I’ll be at the Jersey Shore for the next week. Yes, I will have whisky (and whiskey) with me. No, I do not plan on working. That includes blogging. I’ll be back in one week, with plenty to talk about. Have a great week everyone!
May 24th, 2008
Wemyss Vintage Malts introduced in the U.S.
In an attempt to “make malt whisky more accessible,” the Wemyss Vintage Malts company just introduced two new whiskies to the U.S.
In the same vein as the Jon, Mark and Robbo (JMR) label several years back, Wemyss Vintage Malt marries a blend of malts and gives them names that describe what the whisky tastes like.
The first one being released is “The Smooth Gentleman,” followed by “The Spice King”. A third expression called “The Peat Chimney” appears later this year.
CEO William Wemyss describes his philosophy:
“By using the aromas and tastes of the individual whiskies to uniquely identify each one, the consumer is able to easily understand what style of whisky is being purchased.”
The whiskies were selected by whisky writer Charlie MacLean and are bottled at 8 years old. I have samples of the two whiskies just released and they tasted as they are described, with the youthfullness you would expect in an 8 year old whisky. If you want to get more information, you can contact William at wjw@wdco.co.uk.
May 23rd, 2008
Cutty Sark 25 yr. old coming to the U.S.?
While touring Speyside distilleries last month, my wife Amy and I really enjoyed a dram of Cutty Sark 25 year old–a whisky not available in the U.S. Here’s how I described it in my blog a few weeks ago:
Glenrothes is a key component to the Cutty Sark blend. I tasted the Cutty 25 year old while I was in Speyside and it was amazing. I loved the combination of drinkability, flavor, complexity and balance. It’s one of the best blended whiskies I have ever tasted. Even my wife, who doesn’t normally drink whisky, finished her entire dram. And if she hadn’t, I would have finished it for her! The only problem: it’s not sold in the U.S.
Well, my comments found their way to one of the Cutty Sark PR people and he sent me this message:
I met with David King [Whiskymaker for Glenrothes and Cutty Sark] yesterday and he is particularly pleased with your comments regarding Cutty Sark 25 year old – to the extent that he is considering launching it in the USA.
Watch this space! My fingers are crossed.
May 21st, 2008
Buffalo Trace Distillery to release rum in July
When I was at the distillery in December, we tasted our way through many whiskey samples. Two samples that I tasted were pretty bad whiskeys. That’s because they weren’t whiskeys. They were rum samples.
According to Mark Brown, Buffalo Trace’s President and CEO, they have created a meritage of the two casks and plan to release the rum in July, as part of their Experimental Collection. As far as I know, this is just a one-off and won’t be repeated anytime in the near future.
The guys at BT always have something interesting up their sleeve, that’s for sure.
May 20th, 2008
If you can’t afford the new Black Bowmore…
I had a few idle moments last night and thought I’d sip on a few Bowmore whiskies from my back bar (between lengthy commercial interruptions of the season finale of “House”).
If the new Black Bowmore is a little too steep for you at $4,500 a bottle, one alternative is the very delicious 1971 vintage 34 year old sherried Bowmore that was released a few years back at about $800. It’s not quite Black Bowmore, but it is a very good (and close) alternative. And you might be able to find a bottle floating around somewhere.
If that’s still too steep for you (which I understand completely), then opt for the newest edition of Bowmore 25 year old which has been out now for a few years. It is, once again, in the theme of a very mature, sherried whisky that doesn’t overdo it with the sherry. That can be had for less than $200.
If that’s still too much, then drop down to the new Bowmore 18 year old, which replaced the 17 year old. It was introduced last year for $85.
I have rated all of these whiskies in the 90s in Malt Advocate magazine. Indeed, there’s a good Bowmore out there to fit every budget.
May 19th, 2008
New Tobermory, Deanston whiskies
I was speaking with my friend who imports Burn Stewart whiskies into the U.S., and he told me about two new expressions slated for later this year.
The first one is a Tobermory 15 year old, bottled at 92.6 proof. It’s expected release date in the U.S. is July and will retail for about $120. It will be nice to see how the flavor has developed when compared to the current 10 year old, which this 15 year old replaces.
The second one is a revised Deanston 12 year old, which will also be bottled at the higher 92.6 proof. It will be released in September and will cost about $55.
In the interim, you can still buy the existing Tobermory 10 year old and Deanston 12 year old.
No changes are planned for Ledaig or Bunnahabhain, the other Burn Stewart malts.
May 18th, 2008
Speyside visit update: Benromach
After touring BenRiach in the morning, I followed it up with a tour of Benromach in the afternoon. You could say I had a case of the “Bens” that day. (Sorry.)
Although the distillery began operations in 1898, it was closed from 1983-1998. There will always be a 15 year gap in production (and in the expressions of Benromach that are released).
It seems like only yesterday that Benromach’s new owners, Gordon & MacPhail (G&M), were celebrating the distillery’s new start up. It’s hard to believe that this occurred back in August, 1998. They are coming up on their 10th Anniversary. Good for them!
After an enjoyable tour of the distillery with Keith Cruickshank, Benromach’s Distillery Manager, we darted off to G&M’s main headquarters (and warehouse) in Elgin, where I sampled an array of Benromach whiskies with Joint Managing Director Michael Urquhart and Whisky Supply Manager Ewen Mackintosh.
When G&M started Benromach up in 1998, they completely changed the style of Benromach. Part of this was a necessity. To quote Michael: “The only thing left from the original distillery was the oil boiler, buildings, and water supply.”
But even so, they decided to change the peating level of Benromach, from the essentially unpeated Speyside character to a moderately peated level of barley with about 12 ppm phenol.
Michael explains: “It is our desire to go back to the way things were done.”
