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Our Blog, Whisky

Kilchoman Sanaig

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Kilchoman Sanaig

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sanaig, a small rocky inlet North West of the distillery is the name given to this continuously available release. Sanaig has a predominantly sherry cask influence owing to the significant time spent in oloroso sherry Hogsheads. These aged oloroso casks contribute a drastically transformed depth of colour and character compared to the mostly Bourbon cask matured Machir Bay. “A beautiful marriage of bourbon and sherry maturation balanced with classic Islay peat smoke and light citrus sweetness”Anthony Wills, Founder. Sanaig was awarded Best Single Malt Scotch Whisky – Non Age Statement at the IWSC 2016.

Our Blog, Whisky

Kilchoman Machir Bay

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kilchoman-machir-bay_1_2

Machir Bay is the flagship of the Kilchoman range. Machir Bay is a unique and complex combination of ex-bourbon barrels and Oloroso sherry butts. Machir Bay was first launched in 2012 when it won the prestigious IWSC 2012 Gold Award and more recenty in 2016 it was awarded best Islay Single Malt at the IWC.

Machir Bay has a beautiful balance of vanilla, smokey butterscotch and rich fruitiness each contributing in complexity and combining to create a truly unique Islay dram

Recipe

Classic Malts of Scotland – Signature Cocktails

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Singleton 12 YO : Highland Gathering
60ml Singleton 12YO
30ml ginger honey syrup
20 ml fresh imported lemon juice
Top with green tea soda.
Build in a hi-ball glass with cubed ice and garnish with candied ginger & dehydrated lemon slice.

Talisker 10 YO: Salted Caramel Old Fashioned
60 ml Talisker 10 YO
15ml salted caramel syrup
3 dashes orange bitters.
Stir in mixing glass with cubed ice and serve in a rocks glass over single ice block and garnish with orange twist.

Glenkinchie 12 YO: Edinburgh Sour
45ml Glenkinchie 12YO
20ml Martini Bianco
20 ml fresh lime juice
15ml apricot syrup
egg white
3 dashes orange bitters
Add all ingredients to shaker and shake with cracked ice. Double strain into wine glass over cubed ice and garnish with dried apricot.

Cardhu 12 YO: Red Flag up
50ml Cardhu 12 YO
15ml Campari
15ml sweet vermouth
3 dashes angostura bitters
Top with soda water
Build in hi-ball glass with cubed ice and garnish with an orange wedge.

Cragganmore 12 YO : Kilted Ambrosia
60ml Cragganmore 12 YO
15ml date & star anise syrup
3 dashes of chocolate bitters
10 ml shiraz
Stir all ingredients with cubed ice in a mixing glass and strain into chilled coupette. Serve with shortbread.

Clynelish 14YO: Northern Lights
50ml White chocolate washed Clynelish 14YO
10 ml orange peel infused honey syrup
3 dashes orange bitters
Stir in Mixing glass and serve over ice block in a old fashioned glass. Garnish with star anise piece.

Dalwhinnie 15YO: Crossover Fizz
60 ml Dalwhinnie 15YO
20ml thyme syrup
40 ml freshly pressed green apple juice
10 ml freshly squeezed imported lemon juice
egg white
Shake all ingredients and strain into hi-ball glass with cubed ice. Top with soda water and garnish with flamed thyme and green apple slice.

Oban 14 YO – Gingerbread Manhattan
50 ml Oban 14YO
10 ml gingerbread syrup
5 ml freshly squeezed orange juice
10 ml sweet vermouth
2 dashes Angostura bitters
Shake all ingredients and strain into chilled coupette and garnish with orange twist.

Lagavulin 16YO: Island Sweetheart
50ml Lagavulin 16 YO
20 ml cherry cola syrup
3 dashes angostura bitters
Stir all ingredients together and strain into chilled sherry glass and garnish with fresh cherry.

Caol Ila 12 YO – Smoked Westside
60ml caol ila 12 YO
20ml litchi juice
8 mint leaves
20 ml fresh lemon juice
15ml honey syrup
Shake all ingredients with cubed ice and strain into a chilled martini glass and garnish with single mint leaf.

