Exile Casks Launch March 2016

We've had a very busy March and have so much to catch up on! With so much news to share I've decided to start with the latest news first! Last Wednesday, I headed down to London’s Soho Whisky Club for the launch of the first from Joel Harrison and Neil Ridley’s latest venture, The ‘Exile Casks’

The ‘Exile Casks’ is a new range of single cask scotch that will be available only from exilecasks.com For the past 3 years Neil and Joel been searching all over Scotland for lost and forgotten casks, and they say that they’ve found some gems amongst the warehouses.

Three new Whisky Discoveries to log!

Whisky Discovery No.1653

Caskstrength And Carry On 3D Whisky 56.4% abv

Blended Malt Whisky

no longer available

The first dram of the evening was the last release from Neil and Joel under the ‘Cask Strength’ brand. 3D is a 'vatted' malt from 3 distilleries beginning with the letter D; Dalwhinnie, Dailuaine and Dufftown, was created by Joel and Neil themselves under the guidance of Diageo Master Blender Dr Matthew Crow.

Unfortunately, I never managed to taste any of these early releases from the Cask Strength label so this, the last in their short series was the first for me.

Just 504 signed and numbered bottles were produced, at 56.4% abv, complete with stereoscopic 3D label and glasses. They were available exclusively from Master of Malt at around £50 a bottle and have all sold out long ago, although if you really want to try it there were some ‘Drinks by the Dram’ available when I looked.

Whisky Discovery No.1654

The Trojan 25 Year Old 57.1% abv

Single Cask Speyside Whisky

£65.00 500ml (only available from exilecasks.com)

This was being bottled on the day of the tasting, so no bottle shot!

The Trojan, a 25 Year Old single cask from a Speyside distillery will be the first release from Exile Casks. Neil and Joel were not prepared to discuss the distillery this came from, but records showed that this cask was filled with spirit from one distillery and then labelled as being something else. Distilled 19th June 1990 and matured in a refill hogshead, it was currently being bottled (as we were tasting) at 57.1% with just 306 500ml bottles, and will be available from 31st March at £65 but only from exilecasks.com

So What Did I Think?

Quite a punchy dram with a gloriously rich, almost sherry cask, colour. Lots of woody oaky notes on the nose with liquorice and nutty notes too, walnut in particular. There was also a surprising celery salt note detected – and I thought it was only Kat that had these oddities in her tasting notes! This is also surprisingly lively for a 25-year-old, with lots of rich spicy notes on the palate. Water tamed the spicy heat and sweetened the flavours. One of the Soho Whisky Club members had brought in some home-made chocolates, and this whisky worked wonderfully with the chocolate – Bravo!

Whisky Discovery No.1655

'TBA' 1992 55.5% abv

Single Cask Speyside Whisky

£TBA0 500ml (only available from exilecasks.com)

No bottle, No label, not even a name yet!

Our third and final dram was a teaser from their next release. Another single cask from a Speyside distillery and again no distillery name will be released, although we were told that this cask had travelled, having been moved to four different warehouses. Distilled 9th April and matured in a 200-litre refill ASB (American Standard Barrel) and the sample we were tasting was at 55.5% abv. This yet to be named release is about a month away and if you want to find out more you’ll need to sign up on exilecasks.com

So What Did I Think?

Now this very quickly won me over and was my favourite of the evening’s three new Whisky Discoveries. The nose having a tropical fruity feeling with pineapple and coconut cream, lots of coconut cream! - Delicious!

Verdict
I always enjoy my trips to The Soho Whisky Club as more often than not it's because I've been invited to the launch of a new expression! The original plan of the Cask Strength team was to release an A-Z series of whiskies, but quickly realised that they were going to be hard-pressed to do this, especially in order! The first two casks are indeed very different and divided the Soho Whisky Club members fairly equally. That, however, is hardly surprising as single cask releases from the same distillery can be very different. There's no brand profile in terms of taste or style being sought here, just single casks that appeal to Neil and Joel. There's no exclusivity other than the limited release that a single cask can yield. When it's gone, it's gone!

hy 500ml bottles? Well firstly more people will be able to enjoy each release! The initial release, limited to just 306 500ml bottles would yield just 218 bottles at 700ml. Secondly, Neil and Joel looked at their own whisky collections and noticed that many of their bottles had around 200ml left in the bottom of them (yeah, mine too!). There's nothing like opening a newly purchased bottle, and these releases are meant to be drunk!

So, if you want to find out just what whisky Neil and Joel really like you'll just have to sign up on their new website as this will be the only place you can buy them from. You can follow them on Twitter too @ExileCasks we'd suggest you do just that!

Slàinte! Dave

The Whisky Exchange Single Cask Exclusives - English Whisky

Head Distiller David Fitt and Kat and the two Whisky Exchange Single Cask exclusives at the show

We caught up with The English Whisky Company's Head Distiller, David Fitt, at this year's Whisky Exchange Whisky Show, who as usual blew us away with their new releases (as well as a rather exciting 'under the counter' experiment). David took us through the new triple distilled Chapter 17, which we followed with the 2015 release of Chapter 10 before moving on to two single cask releases that he was immensely proud of.

Two casks personally chosen by Sukhinder Singh, founder of the Whisky Exchange, bottled as exclusive releases and launched at the show. We were mightily impressed with both of them on the day and were delighted to receive a pair of review samples a few days afterwards, to revisit them.

These are only available from The Whisky Exchange, and being single cask releases, only a limited number of bottles are available.

