Dr.Whisky

Malt Mission 2011 #405

2011-12-19T08:00:00.000Z

St. Isidore
Blended Scotch Whisky
41.4% abv
£50

I am sure if you are reading this then you are likely familiar with the back story, but...

Master of Malt, clever 21st century spirits merchants and genuinely lovely people, came up with the idea to get a group of bloggers to take part in creating a blended whisky. Simple as that, really. And thus the work-in-progress formerly known as THE BLOGGERS BLEND was born.

Read Jason's backstory HERE.

TASTING NOTES:

Complex, deep and fruity with wood, wood smoke, and all the promise of the industrial revolution.

Wow. Thick. Hearty. Real vanilla, spice and fruit again all swoddled in a blanket of fragrant wood smoke, finishing with a toasty, buttery and popcorn-y character and a resurgence of fruit, now more dried or even burnt. Lovely.

SUMMARY:

Chewy and hearty with an Islay heart, not unlike a bowl of coal soup. While admittedly not the most elegant drop on the block, this beauty matches the complexity of some of the world's favourite malts, most premium blends, and reminds of the old-school blending stylings of mid-20th century Johnnie Walker Black and White Horse all for a fraction of the cost. What's more is that in the spirit of Christmas, all proceeds go to cover MoM's admirable investment in such a brilliant project.

Think you could have done better? Now you can try to prove it. Master of Malt have assembled a Home Blending Kit fit for exactly what it says on the tin.

Malt Mission #401

Malt Mission #402
Malt Mission #403
Malt Mission #404

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Malt Mission 2011 #404

2011-12-09T10:46:00.000Z

The Silver Grouse
Blended Malt Whisky

45%
£30

Honestly? I have no information about this bottle to share except for what the label told me:

It is a blended malt and is chill-filtered at -8 degrees Celsius, a proposition that seems familiar to the brilliant commercial failure of J&B -6. The label explains that this whisky was specially designed to celebrate Famous Grouse's 25 years as Scotland's number 1 blended whisky.

I took a sample off a bar in an office in Taipei and I am afraid neither the internet nor my shelves of books offer me much else by way of background. Sorry! Do you know this whisky?

For more info on the Famous Grouse family of blends and to see all tasted so far on the mission, click HERE.

TASTING NOTES:

Wildly pleasant and easy-going nose. Creamy and sweet with dates and honey. Slight salty or briney note in there, too.

More dates, raisins and an oaty gristiness, drying with dusty oak and pleasant sherry.

SUMMARY:

Classic Grouse style, easy to drink and a joy all the while. Now who knows where the hell this thing is available?

Malt Mission #401

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Malt Mission 2011 #403

2011-12-02T08:45:00.000Z

Johnnie Walker Swing
Blended Scotch Whisky
43% abv
£70

Another blend to start off the 400s on the malt mission.

Originally introduced as the iconic Johnnie Walker range's premium export brand, Johnnie Walker 'Swing' or 'Celebrity' was introduced way back in 1932 and was Alexander Walker II's last blend. Although this whisky was apparently made available in the UK from 1982, it isn't a whisky we see much of on these shores. In fact, the world renowned Red Label is at least as absent from the home market having left the UK in 1977 following DCLs need to comply with EEC competition rules.

I look forward to an email from Dr. Morgan correcting at least half of the above. Thank you in advance.

For all Johnnie Walker had on the mission, click HERE.

TASTING NOTES:

Coal smoke and candied lemon, green herbal (Glenlossie?) and tangerine (Glen Elgin?) notes with a hint of sulphury sherry adding a welcome weight.

Great texture, big and bold with vegetable sweetness from quality aged grain, vanilla and orange before turning drying with clay, treacly for balance, and arriving at a lasting smoky finish.

SUMMARY:

Jim Murray called it "a different breed to the other Walker blends" in Classic Blended Scotch (1999) but to my mouth twelve years later, this is a very JW house style blend, with a bit of swagger and umph at its heart.

Malt Mission #401
Malt Mission #402
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Malt Mission 2011 #402

2011-10-16T07:43:00.003Z

Scotch Blue

Blended Scotch Whisky

40% abv

??? WON

Scotch Blue calls itself "the #1 selling blended Scotch whisky in Korea" (it isn't) and was launched in 1997 by drinks giant Lotte Chilsung. It has 17 and 21yo versions very much targeting the more premium Ballantines expressions and local market leader, Windsor 17.

Scotch whisky was the biggest South Korean import from the UK in 2010 with the local brands dominating the market: Diageo's Windsor, Pernod's Imperial Classic and Lotte's Scotch Blue. As expected, Macallan and Glenfiddich dominate the malts but what is most fascinating for me is that Scotch Whisky as a category accounts for more than 90% of the spirits market in S. Korea.

When the South Korean government changed their tax policy on imported alcohol earlier this year, the whisky industry, especially those looking for an opportunity for malts to expand, had a party in their pants. Said Whisky Magazine's Rob Allanson, "South Korea is already the sixth largest export market in the world for Scotch by value and the ninth by volume, so we see this as having a fairly significant benefit to the whisky industry."

TASTING NOTES:

Waxy and buttery the way only PET packed whisky can be. Grape juice sweetness and pleather Michael Jackson Beat It-era jackets. Sweet, simple, and welcoming.

Buttery again, rounded. Garibaldi biscuits, raisin sweetness offset by a lemony zest. Chewy and perfectly quaffable.

SUMMARY:

Shocked. Utterly shocked. Probably lovely with tons of ice.

Malt Mission #401
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Malt Mission 2011 #401

2011-10-10T08:46:00.000Z

Great King Street
Compass Box Whisky Co.
Blended Scotch Whisky
43% abv

£25

Blended whisky is the main volume driver of the scotch whisky industry but still carries a stigma that has proven challenging to shake. The history of blended whisky is the history of the Scotch whisky industry as a whole (see my Bullocks to Blends post from 2008) and for over a century some of these whiskies have been the strongest brands in the world.

For ten years, John Glaser has been insisting that it is time for the world to take a fresh look at this style, "and that is why we have created Great King Street." The bottle clearly states a few keynotes of their malty manifesto in a Georgian press-style look and feel with terms like "artist", "non-chill filtered" and "natural colour" all making an appearance. The tube quotes Aeneas MacDonald's assessment of the styles of whiskies that appeal by geography, pointing to the central role for blended whiskies on a global level 80 years ago.

The ambitious ideology is laid out on the website: "More than just a new brand, Great King Street is a mission, a mission dedicated to reviving interest in one style of whisky only: Blended Scotch Whisky. This is the style of Scotch whisky that combines flavourful single malt whiskies with delicate, elegant single grain whiskies."

From the press release, "This is more than a brand; it’s a mission. A mission to get people – all people - to take a fresh look at Blended Scotch; to join in the Rebirth of the Blend: in how Blends are made, how they are viewed, how they are consumed.” – John Glaser, Whiskymaker

So the tube tells us Great King Street is "The rebirth of the blend." Ambitious. Today, blended whisky is a price-driven category in most markets globally, as Compass Box is no doubt aware. So if they see a "rebirth", the labour is due to be a very long a drawn out process for John and his Compass Box team. TAKE THE EPIDURAL!

For all Compass Box had on the mission, click HERE.

TASTING NOTES:

Fresh pastry, juniper and lemon. Youthful and assertive.

Spirity, tart apples, and pencil shavings. There is a mineral note throughout with a gristy, malty, new-make-y zing.

SUMMARY:

Meh.

I hate that this is happening. I tasted and tasted again over several days (hard work, yes), but I do not share the exaggerated enthusiasm for this whisky that so many of my friends and peers have shown. It isn't just that the flavour of Great King Street falls flat for me, its also the "house" context; every previous release from Compass Box I have really liked or even, on a few occasions, absolutely LOVED.

What makes it especially hard is that I deeply respect all that CB has done for whisky blending as a esoteric category within an esoteric category, building consumer understanding of the idea that blends are NOT poor cousins to malts, older isn't better, dark colour is not a sign of quality, etc. And it's why the literature around this release puzzles me so greatly. By propagating the myth that high malt content equals higher quality blended whisky not only does it seem that they undermine their mission to have respect reborn for the blend, but it seems to go against what I think CB has been about for a decade.

And if this is for mixing into cocktails, how does it rejuvenate the blend? Could gin or vodka do the job? If it is for rocks, then I also don't get it as for me it gets even more gin-like with juniper and spice essences of enhanced grain spirit and less like whisky with ice. Have not yet tried as highball (with soda water).

Finally, at £50 a litre, I would go home with a bottle of Johnnie Black and a Grouse. Or Black Bottle. Or Grant's. Or, indeed, Compass Box Asyla.

Malt Mission #400

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Malt Mission 2011 #400

2011-09-30T01:40:00.001Z

Johnnie Walker 15yo, Kilmarnock 400

Blended Scotch Whisky

43% abv

£800

Labelled as "Old Scotch Whisky" with a 15yo age statement, this extremely rare drop from the house that Johnnie built is perfectly suited to mark this whisky blog's landmark tasting #400. This whole journey began with Johnnie Walker Black Label over four years ago, alone at a desk/dining table in a cozy flat in North London.

Today the journey continues in ways I would never have imagined. I am back in London, but living in the opposite corner. I have two wee girls, who think nothing of daddy sticking his nose weird shaped glasses. I am one of the lucky few who gets to do work with something I love, with people I am passionate about, I get to say that what I do is who I am, and I am am very grateful to many, many people. I have never stopped being thankful, and a few lists can be found in the annals of this whisky blog. HERE and HERE are just two examples. The list has grown a great deal since then, and continues to grow. THANK YOU!

This bottling has a gold label, but is just 15 years old as opposed to the standard current gold release which is 18 years old. The Johnnie Walker hierarchy goes Red, Black, Green (malt), Gold, Blue, George V, The John Walker, Life, The Universe, and Everything.

For all Johnnie Walker enjoyed on the malt mission, click HERE.

TASTING NOTES:

Lures you in deep, sweet tobacco, stewed apples and honey, with a delicate floral prefumerie blowing across the surface.

On the palate the liquid skirts across the tongue, communicating quaffability with rich flavours of more tobacco, mellow and sweet smoke, vanilla wafers, plums, marmalade, and a touch of cardboardy woodiness to close.

SUMMARY:

Rare juice, but demands persistent sipping and refilling, and sipping again. Very much in the Walker house style, with an added spray of lavender perfume to distinguish it from some of its housemates. Big thanks to DM for sharing.

Malt Mission #396
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Malt Mission #399

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Maltstock 2011, Thank you

2011-09-21T08:22:00.005Z

I have said it before, but I will say it again: I am a lucky man. There are many reasons I remain convinced of this fact, but as it relates to my point today, I get to read, write, make, taste, talk about, share and spend time immersed in something I am truly passionate about.

Nearly ten years ago I fell in love with malt whisky and although I now hold gainful employment in the whisky industry, I assure you the romance is still alive and well. I still buy bottles. I still go to bed with a whisky book by my side (currently leafing through Phillip Morrice's Schweppes Guide to Scotch). I still taste as much new whisky as I am able to. I still relish speaking with other whisky geeks, malt maniacs, and peat freaks. I still go to tastings for fun, out of hours. I still love whisky.

I was fortunate enough to attend what must be the most unique whisky festival in the world, Maltstock in the Netherlands September 9-11, 2011. (Read Cask Strength's Neil Ridley or Master of Malt Ben Ellefsen's thoughts on the event)

My colleagues and I arrived at a scout camp at De Berendonck near Nijmegen with a car bursting with bottles, glassware, two beautiful barrel-shaped pinatas, and three daily costume changes for my fabulous colleague, Tony.

Maltstock lacked many things that define most whisky festivals: queues at stands, branding and pop-up banners, people shoving glasses in exhibitors' faces saying "gimme your oldest"/"what's your most expensive scotch?", poor food, a ticketed dram policy, people attempting to show off how much they know (or think they know) about whisky, some hotel conference room, or a curfew. Running for three days at a campsite in Nijmegan, Maltstock is the only celebration of whisky perfectly suited to the drink it honours.

With many whisky festivals earning nicknames like DrunkFest and WhiskyLoathe due to the large numbers of attendees who are clearly there to drink as much as they possibly can and act like pricks, there are a growing number of new festivals around the world hiking ticket prices to their festivals in an attempt to filter out some of the "undesirable" elements and offering an ultra premium, exclusive experience.

Maltstock isn't premium, it's primal. It is isn't exclusive, it's inclusive. And with over 200 bottles open, poured at will by every attendee to their hearts' content, there was not one incident of vomiting, fighting, abuse, property damage, public defecation, or theft; features of many other festivals that I have personally witnessed.

Maltstock is about people. People who love whisky. People who want to be with other people who love whisky. No matter their income or nationality or age or knowledge level. And you know who that attracts? Nice people. Nice people who want to meet other nice people. People who want to share in the discovery of new single casks from obscure indie bottlers. Nice people who want to rediscover Glenfiddich 12yo or Glenlivet 15 French Oak (as I did). Nice people who want to find the worst whisky in the world. Nice people who want to enjoy something they love in the company of other nice people. Who wears nametags at the whisky fair in your city? Vendors? Distillers? Ambassadors? You can put a nametag on a hired model who explains that "at the Johnnie Walker distillery we use closed distilleries in our Green single malt," but unless she is coming back to my hotel room, I cannot help but wonder why I needed to learn her name. At Maltstock everyone wears a nametag and every single person I met was a fucking legend.

And again, that is what whisky appreciation is about: People. It is a communal elixir, a product that grew out of the agricultural tradition and nourishes the society that so naturally builds around it. Whisky is, as David Daiches has so perfectly articulated, "more than indulgence: it is a toast to civilization, a tribute to the continuity of culture, a manifesto of man's determination to use the resources of nature to refresh mind and body and enjoy to the full the senses with which is has been endowed."

When you look at woodcuts or old paintings of distilling in Scotland, or of crofters enjoying some clearach, you don't see a man sitting alone in a sterile makeshift home office with his nose in a glass and his twitter feed twitting away. No, you don't see people hovering at one side of a trade display table, arms outstretched, discussing why Ardbeg 10 is inconsistent or Springbank has gone downhill or the stainless steel washbacks at Macallan have any impact on the flavour of the malt or "gimme yer oldest." You see human beings with other human beings in a natural environment enjoying whisky and talking about nearly anything but.

This is what Maltstock provides.

Thanks to the organisers and volunteers and to every single attendee. When I began to work for William Grant & Sons 3 years ago, I was proud and excited. But I remember spending an evening dramming at Sukhinder Singh's office with John Glaser calling me "sellout" all night. And maybe he was right. In this role one must be corporate and responsible. Maltstock, thank you for allowing me to be neither again.

If you are already attending next year, see you there. If you are not and are within a few hours flying time of Schipol, get your ass to Mars.

The Master of Malt Bloggers Blend

2011-06-15T08:50:00.003Z

In the 21th century, where having a whisky blog can get you friends in 7 continents, samples in the post, interviewed for "real" publications, on a judging panel, or even lead to a job in the whisky industry (!), you wouldn't be on crack if you decided to start one yourself. And I can observe that the world wide whisk-e-verse has exploded since I began in 2006, when Dr. Whisky had only 4 English language "blogs" to link to and NONE that offered what I thought I could share: a dram a day, distillery descriptions, stories from books I had trawled, distilleries I had visited, and people I had met, an international persepctive, irrational and heated opinions, and of course some colourful tasting notes. Today, after some deletion and MANY additions, there are nearly 25 times as many links on my "Get informed by others" sidebar as there was when this Malt Mission began January 1, 2007. Of course, all of the others involved in this project are listed among many other amazing online resources. The world of whisky is the warmest community I am fortunate to be part of outside of a Saturday morning in bed with my wife and daughter, and if you are reading this, I raise a glass to you for loving Scotland's greatest gift to the world.

As a very 21st century retailer, Master of Malt invited 10 leading blogs to participate in creating their own blends by sending them kits of the constituent liquids, beakers, pipettes, and an excel doc for recording recipes.

Recipes were submitted, blends assembled to spec and then offered up as a sample pack on the MoM website for £30. With the purchase, of course, came the responsibility to vote on your favourites by assigning them 1st place to 10th place. The kits are now completely sold out.

In creating my recipe, I trialled 10 vattings and let them marry for many days in bottle before re-sampling and deciding which one to submit. And it was a hard decision! Depending on the percentages of each part (highland, grain, old grain, old highland, etc.), the value/cost of the liquid would change, so we each had to weigh between whether to make a blend built around desired cost or to make a blend based on taste. Somewhere in between? When deciding which to submit I was torn. Do I go with the cheap and cheerful blend? The expensive one? The quaffable one? The smoky demon? The sweet grainy one? The one I could spread on toast?

Likewise, selecting a favourite of all the submitted blends was a real challenge and a reminder of how with the flavour palate a commercial blender has at their disposal, the room for variation, and indeed, error, is vast. So creating a good, consistent blend is a skill for which I continue to have the utmost respect and that art and skill is, after all, what allows the whisky world to be what it is today.

Others involved have reported their experiences (Whisky For Everyone for example). Did you buy one? I'd love to hear your thoughts on the whole thing.

Whatever the result, all the blends were highly drinkable with a few being truly stellar, and while each blender deserves kudos, the good people at Master of Malt deserve respect for not just dreaming up, but for actually executing such a project. Nice work, and until the results are announced and I press "confirm order", cheers!

