Whisky & Spirits Blog | Compare Buy Enjoy
Nikka / Pure Malt White
£43.50
 Nikka / Pure Malt Black £44.50 Country: Japanese Region: Japanese Age: Strength: 50cl Summary: Country/Region: Japan. |
 Nikka / Pure Malt Red £43.50 Country: Japanese Region: Japanese Age: Strength: 50cl Summary: Country/Region: Japan. |
 Nikka / Pure Malt White £43.50 Country: Japanese Region: Japanese Age: Strength: 50cl Summary: Country/Region: Japan. |
Compass Box / Spice Tree Extravaganza
£95.00
 Compass Box / Spice Tree Extravaganza £95.00 Country: Scotland Region: Age: Strength: 46.% 70cl Summary: Country/Region: Scotland. |
 Compass Box / Double Single £110.00 Country: Scotland Region: Age: Strength: 53.3% 70cl Summary: Country/Region: Scotland. ABV: 53.3%. Unit: 70cl To celebrate our 10th anniversary we have brought back a small-batch whisky we first and last made in 2003. Double Single is a marriage of two single whiskies – one single malt and one single grain. The idea highlights the true virtue of blending grain whisky with malt whisky to create a truly elegant style. The Art of Blending: What if we were to match perfectly one single malt whisky with one single grain whisky in just the right proportions? That is, what if we were to make a blended Scotch whisky with only two components, only two single whiskies rather than many? What if we were to make… a “double single”? This is the question our friends Duncan Elphick and Tatsuya Minagawa of the Highlander Inn on Speyside asked us in 2003, resulting in our first limited release bottling of The Double Single. For our 10th anniversary year, we’ve decided to bring it back. The whiskies we’ve chosen this time: an malt whisky distilled at Glen Elgin distillery and a grain whisky distilled at Port Dundas, both aged in American oak. The combination yields a full, soft palate of flavours reminiscent of pear fruit, maltiness, vanilla and crème brûlée. This whisky is a testament to the virtues of combining grain whisky with malt whisky, a testament to the virtues of blended Scotch whisky. The grain whisky creates a lovely, soft, sweet pillow on which the malt whisky flavours luxuriate. This is just as great blended Scotch whisky should be. Share and Enjoy. John Glaser, Whiskymaker. Availability: One-off, limited release of 876 bottles. Bottled in September 2010. Flavour Descriptors: Full, soft palate of flavours reminiscent of pear fruit, maltiness, vanilla and crème brûlée. Recommendations: Sipped neat or with the addition of water, to taste. Wood: Glen Elgin was aged in a refill American oak hogshead, the Port Dundas in a first-fill American oak hogshead. |
 Compass Box / Three Year Old Deluxe £190.00 Country: Scotland Region: Age: Strength: 49.2% 70cl Summary: Country/Region: Scotland. |
 Willet's / Pot Still Single Barrel Bourbon £55.00 Country: American Region: American Age: Strength: 47.% Summary: Country/Region: USA / Kentucky. |
Nikka From The Barrel / Japanese Whisky
£35.50
 Benromach 1976 £470.00 Country: Scotland Region: Speyside Age: Strength: 46% 70cl Vintage: 1976 Bottler: Distillery Bottling |
 Nikka From The Barrel / Japanese Whisky £35.50 Country: Japan Region: Japanese Age: Strength: 51.4% 50cl |
 Nikka Taketsuru Pure Malt £49.80 Country: Japan Region: Japanese Age: Strength: 43% 70cl |
 Kavalan Solist Sherry Cask S100303051A £124.80 Country: Taiwan Region: Age: Strength: 57.8% 70cl |
 GlenDronach 12 Year Old – 2004 / Single Cask 5523 / Batch 14 £75.50 Country: Scotland Region: Highland Age: 12 Years Old Strength: 58.3% 70cl Vintage: 2004 Bottler: Distillery Bottling |
