scotch whiskey

Luxist Samples The Dalmore Mackenzie

Filed under: Spirits

When it comes to scotch we are always-eager drinkers, yet we know our palate for the ochre-hued beverage has a few years of finesse left to develop before we can lay claim to a scotch maturity. Yet if we are known for anything, it is our willingness to do what it takes to hone those finer points of our humanity. It was the brand's parent, Whyte & Mackay, who flew us to Edinburgh to take the next step in our whiskey learning, and that is how we found ourselves seated in a table at the Scottish National Gallery in Edinburgh, set before Benjamin West's 12-foot-wide, 17-foot-tall painting from 1786, Alexander III of Scotland Rescued from the Fury of a Stag by the Intrepidity of Colin Fitzgerald, about to taste The Dalmore Mackenzie. Our hosts provided us a powerful and delicious education.

Gallery: Luxist Tastes The Dalmore Mackenzie

Tags: scotch, scotch whiskey, scotch whisky, the dalmore, the dalmore mackenzie, whiskey, whisky, whisky tasting

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Five New Whiskies From Scotland's Tomatin

by David Kiley (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

Tomatin, a Highlands whisky distillery with operations dating back to the 19th century, is not one of Scotland's higher profile distilleries, but what it has lacked in marketing it is increasingly making up for in the blending house.

Tomatin, located in the Monadhliath Mountains just south of Inverness, is also one of the highest distilleries in Scotland at 315 meters above sea level, has released several new expressions recently that bear examining and tasting.

Tomatin, 18 year old: $60
This is a new expression of the distillery's 18-year old, bottled at higher alcohol level than its predecessors. Taste notes: toffee, maple, dates, toasted walnuts, very ripe fruit, cocoa.

Tomatin, 15 Year Old: $46
Aged conventionally in American Bourbon casks, the flavor profile is round and constant with peaches, citrus and vanilla shining through. It's a fairly gentle taste and finish, and I'd recommend it without water, but also as an interesting mixer, especially with apple spirits and a mint garnish.

The distillery has also bottled two new single-cask expressions and one limited edition.

Tags: Highland Malt, scotch whiskey, scotch whisky, Single-Cask Scotch Whiskey, Single-Malt Scotch Whiskey, Tomatin, whisky

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Glenfiddich "Rich Oak" Released

by David Kiley (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

Glenfiddich has released a new expression, Glenfiddich Rich Oak 14-Year Old. Priced at around $50, the whiskey has been aged in second fill Bourbon barrels for more than 13 years, and finished in new American and Spanish oak.

The effect, as one would expect, is higher vanilla notes than is found normally in Glenfiddich, the number-one single-malt Scotch whiskey in the world. The notes of dried fruit and walnuts shine through as is the case with any Glenfiddich pour.

Tags: alcohol, Glenfiddich, liquor, new spirits, scotch, Scotch whiskey, single-malt whiskey, Speyside whiskey, spirits, whisky

Colorado Whiskey Joins Scotland and Kentucky For Malt Advocates' Best

by David Kiley (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

The Malt Advocate released its picks for Best Whiskies of The Year" in its new Spring issue. Like many of these rankings, there is a little to go around for everyone to argue about, as well as a surprise or two.

Top of the list for pleasant surprises is Stranahan's Colorado Whiskey. This young distillery, opened in 2004, has been a stand out since getting started, but it is also up against dozens of emerging micro-distilleries popping up all around the U.S. It used to distill from beer wash obtained from Flying Dog Brewery, but is now making its own. batch 49, honored by Malt Advocate, contains whiskey as young as two years old, but no older than five. At $55 a bottle, it's a buy, with an eye toward putting one away for future auctions. On the palate, you should find notes of English toffee, maple, roasted chestnuts and a bit of tobacco.

"Best Buy" of the Year went to The MacPhail's Collection; 8-year old expressions of Highland Park, Glenrothes and Tamdhu. At $30-$35, it was a solid choice. It's hard to find age stated whiskies this good, and nicely packaged. All are aged in refill Sherry casks. There are whiskies I like as much at the lower end of the range: Ardmore 'Traditional Cask" comes to mind, but for a few dollars more. That makes The MacPhails a worthy winner.

The American Whiskey of the Year went to Parker's Heritage Collection "Golden Anniversary." This expression was developed to mark Parker Beam's fifty years of service at Heaven Hill Distilleries. The blend was created from whiskies from the last five decades. With so many ages mingles, its not surprising to find a very complex, layered taste: vanilla and cocoa, but with very definite notes of citrus and cinnamon. At $150.00, I'd have to say it's right priced.

