​​Approaching St Patrick’s day celebrations what else could we do but choose Irish whiskey as the tipple of choice for our March tasting?  Notice the spelling of whiskey (with an ‘e’) – this difference in spelling was introduced around 1890 and legend has it that the Irish wanted to differentiate their spirit from the Scottish whisky which was somewhat variable in quality at that time. The American distillers generally use whiskey as well – this could be the result of the large number of Irish immigrants to the USA setting up distilleries. As to whether it was the Scottish or the Irish who first started distilling what we now know as whisk(e)y, the debate rages on, and not wishing to upset anyone let’s call it a draw. (Maybe, I have now upset both the Scottish and the Irish?). There can be no denying that there has been a long history of Irish distilling and Bushmills claims to be the oldest licensed distillery in the world with its license being granted to them in 1608 by King James 1. By the early 1800’s there were around 90 ‘legal’ distilleries in Ireland, (and by some estimates there were around 900 illicit distilleries!), but mass emigration, famine, the Catholic led total abstinence campaign and changes in taxation reduced this to around 28 distilleries by the late 1800’s. Irish distilling then took a further double blow in the early 1900’s with the introduction of Prohibition in the USA, it’s largest export market, and the Great Depression. By the 1970’s only two distilleries remained. Since then, without bogging you down with too much detail, Irish distilling has increased dramatically and there are now over 30 in operation - and probably still a lot of illicit ones as well!
Irish whiskey tends to be a lighter spirit than Scottish whisky and there are two main reasons for this. Irish whisky tends to be triple distilled and Scottish whisky tends to be double distilled. Irish whiskey tends to use un-malted barley whereas Scottish whisky tends to use malted barley. Note the liberal use of the word ‘tends’ – there are exceptions.
That’s enough of the waffle, let’s get on to the tasting led by ‘Black Horse’ Paul, who conjured up a great selection of whiskeys - with an e.
 
Quiet Man 8 YO – 40% ABV, £35. A single malt and their website tells us it is a premium spirit for the modern-day whisky drinker – hmm. The name Quiet Man was inspired by the brand owner’s father, a barman well known for not telling any tales.
Nose: Raisins, vanilla, orange, and banana
Taste: Tangerine, elderflower, green apples, and some honey sweetness
Finish: Short and floral, finishing with mild white pepper
 
Pearse Lyons 7 YO – 43% ABV, £45. Founded in 2012 Pearse Lyons started distilling in Carlow before opening their own distillery in Dublin in 2017 in the former St James church which was painstaking restored by the Lyons family themselves.
Nose: Bananas, juniper, Parma violets and a faint whisp of smoke
Taste: Ginger, pepper, pear, cardamom, and clove
Finish: Short with ginger spice, nutmeg and a little oakiness.
 
Green Spot Château Barton 10YO – 46% ABV, £55. Produced specifically for Mitchell & Son of Dublin by the Middleton distillery in Cork. This release has been aged in Bourbon and Sherry casks before being finished in Château Barton red wine casks. Mitchell & Son founded in 1805 as a tea and cake shop before expanding into wines and spirits in 1887 and then into becoming an independent bottler. The name Green spot refers to the family tradition of marking barrels with a daub of paint to indicate their age. Their range originally included yellow, blue, and red spot versions.
Nose: Toffee sweetness, butterscotch popcorn, orange peel and a slight medicinal aroma
Taste: Sweet and fruity, toffee apple maybe and some custard reminiscent of creme brûlée.
Finish: Warm and earthy, ginger biscuits. A few drops of water bring out the ginger spice.
 
Waterford Ballykilcavan 1.2, 3YO – 50% ABV, £70. Based in a former Guinness brewery in the southeast or Ireland production started in 2016. The founder was formerly the CEO of Bruichladdich distillery on Islay and it was here that he first introduced the terroir concept and the effect of microclimate and soil on whisky. Ballykilcavan is made using 100% Irish barley sourced from a single farm surrounded by woodland, full details of which are given on their website.
Nose: Light, fresh and fruity, honey sweetness, lemon sherbet, damp grass.
Taste: A creamy mouth feel with sweet fruits, cereal, and aniseed
Finish: A drying white pepper lingers with apricot and chocolate in the mix.
 
Waterford Bannow Island 1.2, 3YO – 50%ABV, £70. Again, this made from 100% Irish whisky from a single farm, this time surrounded by coast on three sides.
Nose: Heather, caramel, vanilla, orchard fruits and furniture polish!
Taste: Creamy, apples, pears, and pepper spice
Finish: White pepper and mocha fading into saltiness
 
 
At the end of the evening each of us rated the whiskies in order of preference and in
 
1st place – Waterford Ballykilcavan
2nd place – Waterford Bannow Island
3rd place – Green Spot
4th place – Pearse Lyons
5th Place – Quiet Man
 
We then asked which would be the ‘buy’ choice. This sometimes puts an interesting shade on the scoring and tonight was no exception with the majority opting for the Green Spot as the one they would be more inclined to buy. The difference in our scoring of the Waterford’s and the Green Spot wasn’t very much, but it was felt that the Green Spot, although not inexpensive, was better value for money. Waterford Balleykilcavan was the second most popular choice for a purchase.
 
Many thanks to Paul for another very entertaining evening.
 

