The brand Sheep Dip has a great little story behind its origins, which, despite being a blend of malt scotch whiskies, originally started in Gloucestershire in 1974. In the beginning, the whisky was packaged as 'The Original Oldbury Sheep Dip', named after the pub that it was crafted in, in Oldbury-on-Severn, as an 8-year old... Continue Reading →
Tasting Notes: Heaven Hill – Bernheim Original
Bernheim Original is a whiskey experiment that has gone well. Yes, that's a bold initial statement, but it is a succinct summary of Heaven Hill's original wheat whiskey. Why is it different, you ask? Well, whilst wheat does ordinarily form part of a mash bill for making bourbon whiskey, the laws in the US dictate... Continue Reading →
Tasting Notes: The English Whisky Co – Chapter 6
When the St. George's Distillery was created, the Nelstrop family of Roudham, Norfolk, set out to document the story of their development and the first English whisky made in ca. 100 years by releasing their spirit in "Chapters". Chapter 1 took the form of the colourless, unpeated new-make spirit, bottled after just 1 month or... Continue Reading →
Tasting Notes: Kavalan – Concertmaster
Whenever a new business is set up, it’s founders will have big aspirations. When Kavalan was set up in 2005, it was no exception. Their distillery even reportedly has a sign outside stating that it (and by extension, Taiwan) is “The New Homeland Of Whisky”. A pretty bold statement. It may not have come as... Continue Reading →
Tasting Notes: Balcones – Baby Blue
Hailing from Waco, Texas, Balcones are a relatively new distillery, having only opened in 2008, but have made quite a name for themselves from the get go. As a corn whiskey, this features at least 80% corn in the original mash, and also features hopi blue corn (which is actually blue, hence the name) and... Continue Reading →
Tasting Notes: Heaven Hill – Mellow Corn
Currently owned and made by Kentucky’s dominant distillers Heaven Hill, Mellow Corn has an interesting history behind it. As the name suggests this is a corn whiskey meaning that it has to be made from a mash of at least 80% corn. In fact, this whiskey is made from a mash bill of 90% corn,... Continue Reading →