A visit to St George’s Distillery

I first found out about St George’s Distillery at the end of 2011 while reading some articles on the excellent whisky social network website Connosr.  It is the closest distillery to my home and at 77 miles door to door seemed like the perfect candidate for being my first. After finding out a little more about the distillery I contacted them over the Christmas holidays to see if they were running any tasting tours over New Year. Unfortunately they weren’t, so I planned to make my visit to them in March when I hoped the weather would be more settled.

I have read that England used to have a handful of whisky distilleries, and four were listed in the book ‘The Whisky Distilleries of the United Kingdom’ by Alfred Barnard published in 1887;

·         Vauxhall Distillery in Liverpool, founded in 1781 and closed very early in the 20th century.

·         Bank Hall, another Liverpudlian distillery, produced grain and malt whisky.

·         Bristol Distillery founded in the 17th century, and

·         Lea Valley was located in Stratford, London, produced both grain and malt whisky founded in the late 19th century and appears to have closed by 1910

Therefore the founding of St George's Distillery is the first to be operational for around one hundred years. 

The Distillery entrance

So on the first weekend of March we drove to Norfolk to visit St George’s Distillery. The distillery was easy to find located just off the A11 just to the East of Thetford, and very well sign posted. We arrived a around 11:25am and I was expecting to have to wait until the midday tour commenced but we were immediately welcomed by David Cott, one of the tour guides, Judy, who manages the visitor centre, and Joy who volunteered to take us on our own personal tour to save us waiting around.

We were whisked up the grand staircase into the conference room and served coffee while we watched a short video about the distillery and a brief insight into how whisky is made. Joy then explained a little about the history of the distillery and how it all came about. We were shown two variants of the barley that was used, and could easily tell the peated one. All of their malted barley comes from Crisps of Fakenham, just 40 miles away, their yeast from AB Mouri in Hull and water is pumped from under their feet from the Breckland aquifer.

The English Whisky Company was founded by the Nelstrop family, in Roudham in Norfolk. Andrew is Managing Director, but the audacious plan was dreamt up as a retirement plan by his father James, a grain farmer.

On turning 60, James did not wish to retire but to do something different, tied into farming. With his son Andrew they decided to investigate a subject close to James’s heart – whisky production, which had stopped in England over 100 years ago. Some of the best barley is grown in Norfolk and the Breckland water is superb. Several concepts were considered, a great deal of research was done in Scotland, Ireland and Wales and in October 2005 a planning application was submitted with approval granted on 10th January 2006.

Although the initial idea was for a micro distillery, customs and excise wouldn’t consider anything smaller than 1800 litre stills. So, in a field they owned down by the River Thet, the footings were dug and the building work began with Andrew at the helm as main contractor.

They managed to persuade Iain Henderson, a distiller of some note from Laphroaig, out of retirement and to help get them going. Iain has since retired again, but before he did, he spent 4 months training David Fitt, a brewer from Greene King to take over. David is now distillery manager and is also responsible for making a superb whisky spirit.

The distillery was opened by HRH Prince Charles and produced its first 'run' on 12th December 2006 and by the end of the month had filled their first 29 barrels

In August 2007 the distillery was opened to the public with a visitor centre, a fantastic whisky shop and tours commenced.

From the conference room we were led straight into the immaculate still room. We were shown the copper topped Mash Tun, the three stainless steel Washbacks as well as the all important copper ‘pot’ stills. The distillery was not working on the Saturday we visited but the middle Washback was filled with a two day old wash that would be distilled on the following Monday.

Joy explained the distillation process and showed us the wash and spirit stills, as well as the all important spirit safe along with a little of the history of its existence. Although I had already done my homework on whisky making it was still fascinating and my wife found it all very interesting.

The Still room with the Mash Tun in the foreground, the wash still to the left and spirit still to the right

From the still room we were led underneath to where the water is pumped into the Mash Tun. The water comes from a 50m deep bore hole on the property (you will notice a small wooden shed on the front lawn – this covers the bore hole). The position of the bore hole to the Breckland aquifer was found using water diviners.

We then moved onto where barrels are filled. All barrels are American Oak bourbon casks and come from Jim Beam. It was here we were invited to try the new make spirit. My wife declined, but I wasn't going to miss this opportunity. It really was an amazing experience to taste this raw malt spirit, straight from the still.

nearly 2000 casks maturing

The whisky is batch made by hand with no computers, matured in fine casks, bottled on site using their own water, is natural coloured, non chill-filtered and all bottled at a respectable 46% abv as standard. (unless cask strength, of course)

Since the original distillations back in 2006, nearly 2000 casks have been filled which are all maturing in their on site warehouses. The distillery creates unpeated and peated whisky, as well as having a rolling program of cask trials.

Tasting Treats

At the end of the tour we got a chance to taste the fruits of their labour, and were presented with a small tot of each of their current core expressions, all three year old malts. We started with Chapter 6 and moved on to Chapter 9 and finished with Chapter 11. My wife, not being a whisky drinker, did try the Chapter 6 and although liked the nose passed her samples onto me.

