Glen Grant 12 year old

Glen Grant is the testament of Major James Grant’s brilliant mind. He created tall slender stills and unique purifiers to capture only the finest vapours from the raw elements of the heartland.

With an ingenious mind and a charismatic personality, James Grant, “the Major”, was only twenty five when he inherited the Glen Grant Distillery in Rothes, Speyside. A forward thinking and unconventional man, he personally designed innovative tall slender pot stills with unique purifiers to achieve his vision of a seductively smooth, fruity, rich, superior single malt.

Glen Grant 12 Year Old is a sublime single malt with a bright golden colour and aromas of orchard fruits and vanilla. The palate reveals mouth-watering layers of apple pie, caramel and almonds. On the finish, soft summer fruits linger with honey and hints of spice.

“The Major” was one of the first distillers in Scotland to introduce purifiers into the distillation process. The purifiers further refine our whisky by ensuring only the very finest vapours condense into spirit. The result is an elegant and delicate style of whisky for which Glen Grant is renowned.

Tasting notes

Colour: Bright Gold

Aroma: Honey, pear and apple with hints of almond and citrus

Taste: Apple pie crust, caramel and vanilla

Finish: Lingering fruit with subtle hints of spice

OFFICIAL WEBSITE: www.highlandparkwhisky.com

*Info taken from bottle and website

Highland Park 12 year old Viking Honour

I am a reflection of my ancestors and their values. I keep them close and continue to learn, to pass on those values to future generations. My name is all I truly have. Let it be a legacy of honour.

 

Viking Honour

Viking honour is the heart and soul of Highland Park. It reflects the unique culture of our remote island home on Orkney – part of Scotland yes, but originally belonging to a vast viking kingdom. We’d like to share our story with you…

Here at Highland Park, we honour the spirit of our viking ancestors. We share their pride, integrity and fierce independence and that’s why we continue to distil our award-winning whisky to the same exacting standards introduced in 1798 by our founder, Magnus Eunson, a direct descendant of those early vikings.

The result is an intensely balanced single malt Scotch whisky – a perfect harmony of aromatic smoky peat and the flavours of sweet heather honey and rich fruit cake. Smooth, full and rounded, it’s a whisky that truly stands apart.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE: www.highlandparkwhisky.com

*Info taken from bottle

Penderyn Bourbon Matured Distillery Cask

This whisky has been hand bottled and labelled from a dedicated cask (by author), and is available exclusively from Penderyn’s Visitor Centre – 46% ABV.

TASTING NOTES

Green apples, banana and citrus fruits push to the front of this whisky, giving it a fresh, light nose to draw you in.

Boiled fruits, cinnamon and fresh cream on the palate create a flavour reminiscent of apple pie, followed by a butterscotch and vanilla finish.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE: www.penderyn-distillery.co.uk

*Info taken from bottle

Penderyn Rich Oak (Dr Jim Swan)

This is a rare small batch bottling combining three of our finest rich oak casks specially selected by our Master Distiller, the late and much missed, Dr Jim Swan.  Each bottle is individually hand labelled and hand numbered.

This is a rare small batch bottling combining three of our finest rich oak casks specially selected by our Master Distiller, the late and much missed, Dr Jim Swan.  Each bottle is individually hand labelled and hand numbered.

TASTING NOTES

Nosing this rich bronze coloured whisky reveals that Penderyn’s unique green apple, banana and tropical fruits have to share the limelight with crème brûlée and apparent fortified wine.  In the taste, it is intensely sweet to begin, then rich fruity and vanilla flavours emerge. This is a big, robust yet remarkably smooth whisky (try adding just a drop or two of water into its 50% strength). A melange of flavours gradually fades into a long finish with a creamy, vanilla-like aftertaste. A rewarding dram!

This is the first Penderyn to be released from the distillery’s own barrels, specially formulated to create a rich, smooth whisky.

No of Bottles: 2248

OFFICIAL WEBSITE: www.penderyn-distillery.co.uk

*Info taken from bottle

Penderyn Portwood Finished Single Malt Whisky (46% vol)

This limited expression of Penderyn Portwood single malt whisky acquires its delightful blush and syrupy character from a process of double maturation in ex-bourbon and rich ex-port casks.

The hillside village of Penderyn, southern gateway to the wild, beautiful Brecon Beacons National Park, gives its name to this unique Welsh single malt whisky, made here at the only distillery in Wales.

One of a very few distilleries in private hands today, Penderyn continues a treasured tradition; in the 18th Century an early welsh distiller was among the founding fathers of bourbon distilling in America.

Each day here we ‘charge’ our unique copper stills with a specially fermented single variety malted barley wash. The day’s distillation yields a single barrel of pure single malt spirit, which is married with spring water from our own source, then matured in selected first quality oak barrels.

Unique distillation and careful maturation create a single malt whisky in which a sweet, elegant Penderyn house style shines through. Even then, there’s more to do. To attain their full depth and complexity of flavour, different hand-crafted expressions of Penderyn are aged or finished in different woods.

The Penderyn Portwood whisky in this bottle has initially been aged to almost full maturation in specially selected ex-bourbon barrels from Kentucky. Additional maturation follows in the finest Portuguese ex-port barriques, imparting typically smooth and fruity flavours from this iconic fortified wine.

A rich blush colour with copper hues, this whisky delights with a syrupy Port character and notes of milky coffee and dark chocolate on the nose. In the taste, top notes of fresh strawberry and cream toffee come through first, complimented by vanilla, with dates, raisins and jam emerging. A lingering, sweet finish of honey and sticky treacle will ensure this whisky is memorable long after it’s finished.