The Mystical East
A lot of people are now familiar with whiskies from Japan; they’ve had a lot of publicity in recent years and the surge in their popularity has outstripped supply making some of them very hard to obtain and caused prices to rocket.  Whiskies from places like India and Taiwan, although not as well-known, are also starting to gain some recognition. The whiskies for this virtual meet were selected by Jo (Mrs Whiskipedia as some people have referred to her!) and supplied by a good friend of SWC - Arkwrights Whisky in Highworth, near Swindon. Well worth a visit when restrictions permit.
​
Amrut Single Malt kicked off the evening, hailing from Bangalore in India. Amrut means ‘elixir of life’ – a great name for a distillery! Their single malt is matured in ex-bourbon barrels and new oak, bottled at a pleasing 46% ABV and retailing for around £46.




​Nose: Oranges and lemons, some floral notes. apricot, hay, and mint in the background
Taste: Honey sweetness and cereal, somewhat akin to a ‘Crunchy Bar’, vanilla from the bourbon barrel, some warming spices, maybe nutmeg, clove and cinnamon
Finish: Creamy toffee, oak and a lingering warm spiciness


Kavalan Single Malt distilled in Taiwan was our next dram. Kavalan distillery is named after indigenous natives of the region and started production of whisky in 2006 under the guidance of the renowned Scotsman and whisky guru Dr Jim Swan. Their single malt is bottled at a disappointing 40% ABV and sells for around £55.

Nose: Vanilla toffee sweetness, banana skins and mango
Taste: Cream fudge, honey, star anise
Finish: Warming spice makes way for tannic dryness, but lacks punch


Nikka Coffey Malt Whisky out of the Yoichi distillery in Japan is unusual in that it is distilled in a continuous still. The ‘Coffey’ in its title refers to the first continuous still patented in 1830, named after its inventor. Being distilled in a continuous still classifies this as a grain whisky. To add insult to injury the Japan Spirits and Liquor Makers Association very recently introduced a ruling that to be called ‘Japanese Whisky’ all ingredients must be sourced from Japan. Coffey Malt includes some Ben Nevis distillate in the mix, and as a result, it can no longer be called Japanese Whisky. Bottled at 45% ABV and selling for around £60.

​
Nose: Complex with butterscotch, oak, honey, ripe banana, chocolate, orange, apple
Taste: Crème brulee, sponge cake, caramel, vanilla ice cream
Finish: Cream and spice linger
 
 
Nikka Miyagikyo Single Malt from the Miyagiko distillery, the second of Nikka’s distilleries in Japan and celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2019. The founder of Nikka Whisky chose a valley on the main island of Japan to give a complete contrast in environment and character from the Yoichi distillery on the north island.

Nose: Initial musty aroma, walnut, crisp apple, banana
Taste: Mild blue cheese, ginger, honey & toffee
Finish: Sweet and smooth, then becomes drying with lingering white pepper spiciness

So how did we rate them?
The Nikka Coffey just crept in ahead of the Amrut, followed by the Kavalan. We had expected more from the Miyagikyo but disappointingly it trailed in in last place.
Which bottle would we buy for our collection? The Amrut, it came second in our tasting, but a very close second, and at £9 a bottle less (almost 20%) it offers better value for money.

This month was one of our ever-popular blind tastings where we get to show our
prowess (or, closer to the truth, total lack of prowess) in guessing where a whisky
originates from. Some, foolishly, even try to guess the distillery and the bottling. We
don’t set the bar too high and feel a certain amount of pride in at least getting the
planet right. If we accidentally stumble on the right country that’s bragging rights.
Occasionally someone will get the right distillery and be accorded the SWC Smart
A*** of the month award. It doesn’t happen too often.
The bottles were selected by Debbie, wife of Black Horse Paul, and even the theme
was kept a secret (dropping a couple of hints about Brexit might have helped us just
a teeny bit, Debbie).


Number 1 – A bit of a sherry bomb this one, like drinking liquid Christmas pudding.
Rich, sweet and complex with some subtle spices towards the end. One to
accompany a comfy armchair and a roaring log fire.

And it is – ZUIDAM MILLSTONE 2010 hailing from The
Netherlands. A limited edition single malt matured in both
Oloroso and Pedro Ximenez sherry casks. Bottled at 46%
ABV and selling for around £70 a bottle.



Number 2 – Light and refreshing with green apples, ripe pears, a touch of vanilla
and some white pepper on the finish. This one cries out for sunshine and a
deckchair.

And it is – MACKMYRA MOMENT PRESTIGE all the way
from Sweden. An eleven year old aged in casks of French
oak that previously held Champagne. Bottled at 46.1% ABV
and selling for around £91 a bottle

Number 3 - Hints of ozone, orange zest, some sweetness and a hint of smoke. Very
clean tasting with warm spices and vanilla at end. Keep that deck chair handy.

SWC MEET 12 January 2021

And it is – BEVERBACH SINGLE MALT from Germany.
Made from a combination of malted barley and malted wheat
and finished in brandy casks. Bottled at 43% and selling for
around £49 a bottle

Number 4 – Lightly smoked kippers, sweetness, a little salt. Oily in the mouth,
smoke and sweet spices with a medium length smoky finish. Chaise longue and
slippers for this one.