Malt Mission 2011 #399

2011-04-09T08:59:00.006Z

Ardbeg Provenance 1974 Bottle #1605

Islay Single Malt Whsky

54.7% abv

+/- £1000

+/- $1200 (USD)

I featured Ardbeg twice in the first month of this malt mission over four years ago and I am fortunate enough to get to taste this piece of history in the run-up to Malt Mission #400

Bottled in 1998, this is the US edition of the legendary Ardbeg Provenance series (geeky bits HERE) that reportedly made people shit their pants upon first tasting it. Seriously, this is a story that has been relayed to me by an enthusiast and I cannot think of any reason why someone would lie about doing such a terrible thing to their Joe Boxers. And soiling oneself is a pretty good reassurance to the naysayers that the Glenmorangie takeover in 1997 was going to be a very good thing, if sometimes requiring a change of underwear.

Ardbeg is probably the king of the cult distilleries in terms of attracting the most diehard fans and quasi-religious followers. They have the Ardbeg Committee, they have dedicated fan sites (Tim's Ardbeg Project), and past bottlings have, as noted above, made grown men shit their pants.

I was fortunate enough to be on Islay recently and distillery manager Mickey Heads explained to us how many people spend the night at the distillery to be sure to get Feis Ile bottles (and sell them online?) the following morning. Now, I love whisky, and I really like Ardbeg, but sleeping over in Islay rain?

Finally, a big thanks must be extended to the amazing Jazz Dentist. Not only did Peter set aside a sample when I last visited Dram Central Station before leaving New York, but he had prepared it in a wee bottle to take home for my wife, the Ardbeg freak of this family. I hope he won't mind me saying that he has also undergone his last chemo treatment and is that much closer to his dram to celebrate THE END of what he calls "this whole business."

Whatever drop you choose, Peter, may it taste not of heaven, but of earth.

For more distillery info, or to see all Ardbeg whiskies tasted since the beginning of this blog, click HERE.

TASTING NOTES:

All the sweetness of aged quality ex-bourbon casks emerge first, coconut shavings, marshmallow, coffee cake, vanilla custard, followed by the expected tide of magic markers, latex, plasticine, fishtanks, and finally, algaic peat, but maintaining a creamy sweetness throughout.

A tease of brown sugar before an strange brew of cocoa, smoke, mustard and toffee. Otherworldly flavour development. Oh my. Just sinking its nails into my cheeks with peach, honey, barbecue sauce, and salty tears. May these sensations never end.

SUMMARY:

A big whisky for a big occasion. A liquid that today might be underappreciated quaffed over the Ardbeg stand at some FEST or LIVE or MESSE, where superficial impressions make lasting ones. This whisky is really all about a complexity that only makes itself known with patience, attention, and respect. Respect your whiskies this dramming season be it at Limburg, WhiskyFEST Chicago, or Spirit of Toronto. Thanks again, Peter.

Malt Mission #396
Malt Mission #397
Malt Mission #398
Malt Mission # 400

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Breakfast Whisky, Master of Malt 8yo

2011-03-15T08:26:00.000Z

Not only have the good people of Master of Malt created a beautiful blended whisky for under £20 (to be tasted as a part of the malt mission at a later date) but they have asked some online whisky geeks to share their ideas for ways in which to consume it.

They invited Dr. Whisky to create a cocktail with their perfectly-lovely-as-is blended whisky. I told them, "I am not a mixologist." They said that was exactly why they were asking me. "But I am not a medical doctor!" Their response, "thank god."

So here it goes.

The "cocktail" is called Breakfast Whisky. Let's begin with what you will need to make it:

You will need NONE of the above items to make this cocktail.

But, you will need ALL of the below

I want to create something to balance the care, cost, and quality of this whisky. The whisky is full of cream soda, vanilla and grape juice. Really juicy whisky. I need to ride that wave. First I thought Ribena, but then the Aha! moment: Vimto! If equivalent in size, the Fizzy Vimto would cost £1.17 to the whisky's £20. Wow, the critics are right. Whisky IS expensive! Fizzy Vimto comes in this nice small bottle for only 39 pence. And for something so tiny and cheap, they sure pack a lot of ingredients in there! The whisky only has water, yeast, wheat and barley. Rip-off!

THE BREAKFAST WHISKY *
1 part Master of Malt 8yo Blended Scotch Whisky
2-4 parts Fizzy Vimto (depending what kind of morning* you desire)
Some ice
1 mint sprig
Toast
Jam (of your choosing)

Put your toast in the toaster. Mix the liquid ingredients together over ice (ice optional). Remove toast and apply jam. In turn, take gentle sips of the drink and slap yourslef in the face with mint sprig.

Good morning and enjoy!

* I am not actually suggesting that you drink alcohol for breakfast. However, if you do, I recommend it with vimto and a mint sprig slap to the face.

The Balvenie Whisky Academy

2011-03-11T09:40:00.002Z

Although I try not to use this whisky blog as a platform for my job or to talk too much about my whisky work, I am so proud of what we have just completed that I just have to. Please excuse me.

Like a whisky-geek's dream fulfilled, we have completed a series of films on the history, production, and enjoyment of Scotch Whisky called The Balvenie Whisky Academy.

In working with film-maker Stuey Burnett, we initially imagined a series of films for the education of William Grant employees, sales and distribution partners. What we quickly realised was that we had something taking shape that would be of interest and benefit to the wider whisky drinking world, as well.

What I am most proud of is that The Whisky Academy is not a "brand" video, it is not an advertisement, it is an educational series of films about the wider category of Scotch Whisky featuring Charles MacLean, Sukhinder Singh, Eddie Ludlow, Arthur Motley, and Gavin D. Smith as well as colleagues, distillers, scientists, and, of course, yours truly.

Yes, in the process, I have developed an entirely new respect for TV presenters, and for my colleague David Mair who deftly hosts the bulk of the series. So a big thanks to David as well as the film crew of Stuey, John, and Anita.

The whole series goes live today for members of Warehouse 24 and comprises four modules, containing a total of 34 short films. We hope to expand and grow the content over time, but think that we are starting with a pretty impressive chunk of films.

The Balvenie Whisky Academy

I really hope you enjoy it and if you have any feedback, let me know!

Malt Mission 2011 #398

2011-03-07T08:08:00.002Z

Arran 10yo, 10th Anniversary (1995-2005)
Single Malt Scotch Whisky
46% abv
£85

Once the new kid on the block, Arran has settled in to its existence as the Harry Belafonte of malt whisky, the charming islander with mainland appeal. Day-O!

Now in its 16th year of production, Isle of Arran continues to show what a fine spirit they have been quietly making on "Scotland in minature." It has always been tasty and many have written about it's "potential," but age is allowing Arran to figure out who it is and wants to be at least as much showing folks that they were right.

For more distillery info or to see all the Isle of Arran malt that Dr. Whisky has enjoyed, click HERE.

TASTING NOTES

Comes across like a classic speysider (which it is not) with great mellow fruitiness and soft oak influence. Raisins, apples and salt taffy.

Spicy, bready rye notes, raisins and apples again, and a toasty oak impression of dry amontillado sherry casks and sweet treacly notes of oloroso. Nuts and fudge through the finish.

SUMMARY:

I loved this today just as I remember loving it when Ewan from Arran poured us some at a Water of Life Society meeting in Edinburgh back in 2005. That was the same night, after tasting new make, 3 year old, various 7 year olds and this Anniversary malt, that I uttered the classic "it is so cool tasting the progression, it is like a child growing in your mouth!" Umm...

I bought a bottle that I have lost somewhere between my moves to London, New York, and back again, although our running hypothesis is that they guy with whom we left other bottles for safe keeping (including JMR original Irish-only Smooth Sweeter and Hazelburn 8yo 1st edition, BOTH of which he consumed) may have had something to do with this disappearance. That's what friends are for.

Malt Mission #396
Malt Mission #397

Malt Mission #399

Malt Mission # 400

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Malt Mission 2011 #397

2011-03-03T09:43:00.004Z

Balvenie 8yo
Pure Malt Whisky (Single Malt Whisky)
70 Proof
26 2/3 Fl.oz
£255

From today's perspective, with over 500(!) new single malt expressions launched in 2010 alone, it seems so strange to think that in the whisky boom period of the 1960s only a fraction of 1% was bottled as a single (read Dr. Whisky's blended whisky history). The likes of Macallan and Glenmorangie, leaders in the single malt category today, did not widely release their makes as single malts until 1980 and it took decades of Glen Grant (Italy), Glenlivet (Pullman railway in America) and Glenfiddich (exported as a single from 1963) to set the idea of single malts in the consciousness of the drinking public.

As far as I know, this was the first incarnation of The Balvenie released in small volumes as a single malt. For more distillery info and to see all Balvenies had on the mission, delve into the whisky blog past.

TASTING NOTES:

Fresh and light with a hint of depth and age. Perhaps some liquid older than 8? Chamomile, watered-down honey, hippie teas, damp wood or cardboard in there as well. Sweet white wine. Water releases a sweaty element along with coconut and hazelnut.

Moves from soft and sweet to hard and mineral, but all very weakly. Old bubble gum, baseball card cardboardy taste, coffee cake and walnuts. Ends burnt and toasty.

SUMMARY:

An interesting drop mainly for archival reasons. Although it appears that some bottle "maturation" has effected my sample, I imagine in the 1970s all the best Balvenie was ending up in Grants 12, Best Procurable, Grant's Royal, etc. In short, not something I would open to show "how much better whisky was in the old days." I'll stick with my Balvenie Signature, thank you very much.

Malt Mission #396
Malt Mission #398

Malt Mission 2011 #396

2011-03-01T08:41:00.002Z

Big Peat
Islay Blended Malt Whisky
46% abv
£34
$85 (USD)

Welcome to March! I haven't seen you since 2010. I have to get back on the horse and gallop towards the 400 landmark!

I am sure by now you have already met or read about Big Peat. Brought to you buy the good people at Douglas Laing & Co., he was released back in September 2009 and has since received word-of-mouth acclaim and awards from Whisky Magazine (World Whisky Awards) for Best Blended Malt Scotch Whisky, Best Peated Malt Whisky(Daily Dram) 2009 by the Malt Maniacs, and Jim Murray called it Best Vatted Malt in his 2011 Whisky Bible.

Apparently, Fred Douglas Laing senior loved Port Ellen and thus invested heavily in casks from the now shuttered distillery decades ago. This legacy has left an emotional attachment to this distillery for his offspring with every nose of a Port Ellen likely reminding them of their father's goodnight kisses.

The vatting includes several anonymous malts but Bowmore, Ardbeg, Caol Ila, and the increasingly rare Port Ellen are all named in the mix with the youngest whisky coming in at 5 years old, the oldest at least 26.

Thanks to Kirsty and Fred for the sample and I will see you for a dram this weekend at WhiskyLIVE London. For other Douglas Laing bottlings enjoyed on the Malt Mission dig deep into this whisky blog's past.

TASTING NOTES:

Tarry, with some toffee, candied lemon, raw salmon, and a generally sweet core.

Salty and sweet, even more tarry than the nose suggested, earthy, but with only gentle smokiness wrapped in toffee and orange.

SUMMARY:

Extremely enjoyable drop that is at once industrial and sooty but equally confectionary with sweetness, creating a very well balanced whisky in a very 21st century package.

For other opions, JSMWS tasted Big Peat HERE, Whisky For Everyone HERE, Whisky Boys HERE, and Dramming share some tasting notes. In the medium of moving pictures, Ralfy shares his thoughts HERE and Dickie P and Fred Laing share a few HERE.

Malt Mission #395

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Løitens Aquavit til Jul!

2010-12-26T09:09:00.003Z

Loitens Single Cask Aquavit
barrel/fat #1627

Sept 2005-Oktober 2010

41.5% abv

£80

Who says Dr. Whisky doesn't bring you exclusives any more? I imagine I am the only English language blogger posting about Loitens new single barrel aquavit, matured for five years in ex-sherry casks.

This is just one of 950 bottles and a total of 5 casks were released in 2010: numbers 1950, 5315, 6125, 8330, and this one, 1627.

Very whisky-esque labelling style and language, even looks like a Bruichladdich or even Mackmyra bottle, although probably also similar to many of the cognacs the Norwegians drink so much of. Nonetheless, a unique and new proposition for the aquavit story where once the spicebill differentiated aquavit from aquavit, this one celebrates the maturation.

Thank you, Espen!

To see all aquavit prescribed by yours truly, click HERE.

TASTING NOTES:

Rye and caraway seeds with the sweetness of corn or freshly baked bread in the background.

Oily and sweet, with a more mildly spiced mid palate than most aquavit and an increasing wave of butter, cloves, and caraway.

SUMMARY:

All the standard signs scream "hello I am aquavit" from the glass, all the quality cues on the label scream "respect me like scotch whisky" (it even says it is not chill-filtered!), and the liquid is rich and classy, deserving more than the typical SKOL and down. We all sipped slowly and shared ooos and aaaahs. Although that could have been a reaction to the heavenly ribbe (pork belly).

Best served at room temperature.

All I want for Christmas...

2010-12-24T09:14:00.008Z

It's that time of year where everyone creates a list and checks it twice, even people we are too old to still believe in.

In past years I have posted on the best Christmas whiskies and whisky-related gifts (Dr. Whisky's Christmas Picks 2007, 2008, and 2009) and it seems my whisky brothers and sisters have provided plenty of such recommendations and "best-of" lists already this year (Danish Whisky Blog, Whisky Wire (12 drams), Whisky Israel, Whisky 2.0, Scotch Hobbyist, liquor.com, Jason, and the advert-riddled Whisky Boys).

It is Christmas and New Years is around the corner but before I can really get ready for 2011, there are I few things I need to leave in 2010.

Back in September John Hansell announced that he would dedicate a week of posts to "Things That Piss Me Off". The list was unfortunately cut short by a tragedy in the family, but John picked up where he left off earlier this week by listing his disappointments in the whisky world over the past year. As usual on Wha

t Does John Know?, Hansell's well-intended encouragement brought on a barrage of more than 120 consutructive comments, par-for-the-course cynicism, and asinine accusations, with comments ranging from the valid to the needlessly vitriolic.

It is not as if there is any shortage of opinion on WDJK, but this time all the negativity really upset me. With more than 15,000 comments over 1,000+ posts, WDJK is the most vibrant home of whisky opinion online, but I see it increasingly becoming an archive of anger, animosity and accusation on the whiskyweb. I am not saying there are not things that need to be critiqued or that there are not things that piss me off in the world of whisky as well, but I just feel that in this leading community things are weighted on the negative far more than the positive. Not in a single post that I could trawl were comments free from mention of some perceived evil imputed against some element within the whisky industry: marketing, Jim Murray, pricing, Diageo, the SWA, travel retail/duty free, and many, MANY more. Is the world of whisky really that bad?

I love the way Serge Valentin and the brains behind Whisky Fun register many of the same sentiments we see pop up on WDJK with humour and a light-heartedness that keeps it all in perspective. Their recent hilarious stab at whisydom HERE made me laugh and addressed similar criticisms in a much more endearing way without attacking any brands, any individuals, or getting anyone fired. Funny. And FUN. I suppose that's why it's not called What Does Serge Know?

So when making a list this season, rather than creating one about the THINGS THAT PISS ME OFF, here are a few THINGS I LOVE ABOUT WHISKY that no marketer, critic, or consumer can spoil for me.

The Taste and the Taste experience
With well over a hundred different distilleries' liquid available to drink, Scotch whisky is the most complex and diverse spirit in the world. Who could get tired of that?

Think of an amazing tasting experience this year. My guess it will be hard for you to pick only one.

Probably a hundred examples for me in 2010 alone, but I will share one recent experience. I was out in London with a small group of whisky friends/geeks and after hours of evaluatory tasting and then many hours of recreational drinking we thought it would be wise to indulge in some competitive tasting. We hopped a cab and headed to a bar we could be certain could recreate our own version of the Feis Ile blind nosing. We put together an ad hoc flight of 10 whiskies (including Port Charlotte and Jura), blacked out the glasses so colour was imperceptible, and began trying to discern which was which.

Having sex and playing pond hockey aside, this is one the most fun activities I can think of. But I am a fucking geek. The liquid spoke to our senses, played with our minds, created physiological reactions around the table while we sniffed and hemmed and hawed. The experience was so exhilarating, the aromas so diverse, the physical effects of the aromas and tastes so different from one another. I was reminded how piney Jura is, how distinct Bowmore is, how splendid a core expression Lagavulin 16yo is, how amazing whisky is.

The Industry-
I have always figured that because whisky grew out of an agricultural tradition rather than a commercial industrial one, it operates differently than any other industry in the world. And it does. And I love that.

Thirty Four - My age, yes, but more importantly this is the number of companies that own the distilleries of Scotland. Beyond that there are dozens of independent bottlers and blended scotch whisky brand owners. Last weekend around a few beverages, Mark Watt, Stuart Robertson, Mike Lord and I counted 101 operating distilleries. Find me another spirit or any single commercial export produced in a single country with that much diversity of ownership.

With this kind of shared market, the challenge for distillers is to show their difference. And we love this diversity, tasting different makes, different casks, different ages. Why then are we so critical of innovation? Sure, in one instance we criticise the SWA for upholding regulations based on precendent and tradition and in another we criticise distillers for trying new cask sizes, new cask finishes, new barley strains, etc., and dismiss these innovations as gimmicks. Isn't it exhausting being cynical on both sides of every coin? Spend 5 minutes with Jim McEwan, David Stewart, Bill Lumsden or anyone else with a track record of innovation in Scotch whisky and tell me you still believe they are more concerned with gimmicks than genuinely trying to make great whisky. I am open to being convinced otherwise.

