Archives for October 2, 2020

Compass Box Whisky Releases ‘Hedonism Felicitas’ To Mark Its 20th Anniversary!

October 2, 2020 by Gary Leave a Comment

Compass Box Hedonism Felicitas

For the past two decades, Compass Box has sought to make the world of Scotch whisky a more interesting place and show that blends can be as good as, if not better than, single malt whiskies.

To mark its 20th anniversary this year, Compass Box is proud to announce the global launch of Hedonism Felicitas, a special limited edition expression that pays tribute to the whisky that originally launched the brand.

Launching our business with Hedonism was widely seen at the time as unusual, because so few Scotch whisky companies bottle 100% grain whiskies. I am hopeful that over the years, we have shown people how delicious good quality Scotch grain whisky can be and as a result, Hedonism has become a signature whisky for us.

For these reasons, we love to create special, limited edition Hedonism bottlings to commemorate important milestones and events.
– John Glaser: Founder and Whiskymaker

“Hedonism Felicitas is intended to convey the good fortune, happiness and gratitude we feel having met and worked with so many remarkable people”

20 Years of Game-Changing Reinvention

Having released more than 100 whiskies since forming Compass Box on October 23, 2000, John Glaser has proved that Scotch whisky can be more than the rules that traditionally define the spirit.

At every turn, Compass Box strives to do what has not been done before – such as taking inspiration from the wine world for its different uses of oak and pushing for greater transparency in whisky through its 2016 Transparency Campaign.

Compass Box has also teamed up with partners who share the same forward vision and desire to think differently, such as award-winning design agency Stranger & Stranger, world-renowned mixologist Ryan Chetiyawardana, Chicago’s iconic venue Delilah’s, and the innovative craft beer company, BrewDog.

Hedonism Felicitas was created to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Compass Box and draws together three grain whiskies, each distilled in a different decade. Led by Whiskymaker James Saxon, this vibrant and stately expression is bottled at a higher strength to deliver a rich concentration of creamy textures and sweet flavours for which aged grain whisky is rightly celebrated.

Hedonism Felicitas is intended to convey the good fortune, happiness and gratitude we feel having met and worked with so many remarkable people.
– James Saxon: Whiskymaker

53% ABV. RRP: 70cl £140.00.
2,226 bottles produced

Hedonism Felicitas Tasting Notes

Creamy coconut intertwines with notes of caramel, vanilla and almond. Apple and greengage add a delicious weight with a soft finish packed with creamy toffee. Enjoy in a wide-bowled wine glass. To reveal toastier aromas and subtle fruitiness, add a single ice cube.

Technical Details:
· Blended Grain Scotch Whisky
· Light 5-micron filter, not chill-filtered
· Natural colour

Compass Box is available to buy from these Merchants:-

The Whisky Exchange
Master of Malt
Edencroft Fine Wine & Spirit Specialists
The Little Whisky Shop
Tyndrum Whisky

Long-Awaited First Spirit Finally Flows At Renegade Rum Distillery!

October 2, 2020 by Gary Leave a Comment

Renegade Rum Distillery

The long-awaited first spirit has finally flowed from the US$25 million Renegade Rum Distillery, Mark Reynier’s pioneering terroir-driven rum project in Grenada.

Located on the north eastern coast of the Windward Island, Renegade Rum is a state-of-the-art distillery – the first of its scale to have been designed from the ground up for terroir-bred sugar cane.

As well as cutting-edge still design and digital logistics, Renegade Rum Distillery is built on sophisticated technology for air filtration and water purification of waste streams, thus ensuring distilling systems run in rhythm with natural systems.

CEO Mark Reynier with Son, Ruari, filling barrel number 1!

Renegade Rum Distillery is the vision of Mark Reynier, CEO of the pioneering terroir-driven Waterford Distillery in Ireland, and who resurrected the Islay distillery of Bruichladdich in 2001.