Two review samples at WDHQ  (no I didn't blend them into one glass)

Whisky Discovery #1438

English Whisky Classic a TWE Exclusive 53.4% abv

English Single Malt Whisky

£59.95 70cl only available from The Whisky Exchange

This Whisky Exchange exclusive release from The English Whisky Company is one of their favourites that they've produced. Soft and fruity, despite being bottled at cask strength, it's a perfect example of how great whisky from the distillery is.

The specially commissioned packaging features a red telephone box which has been a feature on the streets of England since 1926, becoming an iconic sight across the country. As time has moved on, most of them have vanished, with the few remaining saved for posterity through private ownership.

Just 270 bottles were filled

So What Did I Think?
Nose: A gorgeous soft candy nose. There's dusted milk bottle sweets, candied lemons and shortbread biscuit. These biscuit and lemon notes in time give lemon drizzle cake notes while floral notes bring up the backdrop
Taste: A very creamy mouth feel and again reminding me of milk bottle sweets. There's vanilla creams, the biscuit notes coming through before the peppery spices push through and hints of pencil shavings
Finish: Vanilla ice cream with a hint of chilli comes in right at the end

Whisky Discovery #1439

English Whisky Peated TWE Exclusive 53.4% abv

English Single Malt Whisky

£59.95 70cl only available from The Whisky Exchange

Only a small amount of the whisky produced at St George’s distillery is heavily peated, adding a thick layer of smoky flavour to their fruity spirit.

The telephone box theme is repeated, but in black. In the 1980s, a few of the UK’s red telephone boxes were painted black as the telecommunication industry moved into private ownership. While the iconic shape designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott did not change, these telephone boxes were stood in stark contrast to their red counterparts.

Just 290 bottles were filled

So What Did I Think?
Nose: My first impressions when revisiting this was Citrus peel and charcoal ash. The lemon peel notes coming across at toasted and a sweet smoke follows. There's even a 'beach feel' to this with sea spray and driftwood before some hedgerow fruits of blackberry and blackcurrants
Taste: A very chewy dram with a great mouth-feel which seems to thicken over time, with a liquorice sweetness, enriched with cloves while an underlying earthiness that slowly builds into the long peaty finish.
Finish: Long peaty earthiness, gentle smoke with just a hint of candied peel.

Verdict
We're both big fans of English Whisky, it was the first ever distillery I'd visited and these two single cask releases are simply superb. At circa £60 each won't  break the bank either. If I had to pick a favourite and only had £60 to spend? I'd pick the peated cask, and then ask Kat to buy me the Classic cask for Christmas.

Slàinte! Dave

Whisky Discovery #1277

SMWS 3.243 'Dark, Smouldering Flamenco Gypsy' 57.1% abv

Single Cask Single Islay Malt

Price £80.00 (members price)

I haven't made my pilgrimage to Islay yet, it's something I really must get round to soon. It was an Islay malt that started me off on this path I decided to travel along, but I don't think it's going to happen this year unfortunately.

Every year, in the last week of May The Islay festival of Feis Ile is held. It's origins date back to 1984 when the first Gaelic Drama Festival took place, In the early days it was more of a traditional music festival and it wasn't until 1990 that the first ever whisky tasting took place. The islands distilleries started getting more involved in 2000 and introduced their special Open Days and ultimately their Special Feis Ile releases.

The Feis Ile is the charitable organisation from which this now huge Festival of Music & Malt has evolved. The Island population triples during the week of the Festival which means it's no longer something you can simply turn up to, forward planning is essential nowadays with many making their plans a year in advance.

This years Feis Ile runs from Friday 22nd May until Saturday 30th May and if you're thinking about making plans for 2016 the dates are Friday 20th - Saturday 28th May. You can find out more details at the Islay Festival Feis Ile website

This year The Scotch Malt Whisky Society will be, for the first time in their history, will too be hosting an open day on Friday 22nd May, when Islay House becomes their home for the day and in celebration they're releasing a their own limited edition Islay Festival bottling, and it will be available to members and non-members alike.

If you're not a member of the SMWS then you might not be aware of their bottling and labeling specifications. Every release comes in the same green society bottle and labeling never refers to a distillery directly, with every release bearing a pair of numbers separated by a decimal point. The first number referring to the distillery, and the second referring to the cask number that the society has bottled from this distillery, i.e. 3.1 would be the first cask ever bottled from distillery No.3

Each release has a quirky name which is put together from the notes of a tasting panel, as are the tasting notes printed on the label. Dark, smouldering flamenco gypsy's notes read as follows:

Wow - so much on the noise - sherry, tarry wood, clean smoke, dates, figs, roasted chestnuts, Christmas spices, egg custard, maple syrup-glazed pork ribs and HP sauce on bacon rolls. The palate was substantial - liquorice, treacle toffee, coffee and chocolate, with caramelised onions and Demerara-smothered, clove studded ham over embers. The reduced nose suggested spiced prunes, Branston pickle, fig rolls, treacle tart, duck in plum sauce and warm welly boots by a drying bonfire. The reduced palate's smoke and sherry combination gave us interest and pleasure - the toffee and oloroso, toasted almonds and barbecued meats gave it a dark, smouldering flamenco gypsy personality.

It goes on to give this drinking tip: Between dances at a Spanish barbecue party

SMWS 3.243 is from the Bowmore Distillery that has spent 17 years maturing in a refill ex-sherry butt before being bottled at 57.1%. Sherry butts have a capacity of 500 litres, and allowing for 2% Angels Share over the 17 years I'm calculating that there will only be around 500 bottles available

So what Did I Think?