And it is – KORNOG ROC’H HIR from nos amis across the
channel (that’ll be France then). A peated single malt finished
in Bourbon casks bottled at 46% and selling at around £66 a
bottle.

So how did we rate them?
Kornog Roc’h Hit in first place, closely followed by Zuidam Millstone (very little
between them). In third was the Mackmyra Prestige and finishing last was the
Beverbach.
And how did we do?

Debbie set us quite a challenge in identifying these whiskies and won hands down. It
would be fair to say we didn’t even get close! The theme for the tasting “SO LONG,
FAREWELL, AUF WIEDERSEHEN, GOODBYE – EU IT’S BEEN A BLAST!”


Nice one Debbie.

SWC Virtual (online) blind tasting 12th Jan 21

​

​ ​ 
Traditionally, we have a get together in December each year and re-visit some of the whiskies we enjoyed over the previous twelve months. Sadly, the events of 2020 meant we had to find another way to have a festive get-together, so our first fully online tasting came to be.
Taking advantage of Black Friday offers allowed us to push the boat out and buy a somewhat pricy bottle of Johnny Walker Blue Label Ghost and Rare Port Ellen Edition. To expand the tasting, we also bought some much more reasonably priced Johnny Walker offerings, namely Black Label, Double Black, and Green Label.
Black label and Double black are blended whiskies that have a lot of online discussion as to which is the better. Green Label is one we tried in 2017 and gave it a very good rating. It is a little unusual for JW being a blended malt – they typically produce blended whiskies.  The final bottle, Blue label, Ghost and Rare – Port Ellen is a special limited release - also a blended whisky.

​Johhny Walker started off blending whisky from his grocery shop in Kilmarnoch in the 1820’s and the first commercial release was in 1867 with the now famous slanted label. The ‘Striding Man’ didn’t appear until 1909 when the whiskies were re-branded to reflect the colour of the labels. JW is now part of the Diageo group, produces around 240M bottles each year and is the most valuable premium spirit brand in the world with an estimated worth of around £3.5 Billion.  Nice work Johnny!
Black Label – Blended Whisky – 40% ABV – 12 YO
A blend of around 40 whiskies from all around Scotland. Their website states:
“Johnnie Walker Black label is an unrivalled masterpiece – an exquisite combination of Scotland’s rarest and most exceptional whiskies”.
At around £30 a bottle I think we can take that with a large pinch of salt.
Nose: Quite interesting with a little smoke, dark fruits, peaches, floral notes and toffee sweetness
Taste: Initial sweetness, followed by vanilla, light smoke and honey.
Finish: Quite short, sweetness gives way to light fruits and white pepper.

Adding one or two drops of water flattens the nose and brings out more of the pepper notes on the finish and some drying tannins.
 
Double Black – Blended Whisky -  40% ABV – NAS
JW website tells us that this is blended using whiskies from distilleries predominantly around the west coast of Scotland, chosen for their naturally smoky flavour and aged in charred barrels.
Nose:  Mild smoke and some oak notes to the fore with fruit in background, but overall the nose isn’t giving away very much at all.
Taste: Sweetness and smoke with a hit of seaweed saltiness, maybe some Talisker influence? Orange, white pepper, vanilla also come through.
Finish: Sweet and slightly salty going into white pepper and vanilla
 
Adding a few drops of water brings out the smoke, increases the pepper finish and becomes quite drying. Better without water.
 
Green Label – Blended Malt – 43% ABV – 15 YO
This is a blended malt and JW has disclosed the source distilleries as Talisker,  Cragganmore  Caol Ila & Linkwood.
Nose: Dark fruits, floral notes, maybe heather, some oak, gentle smoke and toffee.
Palate: Quite sweet and oily, but not in a bad way, a lick of peat, vanilla, honey, and some musty wood.
Finish: Medium length, fruit and smoke finishing off into white pepper leaving a little dryness on the palate.
A few drops of water and the whisky opens up a little giving more of the pepper spice .
 
Blue Label – Ghost & Rare  – Blended Whisky – 43.8%ABV – NAS
This Port Ellen edition comprises whiskies from 8 Diageo distilleries

• Port Ellen (Islay - closed 1983),
• Caledonian (Lowland - closed 1987)
• Carsebridge (Lowland - closed 1983)
• Mortlach (Highland)
• Daluaine (Speyside)
• Cragganmore (Speyside) 
• Blair Athol (Highland)
• Oban (Highland)

Nose: Very light and refined, peat smoke, beeswax, mead, sawdust, vanilla, dessicated coconut, liquorice allsorts!
Palate: Initial sweetness develops into floral heather, dark fruits and warming spice.
Finish: Long smokey finish persists with honey and herbs in the background.
Water: Just two or three drops enhances the smokiness and brings out a little saltiness.
 
As usual, when we finish the tasting, we rank the whiskies in order of preference. We ignored the selling price of the whiskies and based our decisions purely on how much we liked them.
In first place was the Blue label Ghost and Rare with Green Label a very close second, followed by Double Black and, in last place, Black label. 
Regardless of the placings they are all good whiskies. The Black Label is innocuous but still very drinkable; the Double Black had more character. Both of these are regularly available at around the £25 mark and offer very good value – ideal whiskies for those that are wanting to get into peated whiskies or just want a very gentle peat influence. 
The Green label was highly rated by us when we tried it in 2017, so we were expecting it to do well again, but  it was still a surprise that around a quarter of us enjoyed it more than the Blue Label.
The Blue Label Port Ellen edition is a lovely whisky - very refined. It develops in the glass and develops while you are drinking it; a whisky you want to, and need to, sit with for a long while. It is also eye-wateringly expensive, several times the price of the Green label which can often be found discounted to around £40. All of us agreed that taking price into consideration Green Label was the outright winner.