Tours - I remember being quite surprised that distilleries, alcohol factories, allowed or even welcomed tours. Today more than 30 distilleries make a point of welcoming visitors to come see the ins and outs of their production line. Can you imagine this transparency from other billion dollar industries? The food industry? the automotive industry? the pharamceutical industry? the shoe industry? Sure, there are exceptions and some of these examples do welcome visitors but think of the adjustments they had to make before being able to welcome visitors. When Glenfiddich opened its doors to tours 40 years ago they didn't line the outside of their washbacks with oregon pine (I guess because they are already pine, but you get my point), build a fake "mini" distillery to give a false impression, or try to become a museum/science center rather than just be a production site. Now, the cynical among us only see tour guides reciting their scripts of marketing bullocks, but I see a conscious effort to ground the romantic in the real from Glengoyne to Glenmorangie, and feel fortunate to see inside any of these distilleries.

The Whisky Family

Scotch whisky is one of the most commercially competitive industries in the world but the further you get from the shop shelves/the closer you get to the folks making the stuff, the more imperceptible is that competition.

As a William Grant employee, I have colleagues who have been working here since they were teenagers, started as few as 5 to as many as 50 years ago. It's funny how some up at Glenfiddich say "I love the DoubleWood" and some down at Balvenie say "I love the Solera". But it doesn't stop there. I mentioned to a few of them that I was over at Glenrothes last week. Their unanimous response? "Aye, good dram." I was over at Macallan a couple of weeks ago and in chatting to a few of the employees mentioned I worked with Balvenie. Their response? "Love the DoubleWood." In my experience, I have never heard a wine maker speak of any wine but their own, in fact, I have been told funny tales from one international wine competition organizer of the hostility between them.

Richard Paterson- The Nose (or Dicky P as we affectionately call him, behind his back of course) gets a lot of flack but I wish this industry had more of him. Yes, he is a showman but if that is a criticism for you, then you probably also dismiss John Lennon as a protest songwriter and Hitler as a great public speaker. Richard is an absolute gentleman, generous, kind, supportive, and amazingly non-partisan. Employed by Whyte & Mackay and blending Jura, Fettercairn and Dalmore, Richard talks without hesitation about Johnnie Walker, Glenfiddich, Glenlivet, Glenmorangie and others in presentations, includes them in his 40 whiskies celebrating 40 years, and in his book Goodness Nose spends chapters on distilleries he doesn't work for and includes a forward by Diageo's Paul Walsh. Richard is just one of several examples of this kind of character in the whisky world and he is my favourite uncle in this whisky family.

Sport - There is the Malt Distillers' Football Cup, there are friendly inter-distillery golf competitions, but taking place over the summer months there is a rowing league on Islay with races held in the distillery bays and in Port Ellen with over 20 teams from around the island taking part. The "dream team," as they call themselves, is made up of distillery managers Mickey Heads (Ardbeg), Duncan McGilvary (Bruichladdich), Peter Campbell (Lagavulin), Graham Logie (Port Ellen maltings) and John Campbell (Laphroaig). With those clowns in a boat together I'd be suprised anyone could pull a stroke what with all the laughter, but even if they never crossed a single finish line I just love that these things exist.

Rant over, I think. I have no point. I just felt the therapeutic need to remember what is great about whisky.

And I think I feel better. But please do not read this as an attack on WDJK or its readers, in the same week as the disappointments post was a post about what impressed most this year where readers sang praises of the greatest achievements in whiskydom over the past year. We all bitch about how things could be better. I guess I just needed to remind myself what is so amazing about the world of whisky before I can say goodbye to 2010, or more accurately, so that I can start 2011 on a positive note. And I suspect that whisky makers, brand ambassadors, marketers, and whisky makers criticized could probably use such a reminder as well.

There are more amazing things in and around whisky, but I think this is all I can be bothered to get down here. Do you have any to add?

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all. Now to the aquavit!

Malt Mission 2010 #395

2010-12-22T08:53:00.001Z

Bushmills 16yo

Irish Single Malt Whiskey

40% abv

£50

$80 (USD)

Still in the snow-covered highlands. We had a short thaw, but otherwise my month in Dufftown has been a winter wonderland. Hope I get out of Aberdeen on Wednesday. Hope you get where you need to be for Christmas, too. Have a happy one, drambassadors.

The last of a string of Irish tasted here on the mission, this one comes from Ireland's oldest distillery. In this case, not only is it triple distilled but matured in three different casks: ex-bourbon, ex-sherry, and ex-port. The crazy bit is that it is matured in each of these casks in succession.

TASTING NOTES:

Sweet and candied, raw corn on the cob, extrememly fruity, blackberry squash, blueberry buns, orange syrup.

If the nose was sweet the palate is beyond. Gummy bears, grape candy, blueberry jam. Juicy, soft, really easy to drink.

SUMMARY:

I might give this a go as my new conversion whisky, one for the folks who say "I hate whisk(e)y" or for the American whiskey drinker who has sworn off anything else. This is likely as close to flavoured whisky as is legal. In fact, blind, I would have been puzzled, for sure, probably thought it was Canadian (they can add 9.09% "other").

Worlds better than I remember the 10yo (Malt Mission #82) but I am not sure I would ever reach for this were it on my shelf. Sure, I like my sweet whiskies, but this is like kids grape juice boxes or something. If the craving struck, I would probably just enjoy a glass of grape juice and have a Talisker DE before bed.

Second opinions from the guys at Edinburgh Whisky Blog.

Malt Mission #391
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Malt Mission 2010 #394

2010-12-13T08:37:00.006Z

Connemara Turf Mór

Irish Single Malt Whiskey

58.2% abv

£50

$80 (USD)

Following up last week's Connemara Sherry Finish post, this is the second of their Small Batch Collection series. Launched in December, poured at The Whisky Show 2010, and featured on many-a-blog already, this Connemara is apparently the peatiest Cooley spirit ever bottled clocking in at 50ppm.

For more distillery info and to see all Connemara and Cooley had on the mission, click HERE.

TASTING NOTES:

Clay, lemon sponge cake and sawdust at first. Diesel, wellies, cut raw sweet potatoes, and more cake and vanilla.

Mineralic, certainly smoky, but sweet and salty with marzipan and soil. Appetising and tongue-tickling effect.

SUMMARY:

Not sure if this is noticeably smokier than standard Connemara as I have nothing on hand to compare it with, but it is definitely one for the mud-lovers. Like a civilized protester, this dram is angry about the University fees but not about to break a charity shop window, piss on Churchill, or burn a bus shelter.

Second opinions at Whisky Notes, Whisky Apostle, Whisky for Everyone, Dramming, Dom's blog, or JSMWS.

Malt Mission 2010 #393

2010-12-09T08:57:00.003Z

Connermara Sherry Finish
Single Malt Irish Whiskey
40% abv
£49
$80 (USD)

Thirty years ago, the world of Irish whiskey was essentially a monopoly with the only two distilleries, Jameson (Midleton) and Bushmills, in the hands of just one company. Today, those distilleries straddle two companies, PernodRicard and Diageo and the undeniable catalyst for this, along with the general revitalization of the category, was John Teeling, the businessman behind Irelands third distillery, Cooley.

In 1987 Teeling got in to the whiskey game, converting an old potato spirit distillery into two distilleries for pot still and colum still distillation. This inspired the big boys to get creative (for the first time in 50 years), and rode the wave of Irish whiskey's growing popularity to a success story all his own. With Locke's, Greenore, Tyrconnel, and Connemara, whisk(e)y drinkers who used to turn up their noses at Irish have firmly plopped their beaks deep in the glass (and tails between their legs).

This is the first of the Small Batch Collection from Connemara and all the bottles that they will ever make are out in the market. Once they're gone, they're gone. New release in the series launched last month and the sample just arrived (thank you, Rachel). To be tasted soon...

TASTING NOTES:

Baked fruits, burnt brown sugar, soft sweet impressions overall. Mossy, grassy and moist. Toffee and leather.

Toffeed, orange, spice and smoke, sherry toastiness, turning herbal or grassy again. Long, gentle finish of sherry and smoke and spirit in lovely balance.

SUMMARY:

An IWSC 2009 Gold Best in Class winner, this whiskey is an absolute treat. And drinkable in hearty sips. Dangerous.
Second opinions at Whisky for Everyone

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Malt Mission 2010 #392

2010-12-07T08:12:00.004Z

Bushmill's Black Bush

Blended Irish Whiskey

40% abv

£22

$35 (USD)

First thing I want to mention is THIS blog creating a whisky advent calendar, something I swore I would do "next year" every year since since 2006. It is in Swedish, and seeing as you already drink like a viking, it is about time you learned how to speak like one.

Now, back to Black Bush. No, not THIS Black Bush, the Northern Irish, award-winning blend from Ireland's oldest working distillery which has been owned by the two global spirit giants: Jameson owners Pernod Ricard (1987-2005) and Diageo 2005- present. Still practicing triple distillation of their malt whiskey, Black Bush is 20% matured grain whiskey blended with 80% malt matured in sherry-seasoned casks.

I was supposed to in Dublin today to meet with my global colleagues but the weather has scared those of us on this snow-covered island into staying put.

For all Bushmills had on the mission, click HERE.

TASTING NOTES:

Grass, grapes, apple cider, raisin and soft anise on the surface with brown sugar, nuts, and Christmas cake at deeper levels.

Nuts again, wood, honey, and more raisins. Simultaneously fresh, light, and rich.

SUMMARY:

Really nice balance in this whiskey, certainly quaffable but also sippable with enough going on to keep you entertained.

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Canadian Whisky Awards

2010-12-06T07:09:00.008Z

Back to back awards posts, both Malt Maniac related.

Today, the worlds best (only?) dedicated Canadian Whisky Website has announced the winners in The Canadian Whisky Awards 2010.

Canadian whisky is without doubt the least respected of the world's whiskies. Crown Royal is the 4th biggest selling spirit in the world but you rarely hear anyone bragging about their recent Canadian whisky purchase. To be fair, there hasn't been much variety over the years with the big boys establishing prohibitive laws back in their heyday so there aren't as many distilleries as there could be. But recent years have shown us that the likes of Gibsons, Forty Creek, and Caribou Crossing have been attracting a modest amount of critical acclaim.

And so Malt Maniac Davin de Kergommeaux has really tapped into something that has been long overdue, a conscious appreciation of Canadian whisky. When I moved to the US back in 2008 I was admittedly surprised by the availability and consumption of Canadian whisky. Most interesting was that those ordering it had no idea it was Canadian and, obviously affected by their beverage of choice, almost apologised for liking it. Weird.

Hopefully awards like these will bring due attention back to Canadian whisky and even help innovation and motivate development within the industry. The press release says, "Virtually every Canadian whisky introduced in Canada or the U.S. in 2010 was tasted. The best was chosen in one of three categories: the Canadian market, the
export market, and multiple markets. Awards of Excellence were also conferred for accomplishments in innovation, brand extension, and notable success in raising the profile of Canadian whisky in general."

The Connoisseur Whiskies:
Best Canadian Whisky – Domestic Market: Wiser’s Legacy

Best Canadian Whisky – Export Market: Caribou Crossing

Best Canadian Whisky – Multiple Markets: Forty Creek Confederation Oak Reserve

The Awards of Excellence:
Innovation of the Year: Highwood Distillery, White Owl Whisky

Award of Excellence - Brand Extension: Crown Royal Black

Award of Excellence - Canadian Whisky Profile: Canadian Club

For more info, head over to Canadian Whisky.

Malt Maniacs Awards 2010

2010-12-01T22:37:00.008Z

Pioneers of whisky geekery, especially of the online community-building sort, the Malt Maniacs are a global disease with 33 "certified" members in 16 countries and once again they have earned their self-appointed titles after meticulously tasting, rating and filing data on 260+ malts for the Malt Maniacs Awards 2010. And that was probably only a fraction of what they got their noses into over the year.

Goodness knows the Maniacs spent even more time tasting hundreds of other whiskies, adding inert gas or using a vacuum cylinder to suction the air out of their open bottles, attending fairs, festivals and dramming sessions with mates, and travelling to Scotland or around the world to see, smell, and taste the places that will be the centres of future manias.

So have a read, raise a glass, and geek on.

And we'll see you in the asylum.

Malt Mission 2010 #391

2010-11-26T10:21:00.009Z

Danny Boy
Blended Irish Whiskey
40% abv
£20
$24.99 (USD)

My years in the US taught me many things, but in the world of whiskey it was a true eye-opener to see the sheer volume of Irish whiskey that America throws down its throat. From only four distilleries operating in Ireland (Bushmills, Cooley, Midleton/Jameson, and the recently re-opened Kilbeggan distillery), at least ten times as many labels are currently out there in the market.

This is just one of many brands one finds on the shelves and in this case, it comes from Cooley distillery, makers of Kilbeggan, Tyrconnel, Locke's, and Connemara whiskies.

This growing segment of the world of whisk(e)y has, to date, received only a small fraction of the ink spilled on its Scottish cousins even though as little as a century ago it outperformed Scotch globally. Back in 1994, Jim Murray wrote The Irish Whiskey Almanac, and a few years later Classic Irish Whiskey but since then the topic has generally been relegated to a chapter in books covering Scotch AND Irish whiskies or world whiskies, like Murray's own World Whiskey Guide (2002).

While the world wide intraweave has literally over one hundred English language Scotch whisky blogs, there are currently only a handful of dedicated Irish ones. The folks at Irish Whiskey Chaser provide a useful links page for the Irish whisky drinker/researcher.

The future seems bright for Irish whiskey. With annually increasing sales as a category, increasing variety of flavour (pot still grain, pot still malt, column still, peated, wine casks, etc.) and with apparent reinvestment from all corners of the industry, not least of all William Grant & Sons purchase of Tullamore Dew with an apparent clear intent on building a distillery in Ireland, Irish whiskey is on a path to regain a good chunk of what it lost back in the 1920s.

Goodness knows they could use it right now. So go grab a bottle of Irish. In fact, while you're at it grab some sherry; they say Spain could be next.

Tasting in "the valley hushed and white with snow"...

TASTING NOTES:

Pencil shavings and sweet, vanilla-accented spirit.

Toasty and nutty oak impressions, new make grain sweetness, and some sweet strawberry jam in there, too.

SUMMARY:

Really, very much as expected. Young, simple, innoffensive verging on bland but entirely enjoyable whiskey. The website tells us the whiskey is "just like the famous and much loved melody." Perhaps... if sung by your half passed-out uncle.

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Malt Mission 2010 #390

2010-11-22T08:14:00.003Z

The John Walker

Blended Scotch Whisky

43% abv

£2000

Watched a great piece on Bloomberg late last night, as the wee'un refused to pass out before 1am, about the creation and rise of Google. The relevance of this relates directly to this post as my engagement with this whisky called attention to the complete superiority of Google as a search engine.

Using Google to search "The John Walker" the top results related to the whisky and also brought up relevant images and video. Bing apparently hates whisky and the first TEN results had only to do with the (amazing) Walker Brothers, some English jewleller, and a German Studies professor at Birkbeck. The videos and images were equally unrelated. Sure, sticking " " around the term, like we used to do back in 2002, got me the results I wanted, but c'mon.

If "don't be evil" really had any meaning they would spend more time (and money) creating ways to share information OTHER than personal information with advertisers and researchers and thinkers and hackers (like Wikipedia, which incidentally NEEDS your support) But Bing just confused me and got me downloading new music and online lectures.

Moving on, as I have nothing too clever to say as I lie here quietly typing between a sleeping wife and a sleeping baby...

In a conversation with friends and whisky lovers the other night, the idea emerged of whether companies could release their fancy-bottle whiskies alongside plain package versions with the appropriate price difference. The topic is relevant in the case of this beautiful £2000 bottle, which, in the press release, spends nearly every word in and around describing the luxury, workmanship and eleven layers of lacquer with only two lines relating to the liquid itself.

That being said, and perfume bottle comparisons aside, I think the pack is beautiful. Disctinctively Johnnie, bold, confident and stylish. Would I buy it? No. Would I drink it? Oh hell yes.

The John Walker was created out of a desire to have a "top shelf" Johnnie Walker along the lines of Louis XIII from Remy Martin, Ambassador Jonathan Driver informed us at the Coburg Bar in London. With such an aim, the liquid had to be gold and Jim Beveridge, Master Blender of Johnnie Walker, was given the enviable task to "go away and make a technically brilliant blend."

Pulling from grain distilleries like Cambus, malts like Cardhu, Glen Albyn, and Talisker, the whisky uses the full stable of whiskies available to a Diageo nose. It isn't made up of a bunch of old whiskies, or just rare closed ones, rather it is a wide spread of styles and ages to create something different and exquisite. Jonathan spoke of "breaking conventions by knowing traditions", and there is no doubt that the nose behind it all has the chops for the task. And really, that is what blending is all about.

TASTING NOTES:

Accumulative, growing and developing with each whiff, floral, fresh and outdoorsy with chamomile and sweet grass, coffee, brown sugar, complex and alluring. Citrus and smoke appear, with more aromatic sweetness. Something new with each nosing.

Licorice, honey, more chamomile and coffee, mocha, a distinctly resiny character balanced by a beautiful melon freshness. Elegant and layered with richness.

SUMMARY:

As cynical as a whisky geek can tend to be, this was really quite wonderful and I can only hope that the folks shelling out the dough for this stuff appreciate the provenance, the history, the quality casks and the blending skill that went into making it. To make up for those who don't, I seriously advise those who DO give a shit to find a drop of this and taste it. It is a remarkable blend.

