Earlier this month, The Macallan introduced The Macallan Rare Cask, a new single malt whisky that joins the brand’s core range of expressions. Rare Cask is aged exclusively in Spanish oak casks that held dry olorosso sherry for 18 months…
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Scotch whisky is a big category that includes single malts, blended malts, grain whiskies and more. Spirits in general are quite subjective–we’ve always found the best scotch to be the one in our hand–but we’ve certainly got our favorites. And…
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The Balvenie just announced the launch of two new whiskies in the US, each created by Malt Master David Stewart. Tun 1509 and the Single Barrel Traditional Oak, Aged 25 Years will both become available in select states later this…
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News from Woodford today, as they announced the release of their newest expression: Woodford Reserve Sonoma-Cutrer Pinot Noir Finish. It’s both a mouthful to say and the ninth installment in the brand’s Master’s Collection series. But this is their first…
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The newest release in Laphroaig’s ongoing Cairdeas series is Laphroaig Cairdeas Amontillado, a single malt that’s been aged in ex-bourbon barrels for eight years before moving to Amontillado sherry casks for an additional year. Finishing whisky in sherry is nothing…
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September marks National Bourbon Heritage Month, and unlike the slew of fake holidays we’re inundated with these days, this one was actually declared by the United States Senate in 2007. So we’d better treat it with respect. National Bourbon Heritage…
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Speyburn 10 Year is the flagship whisky from Speyburn Distillery, which dates back to 1897. It’s changed hands a few times since then, but the distillery continues to put out a modest supply of whisky via its two pot stills….
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Labor Day Weekend. It’s great for many reasons. The most obvious, of course, is a reprieve from work. But it’s also a welcome reminder that fall is just around the corner. And when we think fall, we think whiskey. Granted,…
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What gives a whisky its national identity? The answer seems simple on a basic level: where the whisky is made. And of course, there are some ingredients that stand out as markers: bourbon boasts of corn, scotch breaths peat. But…
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Laphroaig Select is the latest salvo from a brand that doesn’t shy away from innovation. In recent years, Laphroaig supplemented its portfolio with the release of Laphroaig Triple Wood and, more recently, Laphroaig Cairdeas Port Wood Edition. Now, the Islay-based…
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Clyde May’s Whiskey hails from Alabama, where it can trace its root back to a gentleman named… you guessed it, Clyde May. Old Clyde was a craft distiller in an age of moonshiners, and while he flouted the law making…
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Many, many years ago, Bowmore 12 Year was our first introduction to Islay scotch. And it proved to be quite the intro, quickly cementing our love for Islay whiskies and their rich, smoky qualities. Just recently, Bowmore announced a new…
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Single malt whiskey typically conjures images of Scotland and rolling fields of heather. And while Scotland continues to produce the vast majority of single malts, more American distillers are getting into the game. Balcones and St. George are a couple…
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I begin writing, as usual, with a full glass. I’m fond of doing so. I pour a glass of whisky and do not begin writing until after first enjoying a dram unsullied by the pressures of a blank page. The pressures to write something worthy of the casual reader’s attention as he browses his newsfeed…read more →
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Auchentoshan American Oak is a new addition to the Auchentoshan Scotch Whisky portfolio. This expression is a triple distilled single malt that’s been aged in first fill American oak barrels that previously held bourbon. With each filling, less and less…
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We’ve spent time detailing the origins of Suntory, the beverage giant that pioneered Japanese whisky and introduced it to the Western world. Now let’s look at a figurehead whose passion was not profitability, but the perfection of his individual craft and the effect it had on the world around him. I’m speaking of Masataka Taketsuru…read more →
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Pouring the hot water into whisky, the fragrance suddenly rises in the light of a cold white morning. Lines from a poem by Japanese naturalist Bokusui Wakayama, reflecting on his oyuwari–a drink akin to a hot toddy–as he enjoyed it one cold winter morning. It struck me… read more →
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Old Pulteney produces a range of single malt scotch whiskies, from the introductory 12 Year to the just-released 35 Year. And occasionally, the brand puts out limited edition offerings, like this bottle of Old Pulteney Navigator that hit the market…
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At the beginning of this series, I mentioned receiving a bottle of Hakushu 12 from Cocktail Enthusiast two years ago. Below is the review I wrote. I think it deserves to be revisited, not only because I have revisited the spirit myself, but also to reflect on the context of the time it was written… read more →
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This is part two of our ongoing series on Japanese Whisky. To get started, see part one. Suntory. The one that started it all. The beverage company, not the man (we’ll get to him next week.) Suntory’s saga begins in…
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