Like the fabled Welsh Gold (in Welsh, Aur Cymru) used to make heirloom jewellery proudly worn by kings and princes down the ages, Penderyn single malt is rare and highly prized. To those who love it, it’s a new kind of Welsh Gold.

Note: This is the newer 46% vol ABV

OFFICIAL WEBSITE: www.penderyn-distillery.co.uk

*Info taken from bottle

 

Glenallachie Distillery Edition

Glenallachie Speyside single malt Scotch whisky matured in Traditional Oak. Our distillery edition brings together the purest water with the experienced hands of our makers to create a classic single malt of smooth sophistication.

Glenallachie Distillery Edition is aged in traditional oak barrels to bring out fresh fruity flavours together with smooth and delicate vanilla notes.

The Glenallachie Distillery was built at the foot of Ben Rinnes mountain – and for good reason. We explored 60 different waters before discovering the purest from springs 2000ft up the mountain’s north-east face. This spring water is naturally filtered as it gently flows through the steep slopes of Scottish moss and ancient granite to our whisky makers at the distillery door.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE:

*Info taken from bottle

Royal Brackla 16yr Old

Royal Brackla 16yr Old – The king’s own whisky

His Majesty having been please to distinguish this “by his Royal Command to supply his Establishment” has placed this Whisky first on the List of British Spirits and, when known, should in truth be termed “The Drink Divine”

The distillery at Brackla was founded in 1812 by Captain William Fraser as a way of using the barley that he grew on land rented from Lord Cawdor. For a while it was the only legal still between Inverness and Aberdeen, and its calibre gained acclaim in Glasgow, Edinburgh and London.

Like Captain Fraser, King Willian IV joined the military in his youth. During notable service with the Royal Navy, and his friend Nelson, he developed a taste for fine liquor. The ‘Sailor King’ granted Brackla whisky a Royal Warrant in 1833 – the first time a whisky had been so honoured.

The devotion to quality that raised Royal Brackla to its exalted position remains unchanged, we still source malt locally and use the Cawdor Burn’s pure water. Crucially, our slowly distilled spirit is then cloaked in the finest oak, with a rich finish in supreme quality Oloroso sherry butts. The result is a whisky of such character and complexity that it is today, as ever, fit for a king.

 

OFFICIAL WEBSITE: www.RoyalBrackla.com

*Info taken from bottle

Glen Marnoch Limited Release Sherry Cask Reserve

Glen Marnoch Limited Reserve Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky – Sherry Cask Finish edition.

First Cask: Whisky Oak – Maturation in American white oak casks for a minimum of 3 years by our master distiller gives the whisky a rich, mellow character with notes of malt, vanilla and honey.

Second Cask: Sherry Cask – The whisky is then transferred to imported Spanish sherry casks for further ageing. This adds layers of complexity, giving a rich spiciness with an enduring finish.

TASTING NOTES:

Aroma: A rich malty aroma with subtle notes of dried fruits and cinnamon. The sherry cask influence introduces an oaky, sherbet spice character.

Taste: Rich, spicy with layers of sweet oak, raisins, apricots and fresh oak. A drop of water releases the characteristic flavours of sherry cask.

Finish: Mellow and enduring.

 

Copper Dog

Speyside blended malt Scotch whisky.

In years long-passed, distillery workers would help themselves to a dram using a ‘Copper Dog’; a pipe hidden inside the leg of their trousers. These Speyside rascals and characters  are the inspiration for this unique blend of no fewer that eight single malt whiskies, slowly married together in old oak casks. An easy-drinking Scotch with ripe fruit aromas and a delicate spicy finish. First created in the Craigellachie Hotel.

It was created by master blender Stuart Morrison as a tribute to all distillery workers, and has its roots in The Craigellachie Hotel, located in the heart of Speyside whisky country.

Tasting Notes

Nose: Fresh fruit and toffee apple; an integration of ripe orchard fruits (apples and pears), berries and a hint of citrus, layered above a background of sweet wood and creamy vanilla fudge.

Palate: Rich creamy mouthfeel, toffee apple, caramelised sugars, soft fruits and a gentle wood presence. With water, fresher fruits become more pronounced on the nose (Bramley apple, Conference pear), alongside grape skin, green pear and more wood spice. Subtle, distant spices help carry the fruit and vanilla characters, giving a long and creamy finish.

OFFICIAL WEBSITE: https://www.thewhiskyexchange.com/p/36278/copper-dog

*Info taken from bottle and website

Bowmore No.1

Bowmore is the home to the world’s oldest Scotch maturation warehouse, the legendary No.1 Vaults. Some of the world’s most coveted single malts have been meticulously matured here, steeped in more that 230 years of heritage, matured in the finest casks.

Exclusively matured in first fill bourbon casks this Bowmore No.1 malt is singularly special. Vanilla sweetness, cinnamon spice and oak smoke beautifully complement the mouth-watering citrus, honeycomb and coconut flakes, culminating in a peat smoked, bourbon vanilla and lime finish.

Tasting Notes

On The Eye: honey gold

Breathe In: vanilla sweetness, cinnamon spice and oak smoke

Sip: mouth-watering citrus, honeycomb and coconut flakes

Savour: the peat smoked, bourbon vanilla and lime finish

OFFICIAL WEBSITE: www.bowmore.com

*Info taken from bottle and website