We then tried some of the other products they have introduced; their Blackberry Liqueur, Norfolk Cream, made with English malt spirit and cream, Norfolk Nog, made with English malt spirit, cream and honey and St. George's Pedro Ximenez sherry, a sherry fortified with English malt spirit, which were also enjoyed.

They have an impressive collection of whisky from around the world in their shop, but I definitely wanted to buy a distillery bottling and eventually decided to start with a Chapter 6, knowing that I will be going back in the not to distant future to get something else. We also picked up a bottle of Norfolk Cream for my wife and her friends, as an alternative to the Irish cream they occasionally enjoy.

We had a great day out at the St George’s Distillery and thoroughly recommend a visit. The tour took lasted around an hour and was very good value at £5.00 each. I’m already planning another visit as I want to see the distillery in operation. If my numbers come up on the lottery I might even start my own!

The core expressions, Chapters 6, 9, 11 and cask strength 11 

Release’s to date:

Chapter 1:         New Make Spirit, straight from the stills with a little water added bringing to 46%

Chapter 2:         New make Spirit again, but from the peated malt

Chapter 3:         18 month single malt spirit, bottled at 46%

Chapter 4:         18 month single malt spirit, peated, bottled at 46%

Chapter 5:         The first English Single Malt Whisky, a limited Edition 3 Year Old bottling (now sold out)

Chapter 6:         Classic Single Malt Whisky, matured solely in ex-bourbon casks, bottled at 46%

Chapter 7:         Rum Cask Single Malt Whisky, spending the last 6 months in rum casks, bottled at 46%

Chapter 8:         The first Peated English Single Malt Whisky, a limited Edition 3 Year Old bottling (now sold out)

Chapter 9:         Peated Single Malt Whisky, matured solely in ex-bourbon casks, bottled at 46%

Chapter 10:       Sherry Cask Single Malt Whisky, bottled at 46%

Chapter 11:       Heavily Peated Single Malt Whisky, matured solely in ex-bourbon casks, available at 46% and cask Strength introduced in July 2011

In addition two special bottlings have been released:

Founders Private Cellar. A limited edition drawn from a single cask and bottled at cask strength in a decanter presented in a wood case

Royal Wedding Commemorative Whisky, a limited editions created for the marriage of Prince William and Catherine Middleton.

Contact details:

St. George's Distillery

Harling Road, Roudham

Norfolk NR16 2QW

T: 01953 717939

W: www.englishwhisky.co.uk

            E: info@englishwhisky.co.uk                    

Whisky Discovery #40

Isle of Arran 14 Year Old (46%, OB, bottled 2012 10cl)
Island Single Malt Whisky
Circa £36 for 70cl

A good measure of the Arran 14 Year Old

The second of the two samples sent to me from the Isle of Arran Distillery, but first a little more information about them.

Following a survey by the Geology Department of Glasgow University, the owner was advised to open his new Distillery on Arran for three reasons:

They had found the purest water supply in all of Scotland at Loch na Davie, high in the hills that overlook the village of Lochranza on the North coast of Arran.

Arran is washed by the warm waters of the Gulf Stream and enjoys a microclimate - ideal for the speedy maturation of single malt whiskies.

The Island already enjoyed a reputation for producing top quality - if illegal - whisky.

The Arran Distillery has strived to use traditional methods of distilling, with wooden washbacks and copper stills. Their location offers perfect water for whisky production, cleansed by granite and softened by peat as it comes down from the mountain above. The atmosphere of sea breezes and clear mountain air together with the warm flow of the Gulf Stream matures the Arran Malt to perfection in earth floored warehouses. They use no peat in the production process and no caramel for artificial colouring, so no scrutinising the packaging for the very small print in German required! The whisky is also non-chillfiltered.

The 14 Year Old was officially launched in 2010 and is set to be one of their core range of three age statements, 10, 14 and 18 year olds, so look out for the launch of the 18 year old in 2014, I’ll be making a note in my diary.

So what did I think?

I certainly liked the 14 Year Old more than the 10 Year Old, the extra four years in the wood has done good! Another sensible bottling at 46% ABV

Colour: Very similar to the 10 Year Old, like a golden white wine, perhaps a touch darker.

Nose: Another wonderful nose, very fragrant and perfumed. Dried fruits and peaches, a little more sherry that the 10 year old, vanilla and caramel toffee.

Palate: Smooth and creamy, an initial saltiness leads onto warming toffee apples and nuts, dates, and orange peel. The feel is overwhelmingly rich and weighty in the mouth

Finish: I have read that the Arran’s have a trademark cinnamon spiced finish, but I never got this but it was a thoroughly enjoyable finish, with a saltiness balancing the sweet fruit.

This 14 year old is a great whisky is another bottle I would be more than happy to recommend and I will definitely be looking out for further releases from this distillery.

Whisky Discovery #39

Isle of Arran 10 Year Old (46%, OB, bottled 2011 5cl)

Island Single Malt Whisky

Circa £35 for 70cl

Just a taste of the Arran 10 Year Old

Now this discovery (and the next) was a real treat! A chance tweet catching the eye of The Isle of Arran Distillery who, after checking out my blog, said I ought to try their 10 Year Old and 14 Year Old whiskies and that they would put some samples in the post for me on the promise that I would write about them.