I've tasted a number of superb Society sherried Bowmore's and this certainly does not disappoint. After typing out their notes while writing this post and comparing them to mine, I can say I agree wholeheartedly with them! My notes as below are exceedingly similar.

Lovely sherry notes immediately on the nose, woody, nutty and the peated spirit giving notes of tarred parcel paper alongside a sweet alluring smoke. Barbecue sauce features heavily as the nose develops and there's that sweet meatiness to it; roast duck in Hoisin sauce (honestly, I never read the 'official' notes until after I'd finished writing mine!) A drop of water brings out the sherry fruits and Christmas cake notes I was expecting to find. 

Verdict

Superb! and I'm hoping I can get my hands on one from the London HQ later this month fingers crossed.

Many thanks to the society for thinking of me and sending me this sample. If you want more information on the SMWS's Islay trip, visit www.IslayHouse.co.uk

Sláinte! Dave

Whisky Discovery #1143

GlenDronach 20 Year Old Abbey Whisky Exclusive 54.8% abv
Speyside Single Malt Whisky
£97.95 70cl only from Abbey Whisky

Following on from the resounding success of their GlenDronach single cask 33, Abbey Whisky decided it was high time that they released another exclusive. I think the very thought of tasting and re-tasting another series of cask samples in order to determine the right cask for this release was also one of the contributing factors...#justsaying

Cask No. 3400 was distilled in 1994 spending 20 years in a Pedro Ximenez Sherry Cask before being bottled last year at 54.8% abv, just 672 bottles were released.

So What Did I Think?

As a regular Sherry drinker I was expecting BIG things from this whisky. Twenty years in a Pedro Ximenez cask will make some significant changes to the maturing spirit which is immediately apparent on pouring the deep mahogany coloured spirit.

I love nosing sherry and the rich Pedro Ximenez flavours I was expecting come across well; Blackcurrants, sweet and sticky. Blackberries, Black Forest Gateaux complete with the black cherries - It truly has a most decadent aromas that I could quite happily sit and nose all night. Adding water tames it a little, releasing some nuttier notes.

Tasting is punchy initially, with the high abv adding to the typical sherry monster tactics of smacking you in the chops. There's no subtleness here! A burnt toffee sweetness plays alongside natural liquorice root with just the hint of tar coming through. All the cliché 'dried fruits' are here, amplified and concentrated over ripe figs and sultanas. This takes water surprisingly well which for a sherry cask, allowing tropical spices like cloves to come through and a herbal element of fresh fennel too. The finish is very dry, oak tannins although just a touch sweeter with water. The empty glass the following morning yields lots of rich malty chocolate with just a hint of mint.

Verdict: if you love your Sherry Monsters you will love this! Many thanks to Abbey Whisky for sharing this teaser for me to enjoy and tell you about. For further information I suggest you check out their web pages here as you won't be able to buy it anywhere else!

Sláinte! Dave

Whisky Discovery #785

Glencadam 22 Year Old Abbey Whisky 55.3% abv 

Highland Single Cask Malt Whisky

£76.95 70cl only available from Abbey Whisky

This is the fourth release from Independent Whisky Retailer Abbey Whisky's 'Rare Casks' series, following earlier releases from Caperdonich, Bunnahabhain and Ben Nevis. I was supposed to have completed this post a long time ago, as my tasting notes were taken on 30th April last year! However other commitments and a few circumstances beyond my control set me back a little on the blog posting last year and I'm trying to play catch up now as I have two notebooks full of 'discoveries'.

This Glencadam was distilled in 1991, aged in a refill bourbon cask for 22 years, and is a worthy addition to this cask strength series of malts. As one would expect of a cask strength malt, this has been bottled at 55.3% abv, without chill filtering or colour additives. Just 96 bottles have been released.

Checking the liquid log we have had very little exposure to whiskies from The Glencadam Distillery and the only other one listed was the 21 Year Old that was in my Drinks By the Dram Advent Calendar last year.

I decided I needed to find out a little more about the distillery and reached for my Malt Whisky Yearbook along with some older books by Michael Jackson.

Michael Jackson's World Guide to Whisky from 1987 tells us that the distillery was founded in 1825, and was bought by Ballantine's and extensively modernised in the 1950's. Most of it's Whisky went for blending at the time Michael wrote this book, but he describes it as having a very fruity aroma and a smooth, almost creamy palate. He also goes on to say that it's a 'most unusual and characterful Whisky.'

His Malt Whisky Companion (4th Edition) from 1999 describes the House Style as 'Creamy with a hint of berry fruits.'

Having previously been mothballed in 2000, the distillery was brought back to life in 2003 and is the only existing distillery in the region of Angus. 

So What Did I Think?

Twenty two years in a refill bourbon cask hasn't imparted a great deal of colour to the spirit during its slumber, but with the colour of a Sauternes wine, it immediately looks light and refreshing. 

The dominant aromas for me were coconut and vanilla. It always amazes me when I find these coconut flavours, I'm easily pleased! It's all down to the right wood conditions you know. This has a very pleasing, fragrant nose, and alongside the initial flavours I was finding ripe barley and some zesty citrus notes. The palate came across with some good malty flavours, biscuity almost, and although initially creamy and sweet, there was an interesting spicy build up towards the end. The coconut remains throughout and lasts right through to the very end, albeit turning a little soapy. 

(I'd like to point out that we eat a lot of coconut in our house, so know what a soapy coconut smells and tastes like. When anthropologists dig up our garden in years to come, they will believe there was once a coconut plantation and processing plant in the Bedfordshire countryside)

The empty glass the following morning gave notes of milk chocolate. Astonishing!