 Bowmore 25 Year Old – 1991 / Single Cask 1916 / Càrn Mòr £270.00 Country: Scotland Region: Islay Age: 25 Years Old Strength: 54.6% 70cl Vintage: 1991 Bottler: Carn Mor |
 Macallan 31 Year Old – 1985 / Single Cask 1388 / Càrn Mòr £648.00 Country: Scotland Region: Speyside Age: 31 Years Old Strength: 52.8% 70cl Vintage: 1985 Bottler: Carn Mor |
Longmorn / Hunter Laing 30 Year Old
£285.00
 Tomatin / The Legacy £21.50 Country: Scotland Region: Highlands Age: Strength: 43.% 70cl Summary: Country/Region: Scotland/Highland's. |
 Longmorn / Hunter Laing 30 Year Old £285.00 Country: Scotland Region: Speyside Age: Strength: 49.2% 70cl Summary: Country/Region: Scotland/Speyside. |
Bunnahabhain 13 Year Old – Hand Filled Exclusive / Cask 1490
£74.80
 Port Ellen 1980 Rare Old – Gordon & MacPhail £748.00 Country: Scotland Region: Islay Age: Strength: 46% 70cl Vintage: 1980 Bottler: Gordon & MacPhail |
 Yamazaki 12 Year Old £88.20 Country: Japan Region: Japanese Age: 12 Years Old Strength: 43% 70cl |
 Lagavulin Islay Jazz Festival 2016 £228.00 Country: Scotland Region: Islay Age: Strength: 54.5% 70cl |
 Bunnahabhain 13 Year Old – Hand Filled Exclusive / Cask 5 £74.80 Country: Scotland Region: Islay Age: 13 Years Old Strength: 52.3% 20cl Vintage: 2003 Bottler: Distillery Bottling |
 Bunnahabhain 13 Year Old – Hand Filled Exclusive / Cask 1490 £74.80 Country: Scotland Region: Islay Age: 13 Years Old Strength: 59.9% 20cl Vintage: 2003 Bottler: Distillery Bottling |
 Bunnahabhain 8 Year Old – Hand Filled Exclusive / Cask 3657 £64.80 Country: Scotland Region: Islay Age: 8 Years Old Strength: 60.2% 20cl Vintage: 2007 Bottler: Distillery Bottling |
 Bunnahabhain 7 Year Old – Hand Filled Exclusive / Cask 5614 £64.80 Country: Scotland Region: Islay Age: 7 Years Old Strength: 58% 20cl Vintage: 2008 Bottler: Distillery Bottling |
The Blended Whisky Company unveils The Half-Century Blend
The Blended Whisky Company has revealed their newest limited edition release, The Half-Century Blend, honouring the era before the ‘whisky-boom’ and the quest for increased yields at all costs.
Just 768 bottles of The Half-Century Blend were produced
Following on from their two multi-award-winning whiskies, The Lost Distilleries Blend (World’s Best Blended Whisky – World Whiskies Awards 2014) and The Golden Age Blend (Best Scotch Blend – World Whiskies Awards 2016), The Blended Whisky Company has unveiled their latest limited edition release – The Half-Century Blend.
Only whiskies aged for over 50 years were used to create this astonishing blend, standing testament to the extraordinary complexity of these whiskies – distilled over half a century ago. The ‘whisky-boom’ of the late 1960s to the 1980s saw the beginning of an inexorable march towards modernisation, and the quest for increased yields at all costs.
Before this shift, distilleries were home to less efficient barley-strains, sprawling on-site floor maltings, inefficient brewer’s yeast, lengthy fermentation times, mucky direct-fired stills, bulky and inefficient worm-tub condensers and less active refill casks. The result of all this inefficiency, waste and lost commercial-opportunity? Flavour, subtlety, poise, an incredible depth of fruit-character and a beguiling, ethereal quality sadly missing from many of today’s whiskies.
Proving that patience has its rewards, the slow-maturing whiskies contained in The Half-Century Blend were produced in an era where flavour – not forecasts – ruled the roost.
Just 768 bottles of The Half-Century Blend (RRP £599.95) were produced in this first batch, with an ABV of 45.5%.
The Blended Whisky Company range is available from fine retailers including Amathus, Amazon, Harvey Nichols, Hedonism, Master of Malt and Ocado.