​GlenAllachie recently released their 12 YO Virgin Oak Series comprising three whiskies finished for the final 15-18 months in specially selected virgin oak casks -  one in French Oak, one in Spanish Oak and the last in Chinquapin Oak (from the Ozark region in USA).  This gave us the perfect opportunity to taste the difference imparted to whisky by different finishing casks.
COVID has had a big impact on our meetings and thus far we have managed with virtual tastings by video link. This month’s meet was a little different. Six of us met , socially distanced of course, at the Black Horse in Amberley and others joined in from home via video link.
GlenAllachie is a relatively modern distillery founded in 1967 and situated in the central Speyside region. Until recently the whisky produced here was used in blends manufactured by the Pernod-Ricard group. In 2017 the distillery was acquired  from Pernod-Ricard by a consortium of three people led by Billy Walker who has previously owned BenRiach and Glendronnach. In the three years under its new ownership it has won several awards for its single malt expressions and  ‘Distillery of the Year’  in the 2019 Scottish Whisky Awards. Quite a remarkable achievement.
That’s enough background, let’s get on to the important bit -
TASTING NOTES
Chinquapin Oak - Initially on the nose orange zest, tending towards marmalade, and sawdust, but not in an unpleasant way. (Coming back to this one later in the evening the nose was vanilla ice cream, maybe custard). In the mouth, cinnamon sweets with a little heat, some white pepper and liquorice all leading to  a medium length spicy finish. Adding a few drops of water brought out flavours of bananas and butterscotch mellowing the spiciness.
French Oak – Aromas of banana sweets (those foamy ones), darker fruits, butterscotch and some difficult to identify notes that some likened to chlorine or superglue! To taste, honey, citrus fruit (possibly grapefruit), white pepper and a tannic woodiness. The finish on this one was a real surprise -  long and very complex in waves going from sweetness to fruit to pepper and a final tannic dryness. Adding a few drops of water enhances the sweetness, brings out some toffee on the nose and seems to prolong the finish.
Spanish Oak – Wood, leather, citrus fruits, a hint of coconut, some vegetive notes on the nose. Tasting revealed an initial hit of salt followed by vanilla and cinnamon spice leading to a short , almost abrupt spicy finish with a lingering slightly unpleasant bitterness. A few drops of water thinned down the feel of this whisky but still left the bitter finish, so no real benefit.
So how did we rate them? In first place was the French Oak followed by the Chinquapin oak. There was little between them - both are excellent whiskies, but the lovely finish of the French oak whisky won the day. The Spanish Oak was a little disappointing and trailed well behind the other two.
All in all, a very good evening that certainly did highlight the differences between the finishing casks. They are all oaks, but the influences of native climate and the speed of growth has a big effect on the characteristics imparted to the finished whisky. There were some consistent flavours and aromas across the range, fruit, sweetness, orange, pepper and spice, and these probably reflect the characteristics of the  base GlenAllachie spirit. It would have been good to have had some of their new make spirit to see if we could confirm this.
 
 
 
 

Many of you will be wondering what Stroud Whisky Club has been doing during these difficult times.

Covid restrictions stopped us having our usual monthly get togethers, so to keep our spirits high (pun intended), we arranged a steady stream of online tastings. These have been very enjoyable events, with three distilleries and one independent bottler providing samples for online tastings. Since April we have enjoyed whisky tastings with:

Kilchoman (Islay)
Bimber Distillery (East London)
Mackmyra (Sweden) X2
Lady of the Glen (Dunfermline based independent bottlers - https://www.ladyoftheglen.com/)

The Bimber distillery even included new make spirit, new make peated spirit, raw barley, malted barley, yeast a piece of charred stave and a lump of peat in their sample set! Full marks to them for being original and comprehensive.

Mackmyra kindly gave us two tastings, first their standard range and then a few weeks later, a selection from their seasonal range.

Quite a mix of different types of whiskies, but all the whiskies were excellent and some exclusive ones included in the mix as well - a thoroughly entertaining way to while away an hour or two during lonely lockdown evenings.

In July, when pubs could welcome guests again, we managed to have a socially distanced tasting at our home base, The Black Horse in Amberley, and sampled three independently bottled peated Loch Lomond whiskies - and then unexpected appearances from Port Charlotte OLC:01 & Fettercairn chocolate malt 16YO. 

Going forward we are planning to have our social get togethers (suitably distanced of course) at The Black Horse and, to include those that cannot attend - self-isolating, too far to travel etc we will provide an online video link to the tasting so non-attendees can join in from home.

Any questions get in touch with us through the contact page of our website.
So please take care, stay safe and remember drinking whisky is far safer than drinking disinfectant. Probably more effective as well. 