But don't just take my word for it, Jim Murray awarded this 92/100 in his 2015 Whisky Bible

Many thanks to Abbey Whisky for providing the sample, and for their continued patience in waiting for my this blog post! For further information and how to purchase this fine single cask single malt check their website here: Abbey Whisky 

Sláinte! Dave

Pearl Dram - Single Malt Whisky Society 30th Anniversary

This summer saw the Single Malt Whisky Society celebrated their 30th anniversary. Very suitably, for their pearl anniversary they collaborated with oyster mixologist, The Mother Shuckers [www.mothershuckers.co.uk] opened a 4 day pop-up whisky and oyster bar in Sevendials, London, calling the event Pearl Dram.

Not only did they come up with a witty name during their planning sessions, they cleverly planned the event to coincide with the start of the British oyster season.

The beautifully decorated pop-up shop on Monmouth Street, Seven Dials

A brief history of the society; it was created in 1983 by Phillip “Pip” Hills, after the syndicate that he started with a group of friends to buy their own single cask whiskies grew too big for the lobby in his house. Fuelled by his love of single malts, an entrepreneurial spirit, and from what I felt from reading a section of his book 'Scots on Scotch', the novelty of hosting drunken friends wore thin, the old wine merchant building in Leith known as The Vaults was purchased. This was to become the syndicate’s new central hub. At the time drinking single casks whiskies was bucking the trend, where the majority of whiskies being drunk were blends.

Today the society offers its members a wide selection from over 120 distilleries from cask they select and bottle themselves; keeping true to its roots. Members can enjoy the society’s unique drams in the private members bars worldwide and chat to knowledgeable staff that will be able to give advice on what to try, as the selection can be over whelming at times and hard to know where to start. 

We have been members since 2012, and one of our favourite places to stop by at the start or end of each journey into London is the member’s room that’s a short walk from Farringdon station. We often refer to this as our ‘waiting room’ as it’s on our train route home. 

Which dram to what pearl?

I sat down to sample the full works, titled ‘The Maiden Voyage’ which consisted of 6 whiskies paired with 6 different oysters. I tasted all of these whiskies with water on the recommendation that the diluted drams will help bring out more of the flavours in the oysters.

Getting ready for the start of my ‘Maiden Voyage’

Dram#1 SMWS 73.58 'Simple & Seductive'
paired with the Dunchy Native Oyster.

SMWS 73.58 is a Speyside. It’s a 21 year old an ex-refill bourbon hogshead, distilled on 9th of July 1991. Bottled at 57% abv, price at £69.10 for 70 cl. Showing on SMWS website as available.

So what did I think?

Nose: Very fresh and floral with creamy notes, aromatic vanilla pods, lemon blossoms, and some spices. 

Taste: The freshness comes through in the form of a brief minty mouthwash quality that quickly turns into a lemon drizzle cake, sweetness and creaminess from caramel and sweeten condensed milk, with spices dancing its way to the front towards the end. Spices are a mixed of cloves, cinnamon, and floral notes of coriander seeds. 

Finish: Sweet and spicy. 

Dunchy native has a chewy texture but with some creamy quality. Taste wise it’s about the same sweetness as saltiness, and a metallic kick at the end. This brought out more of the sweetness in the whisky, while the whisky cuts through the nutty salt flavours and balances out the metal notes. 

Dram#2 SMWS 30.77 'This Is Nuts'
paired with the Colchester Rock Oyster. 

SMWS 30.77 is another Speyside whisky. It’s a 16 year old refilled ex-sherry butt, distilled on 17th of April 1997. Bottled at 57.7 % abv and priced at £55.80 for 70 cl. Showing on SMWS as no longer available. 

So what did I think?

Nose: Big sherry hit with lots of dried fruits (figs, dates, raisins, sultanas), and waxed paper. 

Taste: This reflects the nose, bursting with the dried fruits (again figs, dates, raisins, sultanas) with an addition of some dark chocolate towards the end. 

Finish: Fruity with some lingering fresh Jalapeno chilli heat. 

Colchester rock is noticeably more briny than the Dunchy, fewer minerals with no metallic taste, and nice addition of a seaweed note with a creamy texture which tasted like white bread. This oyster brought out white pepper notes in the whisky, while the whisky brought out more of the mineral notes of the oyster. 

Dram#3 SMWS 77.32 'Salivating Sweetness; Savour Whisper'

paired with Lock Ryan Rock Oyster. 

SMWS 77.32 is a Highland whisky. It’s a 25 year old, refilled ex-bourbon hogshead, distilled on 13th of August 1987. Bottled at 58.2 % abv and priced at £82.90 for 70 cl. Showing on SMWS as no longer available.

So what did I think?

Nose: Noticeably dryer than the 30.77 with more woody notes, spicy sweet cinnamon, new buck leather, and the smell of sun cream. 

Taste: Begins with a satisfying woody oak note developing into sweet sticky dates, and spicy cinnamon.

Finish: Starts with sticky sweet dates which lingers, some of the woody oak notes returning, with cinnamon spice leading to the end. 

Loch Ryan rock oyster is very creamy, much more delicate than previous two, and sweeter with only hints of salt and minerals. This brings out more of the fruitier notes of the whisky, specifically more figs, and changes the finish to a stronger wood flavour. 

Dram#4 SMWS 4.179 'Compartments of Complexity'
paired with Dorset Rock Oyster. 