I’ve been sent a sample of this very exciting dram and shall be sharing my thoughts soon!
striking new packaging and introduces ‘Original’ and ‘Smokey’ branded as The English
The English Whisky Co. – England’s first whisky distillery has unveiled striking new packaging and introduces ‘Original’ and ‘Smokey’ branded as The English.
The English Original 43% ABV
Having undergone an impressive re-design, the distillery has rebranded its ‘Classic’ and ‘The Peated’ expressions. The eye-catching new packaging emphasises the hand-crafted nature of the whisky, its Norfolk provenance and the English heritage which provided the inspiration for the new design.
Award-winning design agency Breeze Creative was appointed to create the new look and feel for the brand which will eventually be rolled out across all packaging for the core range.
Established in 2006, The English Whisky Co. is the home of England’s first and oldest distillery. Built by the Nelstrop family for the specific purpose of producing the very finest English malt whisky, the location is famed for its barley growing; the family have a 600-year tradition of growing and processing grain.
The English Smokey 43% ABV
We have invested a lot of time in rediscovering our distillery and our values. Much has changed in the world of whisky over the last decade and we now have a far stronger voice, relevance and sense of identity in our rebranded packaging.
– Andrew Nelstrop: owner of The English Whisky Co
The English Original 43% ABV
A gentle aroma with hints of vanilla and tropical fruits. Like a soft whipped vanilla ice cream. Melts on the palate. Slightly nutty with a long malty finish. Finish is clean, dry and slightly salty.
The English Smokey 43% ABV
A gentle aroma with hint of vanilla, aniseed and ginger, a creamy palate, a little peat initially and then the smoke bomb! Finish is long, spicy and smokey.
The English Original and Smokey are bottled at 43% ABV and are non-chill filtered. Priced at £34.99, both expressions will be available from specialist whisky retailers.
Three Limited Edition Gift Packs Designed by Music Video Director and Photographer, Dave Ma
Ballantine’s has partnered with renowned music video director and photographer, Dave Ma, to launch three new limited e dition gift packs for 2016. Created to champion inspiring and innovative individuals who are committed to expressing their creativity in unique ways, for its second year Ballantine’s Artist Series gift packs showcase Dave Ma’s unique perspective of Scotland, the home of the whisky, in a series of stunning aerial photographs.
The 2016 Ballantine’s Artist Series Limited Edition gift packs will be available globally from October 2016.
Moving to London from the beaches of Sydney a decade ago to pursue a career in music photography and video direction, Dave Ma started a ‘zine’ to showcase his work with emerging bands. Dave has worked with some of today’s most exciting music artists, including Bastille and Rudimental, however his repertoire extends well beyond music photography, with a newly discovered passion for capturing aerial landscape photographs.
Travelling around the world, Dave began to realise that the best TV screen was his aeroplane window . This kick-started a desire to shoot aerial views whilst flying, and, after realising that by playing with the colours in his shots he could make terrains look ‘otherworldly’, his first series of aerial landscapes were featured on the Jagwar Ma single artwork for Come Save Me.
To push his landscape images of the Scottish Highlands beyond realism, Dave reworked his striking photographs for the Ballantine’s Finest Sleeve and Tin with a bold two-tone colour palette to reflect the energy and youthful personality of the Finest blend. For the first time, tactile technology has been used on the Ballantine’s Finest Sleeve to reflect the look and feel of the rugged terrain of this corner of Scotland. For the Ballantine’s 12 Year Old Tin, Dave added depth to his stunning photograph with a rich blue colour palette to reflect the complexity of flavours in this distinguished 12 year old blend.
I was ultimately drawn to working with Ballantine’s for the excitement of doing something completely different, that would still represent my artistic style. It was awe-inspiring to see that part of Scotland, and to be able to shoot a really unique perspective of that landscape. My focus was to capture the natural beauty of the terrain, but I wanted to move the images away from the all-too-familiar green landscapes of the Scottish Highlands and give each gift pack its own distinctive look, which reflected the personalities of each of the blends.