Malt Misson #386
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Malt Mission 2010 #389

2010-11-19T08:12:00.004Z

Johnnie Walker Blue Label
King George V
Blended Scotch Whisky
43% abv
£360
$480 (USD)

The last malt mission was posted at the height of another season altogether; tonight I have traded shorts and sandals for a thick wool jumper and cozy slippers to compose two posts from my wee cottage in the Scottish Highlands. Yes, I am back on the island to stay.

And I couldn't be happier. Arrived on the day of the incredible Whisky Show, reconnected with friends, spent days relishing each sip of the perfectly tempered cask ales I missed so much, and was fortunate enough to be invited to enjoy a few drops of (arguably) the world's finest blended scotch whiskies at the Coburg Bar at the Connaught in London.

In a quiet, candlelit corner of the bar, Ambassador Jonathan Driver shared the liquid histories of three different Johnnie Walkers: Blue, King George V, and The John Walker (Malt Mission #390). The intimate setting and warm environment was ideal for careful dramming and Jonathan's knowledge, sincerity and charm resonated with each small group lucky enough to join him.

He explained that this whisky was inspired by the desire to have a "late night" alternative to Johnnie Walker Blue, to create something flavourwise that was more luxurious than robust. The press release informs us that the whisky was created to celebrate the first Royal Warrant granted to John Walker and Sons Ltd to supply Scotch whisky to the British Royal Household in 1934 and also says some rubbish about luxury and how the whisky is geared for "power players."

Jonathan was not afraid to discuss the liquid in depth, not that we gave him any choice. It emerged that this whisky was created from rare stock from nine of the Scottish distilleries that operated during the days of Johnnie Walker himself, including the much loved, but lost distillery, Port Ellen. These same facts also mean, we were told, that KGV will only be able to maintain its recipe for 6-7 years.

For more on the House of Walker and for all Johnnie Walker had on the mission, click HERE.

TASTING NOTES:

Fruit-forward with grapes, candy orange, raisins and banana chips. Solid woody impressions, and then the expected, deep and tarry smoke delivered gently. Overall restrained, tight and bright, and politely asking for a drop of water.

Wood and oak-extractives on the palate, vanilla, tannins, all rather intense and hitting my palate with pins and needles. Again, water needed.

SUMMARY:

A very rich drop with woody whisky in the mix and a muddy road of peat through its core, I was given the impression that this whisky was, perhaps, blended to be enjoyed with ice. A shame, some may say, but in this case a mute will not hurt the instrument, it will just gently restrain the timbre while leaving the melody itself sufficiently expressive.

Malt Misson #386
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The Glaser Decade

2010-10-22T07:00:00.006Z

Back in 2007, week three of this malt mission saw me taste 3 Compass Box whiskies in a row, followed by 12 more over the years as the mission has continued and I cannot think of one that was boring, tastless, uninteresting, or didn't have some substantial story to tell. For all Compass Box had on the mission, click HERE.

Last week, I was lucky enough to attend John's Tenth Anniversary "Tasting of the Decade" at the Astor Center in New York City. As expected it was great fun, inspiring, and delicious. Finspirlicious, even.

There were drams. Asyla, Hedonism v.2, Eleuthera, the original Monster, the original Spice Tree, Magic Cask, Canto 46, Optimism, Lady Luck, Flaming Heart, and Hedonism Maximus.

And there were stories. Highlight? Moments after bottling his first creation, Hedonism, pulling over in his car to open a bottle and weep with joy as he slugged back his work (a drinking technique I have witnessed back at

MM300... minus the tears). Classic

More from the tasting at Whisky Cast HERE.

John has created an expression of Flaming Heart to commemorate the occassion and in Edinburgh last night, he held a similar event to the one I attended in New York.

John Glaser and the team at Compass Box have changed the direction of the whisky industry in ways that punch WAY above their weight.

-Ten years ago Sheep Dip was still in it's yellow and brown label and the industry showed no justification for a repack. Compass Box proved to Alex and Jane Nicol that well-made blended malts DID have a place on the palates of the marketplace... and to Jon, Mark and Robbo, and to Wemyss, and to Bruichladdich/Cooley (Celtic Nations), and to Glenmorangie/Ardbeg (Serendipity), and to William Grant (Monkey Shoulder), and to...

-While it may have been there already, all this "quality oak" talk John has been on about has pulled the importance of wood into every major brand's marketing, if not production, platform.

-Makers Mark "borrowed" John's (illegal?) technique of using inner staves in maturation for their Makers 46.

There are many more examples and it has truly been such an inspiring story to follow.

A glass is raised to you sir, from all corners of the whiskyverse.

Cheers

For all Compass Box had on the mission, click HERE.

Dougie's Whisky Story

2010-09-22T13:27:00.005Z

It has been asked before but I will ask again, how many new whisky websites are going to pop up with the EXACT SAME FORMAT? Another forum? Another log of tasting notes and distillery info? Another zzzzz...
Maybe I am bitter cuz I am often omitted from these new sites' blogrolls?
Maybe I just think we can be smarter than that.

Dougie proves me right with his new blog, Whisky Story.

While I obviously approve of the font choice, the wider concept is brilliant: a contemporary whisky journey inspired by the travels and reports of Alfred Barnard.

Barnard worked for Harpers Weekly Gazette in the 1880s and set upon a journey to every distillery in Scotland (129 at the time), Ireland (29) and England (4). His reports were serialized in Harpers and, in 1887, published in book form as The Whisky Distilleries of the United Kingdom.

One of the most important books in British whisky history, it fell out of print but was brought back about 20 years ago in a rather beautiful 500+ page hardcover edition. It has been reprinted several times since.

Dougie, we follow you and hope that in 80 years when there are only 58 Scottish distilleries left between two large foreign owners, that your record of distilleries in 2010-2011 is deemed one of the most important blogs in whisky history. Safe travels, and perhaps I will see you on the trail?

Follow the Whisky Story HERE.

Going Global

2010-09-07T10:16:00.002Z

Hi. Long time no see.

While I have not been producing much on Dr. Whisky, I do promise I have been keeping busy spreading the gospel of whisky both at work and at play.

We held a tasting for Balvenie that had been a whisky geek dream of mine for some time now: to taste the full historical range of The Balvenie. While we didn't have everything, we had a pretty damn near complete archive, all open, all available for sampling for Warehouse 24 members. It really was amazing. (For facebookers, photos are HERE, video HERE)

But the geek dream continues. I was invited to become The Balvenie Global Ambassador and I couldn't be more honoured, excited, anxious, etc. Back in May 2008 I announced on this blog that Dr. Whisky had accepted a job in the whisky industry/gone corporate/sold his soul/got your dream job in the USA and today that dream continues on a Global level. I look forward to meeting more whisky lovers from all over the whiskyverse and am so grateful to everyone that has helped me along my malt mission. THANK YOU and see you soon.

But I am not writing this post to write about myself. I wanted to write a post about the outstanding work being done on other blogs that I read, namely Yossi's Balvenie week (obviously), Oliver's controversial, informative and provocative posts on Dramming.com, Jason (et al) and their innovative and interesting Whisky Roundtable (no, I do not have a seat), and the recent amazing guest posts on What Does John Know. The world wide web is soaked in whisky, it seems, and we are all the better for it.

More on these pages soon, I promise. I have a ton of samples to get through before moving back across the pond! It's a hard life.

Maniac launches Canadian Whisky Website

2010-07-22T08:17:00.005Z

I got an email from friend, fellow Canuck, and Malt Maniac Davin de Kergommeaux to inform me of his new site Canadian Whisky dedicated to, you guessed it, Canadian Whisky.

With more and more hip US bars carrying Canadian ryes and other whiskies and, most significantly, with Dave Pickerell's Whistlepig demanding a second (or third?) look at Canadian whisky while asking a significant price tag, the world needs Davin to share musings on the spirit of the north.

This expat looks forward to following you from south of the 49th parallel... with a chocolate bar, back bacon, pop, a mickey and a two-four close to hand. Happy trails, eh?

Malt Mission 2010 #388

2010-07-20T09:08:00.004Z

Glen Garioch 12yo
Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
48% abv
$60 (USD)

Earlier this year, Glen Garioch began appearing in press releases, on blogs and in whisky magazines with new and improved look and reformulated recipe.

Glen Garioch and its siblings in the lowlands and Islay, Auchentoshan and Bowmore respectively, are owned by Morrison-Bowmore(Suntory).

In the first edition (1989) of Michael Jackson's Malt Whisky Companion, he called Glen Garioch "the assertive peat-smoky style of highland malt that has become all too rare." Even truer today, especially as the cited distillery would be hard pressed to call it self peaty in style.

It is hard to argue that the new Nevis-designed packaging isn't a significant upgrade from the Highland kitsch of its predecessor.

For more distillery info or to see all Glen Garioch had on the mission, click HERE.

TASTING NOTES:

Butter, brown sugar, ripe canteloupe, with integrated levels of spices, speaking softly.

Sweet and fruity, burnt sugar on a baked pear, balanced with oak. Water enhances a malty sweetness and elevates the oak above the fruitiness.

SUMMARY:

Clean, pleasant whisky that, without being tasted in context of its peers, doesn't really leave a distinct impression. Not that is needs to be a peaty prick or a sherried she-male to stand out. The non-chill filtration and higher abv certainly set it apart from its peers. And at whisky fairs and shows, I have seen folks raving about it. So, as I am becoming more and more convinced of every day, in tasting and evaluating any whisky it is about the context, the experience, at least as much as the content.

Malt Mission #386
Malt Mission #387
Malt Mission # 389
Malt Mission #390

Malt Mission HOME

Malt Mission 2010 #387

2010-07-15T08:04:00.005Z

Glen Grant 10yo

Speyside Single Malt Whisky

40% abv

£23

While most of what flows off the stills at Glen Grant ends up around 5 years old and mixed with Coke in southern Europe, there is always a great indie bottling of rich, old Glen Grant to be enjoyed somewhere in the wide world of whisky. It is true that Spain, France and Italy make Glen Grant a top 5 whisky by volume globally, but it is the ability of this fine spirit to meld well with sherry and take great age in stride that afford it an enviable reputation among connoisseurs and collectors.

For more distillery info or to see all Glen Grant had on the Malt Mission, click HERE.

TASTING NOTES:

Seductive and sweet, berries, apricots, and riesling

Soft, at first, with lime peels and a hard spirity core that will excite some and repel others.

SUMMARY:

Just as summer slowly reveals inch after gorgeous inch of skin on far-too-young to be oogled ladies, this whisky arouses the senses guilt-ridden sniff after guilt-ridden sniff. But acting on your desires in such cases is always risky and in this case sipping the stuff belies the appeal of its nose, especially at strength. Water, bringing it down to 35% or so, helps the new make bite but neutralizes any character or complexity.

Malt Mission #386
Malt Mission #388
Malt Mission # 389
Malt Mission #390

Malt Mission HOM E

For Scotch Lovers Whisky Explorers Club

2010-07-13T08:22:00.002Z

If you have created a whisky fantasy in your mind, have a whisky society or meetup where you live, or frequent online whisky fora, websites, and blogs you have no doubt thrown around the idea of sharing wee samples with other enthusiasts by mail.

Well, imagine the same concept mixed with my favourite pub and/or household game (blind tasting and guessing) and you are close to what Doug Stone, friend and founder of the For Scotch Lovers website, has created with his Whisky Explorers Club.

I read the press release, spoke with Doug, did some math and then happily joined as the price seemed totally worth it for the enjoyment of the activity. A group of friends also joined so we all look forward to each shipment of treats. This morning I received an email saying Flight #3 was already on its way. Time flies!

If you are not a member, let me paint a picture of the club.

My first venture into the website was admittedly clunky, but after a lot of webmazing, I got signed in. Like with any new endeavor online (MyFace, YouBook, Twatter) it took a while to figure out how to navigate, where to begin, what the words meant, etc., but once logged in and dramming, all was forgotten. After two flights, it's down to a science now... although I do still have a few suggestions (below)

So once our whisky is poured and we are logged into the IQ page, we answer a series of multiple choice questions: how does it look? feel? taste? smell? do you like it? Then we get to guess from a shortlist, what whisky we think we were having.

All of these answers popoulate your final "Whisky IQ", based on your correct answers, if and when such answers can be said to exist. So the next page gives your score and tells you the answers they were looking for. Satisfying. Fun. Geeky as hell.

But from this screen there is no link to start again with another whisky, just links to BUY the whisky, and, incidentally as I tried sample 0210WY23 while walking you through, a quote from and link to this site. While the whole experience was enjoyable, I was left asking, "so what?" Like, now what? There is no community context putting my Zen Master IQ into perspective, no way to view others' comments, no forum, no nothing. Just "here's your whisky, answer some questions for us, and bye bye."

Still, overall, the game is fun, easy, and I am totally happy with my membership and look forward to each package. It is amazing fun and is a great easy gift for a whisky geek in your life.

But the club is still in its infancy, so as members I know Doug is keen to hear our thoughts, so here are a few things that would make it more enjoyable, at least for me.

- make getting into the IQ game easier once logged in, ie via a logo or link in the MY or COMMUNITY windows on right.
- make starting another product OR joining a forum discussion OR viewing others' scores easier from the last page of the IQ results.
- why do I have to fill in every "Please tell us how often you drink..."? It's just annoying not to be able to leave some blank. In fact:
- don't make me answer the golden questions (male/female, how often do you drink, etc.) more than once, ie. the first time I log in.
- put a slash through zeros on the product numbers so they can be more easily differentiated from the letter O

Beyond that, go join. It's fun and the more members, the more enjoyable the whole thing will be for all of us.
http://for-lovers.com/store/scotch/catalogsearch/result/?q=explorer

Malt Mission 2010 #386

2010-07-08T08:25:00.005Z

Glen Garioch Founders Reserve
Highland Single Malt Whisky
48% abv
£29
$45 (USD)

One of the last operating distilleries from the 18th century (and the first time featured on the Malt Mission), Glen Garioch (pronounced "Glen Geery") underwent a much needed repack and as cynical as the whisky intelligentsia can be about s-s-scrary m-m-marketing, I think the verdict was unanimous: gorgeous work. But it is not just the look of the pack that changed, the liquid moved in the direction of nurturing anorak appeal:

a) the alcohol by volume was upped to 48% because
b) the liquid is not chill-filtered.

And the geeks rejoiced.

TASTING NOTES:

Buttery pie crust, sourdough, Granny Smith apples, vanilla and pine.

Savoury and bright sweetness of shortbread, lemon, and white grapes. Apricots and macadamie nut oiliness. Late spicy woodiness, pine again, freshly cut saplings.

SUMMARY:

Light, fresh and appetizing with a good balance of bitter and sweet, wood influence and youthful spirit character. There are many examples of how delicious Glen Garioch can be at great ages, it is nice to have a proprietary bottling that shows its youthful charm as well, even if said charms won't woo everyone.

Malt Mission #385
Malt Mission #387
Malt Mission #388
Malt Mission # 389
Malt Mission #390

Malt Mission HOM E

Wee Whisky Month 3

2010-07-06T09:30:00.003Z

Wee Whisky 3 month old
65% abv (unscientific estimate)
$765,000 (or not for sale)

No one said growing up was easy, we all scratch our knees, bump our heads, or puke on ourselves along the way but the journey is what defines us. Wee Whisky has been maturing outside in the shady New York spring from hot noons to cool midnights, breathing in and out, becoming who she will inevitably become whether we like it or not.

Well, we like it.

In the disgusting humid heat (38C/100F) I have taken the cask indoors to protect it from rapid evaporation and accelerated maturation. We don't want her rolling over, crawling, walking too soon. In an ideal world, this baby will make it to 12 months, to 1 year without being dominated by her surroundings, ie. by wood.

TASTING NOTES:

Big sweet and powerful. Fudge, caramel, beer nuts. The perfect balance of new make-y esters and oak-extractive characteristics.

A near exact balance between spirit and cask. Very new makey at first on the palate but with apples and spicy notes, and with an growing swell of burnt sugar, maple syrup, and candied peanuts. With water the sweetness spills over the edges of the glass, at once so young vibrant and expressive, with bigger bready notes, fuller fruit notes, pears, grapes and limes, and dollops of butterscotch.

SUMMARY:

Really delicious and I admit to being happily suprised. Not unlike the old Glenfiddich 8yo with a little extra bourbony blast... and it's only 3 months old! Yay for wee casks. Although I do now worry whether or not this will make it a full year without being overpowered by wood.

Its deep copper colour visibly shows how the cask has affected its contents. The rich sweet bourbony American oak nose and palate has taken hold of the new make spirit and made it into something new, something wonderful, something that as a father, I cannot wait to see what happens next.

Wee Whisky Week 1
Wee Whisky Month 1

True North Strong and Free

2010-07-01T08:53:00.004Z

Happy Canada Day/Dominion Day/le Jour de la Confederation!

The Queen is in Canada, Dr. Whisky is in Norway, the beer is in the fridge and the bbq is on.

But what to drink?

Hmmm... Creemore and a few fingers of Gibsons.

You?

Canada Day 2008

A Clearach and Present Danger

2010-05-10T10:36:00.002Z

What an April! New baby, new sleep routine, new jeans, new make...

White dog is everywhere, man. What happened?

As exhibited at whisky festivals and in the hands of mixologists across the USA, it is clear that THIS and THIS were certainly no April Fools jokes, but lord please tell me THIS was. Sku, say it ain't so!

No?

Then God help us all.