I was absolutely bowled over! A distillery getting in touch with me, a whisky novice, and then to send me some samples to help me out on my journey – just awesome! And all I had to do in return is drink, enjoy and write about my experiences! This journey is getting better and better.

Before tasting the whisky I decided I really ought to find out a little more about their story:

Arran is a unique island known as 'Scotland in Miniature', for it has all of the scenery of Scotland, with mountains and lowlands, glens, lochs and royal castles (including one at Lochranza). Early in the 19th century there were more than 50 whisky distilleries on Arran, most of them illegal and carefully hidden from the eyes of the taxmen. The malt from Arran was shipped to the mainland and enjoyed by the gentry who regularly "took the Arran waters". It was acclaimed at the time as the best in Scotland, only rivalled by those from the 'Glen of Livet'.

The Isle of Arran Distillery is one of Scotland’s new distilleries, founded in 1993 and starting production in 1995. It was the first legal distillery on Arran since 1837 Their 10 Year Old was officially launched in 2006, and lies at the heart of the Isle of Arran range exuding all the honeyed richness that is associated with the island distillery.

So what did I think?

A very pleasant medium-bodied, sweet citrus flavoured dram that I think must be classed as a great achievement from a distillery that only started producing whisky sixteen years ago. Remember by SWA rules the youngest whisky in this bottling must be ten years old and being from a young distillery won’t have the luxury of older stock to standardise each expression. It was very easy to drink, even at 46% ABV and feels light and fresh, it is non-chillfiltered and naturally coloured.

Colour: a golden white wine

Nose: a lovely fragranced nose, herbal cereal and sweet heather honey, salty sea air and a light oakiness

Palate: Light and fresh with a soft lemony vanilla sweetness and crisp green apples

Finish: A slightly bitter, although certainly not unpleasant malty finish. Very tempting!

This 10 year old is well worth trying out, I haven’t seen this core expression in the supermarkets yet, but it should be, as it can certainly stand amongst any of the others found there.

Whisky Discovery #38

Clynelish 1993 Distillers Edition (46%, OB, Cask No Cl- Br 173-5j, 70cl)
Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
£45 for 70cl at Cambridge Wine Merchants, Ampthill

Just a wee dram this time

I popped into Cambridge Wine Merchants in Ampthill on the way home from work on Friday to speak to owner Chris Woodhall about the piece I had written about his shop for my blog. Chris asked me if I had time to taste something new (for me) I don’t need asking twice. Chris pulled out a bottle of Classic Malts Clynelish Distillers Edition for me to sample, and poured a dram into a long stemmed nosing glass for me to saviour.

I first tasted a Clynelish a year before I started drinking whisky. I can't remember which expression it was although recall it being an independent cask strength bottling, most likely a Cadenheads. (see "In The Beginning")

The Clynelish distillery is located in the East Coast of the Northern Highlands at Brora. The distillery was founded in 1819, under the name Clynelish,and was established by the Marquis of Stafford who, after marrying into the Sutherland family, became the first Duke of Sutherland.

However, in 1967,  build commenced on a new distillery, also named Clynelish, located just across the road from the original Clynelish. Once completed the former Clynelish distillery was renamed Brora (pronounced ‘Broar-err’) in 1969. The name derives from the Old Norse ‘Bru’r aa’ meaning ‘the bridges river’. Brora closed in 1983, and buildings of the Brora distillery are now used by the new Clynelish distillery as a visitor centre and warehouse.

From the Classic Malts Website:
The Distillers Edition was first released in 2006, it was distilled in 1991 and finished in Oloroso casks. The expression I tasted was distilled in 1993 and so was 18 years old when bottled. Each Distillers Edition expression undergoes a second (or ‘double’) maturation in casks that have previously held a fortified wine.

Nose:   Immediate raisins, in fact rum and raisin. Dried orange peel. In time a clean walnut crispness appears. Water makes it softer, dried cherry, sultana, apricot and some honey. There's still a slightly piercing quality - tangerine and chocolate.
Body:   Silky soft.
Palate: Very sweet with plumped up dried fruit. Sultana cake with thick butter and underneath a bowl of nuts; hazelnut and macadamia. A slightly salty quality cutting through the unctuous texture.
Finish:  Short with a hint of nut-shell bitterness.

So what did I think?
From the quick snifter I had I was impressed, but then I usually am – I just love whisky!

Colour: Rich amber

Nose: I immediately got the sherry and raisins, and the orange peel, a little smoke too? I didn’t have the time to really pick out everything and did not add water.

Palate: The palate is sweet and smooth, even at 46%. You can almost taste the salty sea air that the whisky has been matured in. Rich fruitcake with cherries raisins and sultanas, deliciously mouth filling.

Finish: Definitely short, but satsfying

Again I only had one dram of this in the confines of a busy wine shop, and so did not have the time to sit down and fully appreciate it. Would I add it to my wish list? Has the Pope got a balcony? Yes to both questions, and if you're stuck looking for a gift for me I'd be very happy receiving a bottle of this!