SMWS 4.179 is a 22 years old Highland whisky from a refilled ex-bourbon hogshead, distilled on 31st of May 1991. Bottled at 54.2 % abv and priced at £85 for 70 cl. Showing on SMWS as no longer available.

Four down and no pearls found yet

So what did I think?

Nose: Damp forest floors, earthy moss covered logs, little hints of Band-Aids plasters, and smoky peat notes comes through lasts. 

Taste: Begins with burst of sweetness and taste of lemon drizzle cake then heavy smoky peat notes follows, providing a half and half balance of these two flavours. Then right at the end a sprinkling of white pepper. 

Finish: Relatively short with lingering of lemon drizzle cake and, surprisingly, instead of the smoky notes, the earthy characters that I picked up in the nose returned. 

Dorset rock oyster is another oyster with heavy briny mineral flavours. Texture wise is a mix of creamy (this time more like ricotta in texture) and some meaty bits. This brings outs vanilla notes in the palate of this dram.

Dram#5 SMWS 3.186 'Mermaids At Play In Lochindaal'
paired with Jersey Rock Oyster. 

SMWS 3.186 is a 16 years old Islay whisky from refilled ex-bourbon hogshead, distilled in April 1995 (no specific date given). Bottled at 57.9 % abv and priced at £65.50 for 70 cl. Showing on SMWS as no longer available.

So what did I think?

Nose: First get sweet vanillas and spices, mainly of cinnamon sticks punching through, then a strong aroma of an old medicine cabinet hits you, and more peat can be picked up here than the previous dram. 

Taste: Started with a vegetable like quality that’s similar to pea shoots (was a lovely surprise and so delicate), a good bit of peat, and has a heavier and creamier mouth feel than the previous dram. 

Finish: The pea shoots flavour comes back which is replaced by a touch of wood charcoal, with some sweetness still lingering in the background. 

The Jersey Rock oyster has a clean fresh taste compared with all the others, similar to cucumber but with more brine. This brings out more stoned fruits and vanilla notes in the dram. Interestingly the peat note takes a step back, becoming less prominent. I'm glad it didn't take too many steps back as it complimented the other flavours so well still being part of the main line-up.

Dram#6 SMWS 53.190 'A Fishing Village Up Whisky Cove'
paired with Loch Ryan Native Oyster. 

SMWS 53.190 is a 17 year old Islay whisky from a refill ex-bourbon hogshead, distilled on 24th of August 1995. Bottled at 56.7 % abv and priced at £63.70 for 70 cl. Showing on SMWS website as no longer available.

So what did I think?

Nose: Heady peat aromas, the most peated out of all 6 drams. There’s also dried logs and a touch of liquorice sticks. Definitely a distinct woody and bark like element here. 

Taste: Very smoky and mirroring the nose, the woody element continues here. Black cardamoms in big volumes, some cinnamon and cloves, but instead of the whole spices, due to the smokiness these, they are more like powered spices to me with its dry dusty feel. However doesn’t leave the mouth feeling dry. 

Finish: Begins with the smoky black cardamoms then moving to black pepper which lingers for a good while. 

The Loch Ryan native oyster has an all over meatier texture with minimal creaminess. Found it to be balanced of the brine, metallic notes, and a mineral cucumber note. The whisky had brought out more mineral notes of the oyster, and gave it an earthy finish.

Verdict

Out of all 6 pairings, my favourite combo was pairing No. 3, SWMS 77.32 with Loch Ryan rock oyster. I just felt the pairing brought out the most complimentary flavours in each other, and it has some of my favourite aromas and flavours. 

On a side note, by pure coincidence saw me celebrating a total of three 30th anniversaries, as two other friends were also celebrating their big birthdays on the same day I went to Pearl Dram. I did ponder the next day and as I write this, if it was an omen. So far there has been neither major heart ache nor major good fortunes. Still, can’t help but feel a little superstitious. 

For further information on the Single Malt Whisky Society please visit www.smws.co.uk, and The Mother Shuckers can be found on www.mothershuckers.co.uk.

Lastly for more information on oysters, I came across this interesting info sheet online from the Shellfish Association of Great Britain which explains the different types of oysters available in the UK, and provide more detailed tasting notes for each of these oysters. This can be found here:

Slàinte! Kat

Whisky Discovery #451

Kilchoman 2007 Single Cask (60.9% abv)

Islay Single Malt Whisky

Sadly No Longer Available

I came across this discovery via #TheDramOGram,  the follow-up to our #12Blends Tweet Tasting hosted by Tom Thomson of Toms Whisky Reviews. Whilst the 12 blends was immensely entertaining it was very time consuming and seemed to take up almost all of my spare time over the first 12 days of April this year.

#TheDramOGram was a similar blind tasting event, but this time each of the participants were required to send a single dram to their chosen recipient, while receiving just the one blind dram. All notes and guesses were to be tweeted on the day/evening/night of 31st May. Unfortunately it didn't quite happen with the 'togetherness' of the 12 Blends, and so while I thoroughly enjoyed my blind dram from +Gal Granov I didn't feel the connection we all had when we were all tasting the same whisky at the same time.

I made myself a tasting mat and posted the photo above on Twitter at the start of my tasting. As I made my mental notes I decided to scribble them onto the tasting mat, so I could post a' before' and 'after' photo while I tweeted my notes to Gal.

So What Did I Think?

The finished tasting mat - complete with scribbled notes, wild guesses and an empty glass

From the instant I opened the bottles I was very happy The medicinal Islay peat nose is a particular favourite of mine and it was immediately reminding me of SMWS 127.31 'Right of Passage' a dram tried at the London lounge just before we left for Whisky Live

On opening the bottle I thought could this be Ardbeg? (mostly because Ardbog Day was the following day) but this was way peatier! With my first sip, I was thinking that there couldn't be much more peat left in Islay with the levels in this dram. It was hitting all the right spots for me.