I have always relished the opportunity to taste the new make spirit of my favourite distilleries: Balmenach, Clynelish, Balvenie, and Laphroaig stand out in my memory, but only partly due to the taste, mostly due to the excitement of being "allowed" to sneak a few drops at the distillery. Makers Mark shares their white dog at tastings, many Scotch companies share their clearach before enjoying their mature whiskies, and I know I often use new make to show folks what a great impact wood has on the final mature whisky, but selling white dog/new make/clearach/moonshine? And for more money than its matured bretheren? Perhaps cool if genuinely moonshine or illicitly distilled make, but from legal commercial distilleries? Seems totally absurd.

In Scotland, whisky is, by law, grain spirit matured in oak barrels for a minimum of 3 years. Before that, you cannot call it whisky. And, what follows, is that the name "Glenfiddich", for example, cannot be applied to a new make spirit or vodka that is commercially sold because the SWA protects against consumer confusion and "Glenfiddich" means scotch single malt scotch whisky. Glenglassaugh, a 20+ years mothballed distillery, was recently reopened and promptly released some new make which it called "The Spirit Drink That Dare Not Speak its Name" due to the above restriction. Kilchoman, a new single malt distillery whose name currently means very little to the consumer (oh, but it will in no time) has released new make under it's brand name but is able to do this precisely because it is a new distillery and has never had whisky (3 year old grain spirit) to release. An established distillery cannot do this. In Scotland.

But in Japanese whisky we have Chichibu's "New Born" releases. And in America, it seems open game. A name like "white whiskey" could never work in Scotland because immature spirit is NOT whisk(e)y. And to name the white dog after the distillery (Buffalo Trace?) and then sell it (for more than the mature stuff!!?!!) would simply not fly. Nor should it.

Highland Park, Glenglassaugh and Bladnoch now have their new makes available for purchase, as does Tullibardine, the same distillery that sells beer, water, and retail space as a part of its economic model.

Without a shadow of a doubt, this trend is an immense cash crop and is no doubt extremely lucrative from a commercial perspective. Short term.

This opinion may not be popular and may attract some flak, but as a whisky lover, I do NOT think that this is a good direction for distillers to head, least of all because it is exploitative of the consumer... and that should be enough! But also because what makes whisk(e)y whisk(e)y is the time in spends in oak casks. How each distillery's make has a unique chemical construction, nearly imperceptible to the nose UNTIL it reacts, extracts, and interacts with oak. Ask science!

Whisk(e)y contains hundreds of chemical compounds, HUNDREDS of different concentrations of flavour and aroma-giving chemical compounds such as esters, aldehydes, and phenols (although these only account for 0.2% of a bottle of whisky). Four 12 year old casks of Pulteney, Clynelish, Glenmorangie, and Dalmore, all Northern Highland distilleries, will have very distinct flavours and aromas detectable to the human nose AND to gas chromatographs and pattern recognition algorithms. If you are someone nerdy enough to read this blog, your nose could probably distinguish between these four mature spirits, right? No? Well, that's fine. Science can detect a very clear distinction between them.

But in a series of experiments done in Scotland, Spain, Japan, and England over the past 20 years, it has been shown that new make from different distilleries, indeed, from different countries, had more in common than they differed. You will agree that if we sat down and nosed/tasted mature Irish, American, and Scottish whiskies, that you could distinguish between them, right? Well this sample of Irish, American, and Scottish makes had nearly imperceptible differences that went incorrectly identified by gas chromotograph and pattern recognition.

"Oh, chill out, Doc," I hear you say. "I love drinking clearach and will spend any price tag to have some. Maturation isn't everything." Well, I have to disagree. While maturation isn't EVERYTHING, maturation IS the most important SOMETHING in Scotch whisky. Mature spirit is what separates cask from cask, distillery from distillery, year from year. It is what allows single distilleries have varied expressions that means not only do we have over 100 distilleries in Scotland to drink from, but we have thousands of different expressions from which to swill. But if you don't mind the idea of a handful of distilleries making only a handful of styles, then keep riding that white dog. Or fucking that chicken. Or whatever it is that you do.

Doesn't a trend to premiumisation piss most of us off? Isn't that what Hansell recently editorialized about, that WDJK and Malt Advocate readers and the online whisky fora target premiumisation as a large problem with Scotch Whisky? Well, isn't this trend premium pricing a less valuable product? Let's grab a bottle of J&B -6 to celebrate!

But I shouldn't get too excited, really. This trend could just be a short blip in an economic recovery, right? Or is it part of a well thought out commercial plan with clear implications for the whisky industry? If you think Bruichladdich's was wise to charge 120 bucks for Port Charlotte 5 year old, or Ardbeg was successful with their Very Young, Still Young, Almost There series, just wait. You ain't seen nothing yet.

Let me know your thoughts in comments, on Facebook, or get in the ring on the Moonshine post at What Does John Know?

Wee Whisky Month 1

2010-05-06T08:07:00.002Z

Wee Whisky 1 month old
68% abv or pretty damn near
$ not for sale

Maturation is a slow process and one shouldn't watch the pot. In the month since birth the liquid has gone from clear to light gold. The child has changed, too. I was on the road for a 5 day stretch and there were noticeable changes when I returned. With the child, I obviously want to spend every minute, but with the whisky not so much.

I admire distillers for having the patience to just fill a cask and leave it the hell alone. I don't have the patience for this!
I want to get to know you, already. What kind of person will you be? What are you going to like and what are you going to hate? Will you be a funny? Serious? Outgoing? Shy? Who are you already!?!!

As far as tasting notes go, the only fair thing to do is to compare to the new make/white dog as all it is (so far) is really new make plus.

TASTING NOTES:

Brown sugar sweetness replaces the vegetal aromas of the new make, with some cake mix and apple aromas, too.

Very new make-y on the palate. Wow. 68% abv!

SUMMARY:

Sweet, young, and strong. But of course I would say so, I'm her father. With water I can taste more, but it really is just yellow new make. I think this stuff might last a year in this cask... and then we will have a 1st birthday party to remember.

Wee Whisky Week 1

(thanks for the shoes, K&E!!!)

Malt Mission 2010 #385

2010-05-04T08:04:00.003Z

Glenfiddich 1955
Private Vintage
Cask, 4221 Bottle 168
Aug 16 2006
Speyside Single Malt Whisky
52.6 % abv
£5000

Water. I wrote a bit about it on my last post, and will do so again today. Or, will at least make a few citations organised in a pretty haphazard way.

Whatever the effect of water on whisky, it is fair to say that the single most important fact in choosing the location of distillery is the availability of a good clean water source as water is used in nearly every stage of the whisky-making process. Out of necessity, crofter distilling took root along the arteries of the land, "lands of hills and valleys, of lochs and mountain streams, of much poor land but of very good water," (R.J.S. McDowall, The Whiskies of Scotland, 1967). Today, most distilleries use surface water, "collected from a loch or resevoir above the site, and usually it is soft water. Much of this water is coloured brown by peat. Often different sources are used for the production and colling processes. This is very important condition to build the distillery near a good source of water supply. The quality of the water is the keystone of making good whisky." (Misako Udo, The Scottish Whisky Distilleries, 2006).

Understood, but "quality" of the water? What the hell does that mean? No poisons, fertilizers, etc., okay. But beyond that? "The water source, whether it is alkaline or acid, hard or soft, plays an important part in the taste and smell of the final single malt." (Helen Arthur, Whisky: The Water of Life=Uisge Beatha, 2000)

The mineral content affects the taste and smell?
"Production water used in the production of wort makes a major contribution to the quality of the spirit that is produced." (Timothy C.S. Dolan, Whisky Technology, Production & Marketing, 2003).

Quality of the spirit? What does that mean? What is water's effect on the character of the spirit?
"Douglas Murray of Diageo [...] sums up the general industry view. 'On a scale of one to one hundred, I would rate it at between one and two." (Andrew Jefford, Peat Smoke and Spirit, 2004)
Taken with a grain of salt, certainly, but is there any truth to it?

A representative from the Scotch Whisky Research Institute (SWRI) told me that while it was important to have untainted water at all stages of the production process, "with mashing there is the additional possibility that the composition of the water used can have an impact on the progress of fermentation. Research carried out at SWRI by one of our PhD students showed that using mashing waters from different sources, with different compositions, can influence flavour." So this answers my main question, "Can water used in production effect the flavour of whisky?" But, as the representative from Diageo queried above, how much of an effect does it have? "Obviously the use of tainted water can potentially have a huge negative impact of the flavour, depending on the degree and nature of the taint. The influence of different mashing waters on flavour is detectable, but it is important to be aware that these differences are subtle. However, many other factors in whisky production, when looked at in isolation, only have a subtle effect. It is often the accumulation of a large number of subtle difference that give the overall larger differences in final flavour."

It would seem, in spite of my intial doubt, that water does play an important part. Yes, it is only one variable of many (and a small one at that) that affect the nature of a given whisky, but its importance is accounted for by science. But it's not as if we needed that, is it? We already know it is accounted for in our romantic imaginations, reinforced by the whisky maker's themselves (Ardbeg named Uigeadail, it's cask strength no-age statement 2003 release, after the loch that supplies its water; Dalmore's precious 62yo sold at McTear's in 2002 was christened "Kildermorie" after the distillery water source, William Grant & Sons had a blend called Robbie Dhu, etc., etc...)

"Water, taken in moderation, cannot hurt anybody." - Mark Twain. Well, Benjamin Rush had other ideas, as exhibited on his Scale of Temperance. Rush's moral thermometer (1828) varied slightly, but in every incarnation, spring water was the drink of the highest order leading to health, wealth, serenity of mind, long life, etc.

Water, that mix of hydrogen and oxygen, is vital for all life, for all living spirits, and vital for making whisky. "Personally, however, I prefer [...] the enduring mystique - whisky-making as something akin to alchemy." - Gavin D. Smith

TASTING NOTES:

Fresh and fruity with peaches and pears, but weighted by cream, oak, and evident time.

A savoury, appetizing, tapas-like array of flavours: parsley, brie, pastry, sage, lamb, stewed apples, all drying into a finish of yellow plums, hard peaches, and carpentry.

SUMMARY:

Wholly unique. Unusual, rich, and deeply interesting, a dram to cotemplate and revisit. An expensive luxury, no doubt, but nonetheless, too bad it is all gone.

Malt Mission #381

Malt Mission #382
Malt Mission #383
Malt Mission #384

Malt Mission HOM E

Malt Mission 2010 #384

2010-04-28T10:15:00.006Z

Glenfiddich 1958 Private Vintage
Cask 8642, bottle 135, bottled 5th July 2006
Speyside Single Malt Whisky
46.3% abv
£3300

I have been reading a lot about water lately, in particular (obviously), how it relates to the making of Scotch whisky. The importance on a very practical level is clear: distillery founders in days gone by needed a good, clean source that was steady and inexhaustible, or at least seemingly so. Water is key to the whole whisky making process (malting, mashing, ferementing, heating, cooling, etc) and without it we'd have little more than a pretty yeasty breakfast cereal and some superior race would have found a way to serve us porterhouse style. Good thing we scared them off by such a glorious display of intelligence as usquebaugh.

In the 70s, and still in some promo materials today, distilleries really made a big marketing stink about their water sources. It made sense as single malts were just emerging in global markets and the consumer needed simple, memorable, and romatntic points of difference to know, say, Glenlivet from Glenfiddich. Add to this the business reality of consolidation that was running rampant at the time and larger companies were centralizing their bottling plants and using treated water to bring their malts and blends down to desired strength. Obviously, a major point of difference at that time would have been adding unique value to unique NATURAL water sources.

Glenfiddich is the only Scotch Single Malt Whisky to use a single spring source in all processes from mashing to bottling, and most folks who have a bottle or tube at home can read about the Robbie Dhu spring, a spring so important to the family that William Grant himself bought the surrounding hills to protect it. Romantic? Check. A great show of integrity? Certainly. But does it actually effect the TASTE of the whisky? Science says "meh."

The Scotch Whisky Research Institute is an amazing scientific body that is funded by whisky makers large and small to perform research of value to distillers, the wider industry, the environment, trade organizations (the SWA, for example), and the government. Today, the SWRI is involved in a wide variety of research projects, but most of the research into raw materials, a category under which water would no doubt be included, looks primarily at barley and other cereals, yeast, wood, and starch/gumlike polymers contained in cereals. So, does that mean the water verdict is already in? Does the water used in production of scotch whisky have any effect on the final flavour of a given whisky?

Big thanks to Ian Millar to bringing this treat to an event I attended in Miami. And extra thanks for letting me take this old dame back to my room...

For more Glenfiddich distillery info or to see all Glenfiddich had on the mission, click HERE.

TASTING NOTES:

A warm, rounded nose of soft spice notes, caramel, green grapes, fudge, and walnuts. Beautifully rich and elegant.

Surprisingly bright, sweet sherry notes that dry into raisins and figs, eventually sandalwood, licorice root, freshly ground coffee and dark chocolate. Long oak driven finish with sweet/bitter balance of coffee/cocoa bean and winey flavours.

SUMMARY:

Stellar sherried oldie. Perfectly sippable at strength with bright, bold flavours that walk rather than run, whisper rather than scream. A gentle giant of which I wish I could have had more than a thimble-full.

Malt Mission #381
Malt Mission #382
Malt Mission #383
Malt Mission #385

Malt Mission HOME

Spirit of Toronto 2010

2010-04-14T22:57:00.002Z

Spirit of Toronto 2010

April 24, 2010
Roy Thompson Hall
6:30-10pm

Now in it's 6th year, The Spirit of Toronto Whisky Gala is around the corner and is not an event to be missed. I have mentioned it on Dr. Whisky over the past few years, have been involved in the past two, and will promote it again this year cuz it is a truly excellent event in one of the greatest cities in the world.

This is a celebration of the water of life (whisky, whiskey, scotch whisky, and congnac) with over 100 drops to try, dozens of exhibitors, live jazz, a killer cocktail bar, a cigar lounge (outside), and truly excellent Masterclasses.

Buy your tickets now!

Wee Whisky Week 1

2010-04-13T21:00:00.007Z

I have decided to begin a new series on Dr. Whisky.

I am doing this for a few reasons, least of all because I have a new baby girl and a new wee whisky cask BOTH maturing on site. But mostly because the Malt Mission is losing steam.

First of all, my full time job in whisky fully satiates my physical desire to drink the stuff and my intellectual desire to talk about the stuff, so this project no longer performs at least two of its inital purposes. Beyond that, I have very little time to nose and taste all the fine whiskies that come my way, let alone write original and interesting posts about them. Finally, we all know that this format has grown tired and terribly cliche. It seems every week I get an email from some instant expert asking me to share a link to his new whisky blog or scotch website where he tastes a new whisky each day, gives it a score based on some highly convoluted system, tells the story of the distillery, does away with the elitist mumbo jumbo so often associated with scotch whisky tasting notes providing the world with simple, clear tasting notes.

Friends, Please think of something new.

Now back to the topic at hand: new life! My amazing wife had a baby and my amazing friends ensured I could get new make and a cask to fill to commemorate the occasion. Huzzah!

Baby was 9 days overdue and doctors and parents-to-be decided to begin induction process to see if we could meet her while her grandparents-to-be were in town. Mommy worked so very hard to get baby out but baby was too big headed, literally, and eventually came into the world as an empress, April 6, 2010 6:23am, after 16 hours at the hospital and 12 solid hours of ouch (mainly for mommy, tho daddy did stub his toe on the end of a gurney at one point) at 8lb 13oz/4.015kg

Baby and mommy came home Friday April 9 in the afternoon and we could not have been happier. As if it wasn't a miracle enough that mommy and daddy could just do the same thing they regularly do but one time make a little clump of cells that miraculously turns into a seahorse, then into a shrimp, then into a baby baby and then an actual baby that comes OUT OF MOMMY, by just putting baby to mommy's chest, mommy's boobs began making milk. MILK! Yes, I tried, too. No luck. No milk. No whisky. No nothing.

It was so fabulous to be in our own home with our new wonder and the little angel blessed us bygiving us a first night that is a new parents fantasy: baby slept SIX HOURS!

We have all spent time crying, nursing, cuddling, comforting, and sleeping. Baby already had had two sets of visitors, 3 sets of family naps, and 6 sets of burp rags.

One gets asked a lot of questions around this time, and most of them have straightforward answers even if I have to google them before answering, however, "How does it feel to be a father?" has proven most complicated to answer accurately.

Do you remember when you were 10 years old and you got hit with the realisation that a woman (well, girl, actually) other than your mother fancied you, played kissing tag with you, or asked if you wanted to "go around"? Well mix that with the feeling of being given the keys to a part of the world that had been there forever but that you had not yet noticed nor had anyone else ever seen and you'd be close, yet not quite there.

Wee Whisky was used to make rye at the amazing Tuthilltown distillery (thanks for the vessel, Gable!) and then half filled with a mixture of Old Grandad and Old Weller 107 to maintain the benefits of three influences on the spirit I would eventually be putting in the cask. Tuesday night, the cask was disgorged and new make from two different Scottish single malt distilleries were filled into wee whisky.

Baby's first walk took place Sunday April 11, Baby's first doctor's appointment took place Monday April 12, Wee Whisky's first taste will come May 6, 2010. Until then, go start a blog about your bowel movements. Shit, even THAT is not original...

Malt Mission 2010 #383

2010-03-25T08:07:00.005Z

The Macallan 18yo scotch whisky
Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky
43% abv
£72
$150 (USD)
$289.95 (CAD)

The Macallan is one of the most well-recognised malts in the world, and as such, often attracts a good deal of attention, both positive and negative.