I have just checked my Bible and Guide. It’s not listed in Ian Buxton's 101, and Jim Murray wasn’t that impressed with his tasting of an earlier release. However he did go on to say that it certainly had the potential to be a brilliant whisky with the correct selection of casks. I think Clynelish listened as this latest release was proving very popular.

World Whisky Day

The inaugural World Whisky Day is on March 27^th 2012 and is a global celebration of world whiskies

World Whisky Day is a chance for whisky fans and people new to whisky to get together and raise a glass of Whisky/Whiskey/Scotch/Bourbon/Blended Whisky/Single Malt Whisky wherever they are.

World Whisky Day invites all bars, restaurants, hotels, whisky clubs, liquor stores /whisky shops,whisky clubs/whisky societies, whisky distilleries, individuals and groups to register their events to get them added to the World Whisky Day Global Map and celebrate by raising a glass of whisky.

People are taking part all over the world - Let’s Get The World Involved!

Origins of World Whisky Day

World Whisky Day was envisioned by Blair Bowman, a young whisky enthusiast, in June 2011. Since then he has been working single handedly to make World Whisky Day a global success story for whisky. World Whisky Day is a day for people across the world to thank those who work in the global whisky industry.

University of Aberdeen student Blair Bowman, 21, decided to found the special day after discovering there was no dedicated international celebration in honour of the drink. He has founded what is said to be the first World Whisky Day to celebrate the spirit.

More than 7,000 people around the globe have signed up to register events as part of the celebration on March 27.

Through his website worldwhiskyday.com, people from as far afield as India, the United States, South Africa and even Kyrgyzstan have signed up to take part. The student, who is in the third year of an MA in Hispanic Studies, said: "I've already had messages from people saying they're planning to open 40-year-old bottles to mark the occasion and a whisky bar in Kuala Lumpur is holding its grand opening on the day. He came up with the idea for World Whisky Day when he travelled to Spain for the year abroad which was part of his degree.

"World Whisky Day is about sharing and appreciating the drink with friends - not binge drinking - and will be a great way for those new to the spirit to get involved. I'm hoping the day can grow year-on-year and I'm already looking to 2014 as it is such a significant year for Scotland, with the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and more Homecoming celebrations planned."

Blair works part-time as a barman at St Machar Bar in Aberdeen, has also created his own blend through the Master of Malt website to mark the occasion. Blair's interest in whisky came from his parents and grew when he joined the university's malt whisky society. He was the third member to join the newly-formed society which now has 250 members, around 50% of whom are women.

Please check out his website: http://worldwhiskyday.com/

If anyone is doing anything in Bedfordshire / Buckinghamshire please let me know!

Whisky Discovery #37

Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban 12 Year Old / Port Finish (46%, OB, bottled 2012, 70cl)
Highland Single Malt Whisky
Circa £38

Just a taster dram at local wine merchants

A sneaky dram in my local Cambridge Wine Merchants in Ampthill while reviewing their whisky wall and picking a bottle of their Sound of Islay for myself. (more on both Cambridge Wine and Sound of Islay later). I had heard they keep a few bottles open from time to time, so asked what was, and this Glenmorangie was pulled out and poured into a nosing glass 

Glenmorangie's Quinta Ruban has won a number of awards, most notably ISWC Gold Best In Class (Single Malt, Highland) in both 2008 and 2009. However, it was upgraded in late 2010, and is now sporting a 12 Year Old age statement where previously there was none.

The darkest and most intense whisky in their extra-matured range, Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban has spent 10 years maturing in American white oak bourbon casks, before being transferred into specially selected ruby port pipes from the Quintas, or wine estates, of Portugal. 'Ruban' is Gaelic for ruby, hence the name.

Extra maturation in these port pipes develops Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban into a voluptuous spirit with a complex balance of sweet and dry flavours and an intriguing contrast of smooth and crisp, cooling textures.

Because it is non chill filtered and bottled at 46%, this imparts added body, taste and texture to the spirit.

So what did I think?
From the quick snifter I had I was impressed. It was the first whisky my wife had actually said that she liked the smell of, so am I slowly winning her over?

Colour: Sunlit ruby gold

Nose: Dark chocolate, with a hint of mint? Marmalade oranges, a good touch of Port, slightly nutty, spices and pepper.

Palate: Like sipping velvet! The palate is sweet and thick, the Port being chewy and rich. Chocolate and nuts again, more sweet marmalade oranges. Christmas fruitcake with lots of dark plums, raisins, absolutely mouth filling.

Finish: Long lasting, fruity silky and sweet, the aftertaste leaving dark chocolate and traces of orange and apricots.

I only had one dram of this in the confines of a busy wine shop, and so did not have the time to sit down and fully appreciate this whisky to the level I try to when enjoying a new whisky at home. I was however, impressed by this whisky and certainly adding this bottle to my wish list.


Have just checked my Bible and Guide. It is listed in Ian Buxton's 101 and Jim Murray gives it a 'brilliant' 92 points. Can't be bad then !