The Canadian Whisky of the Year is Crown Royal Cask No. 16. This is not surprising, but perhaps a little disappointing. No. 16 is a fine whisky to be sure. But the choice is disturbingly predictable because of the seeming lack of innovation coming out of Canada compared with the U.S. and Scotland. A close competitor in my tasting book would be Canadian Club 30 Year, at $200.00. To be eligible for Malt Advocate's ranking, the whisky has to have been sold in the U.S. in the previous year. The problem with some of the better, smaller volume Canadian whiskies is that they are not sold in the U.S., and they are often priced lower than they deserve, making comparisons with high-end Crown Royals and Canadian Clubs difficult for many taste testers.

Gallery: Whiskies of The Year

Parker's Heritage Collection Golden Anniversary

Tags: Ardbeg Corryvreckan, ArdbegCorryvreckan, Canadian Whisky, CanadianWhisky, Compass Box, CompassBox, Crown Royal Whisky, CrownRoyalWhisky, Heaven Hill, HeavenHill, Jamesons irish whiskey, JamesonsIrishWhiskey, Parker Beam, ParkerBeam, Scotch whiskey, ScotchWhiskey, Stranahans Colorado Whiskey, StranahansColoradoWhiskey, whiskey, whisky

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A Golden Retriever, Now in Liquid Form: Gold Bowmore Completes the Trilogy

by Jonathon Ramsey (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

Trilogies are uncertain things: after a fabulous introductory act you never know which way progress will decide to turn, and it is far more common for the second and third installments to veer the way of uninspired, if not downright awful. Bowmore, the maker of full-bodied scotches on tucked among the Hebrides, has worked for 45 years to avoid that trend with its latest troika. First there was Black Bowmore in 2007, White Bowmore in 2008, and now Gold Bowmore makes the play complete.

Distilled on November 5, 1964 the 84.8% proof scotch has been matured in three bourbon casks and one Oloroso sherry cask in Bowmore's Number 1 vault, tucked below sea level. When the resulting elixirs were married, the Oloroso cask's sherry and walnut hues found their way into the mix, imbuing the final liquid with "a darker, reddish-amber" tint. Or perhaps it should be called the final nectar: the aroma is described a combination of passion fruit, papaya, and vanilla. Add that to Bowmore's trademark smoky peat undertones, and you could have something special in your hands.

There will be 701 bottles of the gold version, the smallest number among the three. What will not be smallest is the price: $6,250 for a hand-numbered bottle in a Burr Elm box. Although that price might seem untoward, you can look at it as an asset -- an unopened set of Bowmore's first trilogy, released in the early nineties, sold for $17,530 at auction in 2007. Even if you do spend six large on a bottle of Gold Bowmore and then thought better of it, we don't think you'll be sorry -- buyer's remorse has probably never tasted so good.

[Source: Bowmore]

Tags: black bowmore, BlackBowmore, bowmore, gold bowmore, GoldBowmore, scotch, scotch whiskey, ScotchWhiskey, spirits, whiskey, white bowmore, WhiteBowmore

Not your every day blended whisky from Compass Box

by Gustad Mody (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Spirits

After visiting dozens of distilleries and refining his taste, John Glaser sat down in his home and began mixing whisky. Before he knew it, he decided to begin marketing his blends by buying special casks from Scottish distilleries and selling them under the brand name of Compass Box Crafted Whiskies. Picking some of the best aged grains, he has created whisky with outstanding profiles. The Compass Box line includes blended Scotch in addition to various vatted malts. There are also limited edition whiskies such as Orangerie, the once a year orange and spice-infused whisky we mentioned back when it was available in December. Try The Peat Monster. It is a vatted malt made with Caol Ila and Ardmore malts, 92 proof at $45.

Source

Tags: Ardmore, asyla, Cambus Cameron Bridge, CambusCameronBridge, Caol Ila, Clynelish, Compass Box Crafted Whiskies, CompassBoxCraftedWhiskies, Cragganmore, eleuthera, Glen Elgin, GlenElgin, Glenlossie, grain, grain malt, GrainMalt, Hedonism, John Glaser, JohnGlaser, Johnnie Walker, JohnnieWalker, malt, scotch whiskey, ScotchWhiskey, single malt, SingleMalt, vatted, whisky, whisky drinks, whisky peat, whisky stills, WhiskyDrinks, WhiskyPeat, WhiskyStills