But this hasn’t stopped them from also being innovative. In addition to their flagship Benromach “Traditional”, they also recently released Benromach “Organic” and Benromach “Peat Smoke.”
My thoughts on these whiskies? The Traditional (no age statement but currently hovering about 7 yrs. old) is youthful, but pleasant. The same goes for the more intensely smoky Peat Smoke, with the sweeter notes and smoke both fighting for attention. The Organic, on the other hand, is aged in new oak. Even thought the whisky is young (there’s no age statement on that label either, but it’s 6-7 years old), the impact of the new oak on the whisky’s flavor is unmistakable. Some of you (myself included) will find the oak notes too intense.
There are also a series of Benromach wood finishes. Recently there was the “love it or hate it” Benromach Tokaji wood finish, that was pretty heavy on the Tokaji wine. The newest release is a somewhat less extreme Marsala wood finish.
And there’s a new project that G&M is working on with Benromach. It’s going to be called Benromach “Origins.” Essentially, this is a new series of whiskies focusing on the “front end” of production rather than a back-end change like wood finishing. (Expect to see more of this from the other companies too!) Their first release, coming out within the next month or so: a Benromach produced from Golden Promise barley.
G&M inherited the older stocks of Benromach too. While at the G&M offices, we also “worked” our way through some of them. The oldest one I sampled? It was the oldest vintage of Benromach in stock: a 55 yr. old survivor, dating back to 1949! Might there be a Benromach 50 year old in the works for 2009?
And what about a special 10th Anniversary bottling? Or a 10 yr. old bottling, now that they will hit this milestone later in the year? Indeed, there’s a lot going on at Benromach. Stay tuned.
May 17th, 2008
Cutty Sark Blended Malt Whisky launched in the U.S.
Being promoted as “A new whisky for a new generation”, Skyy Spirits, the U.S. importer for Cutty Sark, just announced the release of an new Cutty Sark blended malt Scotch whisky. (A blended malt, for those who are confused, contains no grain whisky like most traditional blended Scotch Whisky. It’s only a blend of different single malts.)
The press release I received describes the whisky this way:
The new Cutty Sark Blended Malt Scotch Whisky, from one of the most recognizable names in Scotch whisky, is 100 percent pure malt scotch made from a marriage of the finest single malts. It offers a classic Speyside character with medium golden, clear and bright color; aromas of light floral, vanilla, with a hint of coconut; and a full flavor with the youthful Speyside sweetness. A clean and dry finish completes the rich and flavorful experience for the most discerning malt whisky drinkers. The new Cutty Sark Malt Scotch retails for $29.99 for a 750ml bottle.
The press release goes on to say that the whisky is a great introduction to the malt whisky category. I have tasted the whisky, and I would have to agree. I will follow up shortly with my thoughts on the whisky.
The whisky is currently being test marketed in Colorado and Georgia, and will be expanded into additional markets later this year.
May 16th, 2008
Cooley introduces Greenore 15yr. grain whiskey
Two posts in one morning! My contact at Cooley let me know about this a few days ago, but I waited to post it up until I got specific details on when it would be available in the U.S.
The Cooley distillery has just introduced the Ireland’s old grain whisky under the Greenore label. Many of you will know that the distillery already has a standard 8 year old Greenore. This 15 yr. old will be a limited edition of only 5,000 bottles.
Here’s the scoop on U.S. distribution. I quote from Jack Teeling at Cooley:
We are aiming to have Greenore 15 Yr Old in the U.S. for September as we already have label approval and are in the process of pre-selling into some key accounts.
I’ll be getting a review sample in the near future and will pass on my thoughts. It will be interesting to see how a 15 year old grain whiskey tastes.
May 16th, 2008
New Balvenie Signature 12 yr.: good news, bad news
Balvenie just introduced a new whisky, called Signature. It’s a 12 year old to celebrate Master Distiller David Stewart’s 45 years in the whisky business. That’s the good new. The bad news (for my U.S. readers) is that it will not be sold in the U.S in 2008. You will have to cross the pond and bring back a bottle. I have been told that this will be the distribution: Europe first – UK and France, then the Netherlands, Portugal, Switzerland and Germany and lastly Canada from September this year. A bummer for those of us in the U.S.!
Hopefully the U.S. will get this whisky early in 2009. I’m getting a sample sent to me and will let you know when I taste it. Details in the press release excerpt below.
David Stewart, Malt Master of the award-winning Balvenie Distillery, has crafted The Balvenie Signature Single Malt Scotch Whisky – a new addition to The Balvenie range – to mark his 45th year in the whisky industry.
Naming it his signature Balvenie, the 12 year old single malt from the Speyside distillery is a skillful marriage from three cask types – first fill bourbon barrels, refill casks and sherry butts. From the sherry butts come rich fruit and spiciness; the bourbon barrels add subtle vanilla oak and layers of honey and the refill casks impart delicate, sweet notes and smoothness. The result of this union is a perfect balance of spice and subtle oak, deliciously enveloped in The Balvenie’s trademark honeyed character.
As the longest-serving Malt Master in the industry, David Stewart personally developed the award-winning range of The Balvenie Single Malts along with his team of master craftsmen. Using his expertise in maturation, David employs different types of wood to create distinct taste and flavour nuances within the Balvenie range.
Says David, “It has given me great pleasure to create a signature whisky as part of The Balvenie range. Maturing and marrying the finest single malt Scotch whisky has been my passion for over 45 years and it’s an honour to mark the moment with an addition to The Balvenie family.”
The Balvenie Signature 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky is a limited release. Each bottle carries its own batch number, and has been handcrafted by David Stewart and his team of craftsmen at The Balvenie Distillery. Signature will go on sale in the UK and selected markets from April 2008 at an RRP of £29.69 for a 70cl bottle.
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