I thought I would try to determine the abv while scribbling my notes, but thought it might be difficult with the peat levels so dominating. I wasn't sure if it was the alcohol burn or the peat smouldering in my mouth That I was experiencing. I'd recently learnt of the 'bubble test' and by comparing that with other samples on the shelf this was putting it at around 45-46% abv yet my mouth was saying 60%!

• Nose:  Intense peat at first, earthy; stable straw, bracken, heaps of pepper, maritime notes; salty with some hemp rope. Recharging the glass I was getting spent coffee grounds too. With water, the first few drops enhance the earthy notes. Some sweetness trying to punch through the pepper.
• Taste: Initial sweet hit turns salty immediately followed by intense pepper which fades to peat smoke. With water the sweetness found neat lingers a little longer, the peppery spice is not so fierce, but over all a very similar profile.
• Finish: Is very long with peppery peat smoke, lightly salted with charcoal.

With SMWS 127.31 'Right of Passage' the 10 Year Old Port Charlotte (bottled at 64.2% abv) on my mind I was torn between an Ardbeg and a Port Charlotte, and my wild guess was Port Charlotte PC8 an 8 Year Old bottled at 60.5% abv - it fitted with my thoughts

The reveal was a pleasant surprise. Although I was checking out Kilchoman releases on one of the well known whisky retailer websites I had dismissed them for the Port Charlotte. I must get some Kilchoman on my whisky shelf soon!

Slàinte! Dave

Ardbog Day

On the 1st of June we were invited to take part in celebrating Ardbeg’s limited edition release of their Fèis Ìle festival bottling – Ardbog. On this day, dubbed Ardbog Day, I headed to London with my other half in tow as Dave couldn't go, as at around that time he had started to tear down his ensuite.

To make it bit more of a country feel, there was a stage full of steaming peat for people to dig through, flying sheep (oh yes there was!) & normal sheep, a nice old tractor, straw bales, shiny Ardbeg Chopper and country games where you can win prizes. All of the pictures from the day can be seen on our Facebook page here. 

The Ardbog T-shirt was hard to come by, I only got one after completing two tug-of-war games, some wellie wanging, a wheel barrow race, and a sack race! A cocktail half way through the day, consisting of Ardbog, lime juice, gomme syrup & lavender liquor, quenched the thirst nicely.

Slainte! Kat

Whisky Discovery #498

Ardbeg 'Ardbog' (52.1% abv, 2013)

Islay Single Malt Whisky

circa £80.00 (when it was released)

The whisky has been named after the peat bog that gives the whiskies from this distillery its heavily peated character. Ardbeg’s is one of the peatiest malt whisky, which I’ve been advised ‘with a phenol level of the peat measured at an average 55-60 parts per million’. Compared with say a Lagavulin with phenol levels of around 40 parts per million. 

Ardbog is a marriage of Ardbeg whisky that are at least 10 years old, that has been matured in bourbon cask and in Manzanilla sherry casks.

So What did we think?

Kat's notes: 

Nose: My first thought was warm buttermilk pancakes with lashings of maple syrup and rashes of crispy bacon. Followed by the smell of a burgundy Chesterfield sofa on a hot day, nutmeg, hazel nuts, toffee, medicinal aromas - TCP/Band-Aid, all balanced with a background note of smoke. It’s also noticeably dry. 

There’s not a major change to the aromas after adding a drop of water. Only noted the smokiness mellows, bringing out more of the sweet maple syrup characters & nut notes. Personally the high ABV is not a problem here and prefer this dram without water.

Palate: I was very happy when it offered most of flavours of what it promised in the nose. At the first second when it hits the palate, there’s a short hint of mint mouthwash. Shortly follow with maple syrup, toffee, peat smoke, iodine/seaweed, very nutty with a nice coating of nut oils from hazel & Brazil nuts. Again, it is a nice balance of sweet and savoury that’s a little dry which helps cut through some of the richness of this whisky. 

With water, the only change that I noticed was that the minty & smoke characters become distinctively like black cardamoms. 

Finish: Nutty, peat smoke/wood charcoal, iodine, hint of sea salt and black cardamoms. 

To sum up for me it’s like eating maple syrup pancakes with crispy bacon after brushing your teeth or using mouthwash, and somehow these flavours combined to make a really delicious dram. It is a great execution of balancing sweet, savoury, and peat smoke.

Dave's notes:

Nose: Very typically 'Ardbeg' with a definite smoky bacon 'Frazzles' over a 'stable' element, with earthy peat, straw and cowshed (yes, I've slept in one). The medicinal notes are all there; iodine, old style crepe bandages, menthol, as is the charcoal and coal dust. There are sweet notes with rich honey and good Balsamic vinegar, similar to my wife's homemade salad dressing, and plenty of sea salt. Digging deeper there are some fleeting delicate floral notes underlying.

Palate: A peaty sweetness, albeit not quite as sweet as I was expecting. Sooty charcoal notes begin give the dry mouthfeel and there's a short spicy build up, but again not quite as spicy as I was expecting, more of a mild chilli heat to me (I do eat a lot of chilli though). There's a salty tang that sneaks up on you too.

Finish: A long and drying finish, woody sawdust. The salt that sneaked up on the palate and the sherry sweetness remains for a long time too, but charcoal is more dominant and stays right through and beyond!

