally within the village as ‘deaf knowe’ due to the fact that if someone shouts from one side of the hill they cannot be heard on the other side.

 12th Century – The brewing of beer begins

Fortunately for the village, its reputation was not blighted for ever more. As Queen Helen experienced, the village accessed a pure and plentiful supply of spring water which streamed off the nearby Ochil Hills. This water, recognised for its purity and quality was to put Blackford on the map for a different reason. It was to become associated with the making of beer and was the site of the first public brewery in Scotland. The importance of this supply was widely recognised and was the principle reason that the village could boast of having no less than 3 breweries operating at one time, all drawing water from the same source.

15th Century – A Coronation beer (this is WI after all!)

Yet more recognition was to be bestowed on the village when in year 1488, King James IV purchased beer from the brewery which stood on the site of the now Tullibardine Distillery following his coronation at Scone. James IV was to become one of the best known late medieval Scottish rulers and ruled for 25 years eventually being slain at the battle of Flodden on the 9th September 1513.

20th Century – Tullibardine becomes first distillery in 20th century

During the early part of the 20th century, the brewery on site of the distillery fell upon hard times and was used for a variety of purposes. What had not changed, and to this day remains the same, was the plentiful supply of crystal pure spring water which continually flowed past the brewery from the Ochil hills above.

 In 1947, a Welshman by the name of William Delme Evans purchased the brewery with a view to converting it to a distillery with the original capital being supplied by friends and relatives. Delme Evans was an engineer to trade and designed the distillery to maximise efficiency initially using nature, and latterly science, where necessary. The distillery was built under very difficult circumstances as material was under licence and building and construction work at that time was subject to severe building controls. However, in 1949, Tullibardine distillery produced spirit for the first time and ran under Delme Evans ownership until 1953 where failing health forced him to sell it to the company of Brodie Hepburn. Throughout his time at Tullibardine he was assisted in the project by Mr C I Barrett, a retired Excise Officer who had considerable experience of Highland Malt Distilleries. Mr Barrett was subsequently manager of Tullibardine Distillery until 1958.

To this day, examples of Delme Evans design are still in use at the distillery. Cooling water for the distillery still continues to flow over the top of the condensers using only gravitational force and the heat generated within the distillery is extracted using two condensers as opposed to the traditional one to maximise heat exchange and reduce unnecessary waste. Delme Evan was never really given the credit he deserved for his ground breaking and influential work at Tullibardine and despite going on to help design Jura and Glenallachie distillery, his true passion till his death in 2003 remained Tullibardine.

21st Century – Decommission and Recommissioned

The distillery lay dormant until the June of 2003 when it was bought along with the existing stock of Tullibardine whisky. This was a long and difficult purchase involving many different parties all coming together to enable the distillery to be reopened. In the December of 2003, Tullibardine distillery once again fired up the boiler and spirit flowed from the stills for the first time in nearly nine years. Throughout the re-commissioning process, care was taken to maintain as many of the traditional methods of production as possible and utilise the skills of the distillery manager and operators in producing the Tullibardine spirit. The care, attention to detail and passion which is instilled by the team at Tullibardine has resulted in the production of a superb spirit which is laid to rest in the finest casks available. Now that we are up and running, we will produce enough spirit for our future needs and those of our customers. This is not an easy projection to make as we do not know how popular Tullibardine will be in years to come but what we can ensure is that it is as good as we can make it.

In November 2004, Tullibardine opened the doors of the distillery and new visitor centre to the public.  This is a small part of one of the best out-of-town retail locations in Scotland, the other retail units are due to open throughout 2005 offering visitors a unique Scottish experience.

The new centre offers unforgettable tours of the distillery by experienced guides as well as connoisseur tours with the vastly experienced Distillery Manager.

The new retail shop has a distinctively Scottish influence, providing a range of unique gifts, accessories and seasonal products, such as glassware, pottery, fabrics, hand-made wood products and luxurious soaps and cosmetics.  The licensed restaurant, Cafe 1488 also has a strong Scottish influence, using only the freshest local ingredients to create a delicious range of traditional hot and cold meals with a contemporary twist. Home-made soup, sandwiches and bakery products are available along with a range of fine quality tea, coffee, wine and soft drinks.

The name 1488 was chosen in remembrance of the year King James IV celebrated his coronation and purchased beer from the brewery which was situated where the Tullibardine Distillery is today.     

Visit Tullibardine Distillery at www.tullibardine.com

Tullibardine 42yo 1966/2008 (49.9%, OB for Kensington, C#3509, Hogs Head, 246 Bts.)

Yet another private bottling for the Canadian province of Alberta; one has to wonder if they ever work or do they simply sit around all day dreaming of the next cask? Evidently they put their money where there mouth is. The color is an astonishing deep ruby red and the nose reveals Bing cherries, sour candies (think way back to Tilly’s acid drops) and suddenly the fooling around is over; big oak spice, hints of clove, bees wax and many, many things wooden and antique. After a few minutes there is a deep sweetness like warm honey. Quite excellent. The taste is very dry and oaky with a moment of varnish and then it takes off with Christmas cake, pear, raisins and brown sugar. The oakiness nicely compliments the sweetness. While it has a big taste there are also some very gentle moments. Multi faceted. Moments of pepper or cinnamon…The finish is dry, long and filled with wood spices, unsweetened cold black tea. Actually the finish is very long and very consistent. A long finish (was that already said?).

Oooofff…this is really nice. Mouth smackingly good. Tullibardine certainly can produce some gems.

C$425

Score 92 points.

Nicely appointed in a blond wooden box lined with tartan…

Visit Kensington at www.kensingtonwinemarket.com