Using the same methodology as France’s greatest vignerons, Reynier’s ambition is to create the world’s most profound rum by extracting flavours from Grenada’s isolated parcels of sugar cane grown on the diverse and fertile volcanic terroirs, with complete individuality from cane to cask.

In the face of severe COVID-19 restrictions and consequent ban of commissioning experts, the distillery’s vast components from 10 different countries, including mill, horizontal fermentors and pot and column stills, were commissioned by the home-grown Renegade Rum team under remote guidance.

On the afternoon of September 21st, 2020, after milling sugar cane grown on the La Sagesse farm, Head Distiller Devon Date made the cut to hearts – and the distillery was finally making Renegade Rum.

I started planning the project in June 2015 after an initial exploratory trip to the island. Immediately I felt this was the right home for Renegade after a fruitless 10 year search. It has been a veritable rollercoaster of a ride since then and several times I was on the point of giving up – frustrated by the lack of progress, dead ends and delays. Several times I wondered whether I had bitten off more than I could chew.

We had the chance to make something really special here, with the latest thinking, drawing on our distilling experience from Scotland and Ireland to support the unique underpinning Renegade philosophy: rum defined by Grenada’s geology, farm by farm, field by field.

Unusually this project has been both back to front and upside down: first we had to propagate cane where none existed to prove it was worthwhile building a distillery; then we had to design it backwards, from the end waste streams back to the incoming cane.

Now we have a landmark, state-of-the-art-distillery, the envy of the industry, built and run by Grenadians to use Grenadian cane – the veritable spirit of Grenada. After all the blood, tears, sweat of determination and technical ingenuity – not to mention a global pandemic – we are delighted that the Renegade Rum Distillery is alive.
– Mark Reynier: CEO

Renegade Rum Team

Glasgow Distillery Announces Exclusive Cask Ownership Offer!

October 2, 2020 by Gary Leave a Comment

A selection of casks from the distillery’s cask portfolio will be released for private purchase!

The Glasgow Distillery Company has announced that a selection of casks from the distillery’s cask portfolio will be released for private purchase.

The announcement comes as the distillery confirms that they will no longer be accepting new members into their prestigious Cask Club programme; a scheme that previously allowed members of the public to purchase a cask of newly laid down spirit.

The distillery has quickly gained a reputation for producing whisky of outstanding quality!

Forty casks have been carefully hand-selected by the founders from the distillery’s maturing stocks, providing whisky enthusiasts one final opportunity to secure a piece of Glasgow Distillery history.

Among the forty casks made available is a selection of unpeated, triple distilled and peated casks from across the years, making each cask truly unique.

The distillery has quickly gained a reputation for producing whisky of outstanding quality; their Glasgow 1770 Single Malt Scotch Whisky has picked up an assortment of gold medal awards across multiple international spirit competitions, including the accolade of ‘Best Lowland Whisky’ at The International Whisky Competition for two consecutive years.

More recently, the distillery has announced a £5.5 million asset based agreement with Barclay’s to support the distillery’s international growth and expansion plans, which comes on the back of returning a profit for the last financial year.

Liam Hughes: “After these casks have been sold there will be no more for sale to private individuals. This opportunity will not come around again”

We would like to thank everyone who has supported us over the last few years, whether that’s by simply keeping up to date with our recent news, purchasing a bottle from our ever-growing range of spirit brands or putting your name to your very own cask.

During the early stages of a distillery’s life cycle, programmes such as our ‘Cask Club’ are particularly important to the growth of the business and as we now move into a new and exciting phase in the history of Glasgow Distillery we felt it was only right to give people who have supported us one last chance to obtain a cask from our maturing portfolio.

We are delighted with the response from existing Cask Club members who enjoyed an exclusive preview opportunity before we made today’s announcement and we anticipate further interest from many of our single malt supporters.

After these casks have been sold there will be no more for sale to private individuals. This opportunity will not come around again.
– Liam Hughes: CEO and Co-founder of The Glasgow Distillery Company

Each cask is available on a first-come-first-served basis and is able to be reserved via glasgowdistillery.com.

