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

Experience The Macallan

One of the most iconic whisky distilleries in the world, The Macallan has built an enviable reputation through an unwavering focus on quality. Aged predominantly in sherry-seasoned oak casks, their single malts are known for their rich, smooth flavours with depth and balance, alongside their natural amber hue.

Explore classics such as The Macallan 12 Year Old Sherry Oak, 12 Year Old Double Cask, or discover something special with A Night on Earth: The First Light.

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Chivas Regal Crystal Gold, 40%

THE REVIEW

What do you do when you come across a product that just fills you full of hatred and contempt for an entire company? Well, you make a video about it. I doubt there was a clever thougth in the room when this idea was greenlit by however many people who were struggling to be creative. You can really tell that nobody who loves whisky works in large whisky companies anymore – it’s just bodies who nod. The second largest drinks company in the world who own however many brands and add colour to a majority of them all though, ‘Yes, lets strip the colour from an aged spirit and sell it to a market where we already have a strong sales presence.’ This product is a showcase of how inept, poorly thought out, poorly marketed, and rich these companies are. Go and check out the PR video for this as it’s one of the worst adverts for a spirit I’ve ever seen in my entire life. It gives Trump and his new ballroom project in such a big way.

A hateful, silly, patronising product that doesn’t deserve shelf space anywhere and shouldn’t have gone further than a scribbled out idea on a company branded notepad. Phil’s SUBSTACK

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Maker’s Mark Begins 2026 Bold & Straight from the Barrel: Premiering A New Premium Look for Maker’s Mark Cask Strength

LORETTO, Ky., January 21, 2026 – Maker’s Mark®, the iconic handmade Kentucky bourbon, today announced a new look for its Cask Strength expression, featuring a premium glass bottle and label with its precise age statement.

Blended and bottled straight from the barrel, Maker’s Mark Cask Strength is considered the truest expression of Maker’s Mark’s distillation and aging process, and it is the starting point for all the brand’s innovations, including Maker’s Mark 46, Cellar Aged and Wood Finishing Series releases.

Aged to taste not time, Maker’s Mark Cask Strength is bottled in small batches when the barrels reach a perfect balance of flavor, so each batch and corresponding bottle varies slightly in proof and age – between 7 and 8 years and between 107 and 114 proof – reflecting a lower entry proof than most in the category and offering a surprisingly smooth and approachable whisky.

“In many ways, Maker’s Mark Cask Strength is where it all begins for us – straight from the barrel with the inviting warmth and velvety mouthfeel Maker’s Mark is known for, only amplified with notes of dark cherry, toasted oak, salted caramel, plenty of warm vanilla, and a harmonious finish of dark chocolate and soft spices,” said Dr. Blake Layfield, Master Distiller, Maker’s Mark.

“We’re thrilled to showcase Cask Strength in a new premium glass bottle, and adding the age statement underscores that our spirit is precisely aged to taste and  meticulously blended, while also delivering the transparency and batch specific details bourbon lovers are looking for,” he concluded.

The newly redesigned Maker’s Mark Cask Strength is already arriving on shelves and will continue to rollout through 2026. At an ABV between 53.5% and 57%, Maker’s Mark Cask Strength is available at U.S. retailers for a suggested MSRP of $49.99.

For more information, please visit makersmark.com.

ABOUT MAKER’S MARK 
Maker’s Mark® is the iconic handmade Kentucky bourbon driven by a vision for better flavor and a better world. In 1953, founders Margie and Bill Samuels, Sr. broke from tradition—burning the family’s 170-year-old recipe to create a bold, balanced bourbon made with soft red winter wheat for signature sweetness and creaminess. From the start, the Samuels went to remarkable lengths to craft uncompromisingly delicious bourbon—a perfectly unreasonable spirit that endures today. Every bottle is still hand-dipped in red wax, every barrel rotated by hand and every decision guided by the brand’s higher purpose.

Staying true to its founders’ vision, Maker’s Mark has expanded its portfolio with award-winning, super-premium expressions, including Maker’s Mark 46, Cask Strength, and Cellar Aged, as well as Private Selection, the brand’s custom barrel program. In 2025, the distillery debuted Star Hill Farm Whisky, its first-ever wheat whisky. Award-winning and the first to earn Estate Whiskey certification, Star Hill Farm Whisky inspired the Maker’s Mark Regenerative Alliance, a bold commitment to advance regenerative farming beyond its business, inviting farms, bars and restaurants to join the movement.

Maker’s Mark is proud to be both B Corp and Regenified Certified – milestones driven by the sustainability leadership at Star Hill Farm, home of the Maker’s Mark Distillery, which strives to be the most endearing, culturally rich and environmentally responsible homeplace in the world.