The recent, and gradual, release/implementation of The Macallan Ice Ball Serve has been embraced by bars and accounts that can accommodate the item, envied in the pages of lifestyle magazines, websites, and blogs, and bitched about by almost everyone with a Glencairn glass, a MaltAdvocate and/or WhiskyMagazine subscription, and a QWERTY.

Just last week, on the back of a UK press release about "an innovative serving method expressly for those who like their whisky with ice," John Hansell threw the concept into the ring for the Malt Advocan'ts to have their way with. And they weren't gentle. 78 comments later, ranging from the pseudo-scientific, to the super silly, we are left with a bitter taste in our mouths. And it has nothing to do with the 100% sherry cask maturation.

There are really too many comments that demand address to cite here... I love that selling whisky is what the folks who sell whisky do best. Selling whisky is what got us to where we are today, with folks from Norway to Nagasaki to Newfoundland enjoying seemingly infinite amounts of fine single malts and being able to share their opinions about them online and at whisky fests and the like. The ideas presented to the contrary go beyond average connoisseur cyicism about marketing, beyond "back in my day..." nostalgia... Cowdery nailed it: check your hubris!

What, you've started a fricking Facebook page now? Hey, grab a dram and let's put whisky where your mouth is.

If you are enjoying a lovely single cask Mortlach, or a Clynelish, or a Brora, or any number of the 90+ single malts that most folks who want their Macallan served on a gorgeous sphere of ice have never heard of, please remember that if Johnnie Walker had not "conned consumers" with the seemingly corrupt aim of "selling more whisky", you would be drinking one of only 4 remaining distilleries in Scotland (and for good measure they'd be called The Smooth Sweeter One, The Rich Spicy One, The...)

I have no point that I am overly committed to here other than the general desire to urge connoisseurship to take a breath, top up their dram, and join me at camera 2.

Calm the fuck down.

For more Macallan distillery info, or to see all Macallans had on the Malt Mission, click HERE.

TASTING NOTES:

Rich, assertive sherry impressions, layered with malty fudge notes, dates, raisins, and apple butter.

Apples, dry sherry, calvados, evolving into rich, toasty oak full of char, caramel, raisins, and candy floss. Nice bitter/dry/sweet balance through the finish.

SUMMARY:

Rich enough to make you feel the same. A very chewy and engaging classic malt. Full flavours that make big impressions with no apparent attempts at subtlety. (And holy shit, did you see the LCBO price for this?!!? Totalitario.)

Malt Mission #381
Malt Mission #382
Malt Mission #384
Malt Mission #385

Malt Mission HOM E

Malt Mission 2010 #382

2010-03-23T08:15:00.004Z

Glenfiddich 102
Distillery Edition 15 Year Old
Speyside Single Malt Whisky
51% abv
£38
$59.99 (USD)

Naturally, the world's favourite single malt isn't used to playing second fiddle. But in the USA, the world's #1 Single Malt Scotch Whisky lives in it's very own Scottish, family-owned, triangular-shaped shadow of the Pernod Ricard-owned Glenlivet.

"Yeah, I've tried all the Glens," says the junior trader in a blue suit, breaking eye contact for just a moment to lock his gaze on the cleavage of the bartender as she reaches deep into the beer fridge. "I'm a Mac 18 man, man." And this trifecta of whisky excellence will likely remain the podium players til all the seas gang dry, but Glenfiddich is making a long overdue step in the direction of the 20th century, if not the 21st.

While Glenlivet was maintaining the interest of both the masses and that of whisky geekdom with their beautifully vanilla-ed, American oak soaked 16yo cask strength release, The Glenlivet Nadurra, and Macallan worked towards doubling their sales with the introduction of the Fine Oak range, Glenfiddich kept their direct-fired stills set on traditional age variants, with the appropriated Solera vat technique of the awesome 15yo, and a few local market treats like the Caoran Reserve, and the striking, if Irn Bru-esque Toasted Oak.

And now they are (re?) introducing is the Distillery Edition, a whisky some of you may remember from the 1990s that was also 15 years old and also bottled at 51% abv. Even as little as 15 years ago, Glenfiddich was exercising the pioneering spirit it has been known for by releasing a high strength spirit to a global market that, it appeared, was not yet ready for it. This time the market is thirsty for something non-chillfiltered and high strength from the worlds most awarded single malt distillery.

I have said it before but I must say it again: it is no secret that I work for William Grant & Sons, makers of Glenfiddich, and although I trust myself to be honest in my whisky evaluations, in the interest of guaranteeing that honesty as much as possible, I tasted 6 different whiskies, in fact ALL of this "week's" whiskies, blind (Malt Mission #381-385), took down notes and overall impressions for each, before my "assistant" revealed which was which. These notes are printed with no editing.

TASTING NOTES:

Sherry, candied almonds, beer nuts, and hazelnuts jump out of the glass. Sour crabapples against immensely sweet raisin notes. Cranberry, pear, and M&Ms.

Rich, sweet, and powerful. Almonds, licorice, green apples and immense and lasting oak. Lengthy finish of wood-driven flavours accented by fresh apple, chocolate, and vanilla.

SUMMARY:

Surprisingly, the nose gives little hint as to the abv of this sweetie and the palate explodes in rich fresh fruit and european oak ex-sherry characteristics.

Being a huge fan of the 15yo Solera I have to admit I was nervous about this new expression, but MAN does it hit the target with power, confidence, quintessential Speyside flavours, and a rich lasting finish. And it is killer on the rocks.

Malt Mission #381
Malt Mission #383
Malt Mission #384

Malt Mission #385

Malt Mission HOM E

Malt Mission 2010 #381

2010-03-16T10:05:00.006Z

Glen Moray 12yo
Speyside Single Malt Whisky
40% abv
£22
$34.99 (USD)

Built in 1897 out of the old West Brewery, Glen Moray has been a 4 still workhorse for blended whiskies for decades. Macdonald and Muir, later to become Glenmorangie plc (1996), purchased Glen Moray in 1920 and launched it as a single malt in the 1960s. In 1999, the owners, no-doubt under the guidance of Dr. Bill Lumsden, began using wine casks to 'finish' the whiskies.

When I lived in Scotland, Glen Moray was often the whisky one would find in Scotmid, Sainsbury or Tesco on offer for something silly like £13. Never disappointed, I confess to encouraging the supermarket slashing for which the Glenmorangie company (then owners of Glen Moray) was widely criticised.

After Glenmorangie's decision to stop business in the blended scotch market and focus on Ardbeg and Glenmornagie, Glen Moray's future was unknown. Sold in Spetember 2008 to French company La Martiniquaise, many hope that Glen Moray can get the exposure, and credit, it has long been due. To my mind, there are several whiskies on the market that sell for twice as much money that are half as good. To date, arguably the closest Glen Moray came to respect in the eyes of whisky snobs was as the "oops!" ingredient in Serendipity. Let's hope the new owners can show the world what Glen Moray is more than a £13 sale item.

TASTING NOTES:

Jammy, fruity, and sweet. Malty notes ,fudge, and honey. Starchy potato aromas and a mild perfume of vanilla and cloves, as well.

Malty and fruity notes gently present themselves through an over all sweet, oaky flavour. Parsley, toffee and some floral notes emerge with a licorice and wood finish.

SUMMARY:

Nothing earth shattering here, but an easy, balanced, classic Speyside-style whisky that is thoroughly enjoyable and remarkably under-appreciated. Find some? Buy some. Guilt-free dramming that pleases both the palate and the wallet.

Malt Mission #380
Malt Mission #382
Malt Mission #383
Malt Mission #384
Malt Mission #385

Malt Mission HOM E

Whisky Blog Scotchy Silence

2010-03-01T04:10:00.004Z

Shhh...

Listen.

That is the sound of THREE solid weeks of silence on Dr. Whisky, with a whisper of my ass heading to the airport again.

And it will continue until I get more than two successive nights in my own bed. Lots of time on the road February through mid-March, but rest assured whisky brothers and sisters, I will be back.

And when I return, you'll wish you'd never missed me.

Malt Mission 2010 #380

2010-02-08T08:03:00.000Z

Penderyn Aur Cymru
Madeira Finish
Single Malt Welsh Whisky
46% abv
£35
$70 USD

Writing very quickly as I am off to New Orleans in an hour. Congratulations, Saints!

This bit of Welsh gold was first released in 2004 and comes from Wales' only single malt distillery. Founded in 1998, Penderyn began distilling in 2000 and was recently visited by our friends at Whisky for Everyone. Follow that link for some great distillery facts and insight that will not be repeated here.

Instead, let's quickly look at the packaging. Somewhere between a bottle of Glenrothes and a bottle of Drakkar Noir, Penderyn comes in unique and striking package with gold lettering against a black backdrop with a window display that, through a clear glass bottle, proudly reveals the natural colour of the spirit. On the side of my bottle is a stamp that reads "released Mar 09", a useful piece of info, I think.

I think it is worth mentioning that the box emphasizes its country of origin, has plenty of Welsh language on it, and on the bottle itself reads, "this malt whisky is rare and precious, handcrafted and Madeira finished," bringing to the fore how little of this stuff exists, how it was made, in what barrels matured, rather than lofty tasting notes or lofty terms like authentic, traditional, or age-old.

Enough. Thanks to Luke for the sample and thanks to Karen and Mark at Whisky For Everyone for lifting the burden of explaining the unique distillation process at Penderyn. Again visit their post for more info. Now, let's drink.

TASTING NOTES:

Dried apricots, pears, malt extract, vanilla, and toffee. A sweet, light, and appetising nose.

New-make barley sweetness, raisins, butterscotch, and a woody finish.

SUMMARY:

Bright, light, refreshing spirit with pleasant youthful elements that drive the flavours, rather than oak extractive flavours like most whiskies the world over. Shows great potential as a bar whisky that could be consumed in volume... not that I condone that, but if you're the type of person to order a round of Jamesons, you might as well make 'em Penderyns.

Malt Mission #376
Malt Mission #377
Malt Mission #378
Malt Mission #379

Malt Mission HOME

Malt Mission 2010 #379

2010-02-01T08:03:00.005Z

Hudson Single Malt Whiskey
Tuthilltown Distillery
46% abv
$40 (USD)

There is some real, old-fashioned, hand-crafted, family-run whiskey-making going on in the Hudson Valley. If it has taken you until now to realise it then, brother, there is no time to waste. While other American distilleries are working hard to replicate the hand-crafted, small operation aesthetic, these guys are the real thing.

Tuthilltown distillery is the first New York distillery since prohibition. They make spirit from several different mash bills, use serveral differently sized barrels for maturation, use heat from distillation to warm the maturation warehouse via baseboard heaters, and their wash is distilled with the solids after fermentation for a fuller flavour. Although I have not yet been to the distillery, I look forward to doing so and escaping the urban hum... but then I learned that at Tuthilltown they expose the maturing casks to deep bass sounds on a nightly basis, what distiller Gable Erenzo calls "sonic aging." Deep, man. Deep.

But the admirable hippydom gets even more apparent when you start asking about source grains, energy, and water; at Tuthilltown they have aspriations to be completely off the power grid, they re-use their heated water for as many purposes as possible before safely filtering and returning it from whence it came, and they source much of their grains from within a 10-mile radius of the distillery.

This whiskey is single malt in that it is made up of 100% barley. But unlike its Scottish cousin, this whisk(e)y was matured for only 6-10months and in small, new American oak barrels. They are also in the middle of a recruitment drive on Facebook, so join!

Although I had dinner with Gable and Cathy Erenzo a couple weeks ago where we chatted about many of the above details about his family distillery, much of this post was borrowed from The Whisk(e)y Apostle. (Thank you, Matt)

TASTING NOTES:

Warm, gravy-textured aromas that are sweet, woody, and grainy. Red delicious apples, kimmel seeds, wet cardboard, mushrooms, carrot cake, tree sap, sourdough. Very interesting stuff.

Spicy fresh wood flavours, some sweetness, but mainly driven by earthy flavours. Grass, oak, root vegetables, candlewax, pumpernickel, fennel, new leather, malty beer-like chewiness.

SUMMARY:

This is no big city "outta my way, I am really important and in a fucking rush" whiskey, this stuff was made to be sipped, shared, and enjoyed among friends. Slowly. And maybe smuggled across borders in those adorable 375ml bottles.

Malt Mission #376
Malt Mission #377
Malt Mission #378
Malt Mission #380

Malt Mission HOM E

Malt Mission 2010 #378

2010-01-25T08:12:00.004Z

Connemara 12yo
Irish Single Malt Whiskey
40% abv
£55
$95 (USD)

Another Irish drop, and an unusual one at that as it's only distilled twice (most Irish is triple-distilled). And in pot stills, no less, the way God intended...

"The saviour of Irish whisky", the artist formerly known as John Teeling, purchased this County Louth-based distillery and Christened it Cooley, the artist formerly known as Ceimici Teo. Launched in 1996, Connemara was the name they gave the pot-still produced spirit and in 2003 this limited-availability 12 year old was launched.

While many spirits producers saw tough times in 2008-9, Teeling and company reaped the rewards of their continued investment (buying new stills, firing up the long silent Kilbeggan, building a new bottling plant, repackaging Connemara...) reporting a 50% jump in sales and doubling of profit*

For more distillery info or to see all Connemara had on the mission, click HERE.

*- MWY2010

TASTING NOTES:

If my nose had teeth and a jaw it would be chewing these aromas. Heavy, musky, oily, damp, swampy. And all the while pleasant and appetising.

Softer than expected, fire blackened marshmallow, honey, burnt wood, sweet tobacco smoke. Szechuan peppercorn (take that Malt Impostor!), buttery croissants, jam, and a nice fruit and oak balance.

SUMMARY:

mmmYeah. Deeply diggable. And I dug it, dig?

Malt Mission #376
Malt Mission #377
Malt Mission #379
Malt Mission #380

Malt Mission HOM E

Malt Mission 2010 #377

2010-01-20T10:31:00.004Z

Connemara Cask Strength
Peated Irish Single Malt Whiskey
57.9% abv
£44
$65 (USD)
$95 (CAD)

Don't yet know if this will be a string of all Irish whiskies (couldn't have waited til mid-March, Doc?), but we will just take it one dram at a time.

We tasted the 40% abv version of the peated Connemara back at Malt Mission #102 (feels like forever ago). This version comes in at 57.9% abv and has nothing added, nothing taken away (ie no water to reduce strength and it is not chill-filtered). Although such practices seem to be criticised today by malt enthusiasts who spend time in online fora and commenting on What Does John Know?, Connemara proudly blends old and young whiskies and place no age statement on this bottling. And the results are award-winning (IWSC Best in Class 2009, Gold Medal "Exceptional" from BTI)

For more Cooley distillery info and to see all Connemara had on the mission, click HERE.

TASTING NOTES:

Coal, sweet vanilla, orange rind, marmalade, and a fresh floral element. Honey Nut Cheerios. Maybe some hay, too.

Toasty, nutty, smoky and spicy. Vanilla custard. Rich, but light and fresh. Dry neat and increasingly creamy with a drop of water.

SUMMARY:

Delicious, if probably a bit hot for many. Adding water or ice accentuates the custardy creaminess and mellows some of the POW factor. Really a dram of two worlds, but in wonderful harmony. Subtle yet bold, sweet and smoky, light and dark.

As the barely relevant Rush Limbaugh recently indicated, President Obama is showing support in aid and resources for Haiti not because a natural disaster has struck one of the world's most impoverished places only miles off America's shores resulting in 200,000 deaths (so far), but to improve his favour with both LIGHT and DARK peated whiskies. Well, sweetness, this stuff is both light and dark. Definitely good enough to be your house jigger, Rush.

Malt Mission #376
Malt Mission #378
Malt Mission #379
Malt Mission #380

Malt Mission HOM E

Malt Mission 2010 #376

2010-01-18T08:55:00.005Z

Jameson Irish Whiskey
40% abv
£17
$25 (USD)
$30 (CAD)

Married to a member of the Haig Scotch whisky dynasty, founder John Jameson moved from Scotland to Ireland and began making the water of life in 1780. Originally produced at one of the six Dublin distilleries, Jameson is now distilled way south at the Midleton distillery in Cork, an impressively large complex built adjacent to the old Midleton distillery.

The "new" Midleton distillery makes Jameson (a mixture of pot still and grain-distilled spirit of malted barley, green barley, and other grains), along with RedBreast (100% pot still, but not 100% malted barley), Paddy (blended), Tullamore Dew (blended), and of course Midleton Rare (available since 1984). As Kate Hopkins observes in 99 Drams of Whiskey, although owned by different companies (since 2005), some Jameson is still bottled at Bushmills and Midleton's continuous stills produce the grain going into Black Bush and Bushmills Original.

Jenna Masoli took her stage name from that of her favourite drink.

Jameson has grown volume sales 3x since 1995. Today, 30 million bottles are sold worldwide annually so the flavour certainly agrees with the masses. Let's see how it goes down on the malt mission.

For all Irish had on the mission, click HERE.

TASTING NOTES:

Vanilla, lemondade, oak, Sprite, gentle clove spice, too.

Nice oily texture, waxy. Some heat. More spice than the nose indicated, balanced against a strong bready sweetness, barley sugar, and maple. Honey. Vanilla.

SUMMARY:

In the USA it is really noticeable just how huge a brand Jameson is. It is everywhere and very often a suggested shot by bartenders or by friends when out at the bar. A pretty serious shot, in my mind, and I love whisk(e)y. So, I am surprised that it is such a widely done thing here.

Contrary to common practice, I would not recommend this as a shot. That being said, its honey and vanilla finish after a slippery texture down the hatch is a good combination, but aren't all good whiskies then good enough to be shot? My point is this whiskey is worth sipping, rocks or whatever. What's the rush? Tasty, clean, straightforward stuff.