– Dave Ma: music video director and photographer
The Ballantine’s Artist Series champions unique individuals that ‘stay true’ to their creative style and Dave Ma is no exception. He captured the beauty of our Scottish heritage, resulting in these striking gift packs that will no doubt be a great addition to any whisky connoisseurs’ collection and complement last year’s designs as part of the Ballantine’s Artist Series collection.
– Sophie Gallois: Global Marketing Director for Ballantine’s
The 2016 Ballantine’s Artist Series Limited Edition gift packs will be available globally from October 2016.
The Longmorn range; Longmorn 23 Year Old, Longmorn 16 Year Old and Longmorn The Distiller’s Choice
Longmorn single malt Scotch whisky has unveiled two new expressions to complete the Longmorn portfolio; Longmorn 23 Year Old and a luxurious reinterpretation of the renowned Longmorn 16 Year Old. The bottlings join Longmorn The Distiller’s Choice in the line-up, offering Scotch whisky connoisseurs around the world the ultimate single malt Scotch whisky experience that pushes the boundaries of luxury, quality and craftsmanship.
The new Longmorn 23 Year Old is the culmination of more than two decades of maturation in the finest traditional oak casks, chosen to complement the soft, creamy and rich flavour profile of the Longmorn spirit. Longmorn 23 Year Old is the peak interpretation of the distillery’s inimitable character and is bottled without chill-filtration, offering flavour notes of ripe pear and soft red apples that give way to a long, smooth finish. The expression is available at the RRP of $1,450.
Longmorn 16 Year Old and posh box
The definitive Longmorn 16 Year Old is now the ultimate version of what made the classic expression so revered; crafted using a higher proportion of rare first-fill American oak casks, the new Longmorn 16 Year Old offers a more luxurious mouth-feel, drinking experience and increased smooth, vanilla flavour notes. Rested in a combination of ex-sherry, American and traditional oak casks and still bottled without chill-filtration, Longmorn 16 Year Old has an enriched flavour profile of ripe orchard fruits, sweet vanilla and smooth milk chocolate and is available at the RRP of $252.
Founded in 1894, the Longmorn Distillery has a rich history of crafting exceptional single malt Scotch whiskies. Built during the golden age of industry, its founder John Duff ensured it would emblemise his pioneering insight into craft distilling and use the latest technology available. Established to cater for a growing appetite for fine whisky and luxury, each bottle of Longmorn single malt reflects this dedication to innovation and excellence and has been crafted to offer the ultimate luxury Scotch whisky experience, the product of exceptional talent and precision.
As part of the renaissance of Longmorn today, each expression in the range is presented in distinctive packaging that better befits its quality and reputation; the glass bottles have high, broad shoulders, a long pouring neck and are largely transparent to showcase the quality of the whisky inside. Other modern luxury cues reflect the golden era of luxury and the Industrial Revolution, when the distillery was founded. Longmorn 23 Year Old, is presented in a lacquered wooden gift box, underpinning the indulgence of the portfolio.
The completion of the Longmorn range follows the release of Longmorn The Distiller’s Choice in January 2016, whose name was inspired by the legend that Longmorn was every distiller’s favourite dram apart from their own. Longmorn The Distiller’s Choice offers a new way to enjoy the renowned classic toffee flavours found within the spirit from the distillery and has been well-received in 27 markets to date. The introduction of the Longmorn range is set to excite luxury spirits drinkers and is in response to an increasing demand for the most indulgent Scotch whiskies.
It is a great honour to be able to share two new prized creations from the Longmorn Distillery, Longmorn 23 Year Old and Longmorn 16 Year Old. The craft production methods at Longmorn have not changed since the days of John Duff and today we reap the rewards of this commitment, as they have allowed us to push the boundaries of quality and luxury in Scotch whisky.
Longmorn 16 Year Old has long been a firm favourite among Scotch whisky connoisseurs, but we wanted to make it even more luxurious than it was before and the Longmorn team has certainly achieved this. Similarly, Longmorn 23 Year Old offers the pinnacle presentation of the inimitable Longmorn spirit and provides the ultimate luxury Scotch whisky experience. I very much look forward to seeing whisky connoisseurs the world over discover one of Scotland’s best-kept secrets and I hope they enjoy these new expressions of this Speyside icon.