Learn more at www.makersmark.com.

The Bruichladdich Octomore 12 Year Old 2012 is an exceptionally rare and powerful Islay single malt Scotch whisky, drawn from a single 2nd fill Rivesaltes wine cask and bottled exclusively for the United Kingdom market. Distilled in 2012 at Bruichladdich Distillery and peated to an immense 156ppm, this remarkable Octomore expression was bottled at 56.3% ABV, with just 300 bottles released. Long maturation and distinctive wine-cask influence bring unexpected elegance and depth to Octomore’s famously ferocious peat profile.

£464.94 GBP

Nose Explosive peat smoke layered with red berries, smoked citrus, earthy notes, and hints of wine-soaked oak and leather. Palate Intense yet refined, delivering waves of bonfire smoke, dark fruits, charred oak, liquorice, sea salt, and subtle sweetness from the Rivesaltes cask. Finish Long, powerful, and complex, with lingering peat embers, dried fruit sweetness, maritime salinity, and warming spice.

• An incredibly rare single cask Octomore from Bruichladdich Distillery

• Peated to a formidable 156ppm, balanced by extended maturation

• Matured in a 2nd fill Rivesaltes wine cask for added depth and complexity

• Bottled at 56.3% ABV for full flavour impact

• Limited to just 300 bottles, exclusive to the UK market

The Bruichladdich Octomore 12 Year Old 2012 Single Cask is a thrilling showcase of how extreme peat, careful cask selection, and time can combine to create a whisky of astonishing power and sophistication. A must-have for Octomore collectors and lovers of bold, uncompromising Islay single malts.

Gifts For Your Valentine

With Valentine’s Day fast approaching, have you thought about what to gift your loved one yet? For the whisky lover in your life, a bottle from the Cotswolds Distillery is a thoughtful way to mark the occasion – rich in flavour, beautifully crafted, and chosen with care. A gift to enjoy together, long after the day itself.

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Wilderness Trail 5 Year 10 Month K&L Exclusive Single Barrel #767560 Cask Strength High-Rye Bourbon Whiskey

(750ml)

$69.99

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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

ralfy review 1114 – Lindores Friar Jon Cor Chapter Three @60.2%vol:

Jura 12

Know your loved one enjoys whisky, but not sure what to gift them for Valentine’s Day? Jura 12 Year Old – the UK’s number one ^[1], award-winning Single Malt ^[2] – makes finding your perfect match easy.

Each bottle features Jura’s pioneering taste scale, designed to take the guesswork out of gifting by clearly showing the strength of its three key flavours (rated from 0–6): ripe peach (4), bright citrus (3) and lightly toasted walnut (3). It’s a whisky designed to help you discover what you love – before you’ve even cracked open the bottle.

Crafted since 1810 at Jura’s beachside distillery, it’s a dram made for slowing down and enjoying unhurried moments with loved ones.

However you toast your nearest and dearest this Valentine’s Day,  Jura 12 Year Old fits the bill – enjoy it neat, or in a Jura Scottish Island Iced Tea:

• Add 40ml Jura 12 Year Old, 50ml peach tea, 15ml lemon juice and 10ml sugar syrup to a shaker with cubed ice.
• Dry shake, then wet shake, and fine strain into an Old Fashioned glass or Jura tumbler filled with fresh ice.
• Top with ginger ale and garnish with a sprig of thyme and a slice of apricot.

Pick up Jura 12 Year Old from ASDA, Co-op, Morrisons, Tesco and specialist retailers including Master of Malt and The Whisky Exchange, RRP £41.

Fettercairn 16 Year Old

For the one who loves to discover something new, Fettercairn 16 Year Old offers a refined escape to brighter, more tropical flavours.

Shaped by over 200 years of whisky-making expertise, Fettercairn’s pioneering copper cooling ring creates an exceptionally smooth Highland Single Malt. Expect vibrant layers of mango, passionfruit, Madagascan vanilla and soft spice, brought together with effortless elegance.

For an evening to remember, why not try the Fettercairn 1824 Martini? Ideal for candlelit dinners or a celebratory toast for two. To make it at home, simply combine:

• 37.5ml Fettercairn 16 Year Old
• 12.5ml kumquat liqueur
• 10ml Fettercairn honey syrup
• 15ml lemon juice
• 4 dashes banana & coffee bitters

Shake briskly with ice, fine strain into a chilled Champagne coupe, then top with Crémant sparkling wine. Garnish with a fresh lemon twist for a final touch of finesse, and serve well chilled in your most elegant glassware.

Fettercairn 16 Year Old is available from a range of retailers, including The Whisky Shop, RRP £87.

[1] Nielsen 2022, by Volume and Value [2] World Whiskies Awards Scotland 2026