Ardbeg Day continues to grow and build momentum each year, and on a truly global scale. It is now one of the highlights of the whisky calendar, and the main events that get held around the planet are spectacular occasions…
Tag: Single Malt
The Whisky Show, Sydney, 2015
Sydney is spoiled for choice with a number of whisky expo-style shows running through town each year and May 15-16 saw The Whisky Show return to the Stamford Plaza hotel at Mascot to strut its stuff.
The Whisky Show offered three sessions; one on the Friday evening, and then 12noon-4.00pm and 5.00pm-9.00pm on the Saturday. Of course, the Saturday sessions coincided with World Whisky Day, so it was a fine opportunity to celebrate the occasion.
Port Ellen and dram envy
[Update 2024: The article below was originally written in 2015. Of course, the *new* Port Ellen distillery opened its doors in March 2024, but this changes the narrative only a little. Much of what follows remains valid, given it will be many years until the new spirit has matured, and there will always be lust for the “old” Port Ellen.] What makes Port Ellen whisky so special? Why is the Port Ellen distillery so revered, considering it was decided to close it down in 1983? Let’s look at the fully story, including why Port Ellen whisky makes plenty of people envious…
Ardbeg Perpetuum
Ardbeg. The very name conjures up evocative images, flavours, and pre-conceived ideas. For many, it means a big, peaty, smoky, Islay whisky. For others, it represents complexity, refinement, sweetness, and quality. Some link the name to the decline and downturn of the Scotch industry in the 1980’s, resulting in distillery closures and cutbacks. Many of those same folks also link the name to a Phoenix-like resurrection, given the distillery came back from the dead in 1997 and now struts the roost with style and finesse.
For me, it is all of those things, plus one more: Fun.
Ardbeg is a fun brand. The distillery and its blending/creation team can produce some of the most refined, stylish, and unbelievably-good drams on the planet, but the brand has never become stuffy or weighed down under a Rolls Royce-like persona. Rather, Ardbeg presents itself as being fun, vibrant, innovative, inclusive, cheeky, and left-of-centre. If Ardbeg was a style or a fashion genre, it would definitely be a hipster! And its whiskies are all the more endearing as a result.
Glenmorangie Tusail
The good folks at Glenmorangie continue to explore new flavours and forge new paths in their pursuit of interesting and tasty whiskies. Well, I say “good folks”, but perhaps “the good doctor” would be more appropriate, as it is Dr Bill Lumsden who has once again pushed the boundaries and played around with the ingredients.
Whilst it would be easy to rest on their laurels and be satisfied with their core range aged expressions (The Original, 18yo, 25yo, etc) and the Extra-Matured set (Quinta Ruban, Lasanta, and Nectar d’Or), Glenmorangie continues to add to their portfolio with their Private Edition whiskies. These include releases such as Ealanta, Companta, Taghta, etc, and you can read Whisky & Wisdom’s reviews on these also. (Links further below). But let’s get to the point: Glenmorangie’s latest release and the new kid on the block is the Tusail. (Gaelic for originary)
Springbank – The enigma of Campbeltown
For most whisky drinkers – dare I say, enthusiasts – distilleries fall into one of three categories: There is the “well known” category, where names like Glenmorangie, Lagavulin, Macallan, Glenfarclas, Talisker, etc all reside. Their whiskies are widely available; the brands are well known; they have visitor centres; and chances are, you may already have set foot in their stillhouse.
At the other end of the scale, you have the “unknown” category. These are the distilleries that don’t have any official releases; the ones that don’t have visitor centres and are closed to the public. Their spirit goes straight into the blends and you’ll struggle to find any detailed information about them. Most readers may not even have heard of them! I refer to the likes of Allt-a’Bhainne, Miltonduff, Inchgower, and so on.
The third category is the more interesting one, and I’ll tag it with the label “enigmatic”. And surely, there is no more enigmatic distillery than Springbank. Independent, family owned, a Campbeltown distillery no less, its whiskies are harder to come by; the releases are few and far between; and yet – and it’s a big yet – hardcore whisky lovers adore it. Fans speak of Springbank with a reverence and dedication reserved for very few distilleries, and for those who’ve not discovered the distillery or been enchanted by its spirit, it’s all a bit of a mystery.
The Ultimate Glenfarclas Tasting
Back in 2007, a very special whisky event was held in Sydney, Australia. Held at Sydney’s iconic Claude’s restaurant, it was billed as “The Ultimate Ardbeg Dinner” and it featured an unbelievable line up of the rarest Ardbeg bottlings ever assembled, including the 1965. That particular event had been preceded a year earlier by an incredible Macallan tasting (featuring the full ESC range, as well as rare bottlings from the 1980’s). And, only a short time prior to that, there was the unbelievable Springbank tasting, which featured the entire Millennium range of Springbanks. These were the glory days of tasting and appreciating the uber rare, special, and expensive releases amongst Scotland’s elite single malt bottlings and distilleries. In terms of the rarity of the whiskies at the Ultimate Ardbeg Dinner, many thought such an event could never be equalled. We may finally have found a successor…
Are you paying too much for your whisky?
Is whisky too expensive? How much should you pay for a good bottle of single malt? How much should you pay for a bad bottle of malt? Why are some distilleries or labels so expensive, whilst others seem so much cheaper? Why do NAS whiskies cost so much, when all you ever hear about is that their vattings contain mostly young malt? In fact, when it all boils down: Why is whisky so expensive?
That’s a lot of questions. So what are the answers?
Some special drams from the house of William Grant & Sons
It’s no secret that I’m a fan of William Grant & Sons. As I’ve penned in numerous articles and blog posts previously, it’s not just their whiskies, but also their people, and how they move & operate in the whisky world. Courtesy of the good folks at WG&S Australia (thanks Mark, Laura & Richard), I recently experienced yet another great example of this.
Ludo Ducrocq would be known to many whisky drinkers around the world as one of the most knowledgeable, likeable and agreeable brand ambassadors. Ludo started out as a distillery tour guide for William Grant & Sons, but his passion for whisky and his love for telling other people about it quickly saw him move into more ambassadorial roles. In 2009, he was appointed as Grants’ first Global Ambassador (for the Grants’ range of blended whiskies), and today works with the title of “Head of Brand Ambassador Advocacy”. In other words, he’s the Brand Ambassador to the Brand Ambassadors!
Continue reading “Some special drams from the house of William Grant & Sons”
Glenfarclas Distillery – a family affair
What follows is a full and detailed profile of the Glenfarclas distillery. I’ve prepared and written up similar distillery profiles and feature pieces for many different publications and outlets in the past, and this feature piece will be no different. But, in the interests of full disclosure, let’s declare all interests: Glenfarclas is my favourite distillery. There. I’ve said it…