Whisky Discovery #36

Jameson Irish Whiskey NAS (40%, OB, bottled  2011, 70cl)

Irish Blended Whiskey

Circa £22

A' Brucie Bonus'

An unplanned and unexpected bonus at the end of a Friday afternoon meeting at my MD’s house. We often stop off for a beer on the way home on Friday evenings – we have a ‘moaning’ chair where we can sit and discuss the week’s ups and downs, plans for business development, family and of course, the weekend ahead.

The MD was working from home this Friday, and we needed to put in a conference call to the US, so I left the office just after lunch, made our plans, the call and then summarised. After the meeting it was time for a quick drink before heading home and a bottle of Jameson was pulled out of the drinks cabinet.

So my first Irish whiskey on my journey, although I’m sure I must have tried this in the past at sometime, although not in the current mindset of trying to unpeel the layers within each new whiskey tasted. (I’m sure Jameson were at one of the boat shows I attended many years ago, handing out samples which would have been used as chasers to the Guinness we normally consumed at these events)

Although Bushmills will claim to be the oldest Irish whiskey, there can be little doubt that Jameson is the most famous and widespread. The company was established in 1780 when John Jameson established the Bow Street Distillery in Dublin. 

Jameson was actually Scottish, a lawyer from Alloa who had married Margaret Haig, a sister of the brothers who founded the main Haig firms, and related to the Steins, a Scottish distilling family with interests in Dublin. A Whisk(e)y Dynasty? His family motto and guiding philosophy was "Sine Metu", meaning "Without Fear", which appears today on every bottle of Jameson Irish Whiskey.

Originally one of the six main Dublin Whiskeys, distilled at the famous Bow Street distillery Jameson is now distilled at Midleton, an enormous modern distillery in County Cork built by Irish Distillers to streamline the production of its many brands. This brought an end to nearly 200 years of Jameson production in Dublin, but the Old Jameson Distillery in Bow Street is now a visitor's centre although I understand vatting still takes place in Dublin.

The Midleton distillery is home to many other brands beside Jameson, including Green Spot, Paddy, Power's, Redbreast and Tullamore Dew.

Jameson is similar in its adherence to the single distillery principle to the single malt tradition, but Jameson combines malted barley with unmalted or "green" Irish barley, all sourced from within a fifty mile radius around the distillery in Cork. The barley is dried in a closed kiln fired by clean-burning natural gas, and formerly anthracite coal, to preserve its flavour. The most famous component within Jameson is the "Pure Pot Still" distilling tradition.

Legally Irish Whiskey must be matured on the island of Ireland for a minimum of 3 years. Jameson is, however, matured for between 3 and 7 years. Like most Irish whiskey, Jameson is triple distilled for optimum smoothness. 

The philosophy is balance, ensuring that no one flavour element overpowers another. The end result is a sweet-tasting whiskey:

• The balance between just the right amount of malted and un-malted barley to give a natural barley flavour.
• Balancing the exact proportions of triple distilled Pot Still Whiskeys and then triple distilled Grain Whiskeys to deliver exceptional smoothness.
• Balance the sweet, nutty flavour from Sherry casks with the toasted wood and vanilla notes from Bourbon casks.

So what did I think ?

I was really surprised by this Jameson. I don’t know quite what I was expecting, but I wasn’t expecting this! The levels of complexity from a mass produced signature blend was quite stunning. I’m not sure if it is the mixture of the malted and un-malted barley, the mixture of the Pot Still Whiskey and the Grain Whisky, but I’m liking it.

Colour:   Golden amber

Body:      Rich, the legs taking an age to return to the glass

Nose :    The nose is full and floral with a smooth sweetness. Marmalade and fudge, sherry          undertones, peppered with spicy wood  and a little cut grass note

Taste:     A great balance of spicy, nutty, woody and vanilla notes with hints of sweet sherry and exceptional smoothness.

Finish:    Medium-length with spice and honey, Incredibly smooth and mellow

I consulted Jim Murray’s whisky bible the following day, he liked it too, and gave it very high marks, an incredible 95 points putting it on a par with the likes of Argbeg 10 and Glenfiddich’s Snow Phoenix.

In terms of bang for your buck, this has it !

My ‘Brucie bonus’ was I got to take the bottle home to add to my whisky shelf at the end of the day so I can revisit this at least until the bottle is drained.

Whisky Discovery #35

Auchentoshan Three Wood NAS (43%, OB, bottled  2011, 70cl)

Lowland Single Malt Whisky

Circa £35

My first Toshan

My first Auchentoshan, but not my first Lowland whisky as I've previously sampled Edinburgh’s Glenkinchie 12 Year Old at the beginning of my journey (Whisky Discovery #3).

This is January 2012’s official addition, and recommended by the Toshan Man himself, Mark Dermul (http://www.markdermul.be/toshanman/) who I have become acquainted with on The Whisky Social Network ‘Whisky Connosr’ (http://www.connosr.com/).

I was going to go for the Classic as listed in Ian Buxton’s book, but Mark steered me this way. I’m really pleased with his recommendation, but will be back for the Classic (and more) later !

