16 March 2016

Win a Bottle of Tullamore D.E.W. 12 Year Old


Following on from our epic success of our Tullamore D.E.W. Tweet Tasting and to help kick off of this year’s St Patrick’s Day in style, we’re thrilled to announce that we’re teaming up again with our good friends at Tullamore D.E.W. to offer one of our lucky followers the chance of winning a bottle of their dramspankingly delicious 12 Year Old Irish blended whiskey.

Tullamore D.E.W. 12 Year Old, is triple distilled, triple blended and triple cask matured. Made using all three types of Irish whiskey and matured in traditional refill, ex-bourbon and ex-sherry casks.

One of the many highlights from our recent trip to the distillery, where we hosted our Tweet Tasting, was being treated to a deconstructed tasting of the component whiskies which make up Tullamore D.E.W. All of which were superb but even after two weeks, we’re still blown away by the Single Malt and Pot Still elements, which are perfectly captured and have been superbly blended together in Tullamore D.E.W. 12 Year Old.

For your chance to win a bottle of Tullamore D.E.W. 12 Year Old, all you need to do is click here and email us your contact details along with the following phrase that dramming pays:

“I’d love to pour and explore
the dramspanking Irish dramming
ditty that is Tullamore.”

*Remember to mark the subject line of your email with: #TullamoreComp

You can also follow @TheWhiskyWire and @TullamoreDEWUK on Twitter and RT one of TWW's related competition tweets for another chance to win!

#TullamoreComp

For more information on Tullamore D.E.W. visit: tullamoredew.com
 
Competition closes at 23:59 on March 20th 2016. Entry open to over 18's & UK residents only.
 

10 March 2016

Whisky Insiders Interview - Keith Cruickshank



Company:
The Benromach Distillery Company

Job:
Distillery Manager

Website:
benromach.com




How long have you been working in the whisky industry?
I’ve been working in the whisky industry for the past 25 years. I started out working for Chivas Brothers, beginning on the shop floor before moving to become Warehouseman and Distillery Operative, doing a little bit of everything, from cask handling to production, along the way. Then in 1998 I joined Benromach, working for 16 of my 18 years here as Distillery Manager.

What has been your biggest career highlight to date?
That’s a tricky one to decide. I don’t know if I could pick just one highlight from the past 25 years, but personally I would say that having the opportunity to revive Benromach Distillery and being part of the growth and successes over the years is definitely a big highlight. Also being able to see someone buying a bottle of Benromach and enjoying the whisky we’ve put so much time and effort into creating. That’s very special.

Can you remember your first dram, and indeed what it was?
My first dram would have been a Bell’s 12 Years Old. Believe it or not, I actually didn’t start drinking whisky until I was about 30. As you get older your palate starts to appreciate things in a different way, and I think that you begin to enjoy the finer things in life, such as whisky.

What does whisky mean to you?
Whisky has given me a lot of opportunities in my life, and has opened a lot of doors for me. Put simply, it’s what I do and what I’m passionate about. Several members of my family worked in the industry for so many years that it has almost become a way of life for me. Very few people these days have the opportunity to go from working on the shop floor to achieving Manager level, so I’ve been very privileged.

Where would you like to see yourself in five years’ time?
In five years’ time I still see myself at Benromach. I’ve been part of the Benromach journey right from the beginning, and we’re still learning and growing every day. In the last few years alone we have increased production over 200%, so in five years’ time I would like to see us reach the potential of what the brand, and the distillery, could achieve, and I hope to be right here steering the ship with the team.

What was your last dram?
The last dram I enjoyed was a Benromach 10 Years Old, which is currently my whisky of choice!

Do you have a favourite whisky and food pairing combination?
Whisky and food is a strange one, I like chocolate and cheese with whisky, and strangely enough Benromach goes well with both. Personally I prefer Benromach 10 Years Old with cheese, because I think you get even more flavours from the whisky, but there are so many options when it comes to food and whisky.

What’s your favourite time and place to enjoy a dram?
Without a doubt my favourite place to enjoy a dram of Benromach is at home.

What do you think is going to be the next big thing on the whisky horizon?
For the industry as a whole I think we need to continue to ensure we are delivering exceptional products to consumers across the world who are seeking authentic, high quality products with real provenance. Single malt whisky fits well with these aspirations. There continues to be exciting opportunities in both emerging and traditional whisky markets, as well the opportunity of attracting new consumers to single malt.

Here at Benromach it’s about looking ahead at how we’re going to grow and mature. We’ve now got a Benromach 5, 10 and 15 Years Old. We also recently released a rare and exclusive whisky crafted at the distillery before the Urquhart family, owners of Gordon & MacPhail, revived it in 1998. It’s all about looking ahead to how Benromach develops and grows over the coming years. I tend to look at our Benromach range as a family. We can see the difference in age and maturation in each of our expressions, just as we can with a family.

What’s the one dram you couldn’t live without?
At the moment it would have to be Benromach 10 Years Old, it’s a perfect example of what we do at the distillery and the ideal dram to showcase the classic pre-1960s Speyside character.
 
Many thanks to Keith Cruickshank. Who will be the next Whisky Insider? Click back soon to find out!