Malt Mission #375
Malt Mission #377
Malt Mission #378
Malt Mission #379
Malt Mission #380

Malt Mission HOM E

Malt Mission 2010 #375

2010-01-12T08:45:00.003Z

Old Pulteney 30yo
Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
44% abv
£250

Ending my string of "new" releases here on the malt mission with a drop from Old Pulteney. It would be more accurate to call these "recent releases" as by the time I have gotten around to publishing them every other enthusiastic whisy nerd with a qwerty machine and dial-up has shared their views on them (Lucas and Chris drank of the goblet back in April 09, Johan reported on it on Canada Day, and I got my sample July 8th). But nonetheless here they are, 5 recent releases (out of many) that I thought the world would be better knowing more about (cuz I certainly tried some new drops that were blah).

When we lived in the UK, Old Pulteney was a bottle on our shelf that saw the most action, going through several bottles a year. In fact, if I think about it, we might be largely responsible for the huge increases in sales of recent years. The Malt Whisky Yearbook tells us that Pulteney has increased sales volumes by 16% globally, (24% in the UK alone). And they're making all this spirit with just one pair of stills... huge stills at that (21,700 litre wash still, 17,300 spirit still). All impressive when you remember that it wasn't until 1997 that the world saw a 12yo propietary bottling from the distillery. And a 17yo in 2004, a 21 in 2005, and now this.

Worth noting that this is one of Scotland's few distilleries that use worm tubs to condense their spirit (other examples are Mortlach, Glen Elgin, Cragganmore, Knockdhu (An Cnoc)...a prize if you can name all of them?)

For more distillery info and to see all Pulteney had on the mission, click HERE.

TASTING NOTES:

Provocatively fruity with tons else going on. Mango, melon, grain, and woody depth that comes with age. Barley, coconut, honey, and earthiness, even peatiness.

Complex array of flavours from sweet to floral to medicinal. Tar balanced with vanilla, salt with spice, and bitter oak with sweet barley sugar. Tinned peaches. Butter, shortbread, and heather honey through the finish. Lasting flavours. And lasting.

SUMMARY:

An immense profile spanning nearly every corner of the flavour wheel... all without the use of sherry caks. Believe it! Clean, balanced, and confidently mature whisky that is a confirmation of what a fine distillery operates in Wick.

Malt Mission #371
Malt Mission #372
Malt Mission #373
Malt Mission #374

Malt Mission HOM E

Malt Mission 2010 #374

2010-01-11T09:02:00.005Z

The Balvenie 17yo Madeira Cask
Speyside Single Malt Whisky
43% abv
£67
$130 (USD)

Dr. Whisky's most recent post attracted a good share of attention. This attention took various forms and lead to variable responses from varied corners of this world wide wondernet. I won't be linking them or summarizing them from here, but thank you, go f yourself, and everything in between.

Not one to shy away from controversy, I thought I would come right back at it with a post featuring a whisky from the distillery I represent as an ambassador here in the USA. Bam! Yes, I have said it before, and I will say it again, I currently work for William Grant and Sons. No secrets. This Scottish, independent, family-owned whisky company (not many can say that!) allows this little blog to continue and have NEVER asked that I say anything about other brands or our own that would be contrary to my right, true, and honest opinion... Yet. God bless 'em.

So if you are new to Dr. Whisky (or think he is a douchebag sellout) please feel free to gloss over this post. You are entitled to "reserve the right to dismiss the opinions of anyone on the payroll of a distiller as being potentially swayed by the facts of their employ"- JC Skinner. Potentially. You might as well add editors and some journalists and authors as well then, Skinner, as paid advertisements, receiving free samples and gifts, being invited to plush dinners and incentive trips could equally lead to swayed opinions... in the spineless.

If you have been around since this whisky blog began, through Dr. Whisky working for others (retailers, indie bottlers, and whisky companies) and noted that he remains as objective and transparent as one can be all things considered, then read on. If you smell BS please call me out on it. I beg you. And I thank you.

Other opinions on The Balvenie 17yo Madeira Cask HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE and elswhere, no doubt.
This is the latest in the 17yo series that began back in 2001 with David Stewart's creation of The Balvenie 17yo Islay Cask... a name that incidentally would be illegal today under SWA regulations. Like calling this release "Island Cask" (yup, Madeira is an island). The whole range is now relatively collectible, especially now that David Stewart has gone into semi-retirement, no one knows for how long this series will continue. We've seen the Islay Cask, New Wood, New Oak, Sherry Oak, Rum Cask, and now Madeira Cask, a 17yo Balvenie that has matured in refill American oak casks before being transferred to casks that used to hold Madeira for an additional +/- 4 months*.

Madeira wine is essentially a fortified wine, like port, but from the island of Madeira. For Madeira wine, they actually heat up the wine to replicate the exposure to heat on sea travel that would have traditionally occurred. This exposes the wine to some oxidation and adds nutty, raisiny, and sweet butterscotch-like flavours to the wine.

For all Balvenies had on the malt mission or for more distillery info, click HERE.
TASTING NOTES:

Smells distinctly oaky. Sweet. Touch of nail polish, barley sweetness, and then a recipe for arrowroot cookies: vanilla, flour, honey, butter, and a touch of coconut.

Fruity and sweet on the palate with a strong oakiness. Explodes upon swallowing with dried fruits, toasty notes like aged tobacco or beer nuts, butterscotch, and toffee. Long carmelized finish.

SUMMARY:

When I first tasted this in the summer of 2009, I was initially struck by a youthful, new make-y element on the nose. Those impressions remain. This drop is deceptively fresh and youthful for a 17 year old with barley sugar sweetness and pear drop/estery notes. But on the palate is where this whisky truly delivers. Plums, raisins, tobacco, and all sorts of varieties of burnt sugar and butter (toffee, butterscotch, prailine...) swell in the mouth long after swallowing. The overall impression is of a whisky that is light, but full flavoured, and destined to be an after-dinner treat or a cigar lover's new best friend. One of the best in the 17yo series.

Malt Mission #371
Malt Mission #372
Malt Mission #373
Malt Mission #375

Malt Mission HOM E

When They Said REPENT REPENT...

2010-01-06T08:45:00.004Z

...I wonder what they meant.

Welcome to 2010, whisky lovers. It has been over 3 years since this blog began and the frontier of the whisky web has changed greatly in that relatively short period of time. I remain grateful for your support, links, and refererals online in in person. With literally dozens of new whisky-tasting-note websites and blogs that have appeared in the time since this whisky blog began the internet has become saturated with professional and amateur opinions on the water of life: Tim's Whisky Exchange Blog, Ruben's amazing Whiskynotes.be, Chris' unparallelled Nonjatta, Red Hare's Adventures in Whisky, Joel and Neil's Caskstrength.net, Edinburgh Whisky Blog (Happy Birthday, lads!), Scotch Chix, Whisky Host, Ralfy's empire, Whisky For Everyone, Whisky Apocalypse, Nose Palate Finish, Jason's Scotch Whisky Reviews, Richard & Matt's Whisk(ey) Apostle, Mike, Mike and Dan @ Whisky Party, Jeff's Scotch Hobbyist... heck, there are so many of us now we even have the Malt Impostor.

Although Serge Valentin's Whisky Fun remains the IMDB of whisky, it seems we could use a Rotten Tomatoes as well... albeit one not littered with ads (again, kudos to Serge for remaining so bullshit-free for so long... all you 'instant experts' in the wake of the Scotch Blog era should take a cue).

And although there is currently no single site that aggregates notes, we are close! We have a community here, people. We have great sites like:

-For Peat Sake, a user review-based site covering a great range of malts where anyone can share an opinion, but who can I trust? And there is no space for the STORIES of the malts, just tasting notes. Not sure how I feel about the new look, either (note: link to Dr Whisky is a dud). Whisky Rating attempts to provide a similar service with more spelling mistakes and fewer participants, as does WhiskyConnosr (among other useful whiskygeek things).

-True whisky scholar/archivists/geeks non plus ultra, the Malt Maniacs have their Matrix, and although I am not sure how many newbies dare press the yellow button this really is the closest thing we've got to what I'm talking about (whatever that is). And Jeff (Scotch Hobbyist) has his google doc of ratings (HERE) but again, can Jeff's opinion alone that, say, Chivas 12 is a C+ whisky, be trusted?

-The Balvenie's new Whisky Shelf where members of Warehouse 24 create virtual shelves of their home bars (real or imagined), contributing reviews on all single malts, showing average ratings and sample comments, is great. But currently interaction between users is minimal and there is no function to look at comparative reviews for any one malt. Improvements are being made constantly but this ambitious site is still finding its legs.

-Whisky Portal, and Scotch Whisky.net are true classics in www terms and are both still of use and incredibly up to date. Still, the searchable catalogue leads only to images, no notes or ratings or anything to guide a consumer.

-The Whisky Mag Forum remains an invaluable archive of whisky geekdom but can be a bit intimidating to the newcomer and athough the search funtion helps, it can be a bitch to navigate. WhiskyWhiskyWhisky provides a similar forum but is actually WAY easier to navigate and find the info the newbie or maniac may seek. Great section of user generated tasting notes, too.

-John Hansell's What Does John Know? provides a real global community of opinions with Hansell acting as Linda Richman (Coffee Talk, SNL circa 1990s) stirring conversation, posing questions, stoking fires, and occasionally putting them out. The comments on this site provide some of the richest dialogues on Scotch that can be found anywhere. That being said, they can really be a buzz kill for those new to the world of whisky and while it no doubt is therapeutic for malt maniacs, I worry that it does a disservice to fostering new relationships to Scotch whisky.

So after all that, I am not quite sure what this post is about, but suffice it to say that I feel frustrated with Dr. Whisky's contributions over the past year+. Over this time some have noted in comments, emails, and in statements on other sites that, for example, Dr. Whisky's week of 'new whiskies' aren't all new. Well with over 200 whiskies tasted this year alone I simply haven't had the time to post as I once did so I am being selective in which malts I create Malt Missions for. The existing 370+ Malt Missions still attract 600-1000 unique visitors per day, but they feel like dormant pieces of the past rather than active members of the rich whisky communities of now.

I guess my point is that I am looking to create a Rotten Tomatoes of whisky and I hope you'll join me when the time comes.

With love and best wishes for 2010,
Dr. Whisky

Christmas Picks 2009

2009-12-21T08:20:00.004Z

When neighbours' stoops, yards, and windows become aglow in white, red and green, when mangers appear in churches, local parks, and Catholic school playgrounds, when you can hear 15 versions of Silent Night in a single visit to Macy's, you know it's that time again.

Perhaps I will do 8 Drams of Hannukah next year but for now, welcome to the third installment of Dr. Whisky's Christmas Picks (2007, 2008).

In the past, this annual prescription had a consistent UK slant (as that was where I called home), focusing on supermarket discounts, UK specialist retailers, etc. This year my recommendations will still use my most trusted UK retailers but that UK bias will be slightly diminished as I live in the USA now and spend less time in Sainsbury and Tesco. This year I have been joined in this tradition of whiskevangelism by new arrivals in the whikyverse who can flush out my Christmas casebook:

Jeff at The Scotch Hobbyist recommends stuff HERE.
Matt and Karen at Whisky For Everyone do a great job of recommending by flavour HERE.
Lucas and Chris at Edinburgh Whisky blog provide an "ultimate" guide HERE.
John Hansell solicited recommendations from What Does John Know?'s cadre of prolific communicators HERE.
Or if you happen to be reading this from your gold encrusted, diamond studded iPhone from a Virgin Galactic flight, THESE Christmas whiskies might be more up your alley.

My Christmas whisky recommendations have always included best offers and sales, so I will try to do that again.

These guys ship nearly everywhere in the world:
The Whisky Exchange
Ardmore Traditional £20 (from £27)
Benromach 10 £24.50 (from £28.50)
Balvenie 12 DoubleWood £25 (from £29.50)
Dalmore 15 £39.50(from £44)
Glenfarclas 25 £82 (from £87)

Royal Mile Whiskies
Ardmore Traditional £20 (from £26)
Glenfiddich 12 Caoran £25 (from £30)
Glenrothes Select Reserve £27 (from £31)
Tamdhu 18 £35 (from £40)
Glenmorangie Signet £100 (from £110)

Binny's (Chicago but ship nationwide)
Balvenie 17 Madeira Cask $110 (from $130)
Glenfiddich 15 Distillery Edition $45 (from $50)
Glenmorangie Astar $75 (from $80)
Imperial 1994, Gordon & Macphail $64 (from $70)
Sheep Dip 1990 $70 (not money-off deals, but you want this stuff)

and if you can, try to grab Compass Box's Orangerie. It is beautifully packaged and will appeal to those who love OR loathe whisky. Think Drambuie without the sticky.

Whisky Gift Packs

Glenfiddich 15yo ($40/$45USD) - You really can't beat the value on this one. Comes with a 50ml of 18yo and a Glencairn glass (value $12 minimum)

Glenfarclas 15yo (£44) - comes with minis of 'Farclas 21 and 25! Win win!

BEST WHISKY CHRISTMAS GIFTS

Scotch Malt Whisky Society Membership
Joining the Scotch Malt Whisky Society is worthwhile for any malt drinker and would make a wonderful gift that keeps on giving as newletters, bottling lists, and tasting event listings arrive by mail year round. In the UK, there are members rooms in Edinburgh [Leith Vaults (mentioned in a past Dr. Whisky post HERE) and Queen St.] and London (Greville St.) and they are absolutely stunning venues and great spots to entertain guests... or just yourself.

In the USA, the SMWSA is equally wonderful but operates slightly differently. You still reveive mail and have access to an exclusive list of soctiety bottlings, but it is much more a network of friends, bottles, and events that come to you! Twice a year, the SMWSA tours the country hitting larger cities with the best consumer whisky fairs in the country. They never oversell tickets so there is always room to move, good food to eat, and the Shayne family and friends do such a great job (and are such wonderful people), paying membership to be invited to their tasting events is worth every single penny

BOOKS

The Malt Whisky Yearbook 2010
The most recent edition of the annual must-have from Ingvar Ronde, a book full of enough basics to educate the new whisky enthusiast, enough info entertain the casual whisky drinker, and enough detail to satisfy the real whisky nerds among us. Adn once again, it is so up to date it is baffling. Perhaps in Sweden you can publish from the future? As usual, the book includes detailed bios on all operating (and many closed) distilleries, stats and commentary on the year that was, info on websites (including this one), and an absolutely brilliant section of articles with contributions from the usual suspects. Add to that increasingly in-depth coverage of new Scottish distilleries and single malt distilleries from all corners of this whisky-soaked earth.

This easy to transport and easy to read softcover is part magazine, part book, part distillery guide, part industry report and ALL amazing reading with brilliant new additions every year. In an time when we all believe the internet exists to answer our every inquiry, when a quick search on our phones can help us instantly settle arguments and win pub quizzes (cheaters!), one book renews our faith in the value of the printed page in the digital age. If I could carry Charlie Maclean around in my pocket then I probably would, but until then, The Malt Whisky Yearbook is the only crib a whisky enthusiast needs.

Whisky and Philosophy: A Small Batch of Spirited Ideas
Not for the casual whisky lover, this collection of essays engages those most deeply engaged with the water of life in all its forms. While that is not to say there might not be a little something for everyone, Whiskey for Everyone is about as geeky as a collection of essays about the epistemology of unicorns or the aesthetics of Klingon language, arts and culture. All that being said, this collection was right up my alley and almost every essay managed to be simultaneously fun, interesting, and academic without taking itself too seriously. In fact, the most obnoxiously earnest pieces in the whole collection were the historical or "what is whisk(e)y" sections rather than the articles entitled "The Phenomenology of Spirits: How Do Whiskeys win Prizes" or, "Women, Whiskey, and Libationary Liberation." As if sticking our noses in glasses with friends and discussing the intricacies of recipe, flavour and history of each dram wasn't nerdy enough, here is a book that takes our boozing habits to the most white collar ivory tower of levels. And what fun it is.

99 Drams of Whiskey: The Accidental Hedonist's Quest for the Perfect Shot and The History of the Drink
A very different read than the above, but by no means less entertaining. Written by a celebrated food columnist and blogger (Accidental Hedonist) Kate Hopkins, 99 Drams is a whirlwind trip through the varied world of whisk(e)y (Irish, Canadian, American, and Scottish). The narrative follows a literal trip to varied countries and distilleries and Hopkins somehow manages to fill every vignette with background facts that never bog down the flow or sacrifice her voice from being anything but one of the excited explorer. Perhaps a bit long-winded at times (just look at the title), 99 Drams does manage to keep your attention as an often laugh out loud travelogue love story between a truly relatable narrator and a spirit that intoxicates protagonist, companion, and reader.

Hope this has been of use.
If you have any whisky questions, do not hesitate to contact Dr. Whisky for a prescription.

And hey, have a safe happy merry.

Malt Mission 2009 #373

2009-12-10T08:49:00.007Z

Benromach 10yo
Speyside Single Malt Whisky
43% abv
£29
$50

When I was in Scotland in July I was in touch with Ian Chapman at Benromach and after a short volley of emails he very kindly invited me to see their distillery. Upon arrival, I was greeted by Ian, David Urquhart and distillery manager Keith Cruickshank.

It is a very unassuming place, and my hosts suited it perfectly. With just two distillers and only 200,000 litres produced per year, Benromach is the smallest Speyside distillery. After a walk around the distillery and warehouses at a relaxed-pace the lads sat me down for a dram, a coffee, and to willingly subject themselves to my interrogations.