Auchentoshan (ock-un-tosh-un) is, as I said earlier, a Lowland whisky and the distillery is located to the North West of Glasgow in Clydebank. With no age statement on this expression I wrote to Auchentoshan and asked what age whisky this was. They replied that this was a 12 year old whisky, matured for 10 years in bourbon casks then finished for one year in Oloroso Sherry and then one year in Pedro Ximenez Sherry.

Auchentoshan’s clean, complex character starts with malted optic barley. Only gently kilned, completely un-peated barley lets the Auchentoshan taste shine through. They grind the barley to suit their lauter tun. It’s vital to have evenly milled starch grits – this maximises the amount of starch that converts into sugars during mashing. The milled, malted barley and pure water is fed into their lauter tun, first of all at 63.5°C. The heat helps turn the starches into sugar. After two fillings it’s ready for fermentation – the third filling is used as the first water in the next mash.

Many distilleries prefer the consistency that comes with stainless steel washbacks, however, Auchentoshan use Oregon pine instead – so the results are always a little different each time, this also means that an especially keen eye on everything is needed. All this effort means a fresh-tasting, clear wort from the lauter tun.

Auchentoshan is the only distillery in Scotland to have a third still, truly triple distilling every single drop. Triple Distillation takes the fermented liquid from around 8% ABV (alcohol by volume) up to 81%. No other Scottish distillery insists on this for every drop – double distillation usually reaches just 70% ABV. Auchentoshan new spirit is the highest distillate of any single malt distillery in Scotland. They say that when you taste the new spirit, strong notes of fruit and citrus are revealed because they have distilled away all the impurities in the liquid. You can read much more about it on their superb website http://www.auchentoshan.com/triple-distillation-(our-way)/triple-distillation.aspx

So why triple distillation ? It’s more time consuming. It’s more expensive, and it’s also absolutely unique in Scotland – no other Single Malt Scotch Whisky goes beyond two distillations (unless of course you know otherwise!) The extra distillation takes the spirit to around 81% – not 70%. This dramatically affects the character of the new make spirit, helping to create a subtle whisky that matures beautifully in oak.

So what did I think ?

Colour: A rich and deep amber from the Sherry, although reading the very small print on the bottom of the box I think this has been stabilised with caramel (it’s in German hidden under the bar code - but Google translate got me through it)

Body:              Oily, rich, and smooth, legs slow to drain in my Glencairn

Nose:              Just Delicious ! Rich and sweet, fruity, raisins, brown sugar, caramel toffee, slight butterscotch, even a slight marmalade scent

Palatte:           Delicious ! Mellow and smooth almost creamy, the sherry comes across strong, but there is more underneath, the vanilla and oak coming through the sweet fruits

Finish:             Delicious ! The finish is warming and very long, fresh and fruity. I always enjoy nosing my empty glass again after a minute or two, and this one is no exception, the final pleasure of whisky tasting, and was surprised getting some lavender at the very end.

Overall verdict: Loved it – A great discovery !

Mark has recommended I try the Valinch next – it’s on my wish list already !

Happy February !

So that was January 2012 ! For my January addition to my journey I bought a bottle of Auchentoshan Three Wood, (ock-un-tosh-un) but with all the other Christmas additions I haven't had the chance to open and savour this yet. I haven't even got around to opening December's official addition, a Balblair 1989 and I'm already looking forward to buying February's bottle!

I'm actually hoping to get a hold of two bottles this month - well it is a Leap Year ! 

Jura are releasing a first ever Diurachs exclusive bottling later this month, and The Balvenie will be releasing their Craftsman's Reserve No.1 which is also a member only release. I have been told that I have been successful in my interest in the Jura, but still waiting for The Balvenie news.

Two more bottles were emptied from my whisky shelf over that last couple of weeks. An excellent Talisker 10 Year Old and the evergreen Glenfiddich 12 Year Old. The Talisker was just glorious and was sorry to see the last dram in my Glencairn. I missed an opportunity to visit the distillery when was on holiday in that area. Perhaps I wouldn't have enjoyed it as much as I would now, as I wasn't a whisky drinker back then. 

The Glenfiddich was March's  and Talisker was July's addition

The Glenfiddich 12 Year Old also has it's qualities, however it is easy to find this almost anywhere so perhaps I won't yearn for this dram quite so much.

What do you do with all the empty bottles ? Some are just too good to simply throw out (recycle) with the other glass jars, but how many can you keep before it becomes obsessive ? I have kept the Highland Park and Singleton bottles as I liked their shape (and colour of the Singleton) both hold our drinking water in the fridge now. I have recently noticed that Talisker have recently changed the packaging of their 10 year old, so should I keep the box of mine ?

Whisky Discovery #34

Another Christmas addition

Macallan 10 Year Old Sherry Oak (40%, OB, bottled 2011, 70cl)
Speyside Single Malt Whisky
Circa £25

The second of my two Macallan 10 Year Olds received for Christmas from my wife. This was an absolute bargain at just under £17.00 at our local supermarket. This is also another one from Ian Buxton’s excellent book 101 Whiskies to Try Before You Die

The flagship of The Macallan sherry oak range in the UK market, The Macallan 10 Year Old has become a benchmark for single malt of the highest quality.