With the relatively recent resurgence of whisky’s popularity and more and more new distilleries being built as a result, it seemed appropriate to think about some of the distilleries that have long been lost. Our meeting this month, “All Is Not Lost”, was hosted by Sean and centred around whiskies from the The Lost Distillery Whisky Company. All of their whiskies are made with the intention of creating ‘approximations’ of whiskies from distilleries that ceased production around 100 years ago. Names that have been all but forgotten.
The process starts with LDC researching as much as it can about the distilleries - locality, production techniques, machinery, still size, shape, capacity, water, yeast, barley, barrels & maturation techniques to create a flavour map that is then used by a nosing and tasting panel to select and marry single malts from 5-10 existing distilleries that LDC believes capture the essence of the original. The final result is a blend of 100% Single Malt Scotch Whiskies with no added colour and non-chill filtered. Neither of those processes was used a century ago when the distilleries were operational.
The Lost Distillery website has excellent information, background stories and tasting notes by Charles Maclean, although, it has to be said the company themselves weren’t helpful in providing us with any additional information about their products.
Prior to the main event we had a little bit of fun with a blind tasting of two whiskies.  Let’s call it a Scottish amuse bouche inspired by Ralfy’s vlog review 795. The basis for the blind tasting was Lidl’s Queen Margot 3YO blended Scotch costing £10.99 a bottle. The first tot was as it comes from the bottle and the second tot was the same but with around 10% Caol Ila 12Yo added. The first tot had a mixed reception, most people thinking it very young even ‘new make’. Vanilla, pear, acetone and toffee were the key notes. The second tot was overwhelmingly agreed to be better with peat and spice to the fore. Nobody would be rushing out to buy Lidl’s Queen Margot, but at £10.99 a bottle it is a very good buy and the addition of he Caol Ila made it very acceptable without greatly impacting the price per tot. Thank you Ralfy!
(I subsequently tried using some Ardbeg 10YO, giving it a week to marry instead of the 24 hours for the blind tasting with a very pleasing result!).
Okay, let’s talk about the main course – the whiskies from LDC. We tried four of their current line-up.
Stratheden Classic Range – (Lowland 1829 to 1926) – 43% ABV - Retail £40
This distillery was founded in 1829 and situated right in the centre of the old market town of Auchtermuchty in Fife. The water source was a tributary of the Eden, channelled from the “Lovers pool” via an aqueduct and down past the distillery buildings where two water wheels provided the power. It took two years and the excavation of 3,000 cartloads of solid rock to route the water past the distillery! 
In the 1900’s successive duty increases, set alongside distilling costs that were higher than those of modern distilleries meant that margins were eroded to the point where there was little will in continuing. The final blow was the loss of its major export market, as the United States embarked on a decade of Prohibition from 1920. The distillery ceased production in late 1924 and closed for good in 1926.
The distillery was unusual in that it only ever had one owner – three successive generations of the Bonthrone family.

Nose: Dark fruit, tobacco, marmalade, apple.
Taste: Chocolate orange, orange zest, sweet and some spice
Finish: Shortish, warming, spicy.
It was generally felt that this was better without the addition of water
 
Towiemore Archivist Range – (Speyside 1898 to 1931) - 46% ABV - Retail: £56
Towiemore was built in 1897 just outside of Dufftown and was in operation for just thirty years. In this time, it gained a reputation as an excellent pure malt whisky. Towiemore was a victim of bad luck and ill circumstance. Towiemore derived its water from the Towie Burn which runs through a rich seam of limestone which gave the water a mildly alkaline make-up (most water used in whisky distilling is slightly acidic).  The distillery closed during WW1 reopening in 1922 with the release of a 3YO spirit. Most of its production was used in blends, but sadly something had changed in the water source and the alkalinity had increased, causing issues when blended with the typically slightly acidic malts from other sources. The change in water quality was probably caused by the lime works on the Towie Burn discharging their by-products into the burn. It still enjoyed a high reputation as a single malt, but this was not enough to save it from closure in 1931.
Interesting Fact - Captain Scott chose Towiemore as his spirit of choice for his Terra Nova expedition to the South Pole in 1910

Nose: Very clean with tropical fruits, honey.
Taste: Vanilla oak and spice.
Finish: Good length, warming and spicy
 
Jericho Archivist Range – (Highland 1822 to 1913) – 46% ABV - Retail £56
Tucked away in a remote valley near the town of Insch in Aberdeenshire are the remains of the Jericho Distillery, which thrived for eighty years. In 1884 it was re-named Benachie after a local mountain. Its remote location meant that transport from the distillery to the rail station at Insch was by horse and cart
In the 1900’s Benachie was still reliant on peat for fuel, on horse- power to transport spirit and almost entirely on the local market to sell its product. The final years of Benachie were marked by declining sales, loss of market and compressed profit margins. In 1909 duty on whisky was increased from 8 to 11 shillings a gallon. The combination of these factors caused the distillery to go silent in 1913.
 
Nose: Christmas cake, cinnamon, nutmeg and vanilla.
Taste: Some complexity with dark fruit, toffee, raisins.
Finish: Peppery, some tannin giving a drying medium length finish.
 