23 February 2016

Become a part of distilling history at Kingsbarns


Back in January 2015 our good friends at Kingsbarns Distillery in Fife, started distilling for the first time, and in just under two years from now their first barrels of maturing spirit will legally be classed as Scotch whisky.
To celebrate the first anniversary of the Wemyss family owned distillery, they've launched the Kingsbarns Distillery Founders’ Club. Limited to just 3000 members, it will provide a unique opportunity for those who sign up to be part of its distilling history.
As a member of the Kingsbarns Founders’ Club, you will be one of the first to own and sample single malt whisky produced at the Kingsbarns Distillery. Not only will you receive a bottle of the inaugrul Kingsbarns Single Malt Founders’ Reserve in 2018, you will also receive further Founders’ Club Reserve bottlings annually until 2022.
For more information and to sign up as a member click here
 

10 February 2016

The Glenmorangie Milsean "A Cavalcade of Candy"

In addition to the ever growing wealth of whisky shows and fests that have popped up over the last few years, the whisky calendar is now also well and truly firmed up with a plethora of annual releases from brands launching premium priced, non-core range expressions that have either been uniquely aged, finished or are experimental in some way.

From Special Releases to Committee bottlings, these highly anticipated and limited in number offerings, provide pieces of liquid distillery history to enthusiasts and collectors alike, or sadly but in thankfully lesser numbers, whisky auction fodder for those wanting to make a quick buck.

The annual releases roll into action each January, with the more experimentally focussed Private Edition series launch from The Glenmorangie. Where to date different wine finishes, barley types, cask management and the traditional use of peat have been used to create some truly exciting and enticing drops of dramspankage.

This year and as ever with Dr Bill Lumsden, Glenmorangie’s Head of Distilling & Whisky Creation at the helm, the 7th bottling in the series was recently launched, in the form of The Glenmorangie Milsean. A non-age statement (NAS) bottling, which takes its name from the Gaelic for 'Sweet Things' and is essentially their 10 Year Old Original expression, that has been extra-matured in heavily toasted Portuguese red wine casks.

The nose kicks off with a colossal candy cavalcade of cherry drops, pineapple cubes, dolly mixtures, lemon sherbets, coconut ice and all the strawberry chocolate fondants from a box of Quality Street. Followed by a big wondrous wedge of summer pudding, drenched in cold Ambrosia custard.

Orange zest, granny smith apples and a medley of fresh tropical fruit, infused with tobacco leaf and black pepper make for the next set of nasal niceties, along with ready rolled icing, vanilla fudge, sugared almonds and something rather ravishingly bourbon-esque.

The palate dishes up and delivers all the promises that were made on the nose, with all the organised calorific candy commotion balancing out and evolving into a wealth of more five a day friendly dried fruits, assorted citrus peels and maraschino cherries.

Warm treacle tart, oven baked bananas and a buttered slice of Jamaican fruit bun then make for the next trio of palatable pleasures, along with cinnamon sticks, ground black pepper and oodles of opulent and charismatic charred oak.

Just as an athlete would aim to deliver his or her best in all parts of a triathlon, this candy-copia of a dram is as tenaciously triumphant on the nose, palate and on its lush linger-ette of a finish, in this Glenmorangie dramathlon.

All in all, this latest release is a superb new addition to the Private Edition series. But the real highlights and heroes that stand out during every savouring sip, are the rich and robust, feisty and fruity Glenmorangie distillery signature style of notes, which this dramspanker exudes effortlessly in abundance.

So if Milsean stretches the boundaries of your budget (RRP £75.99) I urge you to try or revisit the Glenmorangie 10 Year Old Original (RRP £29.99) to experience and appreciate a true cracking corker of a core range classic.


9 February 2016

Tullamore D.E.W. Tweet Tasting


Continuing our hugely successful triumphant teeming throng of Tweet Tastings, we’re absolutely thrilled to announce that on March 2nd we’ll be pouring and exploring a joyous and jubilant dramboree of Irish dramming ditties from Tullamore D.E.W.
On the night we’ll be tweet tasting live from the distillery, as we share, sip and savour their Original, 12 Year Old, 14 Year Old and Cider Cask Finish expressions.
Full details coming soon, but if you would like take part in what will be an Irish dramming night to remember click here to register your interest by emailing your name, address and Twitter handle, remembering to mark the subject line of the email: #TullamoreDEW
The closing date to register is February 19th, and if you are registering to take part please make sure that you will actually be free on the night!!!
Even if you're not one of the selected Tweet Tasters, it'd be great to have you following all the evening’s dramspankery. So we look forward to seeing you over on Twitter on March 2nd at 7pm GMT via hashtag #TullamoreDEW
Registration open to over 18's only
For more information on Tullamore D.E.W. visit: tullamore.com
@TheWhiskyWire
@TullamoreDEWUK

3 February 2016

Benromach Tweet Tasting III


They say that good things come in three’s and there’s certainly no exception when it comes to our triumphant teaming throng of Tweet Tastings, as we’re thrilled to announce that on March 10th we’ll be hosting our third evening, sipping and savouring a selection of splendorous Speyside whisky wares from the Benromach Distillery.
We’re also thrilled to announce that as part of its world launch, the evening will be headlined by Benromach’s new 35 Year Old bottling. An expression that was handcrafted  in the 1980s using the finest natural ingredients at their Forres distillery. Created under the watchful eye of former Distillery Manager Donald MacDonald.
Produced with the same passion and tradition as the new 35 Year Old, we’ll also be pouring and exploring a selection of Benromach’s multi award winning core range expressions.
Full details to follow soon, but if you would like to take part in a very special evening, sampling some splendorous Speyside sips and be one of the limited few to sample the new Benromach 35 Year Old, click here to register your interest by emailing your name, address and Twitter handle, remembering to mark the subject line of the email: #Benromach35
The closing date to register is February 12th, and if you are registering to take part please make sure that you will actually be free on the night!!!
Even if you're not one of the selected Tweet Tasters, it'd be great to have you following all the evening’s dramfotainment. So we look forward to seeing you over on Twitter on March 10th at 7pm GMT via hashtag #Benromach35
Registration open to over 18's only

For more information on Benromach visit: benromach.com
@TheWhiskyWire

@Benromach