– Trevor Buckley: Longmorn Master Distiller
Through the addition of Longmorn 23 Year Old and the new Longmorn 16 Year Old, we are excited to unveil the newly complete Longmorn range to Scotch whisky aficionados around the world as it represents the ultimate luxury Scotch whisky experience from the distillery. Building on the unmistakable characteristics of excellence laid down by John Duff, who founded the distillery in the late 19th Century, the new Longmorn family has pushed the boundaries of luxury and quality and offers a new journey of discovery for discerning drinkers through the prestige whisky category – it’s certainly Longmorn’s time to shine.
– Miriam Eceolaza: Longmorn Brand Director at Chivas Brothers
Longmorn 16 Year Old tasting notes (48% ABV)
Nose: Stewed orchard fruits, layered with indulgent notes of sweet vanilla crème brûlée
Taste: The palate is rewarded with the rich flavours of ripe fruity pears and luxuriously smooth, creamy milk chocolate
Finish: Full-flavoured and exquisitely drawn out
Longmorn 23 Year Old tasting notes (48% ABV)
Nose: Soft vanilla fudge and creamy caramel, dipped in milk chocolate and honey
Taste: The taste leads with ripe pears and sweet red apples interlaced with tantalizingly spiced ginger cake
Finish: An exceptionally long and velvety smooth finish. A fitting reward for the patience and perfection that its founder put into its creation
Jura takes its island to central London, as it learns that 70% of Londoners don’t know where it is!
Jura Whisky announces that it is taking its remote island home to London – as it reveals that more than 70% of Londoners don’t know where it is, geographically.
While almost half knew of the island’s Single Malt Scotch Whisky, a massive 72.5% of 1,000 Londoners surveyed didn’t actually know where to find it on a map – with 12% thinking it is somewhere in England, 10% thinking it is in Hungary and 14% of those surveyed unable to guess at Jura’s location (Jura surveyed 1,000 Londoners through One Poll).
Now Jura wants to put its island home in the spotlight, giving Londoners a unique chance to explore its incredible coastlines, community, culture and craft without leaving the city – with a new experiential event created in collaboration with immersive art duo Art of Disappearing.
From 13th October, The Isle of the Unexpected invites Londoners to join an interactive, mystery adventure to help a fictional film director, Eric, find the inspiration he needs to finish his script. The answer lies on the island of Jura, which ticketholders can access through a secret door in The Looking Glass bar in Shoreditch. Londoners can expect to discover the island over a dram or two as they are guided by audio headset through physical sets, experience virtual reality flight and hunt for clues.
Nestled in the Inner Hebrides just off the West Coast of Scotland, the isle of Jura is as beautiful as it is remote. It has just one road, one pub, one shop and one iconic distillery, which employs 10% of the island’s population to craft Jura’s single malt whisky. Jura is just over half the size of central London, except with a population of just 200 people, who are vastly outnumbered by over 6,000 deer which roam the island.
This isn’t the first time Jura’s location has caused confusion – in 2013, it made headlines as it fell off Google maps. And while the general population in London might be unsure of its whereabouts, Jura’s remote location and dramatic coastlines have certainly made an impression amongst the cultural community – author George Orwell wrote 1984 while living there and the KLF notoriously burned one million pounds on the island. Jura has also served as a writing retreat for a number of musicians, most recently the Glaswegian band Errors, which wrote tracks for the album Lease of Life there.
People don’t know exactly where on the map you can find us. I’m not surprised as it can take up to 16 hours by train, plane, ferry and car to get from London to Jura and back again – but I’m proud of our award winning whiskies, which are enjoyed across the whole world.
Our island, distillery and community is full of wonderful stories just waiting to be uncovered, and it has inspired many authors and artists over the years. We welcome hundreds of visitors to the island every year, though The Isle of the Unexpected is the next best thing for those who want to discover the different sides of Jura and can’t make the long trip!
– Graham Logan: Jura Distillery manager
The Isle of the Unexpected, 13-15 & 19-22 October, The Looking Glass, 49 Hackney Rd, London E2 7NX, £5 plus 50p booking fee (includes two drams of Jura Whisky)