This 10 Years Old is matured exclusively in Spanish oak sherry casks, to deliver a deep, rich, deliciously smooth and well-rounded flavour, with a slight sweetness and touch of sherry and wood.

Its deep colour, like that of all of its siblings, is achieved wholly naturally without the addition of any colouring.

Colour: A pale golden amber, though remarkably darker than the Fine Oak

Nose: A lovely hint of sweet toffee balanced with dried fruits and sherry, spice and wood

Palate: Smooth and creamy, nutty with dried fruits, rich sherry sweetness and wood smoke.

Finish: Dried fruits, sweet toffee and lingering and soothing wood spices and soft peat

I am certainly enjoying this quality whisky from The Macallan and is a worthy addition to my collection and my whisky journey.

Whisky Discovery #33

Cragganmore 12 Year Old (40%, OB, bottled 2011, 70cl)

Speyside Single Malt Whisky

Circa £30

Not a full ‘tasting’ as such, more of a sampling after a lunch with my wife at The Birch in Woburn. On entering I immediately noticed a selection of single malts on display which I thought would need further investigation after lunch. 


We sat down for lunch and ordered a Guinness and was a little taken back when they told me that they didn’t have it ! So had to settle for a cider with my lunch. 

The Birch is a small family run establishment who have earned a reputation in the area for delivering excellent quality food served by friendly and attentive staff. We had never been there before, although it had been on a 'to do' list in my head for some time. 


They have  an extensive menu offering English/Continental style of dishes together with an open griddle area where you can choose from a selection of fresh steaks/fish, cooked to your preference by their chefs. Their 'surf and turf' interpretation with Duck and Crevettes was delicious.

A really nice atmosphere in the restaurant area even on the grey day we were there. Lunch was served and thoroughly enjoyed, we will be back I’m sure.  However as soon as lunch was finished I was itching to check out the whisky shelf spotted when we arrived.


I was pleasantly surprised to see a well stocked whisky shelf and although only signature brands, there were a total of twelve single malts and one blend on display that should satisfy most whisky drinkers:

Lowland:        Glenkinchie 12 YO

Highland:       Dalwhinnie 15 YO, Glenmorangie 10 YO, Oban 14 YO

Speyside:      Cragganmore 12 YO, Glenfiddich 12 YO, The Glenlivet 12 YO Macallan Fine Oak 10 YO

Islay:               Laphroaig 10 YO, Lagavulin 16 YO

Island:            Talisker 10 Year Old, Highland Park 12 Year Old

Blends           Johnnie Walker Black Label

With only the Cragganmore 12 Year Old not previously tasted, I ordered a single to sample before the coffee arrived. My only complaint was that there didn’t seem to be a suitable glass for really enjoying the nose of the whisky, and had to settle for the smallest tumbler which had a slight return camber to the glass.


The notes below are from the distillery as it really wasn’t the right conditions for savouring the whisky properly, although reading the distillery notes I agree with most of them immediately.

A sherried 12 year old single malt from Diageo's Classic Malts range, this bottling from the Cragganmore distillery represents Speyside and proffers a rich, slightly floral whisky with barley notes.

Nose:    Aromatic, floral. Heather, fruit salad, creamy texture. Smoked almonds, stemmy hay.
Palate:  Rich, honey, stone fruits, chestnuts, walnuts, almonds. Berries.
Finish:   Smoky, good length, delicate peppery spice

You can find the The Birch at Woburn by clicking this link: http://birchwoburn.com/

The Birch at Woburn

Whisky Discovery #32

The Balvenie Craftsman's Reserve No.1 The Cooper 15 Year Old (59.4%, OB, bottled 2012, 10cl)

Speyside Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky

Not currently for sale

The tasting kit sent to the lucky Warehouse 24 members

The wonderful people of Balvenie offered an opportunity to all it's Warehouse 24 UK members  to register for a live on-line tasting event. 1000 bottles were sent out to the lucky recipients. Each 10cl was hand labelled and came packaged in a very well made presentation box, complete with two nosing glasses. The condition was that the whisky should not be tasted until the live on-line event.

I'm not sure how many actually attended, there were circa 250 signed into the website, but there were others on Twitter and Facebook too. The event was beamed live from the Balvenie cooperage was hosted by Balvenie Ambassador Sam Simmons along with their Malt Master David Stewart and Head Cooper Ian McDonald.

The whisky, drawn from a single second fill sherry cask, was distilled 15 years ago and bottled at cask strength of 59.6%

My first dram

Colour: a rich golden amber, typical of a sherry malt.

Nose: definitely the sweet honey Balvenie trademark, with raisins and sultanas, fruit cake,Christmas cake, cherry, toffee and caramel, and vanilla. Lots going on, the nose is just wonderful. I can sniff this all night !