Lossit Classic Range – (Islay 1817 to 1867) - 43% ABV -  Retail £41

Initially the site of an illicit still Lossit was founded in 1817, in a remote location, near to the current site of Caol Ila and was the biggest producer of whisky on Islay in the industry’s formative years. The whisky was highly regarded but its remote location worked against it.  In 1863 Caol Ila was built and gave the Lossit distillery owners the opportunity to acquire a modern distillery with far superior transport links. Lossit was limited, small and secluded in comparison, the qualities that made it perfect for illegal distilling now a hindrance, and production ceased in 1867. 
 
Nose: Peat is very noticeable, light fruit and vanilla, toastiness.
Taste: A little one-dimensional with peat and spice to the fore.
Finish: More smoke and spice, with the smoke eventually overpowering the spice
 
Results
We enjoyed all of the whiskies from the Lost Distillery company, but it was generally felt that they didn’t compete at the price point.
The Jericho stood out as the best of the whiskies we tasted with a complex and satisfying taste, but there is some tough competition in the £50-£60 price range and this will struggle against some of the better-known competitors. Coming in second was the Lossit, considered by some as a little bit one-dimensional. At £40 a bottle this will also have difficulty competing with peated offerings from the majors. In third place was the Towiemore and trailing in last position was the Stratheden.
It is very subjective how close these whiskies are to the originals – there is no way of checking and it is probably best considered as a nice marketing ploy. In their defence, LDC does not claim to produce accurate recreations, merely approximations based on research and expertise.  (If anyone has any of the originals they want to share with me, I would more than happily update this blog!).
​

​This month’s meet was led by Sean and rather grandly billed as “The Pursuit of Pleasure – An Exploration of Grain Whisky”.   

It was a blind tasting with a bit of a twist, as after tasting each whisky, the details were revealed. No whisky club brain cells were over-exercised trying to guess what the whiskies were. A blind tasting with one eye open then.

Hints given at the beginning:

• All were grain whiskies
• Each of the first four whiskies came from a different distillery
• The fifth bottle was a combination of whiskies from the first four distilleries
• All were Scotch whiskies
• Each came from a different Independent bottler
• Whiskies from largest, oldest, newest and ‘silent’ grain distilleries
• There were cask strengths, single barrels and a variety of ages
• The last bottle was the only blended whisky

The last bottle wasn’t Haig Clubman. (That’s a bit of an ‘in joke’ that Sean is too embarrassed to explain. Ask Paul S – he’ll tell you).

The evening started off with some explanation about what makes a grain whisky different from a malt whisky (that’ll be the type of still and the grain being used). Interestingly, there are only 6 full time grain distilleries in Scotland and their combined output far exceeds that of the combined output of the 100 or so Scottish malt distilleries. 90% of whisky drunk around the world today is blended whisky. In the past 40 years 7 Scottish grain distilleries have closed, so more distilleries have recently closed than now remain - that’s not the result of a downturn in consumption, but more about the big distilling companies pursuing a strategy to focus their activities and improve efficiencies.
Now on to the interesting part of the evening – tasting the whiskies.

Whisky 1 - Signatory bottling of 2007 vintage North British Single Grain - 43% ABV - Distilled 15 Nov 2007, bottled 07 March 2018 (10.3 YO then)
Signatory is a very well-known Indy bottler and specialises in small batch, single cask and cask strength Scotch whiskies. Based near the Edradour distillery in Pitlochry.
North British distillery was founded in 1885 and is in the western outskirts of Edinburgh. Owned jointly by Diageo and The Edrington Group. This is Edinburgh’s only remaining distillery producing around 14 million gallons per year going mainly into Chivas Regal, Famous Grouse, J&B and Cutty Sark. They have three Coffey stills and new make spirit is 94.50%

Tasting Notes
Nose- Melon with a touch of Parma ham, Vanilla
Taste – Citrus fruits with some spicy notes
Finish – Short with a little spice and slightly herbal
Whisky 2 - That Boutique-y Whisky Company bottling of Invergordon 10 YO Cask Strength Single Grain – 55.4% ABV - Limited run of 217 bottles
TBWC is based in Leith and we know them very well – we had a great presentation from them back in April 2017. They specialise in small batch whiskies with graphic style labels and usually sold in 50cl bottles.
Invergordon is the only grain distillery that’s not located in or very close to the Lowlands region. Instead the distillery can be found in the Northern Highlands a few miles north of Inverness. Founded in 1960 it is owned by White and Mackay and produces around 9 million gallons of whisky per year from 4 Continuous stills. Used mainly for White & Mackay offerings
Tasting Notes
Nose – Youthful, spicy, vanilla, wood
Taste – Almond, toasted cereals
Nose – Short with notes of orange and pepper


Whisky 3 - Douglas Laing ‘Old Particular’ bottling of Port Dundas 13YO 2004 vintage single cask single grain – 48.4% Distilled in July 2004, matured in American Oak barrels and bottled in March 2018. Small batch of 3000 bottles
Based in Glasgow and established in 1948, Douglas Laing is another of the giants in the Indy bottling world, they specialise in Single Malt, Single Grain, Blended Malt, Blended Grain and blended whiskies – That’ll be pretty much everything then.
Port Dundas is now a ‘silent’ (aka closed) distillery which was located in Glasgow, built in 1811 and starting grain production in 1845. In the late 1800’s it was the largest distillery in Scotland. Various companies have owned it over the years, but it was in the ownership of Diageo when it was closed in 2009 and demolished in 2011. In its heyday it produced around 9 million gallons a year.
Tasting Notes
Nose – Sweet, milk chocolate, vanilla, pear drops
Taste – Light spices, cocoa, honey
Finish – Medium, cinnamon, creamy caramel
Whisky 4 - James Eadie bottling of Cameronbridge 21YO Cask Strength Single Grain – 54.4% - Limited edition of 265 bottles distilled 1997 bottled 2018 matured in refill hogshead.

