
SMWS Launches New Online Whisky Course
A new whisky course has been developed by the Scotch Malt Whisky Society (SMWS). The Focus on Flavour course is released in partnership with The Edinburgh Whisky Academy (EWA). This online course and accompanying tasting pack are available to both SMWS members and nonmembers. New members can enroll for £75 while returning members can register […]

Death And The Macallan Take Over Halekulani In Honolulu
New York-based cocktail bar Death & Company is collaborating with Edrington-owned The Macallan and instituting a “takeover” of Lewers Lounge in the iconic Halekulani hotel on Waikiki in Honolulu on the island of Oah’u in Hawai’i. The “takeover” – which begins on Friday, October 25, 2024 at 7pm and ends the next day, Saturday, October […]
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Bowmore 25 Year Old
Today’s review is of another Japanese whisky (I’ve previously reviewed Suntory Yamazaki). Established in 1779 on an island well known of its whisky production, it is one of the oldest distilleries on that island and indeed the country to which it belongs. I’m being cryptic on purpose here, of course; any guesses as to which distillery, or island, I’m talking about? Five points if you get it right – the […]

Monkey Shoulder Triple Malt
Monkey Shoulder is a blend of 3 Speyside whiskys; Kininvie, Balvenie and Glenfiddich, all of which are owned by William Grant & Sons, as is Monkey Shoulder. If I were to guess based on the marketing of the product (have a look at its website, for example) it would seem to be an attempt to reach a younger audience than is usual for a single malt. The bottle has a […]

Cameron whisky?
Some love him, some hate him, but I have never heard anyone state a wish to drink him. Regardless of the current demand for such a luxury, it may become a real possibility to do so in the future. The man I’m talking about is David Cameron, the new British Prime Minister, who may have a whisky named after him should he allow it. The idea was thought up by […]

Whisky Cocktail: Rusty Nail
I literally have no history to give you for this cocktail, or anything else of interest really. All I know is that it is an American cocktail, probably from New York. You’ll need: 1½c of Scottish Whisky – I’d recommend Ardbeg 10 year old for the job ½-¾c of Drambuie 4-5 cubes of Ice Method: This is about as straight forward as it gets; fill an Old Fashioned glass with […]

Annandale distillery set to reopen
Imagine falling asleep for 91 years, 91, and waking up in 2010 – how different the world would be to the one you had known. The buildings, transport, clothing, social structure, technology and, perhaps most importantly, tastes would all be completely different to what you had once known. Life as you knew it would be forever lost, and finding your place in this new world probably prove difficult, time-consuming and […]

Bunnahabhain 12 Year Old
I decided, on a whim, to go on a 3 week vacation to Sweden. As you may know from previous posts I have family here and I try to come over every once in a while. After a short road trip I arrived at my final destination – the coastal city of Karlskrona – where I am staying right by the sea. At the moment of writing, the sun is […]

Whisky Caramelized Bacon
Okay! So we’ve covered the burger and the marinade, what we need now is something that can act as a side dish or burger topping. One of my favorite things in cooking is to try and think of something new, and one of my most recent, and popular, “inventions” is whisky caramelized bacon. The basic thinking was take two delicious things (bacon, whisky) and combine them in a delicious way […]
Ardmore Traditional Cask
Why I decided to get a white carpet for my “library”/whisky room is, in retrospect, beyond me. Quite apart from the fact that it is tasteless, how did I not stop to think something along the lines of “hang on a minute… I’ve never owned a white item of clothing which hasn’t been, within the first 3 times of wearing it, horribly stained. Perhaps a white carpet isn’t a great […]
Whisky Cocktail: Champagne Julep
A fancy name for a flashy cocktail, I love this stuff on a warm summer day. The only problem is that you can only really make it if you’re a rather heavy drinker or have guests, as it I at least find the selection of miniature sparkling white or champagne is quite limited. This is guaranteed to go down a treat with some chocolate cake by the way, the darker […]
Tesco Whisky
The name alone may be enough to put most people off this whisky, in fact it probably is enough to make all but the very young and those very deep in the pit of alcoholism take a quick step to the side and forget they even saw it. What I am talking about is Tesco Special Reserve Scotch Whisky, the special probably referring to what separates this whisky from most […]
Suntory Yamazaki 12 Year Old
Founded in 1923, the Yamazaki distillery – named after the Yamazaki Valley, where the distillery lays – is the oldest distillery in Japan. And that, I’m afraid, is pretty much all the history I could find. I suppose that leaves us with little choice but to go straight for the tasting. Ah, life can be tough at times, wouldn’t you say? I was actually given the miniature bottle standing in […]
Arran 10 Year Old
I was just about to state that this is the youngest distillery I have written about so far, as it was founded in 1995, but that would actually be a lie. It is, in fact, 4 years the senior of Mackmyra. It is the youngest Scottish distillery I’ve written about, however, and in my opinion that is enough to make it quite interesting! It is also the only distillery on […]
Whisky Cocktail: Loretto Limonade
This one usually goes down nicely with the ladies at any time or with pretty much anyone after a big meal when you want something sweet. While the recipe calls for a shaker, don’t let that put you off if you don’t have one, a thermos will do just fine. You’ll need: 2 parts Bourbon (as ever, Benchmark is good for the purpose) 1 part Midori (melon liqueur, available at […]
Talisker 10 Year Old
Yet another distillery owned by the fairly well known and decently large corporation that is Diageo, Talisker is the only distillery on the Isle of Skye and was originally founded in 1830. The first Talisker distillery was built in 1831, however it has since been completely rebuilt after it was lost in a fire in 1960. Exact replicas of the original stills were built for the new distillery in an […]
BrewDog Paradox Isle of Arran
This isn’t the first time that I’ve mentioned BrewDog on the blog – they’re a Scottish brewery of modern, bold ales. While they’ve only been around since 2007, they’ve already made quite the name for themselves on a global scale; partly due to the high quality of their products, but partly due to releases such as their Tokyo stout (18.2% abv) which was banned in the UK due to a […]
Smokehead
Smokehead is a single malt Islay whisky, distilled by… I don’t know, actually, it’s a bit of a secret. Popular guesses include Lagavulin and Ardbeg, I’m personally not sure which one I lean more towards. Whoever distils it, it’s young, I can tell you that much. From the design of their bottle and website, it is fairly clear that Smokehead are trying to attract a younger audience, and I’m all […]
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