Verdict: I was fairly certain that Ardbog was quite similar to their Uigeadail so decided to taste these alongside each other. They both have a similar 'make up' (Bourbon and Sherry casks) although Ardbog specifies Manzanilla casks, the colour is difficult to differentiate between the two and flavour profiles are quite similar although the Uigeadail comes across as slightly sweeter and more rounded. That said the Ardbog is very drinkable however value for money? I didn't think so and would prefer to spend my hard earned cash on Uigeadail or Corrywrecken and still have some change in my pocket.

Three evenings at SMWS London

I don't often get the opportunity to spend an evening in the SMWS's London headquarters but a recent Trade Show held at Earls Court had me commuting down from Bedfordshire for three consecutive days. (I was originally scheduled for just two days manning our stand at the RailTex exhibition but my MD pulled out of his final shift and called me in at the last minute).

It so happens that 19 Greville Street, the London home of the SMWS, lies on the Bedford to London main line just a stones throw from Farringdon, and so my mission was to ensure I went home from Earls Court via Farringdon underground. If they had been open early for breakfast I would have made sure I was there for that too!

On my journey home after the first day of the show I could only stop for a couple of drams as I had foolishly left my car at the station and would have to drive home later. I carefully read the current out-turn and found an interesting bottling from Jura's only distillery, so first on the menu was 31.26

Whisky Discovery #410

SWMS 31.26 'BBQ Smoke by a Rolling Sea' 24 Year Old (53.6% abv)

Highland Island Single Cask Single Malt Whisky

I'd not come across a club bottling from the Isle of Jura before and was really looking forward to this recent release. Distilled on 27th September 1988 this was matured for 24 years in a refill ex-bourbon hogshead, resulting in just 262 bottles at 53.6% abv)

It certainly didn't disappoint with some smoky aniseed and plenty of brine on the nose, along with the sweet scent of butterscotch popcorn. The peat smoke was much more forward on the palate, with a sweet and spicy BBQ sauce and earthy notes.

Knowing that I could only have one more dram I asked Phoebe (@whiskybars) for a recommendation and this recent bottling from the Ardbeg distillery was selected.

Whisky Discovery #411

SWMS 33.125 'Salted Caramel Lollipop' 7 Year Old (64.4% abv)

Islay Single Cask Single Malt Whisky

I love a peaty Islay whisky and this complemented the Jura perfectly. So this young Ardbeg was distilled on the 9th May 2005 and matured for just seven years in a first fill barrel yielding just 250 bottles at an impressive 64.4% abv.

It was delicious and just what I was expecting; lots of smoky peat, with notes of tobacco and leather on the nose. It started off a little medicinal to begin with on the palate but settled down to be more sooty. with some sweet smoke and a little brine.

With my fix for peat satisfied I made my way back to Farringdon Station, jumping on the first train heading towards Bedford only to find that the train I had jumped on was going to go right past my station without stopping. My wife and her friends had done just this only the week before, and I remembered laughing at them asking why they never read the information board beforehand, and here's me doing exactly the same thing. Unlike them I heard the train announcements on the journey (they would have been far too busy talking) and so made plans to hop off at Luton to wait for the next train that would stop for at my station.

Day 2 For my second day of playing commuter I'd organised being dropped off at the station in the morning so I would be able to have a couple of extra drams after the show. 

My show partner for day two was our Production Manager, Peter. I've worked with Peter for 15 years and we've had a few beers over that time, but never a whisky. Peter lives along the same main line into London, so it was fairly easy to convince him that we should stop off for a drink or two on the way home from the show. I had told him about the SMWS lounge and he was keen to find out more. With Peter not being a whisky drinker we started with a beer, settling for a 'Bitter and Twisted'  from the Harviestoun Brewery while I explained how the SMWS started and as we started reading our way through the menu, the numbering system and how the wonderfully inventive names are created along with the sometimes contradictory tasting notes printed on the labels.

Since 'converting' to whisky I have been very keen to preach what I have learnt so far and to demonstrate the vast range of smells and tastes that can be found in the different expressions.  Our first dram was chosen for us, and with the help of Sam (@DramforSam) we tried to convey some of the wonders that always amaze me in some fine whisky.

Whisky Discovery #412

SMWS 59.43 ''Caramel Swirl Ice Cream' 29 Year Old (56.4% abv)

Highland Single Cask Single Malt Whisky

We started of with one of the special 30th Anniversary bottlings and a 29 year old from the Teaninich Distillery. I'd not heard of this distillery before and had to look it up in Malt Yearbook to find our more! The majority of this whisky produced at Teaninich is used in the Johnnie Walker blends and it is all matured off site.

So this anniversary dram was distilled on the 8th November 1983 and matured for 29 years in a refill hogshead yielding 252 bottles at 56.4% abv

This started with sweet fruity notes, especially pineapple, and there was plenty of vanilla caramel too. It was quite dry on the palate, black tea like, yet still quite sweet and creamy, a great start to our evening!

For our next dram I thought we should try something young and lively, light and fragrant and Sam chose this Mortlach for us. I tend to think of Mortlach as a sherried whisky, usually with an element of 'struck match' to it but this was not the case with this single cask offering:

Whisky Discovery #413

SMWS 76.95 'Tropical Fruit Salad' (58.2% abv)

Speyside Single Cask Single Malt Whisky

A ten year old distilled in 2001 matured in a refill ex-bourbon hogshead yielding 307 bottles at 58.2% abv. Tropical fruit is what it said on the label, and tropical fruit is what we got!