James Eadie was a Scottish beer distiller in mid 1800’s and had inherited a recipe for blended whisky from his father. James Eadie the company specialise in small batch, single cask and cask finish bottlings.
Cameronbridge is situated in Fife mid-way between Edinburgh and Dundee and is owned by Diageo. It is the largest grain distillery in Europe, producing around 22 million gallons per year. It also claims to be the oldest, founded in 1824 by John Haig, whose cousin Robert Stein invented the column (continuous) still. It was the first distillery to produce commercial grain whisky. It is also one of the very few grain distilleries to have ever released its own brand of blended whisky - Cameron Brig. Used in J&B, JW, Haig, Bells, VAT69 to name but a few.
Tasting Notes:
Nose – Sweetness, strawberry cheesecake, peach, slightly perfumed
Taste – Vanilla fudge, toasted cereal, pepper. Buttery feel in the mouth
Finish – Medium with almond and sweetness
Whisky 5 – Compass Box Hedonism: Blended Grain Whisky, NAS, 43% -
Aged in first fill American oak casks.
Compass Box was founded by American entrepreneur John Glaser in 2000, their headquarters and blending room is in Chiswick, London. Maturation storage in Scotland.  Their ethos is “Good wood makes good whisky” and “A well-made Scotch whisky blend, made from excellent component whiskies, is something no single distillery can create, and can rival the complexity of the very best of single malt whiskies”
Compass box has long campaigned for complete transparency in the whisky industry and the right to disclose constituent parts of a blended whisky including distillery, type of cask, Age and percentage.
Hedonism was the first whisky released by Compass box in 2000. Since then it has won a number of awards, most recently a gold at the World Whisky Awards in 2018.
(Definition of hedonism by English Oxford dictionary - the pursuit of pleasure; sensual self-indulgence; self-gratification; debauchery, decadence. Call me old-fashioned, but somehow only the first definition seemed suitable for a whisky club meet).
Constituent parts:
34.7% Invergordon - 27.8% Port Dundas - 21.2% Cameronbridge - 16.3% North British. Ranging from 13- 24 YO - 51% over 21 YO
Tasting Notes
Nose – Fruitiness, strawberries and cream, pepper
Taste – Toffee, cherries, light spices
Finish – Medium, warm and spicy, vanilla and some wood
As usual we finished the evening by rating each of the whiskies. All five of the whiskies were very good in their own right and coming in ahead of the pack was Compass Box Hedonism demonstrating their skill in selection and blending of whiskies.
1st - Compass Box
2nd - James Eadie Cameronbridge
3rd - Signatory North British
4th - Douglas Laing Port Dundas
5th - TBWC Invergordon
 
 

SWC – October 2018 Revamped, Rebranded and Re-released
Alan K planned and delivered a wonderful tasting using  5 Whiskies from distilleries that have either been revamped or rebranded

1. Bunnahabhain 11 – Gordon & Macphail discovery range 43% £45
   

• Grouped and colour-coded under three flavour profiles - ‘Smoky', ‘Sherry’ and ‘Bourbon’. This is the purple/sherry profile.
  
• Designed to help whisky drinkers to begin an exploratory journey through the Gordon & MacPhail portfolio, each bottle features a brief tasting note and either a vintage or age statement.
  
• Aroma Sherry aromas mingle with orange marmalade. Dried fruit notes develop; subtle spices weave through creamy vanilla toffee. Taste Deliciously smooth and creamy; a gentle warming cinnamon spice matures into flavours of chewy dates and stewed plums with walnut undertones. Finish Smooth milk chocolate with lingering dried fruit and hints of nuts.
  
• Range starts around £42 and includes Caol Ila, Miltonduff, Balblair
  

1. The Glenallachie Spirit of Speyside festival 2018 cask strength £50
   
   • Formerly owned by Pernod Ricard, now taken over by the glenallachie distillers company founded by Billy Walker formerly of Glendronach/Benriach/Glenglassaugh.
     
   • Under Pernod only 1 expression of single malt on sale.
     
   • Built in 1967. Located near Aberlour in speyside.
     
   • New Range includes 10yr cask strength, 12, 18, 25 and a range of single casks. Ranging from £40 up to £230
     

1. Old Pulteney 12 40% £32
   

• The new core range will feature Old Pulteney’s existing 12-year-old, and the new no-age-statement Huddart, plus a 15- and 18-year-old.
  
• The HUDDART has been matured in a combination of second-fill American oak and ex-Bourbon casks, before being finished in ex-Bourbon casks that previously contained heavily peated whisky.
  
• The Old Pulteney 12 Year Old will continue to be the entry-level malt for the distillery’s core range. Matured in predominantly refill American oak casks
  
• The maritime malt removed its 17- and 21-year-old expressions in June 2017, citing stock shortages.
  
• The new-look Old Pulteney core range also sports a new bottle design, which ‘freshens up the overall look’ yet retains the brand’s distinctive bottle shape.
  