Glasgow Distillery products are available to buy from:-

Master of Malt

Rampur ‘Asava’ – The World’s First Single Malt Whisky Finished In Indian Wine Casks!

October 2, 2020 by Gary Leave a Comment

Rampur Asava Indian Single Malt Whisky!

Radico Khaitan is launching an innovative and exciting new expression in the UK at The Whisky Show 2020 – Rampur Asava Indian Single Malt Whisky!

For the first time in history, a single malt matured in American Bourbon Barrels is carefully finished in Indian Cabernet Sauvignon casks, at one of Asia’s largest distilleries.

Rampur Asava is also non-chill filtered and bottled at 45% ABV, resulting in a ground-breaking expression with perfect balance.

Available exclusively from The Whisky Exchange from mid October 2020!

The combination of Rampur’s unique distillation and maturation process sees this single malt taking traditional Indian heritage and rooting it in contemporary culture.

Produced at a distillery located in the foothills of the Himalayas, this luxury whisky combines tradition with innovation through the use of Indian Cabernet Sauvignon casks.

The unique distillery location exposes the whiskies to polar opposite climate conditions throughout the year, with the flavour of the famous Indian Summer giving Rampur Single Malts an added dimension and depth.

Rampur Asava is an exciting addition to Rampur’s Indian Single Malt Whisky range, which currently includes Rampur Select, Rampur Double Cask, limited edition Rampur Sherry PX and the ultra exclusive Rampur Signature Reserve.

We are very proud of our Indian heritage and Rampur Asava is another step in bringing the unique whiskies of India to the world. We are confident the exotic and unique Indian flavours will delight your palate.
– Sanjeev Banga: President of International Business at Radico Khaitan

“We are always striving to make each Rampur expression of the highest quality and exciting for malt whisky drinkers”

We are always striving to make each Rampur expression of the highest quality and exciting for malt whisky drinkers. The diverse weather conditions at the distillery have enabled us to be creative and experiment with our single malts.

I was inspired to create Rampur Asava as I wanted to see how the dark fruit flavours of an Indian Cabernet Sauvignon would develop the flavour of Rampur Single Malt Whisky.

I am delighted with the results as there is an impeccable balance of taste in this finely perfected golden nectar that lingers on your taste buds.
– Anup Barik: Master Distiller at Rampur Distillery

Rampur Asava Indian Single Malt Whisky RRP: £68.95 ABV: 45% – Available exclusively from: The Whisky Exchange from mid October 2020.

Rampur Distillery (Instagram: @rampursinglemalt)

Tasting Notes:

Appearance: Dark mahogany

Nose: Typical tropical fruity note of Rampur with added notes of apricot, blackberry, black currant, dark cherry & plum followed with a faint hint of tobacco and spices.

Palate: Velvety, Manuka honey sweetness highlighted by spicy oak, vanilla and balanced with dryness from Indian red wine.

Finish: Medium to long finish which gently lingers on the palate

Best Of The Month selections From The Whisky Exchange!

October 2, 2020 by Gary Leave a Comment

Malt of the Month!

MALT OF THE MONTH

Teaninch 1993
17 Year Old
Special Releases 2017

70cl | 55.9%
£165 (was £265)
Save £100

Matured in first-fill casks for 17 years, this whisky was released in 2017 as part of Diageo’s annual Special Releases. Initially sweet and zesty, this dram hides herbal notes beneath its toffee, lemon and apple flavours, making it a wonderful aperitif or a partner to Asian cuisine.

Bottled to celebrate ten years of London Cocktail Week, this gin from Portobello Road has been made with 10 botanicals, one for each year, including rosemary, coffee beans, hibiscus flower, Amalfi lemon and juniper. A fitting gin for all your favourite cocktails.” rel=”noopener noreferrer”>
SPIRIT OF THE MONTH