Scotland

Cragganmore 12 YO – Speyside

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Cragganmore

 

 

 

 

CRAGGANMORE STORY
The Cragganmore Distillery was founded in 1869 by John
Smith, who is said to have been the most experienced
distiller of his day. He had been manager of Macallan,
Glenlivet and Wishaw distilleries, and was lease-holder of
Glenfarclas Distillery when he persuaded his landlord, Sir
George Macpherson-Grant, to lease him the land to build
a new distillery at Ballindalloch beside the Strathspey
railway line.

Cragganmore was the first distillery to be deliberately
sited to take advantage of the railway line and a private
siding was built to accommodate distillery traffic. John
Smith was a great railway enthusiast, but since he
weighed 22 stones (140kg) and was too wide to enter a
railway carriage, he was obliged to travel in the Guard’s
van.

PERFECT SERVE
Cragganmore 12 Year Old is one of the most complex
single malts with layers of sweet floral fragrances, wood
smoke, riverside herbs, vanilla and cereals. It is best
enjoyed neat or on the rocks.

Cragganmore 110349Appearance: Gold
Nose: A combination of sweet floral fragrances, riverside herbs and
flowers with some honey and vanilla.
Body: Firm, rounded, light to medium
Palate: A strong malty taste with hints of sweet wood smoke and
sandalwood.
Finish: A long, malt-driven finish with light smoke and hints of
sweetness.

Scotland

Lagavulin 16 YO – Islay

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Lagavulin

LAGAVULIN STORY
Founded in 1816 by local farmer John Johnston,
succeeding more than 10 illicit stills that had previously
been on the site. Now one of eight operating distilleries
on Islay off the west coast of Scotland
Named Lagavulin after a Gaelic word meaning “the
hollow where the mill is”

Aged in ex bourbon casks, the high levels of peat,
coupled with its rich flavours make this the definitive
Islay malt and the Holy Grail for many whisky drinkers.

PERFECT SERVE
Lagavulin 16 Year Old is an intense, smoky-sweet single
malt with seaweed flavours and a huge finish, aged in oak
casks for at least sixteen years. This is best appreciated
neat or on the rocks.

Picture 2934
Picture 2934

Appearance: Deep Amber Gold
Nose: Intense peat-smoke and a rich, deep sweetness
Body: Full
Palate: Srong and intense with a rich, dried fruit sweetness &
peppery smoky
Finish: Huge, long and warming

Scotland

Caol Ila 12 YO – Islay

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Caol ila

 

CAOL ILA STORY
Caol Ila is the Gaelic name for the Sound of Islay, which
separates the island from Jura in one of the most remote
and beautiful parts of Scotland’s West Coast. Caol Ila is
the only distillery on Islay to face due east, and every
morning the six stills are the first to feel the dawn of the
day on their copper faces.
Nestled in a hidden cove near Port Askaig, the Caol Ila
(pronounced “Cull Eela”) distillery sent its whisky to
market by sea for over a hundred years.

PERFECT SERVE
Caol Ila 12 Year Old is a fresh, sweetly fruity and smoothbodied,
with a delicate balance of tastes which is best enjoyed
neat or on the rocks.

Caol ila Bottle 12yrs low-res

Appearance: Pale Straw
Nose: Subdued, citric fruitiness, a fresh and appetizing nose, with
little or no trace of smoke.
Body: Firm, smooth, light to medium
Palate: Drinks well at natural strength; sweet start; pleasant, light
fragrant smokiness and a lengthy finish. Smooth, pleasant
mouth-feel.. A complex balance of primary tastes.
Finish: Sweet smokiness in the lingering, slightly sour finish

Scotland

Oban 14 YO – West Highland

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Oban

 

 

OBAN STORY
Fine single malt whisky has been made here in Oban for
over 200 years, in one of the oldest licensed distilleries in
Scotland. In effect, the town grew up around the
distillery and since its foundation in 1794 it has played a
crucial role in local life. Oban is the frontier between the
West Highlands and the Islands; the meeting place
between land and sea.

In 1883 the unforgettably named J. Walter Higgin bought
the distillery. Between 1890 and 1894 he dismantled and
rebuilt it bit by bit, in order to keep it in production – such
was the demand for Oban Single Malt Scotch Whisky. He
carefully replicated the famously small stills and other
traditional features in order to preserve the quality of the
whisky.

The distillery buildings and their internal arrangements
remain almost the same today as they were following
Higgin’s refurbishment.