1. Longmorn 2003/2018 – Gordon & Macphail distillery labels range 43% £60
   
   • Our 'Distillery Labels' range is testament to the long-standing and unique relationships built over generations with Scotland's distillery owners.
     

We have been entrusted with new-make spirit from many of Scotland’s distilleries to mature in our casks, our way.

• • Because of the strong working relationships we had with distillery owners, we would bottle and sell the spirit they created as single malt on the condition that we used their 'house' label with the caption "bottled by Gordon & MacPhail".
    
  • Aroma Delicate sherry aromas mingle with milk chocolate; vibrant seville orange and dried fruit notes come to the fore with time. Hints of cinnamon and nutmeg add a warm spicy undertone. Taste Peppery yet sweet; dashes of warming white pepper develop into rich fruitcake flavours by toasted almonds, candied cherries, and twists of orange peel. Finish Complex; charred oak combines with liquorice and milk chocolate.
    
  • Prices from £50 and up and include distilleries like Scapa, Ardmore, Mortlach
    
  • ‘People associate us with having quality liquid, and the whisky is second to none, but people don’t think we look the best. This is our opportunity to change and move with the times, and give consumers what they really want.’
    
  
  
• Port Charlotte 10 – 50% £48.95
  

• New bottle shape, now first permanent age statement in range.
  
• The expression, which is bottled at 50% abv and uses only Scottish barley, has been matured in first-fill American oak, refill American oak and refill French wine casks.
  
• smoky sweet notes of ‘coconut, vanilla custard, lemon honey, smoke oysters and sun baked salty sand’.
  
• In June 2018, Bruichladdich announced the re-launch of the Port Charlotte whisky brand. The brand will have 4 expressions: Port Charlotte 10 YO, Port Charlotte Scottish Barley 2011, Port Charlotte MRC:01 2010 and MC:01 2009.
  
• Port Charlotte Islay Barley 2011 is a new vintage comprised of whisky produced from barley grown on three Islay farms – Dunlossit, Sunderland and Kilchiaran. Bottled at 50% abv, the whisky has been matured in mostly first-fill American oak with some whisky aged in refill Syrah and Merlot wine casks. It will be available globally for around £60 per 70cl bottle.
  
• Port Charlotte MRC:01 is a limited edition expression distilled in 2010, and matured in ex-wine casks from Bordeaux. Bottled at 59.2% abv, it will be available in domestic markets around the world for £90 per bottle.
  
• Lastly, Port Charlotte MC:01 is a limited 2009 vintage matured in Marsala casks, which has been bottled at 56.3% abv and will be available in travel retail only.
  

After tasting all 5 whiskies we voted on which ones we liked best.  The results were as followed:

1st port Charlotte 10 (34 points)

2nd longmorn 2003 (27 points)

3rd old pulteney 12 (19 points)

4th bunnahabhain 11 (16 points)

5th Glenallachie 12 S.o.Speyside (9 points)

Our March theme is 'Sweet 16'. This was a chance to try different whiskies that have all been matured for 16 yrs.

The line up includes:

• Aberlour 16
• Aberfeldy 16
• Glenrothes 2001
• Jura 16 Durachs Own
• Tomintoul 16 or Glenlossie 16 (tbc)

These high quality expressions showcase what can be achieved in 16 yrs (in wood) an also the the quality and diversity that can be achieved for 3 simple ingredients (Water, yeast and barley).

The tasting was hosted by our very own Alan Kendall.

1. Aberlour 16 “Double cask” 43% £49.95
 Speyside region, built in 1879. Damaged by fire in 1898.
 Aberlour means babbling brook in Gaelic
 Output 3.8 million litres / yr
 Bestselling single malt in France. Owned by Pernod Ricard (french)
 The 16 yr old is a mixture of first fill bourbon and sherry butts.

2. Aberfeldy 16 40% £55.95
 Highland region, built in 1898 (Victorian era)
 Home to Dewars world or whisky
 Output 3.5 million litres / yr
 Water source is Pittlie burn, which contains traces of gold. Hence the nickname the golden dram.  Combination of bourbon and finished in oloroso sherry casks

3. Tomitoul 16 40% £42
 Speyside region. Founded in 1965. Youngest distillery tonight.
 Known as “The gentle Dram”
 Output 3.3 million litres / yr
 For two weeks a year they produce a peated spirit that is branded as Old Ballatrum whisky.  First fill bourbon casks

4. Jura 16 40% £48.50
 “Island” region, though technically that’s highlands.
 Quite young, founded in 1963, though an older distillery used to be there from 1810 but was dismantles in 1901.  Output 2.2 million litres / yr
 Last week they revamped their range and branding with 10, 12, Seven wood NAS and 18yrs old. The 18 is £75. The 16 yr old is being discontinued by April.
 14 years American white oak, 2 years oloroso sherry casks. (thought to be chill filtered and added e150)

5. Glenrothes 2001 43% £52.50
 Speyside region. Founded in 1879.
 Releases mostly “vintage” dated whisky. Was until recently owned by BBR. Also do some NAS “Select reserve” etc
 Output 5.5 million litres / yr. Biggest one tonight.
 Large fire in 1897, exploded in 1903 and another fire in 1922.
 A “variety of casks” is all it says.