After two quite light fruity numbers I wanted Peter to experience a sherry cask and asked Sam to find a suitable number. An eleven year old from the Glen Moray distillery was poured

Whisky Discovery #414

SMWS 35.86 'A Sumptuous Breakfast Dram' 11 Year Old (59.3% abv)

Speyside Lossie Single Cask Single Malt Whisky

A fabulous contrast to the first two drams which was immediately noticed by my guest. This Glen Moray was distilled on 17th May 2001 and matured in a First-fill ex-sherry butt yielding 629 bottles at 59.3% abv

With a fabulous rich nose of toast and rich marmalade, polished wood and dates. Wonderfully rich on the palate with a heavy fruit cake, perhaps just the hint of struck match? Peter's first thoughts when nosing this whisky was that it reminded him of the gas used in the dentists when he was a child, and I told him that there were no right or wrong answers, it's all perception from your own experiences.

With a tick in the box for a sherry cask malt, I though I would try to explain the difference between a single malt and a single grain. Sam recommended his current favourite and poured us our next dram

Whisky Discovery #415

SMWS G4.2 'Attractive spirit in a cloak of oak' 28 Year Old (55.4% abv)

Single Cask Single Grain Whisky

A single cask grain whisky from the Cameronbridge Distillery, distilled on the 6th April 1984 and matured in a refill ex-bourbon hogshead for twenty eight years, yielding just 218 bottles at 55.4% abv

I explained to Peter the differences between grain whisky and single malts, and that the majority of whisky made is grain, and used for blended whisky. I told him what I had recently learnt following our Glory of the Grain tweet tasting a few weeks back, and that a good single grain whisky is all about the wood it's been matured in.

There was plenty of wood notes in this one, it reminded me of the wood shop we had at the yard, where we would season some of the best cuts of wood naturally. There were also notes of tobacco and sweetness of a rich honey. Quite bourbon-esque on the palate, sweet with a hint of liquorice.

I was keen to show Peter some peated whisky next and so we moved our tasting journey across to Islay. Sam picked this next one as it was a good balance between the peated spirit and a sherry cask

Whisky Discovery #416

SMWS 3.193 'Baby Faced Arsonist' 14 Year Old (57.7% abv)

Islay Single Cask Single Malt Whisky

So this Bowmore was distilled on the 25th September 1997 and matured in a refill sherry but for 14 years, yielding 601 bottles at 57.7% abv

A lovely sweet scented smoke came across on the nose, but there was a definite maritime note underlying with a salty seaweed type note. On the palate the maritime note was foremost to me with smoked mackerel with honey and mustard. I loved this and thought it was a great introduction to the peated spirit

With time ticking on, and now knowing that I had to make a return journey the following morning (my notice came via a text message during our adventure) I went back to Sam for our last dram for the evening. I wanted something a little more medicinal.

Whisky Discovery #417

SMWS 53.176 'Pain is so close to Pleasure' 20 Year Old (56.6% abv)

Islay Single Cask Single Malt Whisky

What a fabulous name for this twenty year old Caol Ila. It was a single cask Caol Ila that started me off on my whisky journey, so a fitting end to the evening? Distilled on the 17th January 1992, this was matured in a refill hogshead for twenty eight years yielding 285 bottles at 56.6% abv

Great Islay nose with heavily peated notes, although by no means as heavy as a Laphroaig or Port Charlotte (I'll try that with Peter next time). Wood smoke and barbecued mackerel complete with burnt skin, a touch of menthol too. It's peaty on the palate and quite different to the previous Bowmore. 

A perfect end to our evening which had me savouring this for the first part of the journey home. So what was our favourite? Peter really liked the sherried Glen Moray, 35.86 which I must admit was a damn fine dram (I went back the following evening with every intention of revisiting it alongside 35.85, but there was none of the earlier release left). For me The Caol Ila was my favourite of the evening, but it was a close call between the six excellent drams chosen.

Day 3 My re-arranged third day at the trade show was spent with our Sales Manager Philip, the man who first introduced me to whisky and so I was planning on taking him to 19 Greville Street after the show. Unfortunately he already had other commitments and so I returned alone.

It was a glorious afternoon in London so I started with a cold beer - I needed it! I sat down to review the menu while contemplating whether I should make an evening of it or return home in time to make the Balblair Tweet Tasting scheduled for later on in the evening. I had come prepared, bringing both whisky samples and glasses with me so I could take part wherever I ended up at eight o'clock. I decided (quite sensibly) that I should make my way home for it and settled for just one dram before catching the six o'clock train home.

Running through the menu I was intrigued by the description of this:

Whisky Discovery #418

SMWS 85.23 'Burnt granary toast with bramble jelly' 12 Year Old (59.4% abv)

Speyside Lossie Single Cask Single Malt Whisky

I later found out that this was from the Glen Elgin distillery, another new one to me and one you don't see around ordinarily. This distillery too is owned by Diageo and usually found in blended whisky only.

Distilled in September 1999 and matured for 12 years in an ex-sherry butt, yielding 367 bottles at 59.4% this has the typical sherry influence note of struck matches. I quite like the light sulpher notes when it's like this. There's also that yeasty note when making a granary loaf. It's sweet on the palate though as the label note says quite aggressive, though I'm not sure if that was because of the high abv. A drop of water gives that burnt toast note and the jammy note compliments the toast!

So in three evenings of dropping into the SMWS London home I had made nine new whisky discoveries, but to be fair I could find a new whisky discovery every evening for a long time in this place! I'd also introduced a friend to the pleasure of a quality single malt who has already asked when will we be going back again.