Taste: sweet and smooth, even at cask strength. Rich fruits and sherry, spices

Finish: warming and sweet spiced honey

Just 315 bottles will be released for sale to the Warehouse 24 members and I'll definitely be looking out for this opportunity.

What a great evening this has been!

Whisky Discovery #31

Isle of Jura Superstition NAS (43%, OB, bottled 2011, 70cl)

Island Single Malt Whisky

Circa £25

A Christmas Gift

Another of my Christmas gifts, this one was from my eldest daughter.

The packaging, although only a simple box, really is quite eye catching, with it's black and white rocky shoreline, low hills in the background and with the silver printing. The bottle is another work of art with minimal labelling, but the silver 'ankh'  taking central stage on the front of the bottle.

Subtly sweet yet smokey, on the small label under the ankh, and despite having the HM Revenue and Customs logo on the back, the fact that the colour of this whisky has been 'standardised' by the addition of caramel colouring, has been carefully hidden on the bottom of the box, in German. Why do distillers hide the fact that they have added caramel colouring? Sometimes it's in French, other times in German, never in English !

I asked the distillery how the expression came about, and what whiskies were used in it's bottling. Jura immediately came back to me with the following:

As you are probably aware when the Distillery re-opened in 1963 Jura started producing very soft highland style malt, and this in the main, is what they are known for. In 1999 Jura started spending four weeks out of every year producing a heavily peated version using barley that was up to 60ppm or parts per million peat based as opposed to their normal 2ppm.

The Superstition is actually a marriage of both of these styles of whisky together. There is an old superstition on Jura that it is unlucky to cut peat before the beginning of May, and so the name was born


Within it are:

7 Year Old heavily peated (7 year itch; 7 years bad luck if you break a mirror)

13 Year Old Highland style (unlucky 13)

21 Year Old Highland style (coming of age when you get the keys to the door)

               

The ankh is the Egyptian symbol of eternal life; the Gaelic for whisky translates as - the water of life, and on Jura there are graves that house the bodies of people that were reported to have lived more than 130 years.

In order to drink the Superstition properly you must hold the bottle so that the ankh touches the palm of your hand when you pour - that way you get the full benefit of our best wishes for a long healthy and prosperous life.

And so I carefully poured a healthy dram into my nosing glass, making sure the ankh was in the palm of my hand. The colour of autumn leaves, a rich almost orange gold.

Body: an oil like coating the inside of the glass with long legs trailing back into the liquid

Nose: lightly peated, fresh, orange blossom, floral, butterscotch, white pepper, definitely white pepper.

Palate: salty or briny, the white pepper again, butterscotch and vanilla, smooth and quite light in the mouth.

Finish: long spicy with a little smoke, but not a heavy Islay peaty smoke, and the saltiness is there.

My Jura Origin 10 Year Old took time to grow on me, but I really loved it by the end of the bottle. I think the Superstition has taken off where the Origin left me and have really enjoyed starting this bottle. Although I understand it is not to everyone's taste, I love it.

Whisky Discovery #30

Aberlour A'Bunadh NAS Batch 37 (59.6% abv, OB, Bottled 2011, 70cl)

Speyside Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky

Circa £35

Christmas 2011 - A gift from my son

My first Aberlour and #30 in my own whisky journey. It's also listed in Ian Buxton's 101.

A'bunadh, Gaelic for 'of the origin' is matured exclusively in Oloroso Sherry butts. It is a natural cask strength malt whisky produced without the use of modern chill-filtering methods or the addition of water.

Aberlour A'Bunadh is released in small batches, and the distillery kindly informs us that the flavours may vary slightly from one bottling to another. Reading  Jim Murray's 2012 Bible seems to verify the batch variation, but I can confirm Batch 37, bottled at 59.6% is stunning. I will be interested to read his thoughts next year though!

I love the bottle shape, the support within the tube that carefully cradles the bottle base and the wax seal to the top. I really didn't want to destroy this wax so carefully cut between the top of the bottle and wooden stopper.

With some anticipation I poured the first two drams, one for me and one for my eldest daughter, well it was her birthday.

The deep rich amber liquid filled our Glencairn's and we gently tilted our glasses, rotating them slowly to see the body of the whisky as the 'legs' crawled down the side of the glass. (does anyone know why Jim Murray does not favour the Glencairn ?)

We carefully nosed the dram, being at cask strength we didn't want to anaesthetise our senses with alcohol burn!

A rich and full nose, spices and oranges, the strong thick cut marmalade my Dad favours, Christmas cake, rich dark chocolate and lots of sherry as expected.

The taste was intense, rich and creamy, I love the feel of it rolling over my tongue, the tingling from the alcohol, yet silky smooth, with the dark chocolate again, ginger and the sherry and oak.

The finish was very long and warming, rich and oily, with spices again. The lasting finish being like a clove oil.

We added some water, and the nose opened up, more oranges and almond came through. Obviously lighter, though still creamy and the almonds turn sweeter with a marzipan taste.

I love the nose of the empty glass as the sherry disappears and the malty oak remains, with even a little smokiness.

I've since gone back to it neat as I prefer the cask strength kick. It is in my opinion, a first class batch and I would like to compare this against other batches.