As the whisky market becomes more and more saturated (so to speak) the need for distilleries to stand out from the crowd becomes increasingly important. Mackmyra have been at the forefront of that experimental side with numerous special releases focussing on differently seasoned casks. Last year saw the Swedes release the world’s first whisky to... Continue Reading →
Tasting Notes: Highland Park – Harald
If you are a fan of Scotch whisky at all then it wouldn’t have gone unnoticed by you that Highland Park have quite an affinity with their Viking heritage. And it’s effective. You can’t deny that it certainly makes their whiskies stand out from the crowd. Horned helmets on the bottle? That’s a Highland Park.... Continue Reading →
Tasting Notes: Glenkinchie – 12 Years Old
Here we have one of Diageo’s flagship releases within their ‘Classic Malts’ series - the Glenkinchie 12 year old. Pronounced “glen-kin-chee” rather than “glen-kinky”, this single malt represents Diageo’s more readily-available ‘Lowlands’ scotch offering, originating from the Glenkinchie distillery in East Lothian. Though it is based some 15 miles or so from the Scottish capital,... Continue Reading →
Beyond The Dram with Glen Affric: Barrel-Aged Beers (Part 1: Porter)
Despite the name’s Scottish roots, for me, this story starts not in the Highlands, but on the Wirral. That is the location of the Glen Affric brewery and taproom. In the last couple of years, I have spotted the brewery’s distinctive antlers logo appearing more and more frequently in pubs and off licences throughout the... Continue Reading →
Tasting Notes: Jura – Two-One-Two (2019)
212. That's the population of Jura. The human population, that is. The people are outnumbered by deer by 30 to 1 on the rugged island, but here we are concerned with the Two-One-Two. Following a fairly recent revamp of their core range and travel retail bottlings, this new release from Jura is being sold as... Continue Reading →
Tasting Notes: Bunnahabhain – 18 Years Old
Boo-nah-ha-vun [that's how I've been told to pronounce it anyway] is one of the longest inhabitants of Islay, and certainly stands proud by its Gaelic history. Recent expressions have capitalised on its heritage and tongue-twisting names as part of the branding. Despite that however, its recent rebranding across the last decade or so has kept... Continue Reading →