They then presented me with the TOP SECRET box that a few whisky writers and bloggers have mentioned and explained elsewhere online. They were launching their first Benromach 10 year old, that is, the first ten year old whisky made entirely of whisky produced under their ownership and were investing in marketing the spirit in a clever and fun way. The whisky was matured for 9 years in a mixture of ex-bourbon (80%) and ex-sherry (20%) and then spent an additional year in sherry butts.

Gordon & Macphail (the Urquhart family) bought Benromach in 1998, a distillery that had been mothballed in 1993. It was reported recently that G&M's profits were halved last year over the previous. Nonethless, the company has increased investment at Benromach and now it is our responisbility to go out and support them. So do it.

To find out which bottle you want to go buy, see all past Benromach posts HERE.

TASTING NOTES:

Rich, weighty, and warming with peat. Wet, water-logged soil sweetened with toffee, vanilla, and honey.

Luscious body, wood, malt, grapes, tobacco, apricots, dried apples, smoke, butterscotch... A mouthful of flavours. Stewed carrots, oatmeal, figs, a tannic grip, pine, carob, asparagus... a very complex array of flavours beautifully balanced.

SUMMARY:

A complex mixture of the whisky flavour wheel: sweet, earthy ,oily, woody, with the estery notes you'd expect from Speyside and the phenolic ones you might not. The Urquharts will proudly remind you that you can find nothing like the Benromach distillery in Speyside and, if true, this dram provides the most appropriate representation of that fact. A truly peerless dram.

I have to say that as a 10 year old Speysider, I don't think this has any parallels and would destroy its category at international spirits awards events (if the judges can fight the urge to continually define Speysiders as sweet, light, and floral whiskies). They can be so much more, they have been so much more, and they ARE so much more.

One of the best new releases, hell, one of the best whiskies, I have had the pleasure of drinking this year. Other opinions HERE and HERE.

Malt Mission #371
Malt Mission #372
Malt Mission #374
Malt Mission #375

Malt Mission HOM E

Malt Mission 2009 #372

2009-12-07T09:00:00.008Z

Bladnoch 8yo
Lowland Single Malt Whisky
46% abv
£36

A first! Dr. Whisky has not yet featured a dram from Bladnoch distillery. Well after 370 Malt Missions, it's about fricking time. And appropriate premiere for the distillery as this release is the oldest edition made wholly of spirit produced by the current owners.

Bladnoch had a rocky century since being founded in 1817 by Thomas and John McLelland. Production ceased in 1905, operated intermittently between 1911 and 1937, dismantled in 1941, reopened in the 1950s, came under the ownership of InverHouse distillers in teh 1970s, sold to Arthur Bell & Sons in 1983 and eventually Guiness and United Distillers (the artist eventually known as Diageo) and was mothballed in 1993.

In 1994, Irish developer Raymond Armstrong purchased the distillery buildings (initally as holiday homes for his brother and their wives). Realising the importance of the distillery to the local economy and heritage, Armstrong became determined to get Bladnoch up and running as a distillery again. By December 2000, spirit once again flowed from Scotland's southernmost stills.

Bladnoch is one of the few distilleries that sells casks outside of the industry, ie. to you and your buddies. They are currently filling in to fresh ex-bourbon barrels using their highly peated make (18-22ppm). Click HERE for more info.

On his Bladnoch 8yo post, HERE, Ralfy seems to suggest that the "intrinsic quality" of the spirit is affected by marketing budgets of large companies. Because of this, he says, he favours smaller independent distillers. While I probably agree with his conclusion, I don't follow this logic. Nonethless, I do enjoy following his reviews wherever his rationale rollercoaster takes me. But to suggest that the guys making the liquid at Bladnoch are easier to connect with ("they view you as CUSTOMERS rather than CONSUMERS" paraphrase) than the staff at Glenmorangie or Glenfiddich or Glendullan is a sweeping generalisation and doesn't take into consideration that Bladnoch was operating as a tourist site/museum for years before it went back into production in 2000. That being said, his statement is based in a romantic idealism that is seemingly getting chipped away at more and more every day. The whisky world needs more of Ralfy's rants, Richard Paterson's shameless enthusiasm, and generally more respect rather than the laptop pundits' platitudes about the how the whisky industry is failing us this time, that time, and next time. But I suppose like a new girlfriend, the more we learn about her the more we take her for granted.

Don't know where that came from but there it is. Let's taste!

TASTING NOTES:

Fresh, new makey punch. Lemons, grapefruit, balanced with honey, vanilla, and orchard fruits.

Citric bitterness at first, new make barley sweetness, honey, slight oakiness, pear and apples.

SUMMARY:

Simple, clean, youthful and a good representation of a lowland style.

Malt Mission #371
Malt Mission #373
Malt Mission #374
Malt Mission #375

Malt Mission HOM E

Malt Mission 2009 #371

2009-12-01T09:20:00.007Z

Mackmyra Special : 03
"Small Casks, Big Flavour"
Swedish Single Malt Whisky
48.2% abv
£57

Hi. Haven't seen you since mid-November. How are you? Where are you? I am good, thanks. I am working in south Florida and I am determined to get a few posts our about new/recent releases up starting with this little stunner from Sweden.

Matured in small, specially-made 30-liter casks of ex-bourbon, ex-sherry, and new Swedish oak, the Mackmyra Special:03 promises to be, as the press literature assures me, "what you have been looking for."

Oh, you flirty Swedes...

Speaking of, Swedish whisky lovers have a real love affair with their native single malt with only 10% of Mackmyra's production being exported. But there are plans to increase that number to 50%... perhaps as the Swedish honeymoon period ends?

So yes, they are getting closer to being available in the USA, American readers. Lars tells me "the plan is to have bottles in Manhattan stores before March 2010." First we take Manhattan, then we take... Boston?

For more Mackmyra info and to see all Mackmyra had on the mission, click HERE.

TASTING NOTES:

Enticing mix of tar, vanilla, caramel and a fine fudge shop on the nose. Freshly baked bread, butterscotch, and juicy raisins. Increasingly complex with each nosing. Wood chips, pine, cinnamon, a chalky element, and a minty aroma in there as well. More, I am sure of it.

White grapes, sultanas, soy beans, and blueberries, all before a dollop of cream and jam. Full body with a luscious mouth feel and a nice bitter grip. Icing sugar, pear, and a driving oak that is simultaneously sweet and spicy. Balanced sweetness and great development sip after sip.

SUMMARY:

Great texture, very pleasant array of balanced flavours, all entirely quaffable even at 48.2% abv. There is certainly a gristy new make element to it, but that by no means works to this whisky's detriment. As much as the whisky geeks of the world stick to the attitude of "oh, the earlier editions were the best," I think I can say with confidence that this is my favourite Mackmyra yet. Truly individual, never jeopardizing the values of traditional whisky making but successfully displaying innovation and a realised vision of a new frontier for single malt whiskies. Excellent stuff.

Malt Mission #370
Malt Mission #372
Malt Mission #373
Malt Mission #374
Malt Mission #375

Malt Mission HOM E

Malt Mission 2009 #370

2009-11-16T09:08:00.004Z

Honest McGee
"Medicial Elixir"
bot. Oct 31, 2009
Blended American Whiskey
abv% uknown
$¢£ priceless

It's about time that I wrapped up this pentad of American whiskies and what better way to do it than with something terribly unique and wholly unusual. I was intending to feature Parker's latest Heritage release but when Greenback Dollar and Associates handed me this wee bottle of goodness at WhiskyFEST NYC earlier this week I knew that it had to be tasted and shared post haste.

With an attractive matte label of vibrant although muted colours, Honest McGee comes complete with multiple text fonts and sizes, but what the text actually says is what is most intriguing:

"twas when he was serving on the western front of the great war that ol' trenchfoot mcgee first created his corn-based medicinal elixir to soothe the nerves of the allied troops. decades later, his great grandson greenie inherited the recipe and set about honoring his ancestor by bottling the elixir and selling it to rubes at a fair price. hand crafted from a blend of elmer t. lee bourbon, ancient ancient age bourbon, and rittenhouse rye (greenie chose to leave out the trench water), then finished in a cask that once contained alvear carlos VII amontillado, honest mcgee's blended american whiskey is as smooth as a southern gentleman, and as sassy as a southern belle."

Sounds delicious. More HERE.

TASTING NOTES:

Grape juice and rich, sweet vanilla notes. Sweet and light with a weighty, oaky backbone. Creme brulee, a touch of sage, and more sweet grape notes like gum or juice powder.

Surprisingly mellow considering it is very likely 45% abv or more, with distinctly toasty characteristics. Raisins, vanillin, and oak strike in a quick, staccato chord of flavour that hints at stawberries, almonds and chocolate but alludes to much more than it actually becomes.

SUMMARY:
Not one to mull over for hours but, man, could I ever make this bottle empty quickly! What it lacks in development it more than makes up for in its drinkability:richness ratio. An interesting drop that takes the flavours of Kentucky into new, grape-soaked dimensions. What could very well have been a dry drop (Ancient Age 10yo + Rittenhouse Rye?) actually becomes a great bourbony bed upon which to let Elmer T Lee show all its sweet fruitiness. Add to that the fact that Greenie takes it all to the next juicy level with the amontillado finish and you have a medicinal elixir worth fighting for. More please?

Malt Mission #366
Malt Mission #367
Malt Mission #368
Malt Mission #369

Malt Mission HOM E

Malt Mission 2009 #369

2009-10-21T10:06:00.005Z

Michter's 10yo, GH-1
Single Barrel Bourbon Whiskey
47.2% abv
$75 (USD)

"Michter's: the Whiskey that warmed the Revolution."

In 1753, Swiss Menonite farmer John Shenk joined the American tradition of whiskey making and built a farm distillery in Schaefferstown, PA for "local use". Within four generations the family distillery became a commercial venture (apparently on the back of supplying Washington's troops with liquid courage) and was sold.

After prohibition closed the distillery, a confusing web of tales seems to exist that this author tries to untangle, but the story seems to end the same: "sometime around 1991 everyone just up and left." Today, what was the Michter's distillery is a crumbling, weed-overrun site that scarecely looks like it ever produced anything.

The name "Michter's", however, was sold to Chatham Imports who proceeded to revive the brand with great success.

And goddamn it if this isn't just another example of how hard it is to wrap one's head around the world of American whiskey. Can't wait to finish my American "weeks" here on the mission; I don't have time for invesitgative journalism!

There still seems to be plenty of mystery surrounding the Michter's name and history that scholars far more informed on the topic than Dr. Whisky cannot seem to answer. For more info, check out Cowdery's book, click HERE or HERE, or just have a googlygander yourselves. Geneology in the world of American whiskey can be hard to navigate, but is made somewhat easier by this great online resource from Sku, Complete List of American Distilleries and Brands, which tells us who bottles this liquid (KBD), but gives no info on who produces the sauce. Heaven Hill? Other? Anyone have an idea?

Finally, this past weekend we saw the Michter's range on optic at the Roebling Tea Room in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Not something you see very often in this country so I thought it was interesting and that I would share it with you here.

Now, finally, let's taste.

TASTING NOTES:

Whoa. Vegetal, meaty, oraganic and gingery. Some floral notes but the meatiness persists with lamb and peanut butter, ginger again, green peas and/or soy beans. Brown sugar, clay, muddy autumn leaves, and plasticine.

Kale, vinegar and ice cream truck butterscotch. Strachy, bean-y. Perfumy vanilla. Oaky and spicy on the way out.

SUMMARY:

Firm, fun flavours, unusual ones, too, but jaw-splittingly unbalanced. It would be hard to get me to fill another glass, YES even if I added some Bernheim Wheat, rye, vinegar or applesauce. What is the point in trying to make this more appealing to me? Life is too short to drink whisky I don't enjoy and lord knows there is no shortage of fine drops to drink instead.

Now, I have examined other reviews of this and spoken with several friends about their reactions to the whiskey and although it is quite clear that David and I had a very different reaction to this whiskey than the majority of others, I stand by my (our?) opinion and only slightly reluctantly press "publish", esp in light of all the recent Dr bashing.

Malt Mission #366
Malt Mission #367
Malt Mission #368
Malt Mission #370

Malt Mission HOM E

Malt Mission 2009 #368

2009-10-19T10:04:00.005Z

Four Roses Single Barrel
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
TN 85-4L
50% abv
$40 (USD)

Although Wikipedia tells us that Four Roses was possibly named after original founder Rufus Mathewson Rose, his brother and two sons, Four Roses' website tells the story of Paul Jones, Jr., founder of Four Roses, whose love interest accepted his invitation to a grand ball and showed up wearing, as promised, a corsage of 4 red roses. I guess if we whisk(e)y nerds weren't spending all our online time surfing porn and writing vitriolic comments on whisky websites and fora we could remedy the spread of misinformation. But where would be the fun in that?

Four Roses produces 10 different recipes of bourbons out of 5 different yeast strains and two mashbills (one 60% corn, one 75% corn) at their Lawrenceburg, Kentucky-based distillery. While most of their whiskies are made with a mix of each between 2 to 10 of these different bourbons, this Single Barrel is, obviously, I suppose, made using only one.

From 1957, Four Roses bourbon was unavailable in its country of origin with Yellow and Black label being more easily found in Kyoto than Kentucky.

Master Distiller Jim Rutledge continues to make great whisky: 5 stars from F. Paul Pacult, Gold at the ISC, and Best Bourbon (no age statement) WWA 2008. So the verdict is in. What of any significance could my opinion possibly add?

Tasted as a part of a lovely morning session with DS.

TASTING NOTES:

Big and sweet. Luscious candy fruitiness, Bazooka bubble gum, Watermelon Hubba Bubba, Juicy Fruit. Coconut and gorse, even some baby powder with water.

Dry but chewy with basil, mint, caramel. Sweet and light, floral. Cream soda and maple with time and a pleasant slightly bitter and spicy finish.

SUMMARY:

Interesting and tasty drop that kept insisting I stick and re-stick my nose in the glass and revel in its big, sweet, voluptuous vapours. My only complaint (or perhaps oversight on my part) is that there is no indication of which mashbill this cask is made. They have this cool tool on their website but the numbers on the label (TN 85 4L) seem to have no relationship to the spirit codes but rather to the cask and warehouse number. Would be cool to know which spirit is which, esp as it is single barrel, no?

Malt Mission #366
Malt Mission #367
Malt Mission #369
Malt Mission #370

Malt Mission HOM E

Malt Mission 2009 #367

2009-10-13T09:12:00.004Z

Bernheim Original
Kentucky Straight Wheat Whiskey
45% abv
£50
$45(USD)

Keeping the American theme going with a few more drops from whiskEy country up my labcoat sleeve. Sorry if it takes me weeks to pull 'em out.

Typical of American whiskey, the Bernheim story is shrouded in mystery, some confusion, and even a little intentional deceit. The Bernheim website reads, "Brothers Isaac Wolfe and Bernard Bernheim, pioneering German immigrants with little money and big dreams, established a distillery in Louisville, Kentucky in the 19th century. Since that time, the Bernheim distillery has consistently produced whiskeys lauded for their superior taste and quality." The Heaven Hill website reads, "Heaven Hill produces its whiskies at the historic Bernheim Distillery."

Historic? consistently making spirit? The old Bernheim distillery was demolished and the new one was built in 1992. The whisky is distilled at (the new) Bernheim distillery and is matured at Heaven Hill's facilities in Bardstown, Kentucky. The amazing Sku, who helped me clarify some details about this whiskey (and many others over the years), also points out that this is straight wheat whiskey (>51% wheat), not to "be confused with what in Bourbon lingo is referred to as a "wheater." A wheater is a Bourbon in which the remaining grains, beyond the required corn, contain wheat instead of rye. In a wheater, corn is still the base grain. In wheat whiskey, which is not Bourbon, wheat is the base grain.

Thank you, my west coast malt loving brother!

Tasted with an east coast malt loving brother, David Stewart (no, not that one. Or that one).

TASTING NOTES:

Perfumy, aromatic, like hot tea. Vanilla, chamomile, and fresh mint. Simple and clean with a gentle spice beneath the sweet surface.

Very soft in the mouth, verging on bland. Not much of note happening here. Hmm... Late notes of bread, baguette and then... fin

SUMMARY:

In tasting this with DS, we were both speechless for no other reason than there was next to nothing to say about the flavours in this drop. Light? Clean? Yes, but also boring and inconsequential. Although unique in the world of American whiskey, I think Greenore provides a parallel but this drop doesn't come close to the complexities of oak influence in texture and flavour found in its Irish comparison.

Malt Mission #366
Malt Mission #368
Malt Mission #369
Malt Mission #370

Malt Mission HOM E

The Man Who Walked Around the World

2009-09-26T12:20:00.005Z

Just before setting off to Scotland, friend and colleague Andrew Weir sent me a link to the new Johnnie Walker short film/ad "The Man Who Walked Around the World."

When I first viewed it, there had been 3000 views. There have now been 130,000, I believe the viral will continue to spread, and I feel no shame in sharing the contagion. Oh wait a sec, this one has subtitles. Ha. The one Andy sent me did not. Anyways... Will use this one for those of you who don't speak English, or those who do but cannae speak Scottish.

The video came up over conversation in the Highlander Inn, with a group of visitors to Glenfiddich Distillery, with members of The Edinburgh University Water of Life Society, and over several drops of Grant's 12yo with Robert Hill and David Stewart in the heart of Speyside. We all had different opinions and thoughts. Naturally. And thank god.

What are yours?