PERFECT SERVE
Oban 14 Year Old has a rich sweetness followed by a
smokey dryness that is best appreciated neat or on the
rocks.

Picture 2959
Picture 2959

Appearance: Olive Gold
Nose: Rich sweetness and oranges & lemons with sea-salt and
peaty smokiness
Body: full, rich
Palate: Mouth filling, dried figs and honey-sweet spices, followed
by a smoky, malty dryness
Finish: Long, smooth-sweet finish with oak-wood, dryness and a
grain of salt

Scotland

Glenkinchie 12 YO – Lowland

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Glenkinchie (416520)

 

GLENKINCHIE STORY
One of the few remaining Lowland distilleries,
Glenkinchie’s rural location amid fields of barley, just
twenty miles from the hustle and bustle of the capital,
makes this “The Edinburgh Malt”.

Founded in 1825, the distillery was later purchased and
restored by an association of whisky merchants and
blenders from Edinburgh in the 1890s. It took ten years
but the result was the Victorian distillery that we know
today, with its characteristic red-brick buildings, houses
for workers and even its own bowling green.

PERFECT SERVE
Glenkinchie 12 Year Old is light, sweet, fresh yet creamy with
hints of flowers and cut grass, underpinned by toasted malt
and cheesecake notes. It is best enjoyed neat or on the
rocks.

Glenkinchie 12 Yo Bottle

Appearance: Pale Gold
Nose: Aromatic, vanilla, cut flowers and a clean, toasty note.
Body: Light, smooth
Palate: Sweet, soft start becoming flowery. Crisp mid-palate then
butter icing, lemon, cheesecake and freesias
Finish: Herbal and drying, a little like pot pourri.

Scotland

Clynelish 14 YO – Coastal Highland

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Clynelish

 

 

 

CLYNELISH STORY
The original distillery at Clynelish was purpose built to
serve the new farms being established on the fertile land
of Sutherland’s coastal strip. For a cost of just £750 in
1819, the future Duke of Sutherland was able to provide
a ready market for the barley grown by his tenant
farmers. It’s from these origins that we’re able to enjoy
the highly regarded Clynelish today.

The economic recession of 1931 forced the distillery to
close. Production restarted in 1938, only to shut down
again from May 1941 until November 1945 due to
restrictions on the supply of barley during World War
two.

In the 1960’s, Clynelish was brought up to date when
electricity was installed and still which had previously
been heated by a hand-fired coal burning furnace were
converted to internal steam heating. Then, true to its
origins as a model design, Clynelish was replaced by a
new distillery built on an adjacent site in 1967-68.

PERFECT SERVE
Clynelish 14 Year Old has floral fragrances and maritime
flavours with a light, dry finish, best appreciated on the
rocks or neat.

Clynelish 110348

Appearance: Yellow Gold
Nose: Light candle wax, sugar. Faint floral fragrance. Scented
candle wax comes up with water. Dried flowers on a beach. Later,
brown sugar
Body: Firm, light to medium
Palate: Pleasant, creamy mouthfeel; maritime generally
Finish: Some salt, dryish, attractive slight bitterness

Scotland

Dalwhinnie 15 YO – Highland

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Dalwhinnie Logo

 

 

DALWHINNIE STORY
The distillery was founded by Grant, Mackenzie and
Sellar in 1898 (when known as Strathspey distillery). Its
name derives from the Gaelic for a ‘meeting place’ of
sheep and cattle drovers. It is incredibly remote but was
purpose built to be close to the geographic centre of the
Highlands and enjoy easy access to the reliable link to
market offered by the new Highland Railway. This helped
the distillery to survive its fragile beginnings.

As well as being a fine distillery, Dalwhinnie also has the
distinction of being an official weather station, with one
of the lowest recorded average temperatures in Great
Britain.

PERFECT SERVE
Dalwhinnie 15 Year Old is a smooth, creamy, fragrant
whisky. Heather, honey and delicate sweet spice notes
make it the Gentle Spirit that is best enjoyed neat or
on the rocks.

Dalwhinnie

Appearance: Gold
Nose: Crisp, dry and very aromatic with hints of heather and peat
Body: Light to medium
Palate: Smooth and lasting flavours of honey sweetness & vanilla
followed by deeper citrus flavours
Finish: Lingering, starts sweetly, then gives way to smoke & peat