Author: Thistle Admin

The Arran Explorers Series is a collection of limited edition expressions of The Arran Single Malt. Each edition celebrates the outstanding scenic beauty and diversity of nature on the Isle of Arran. To the west of the island you will pass through the pretty coastal village of Blackwaterfoot. North of the village, the main road leaves the coast for a few miles and bypasses Drumadoon Point. The scenery of the headland is breathtaking with a raised beach and dramatic cliffs formed from basalt columns. Drumadoon Point is home to Shiskine Golf Club, a unique 12-hole golf course regarded by many as one of the finest in the UK. Slightly to the North of the course, its impressive cliffs on the seaward side protect the remains of the largest Iron Age fort on Arran. For the walker, the terrain is diverse. Sandy beach, grassy footpaths and large boulders make it a beautiful piece of coastline to explore. This view across Shiskine Golf Course towards Drumadoon Point is best appreciated with a dram of Arran Single Malt in hand.

This particular expression has been maturing for the last 23 years in ex Sherry Puncheons sourced directly from Jerez from a respected small producer who shares our values. The resulting whisky perfectly captures the impressive and dramatic scenery of this part of the island. Take your senses on an adventure around the Isle of Arran.

Please sent us an e-mail if you like to pre-order it. We are waiting our allocation, so it is not sure how many bottles we will get. First come, first serve.

Price: €182 (excl.transport/delivery).

TASTING NOTES:

NOSE A burst of sweet apple with an underlying maltiness – a classic expression of well aged Arran. The sweet notes linger and are enriched by baked pastry and a dusting of icing sugar (think Apple Strudel). Rich and nutty in the background, bringing to life the influence of the casks used.

PALATE An initial wave of sweetness followed by spice; Spiced apple, cocoa powder and star anise. Flavours of dark chocolate and raisins also start to develop, creating a beautiful balance between Arran’s signature style and sherry cask maturation.

FINISH A long and warming finish, reflecting the sweetness and spice found on nose

and palate. A dram that will leave you wanting to pour another!

Specs:

49.5% Vol., 23 years old, limited Edition of 9,000 bottles worldwide, matured in Sherry Puncheons.

As most of you know we don’t like to tell you what something tastes like, whether you have to like this dram or that other one. Taste is something very personal and basically you are never wrong, but it is fun to discuss our different interpretations of a dram.

So, we love it when people write a review or send us feedback on our whisky. It also means they cracked that bottle open to enjoy and not to make money out of it at a later time. In the end that is why we try to create new and interesting whisky. After a video review by Mark Watt we have the pleasure to get some feedback of Mickaël of the Campfire Dram.

But let me just shut up and let Mickaël do the talking:

As promised, my review of the Glen Moray à la Belge, a Speyside whisky with a Cantillon cask finish!Here are my tasting notes. Full review on the blog!In the nose, I was greeted with syrupy cherries (the dark ones), reminding me of cherry pie, with a delicate balance between sweet and sour. There’s some caramel as well, and even a light poster paint scent. My advice is to give the dram some time to fully develop in the nose, after which you’ll be able to enjoy dark chocolate notes too, moving towards cocoa beans and cocoa butter.I enjoyed the wood flavors that are present while tasting the whisky, and I’m happy that there was a slightly bitter note as well, besides the vanilla and toffee. At the core, I discovered a gentle and pleasantly sour note, which then moved high up towards my hard palate. I also had a slight tingle on my upper lip. The finish is long, and reveals a bit more wood and even some cherry pits. But then, I sipped the Cantillon beer. And man. It was divine. The red fruit and cherry flavors, the sour notes, the combination with the chocolate in the nose. It all fit so naturally, so beautifully. I think I might even try some Black Forest cherry pie (Schwarzwalder Kirsch) with this next time. My birthday is coming up…

You can find the full article here

It has been spinning in my head for a while now. Actually, since I joined their masterclass during Spirits in the Box 2020. I had seen several ads or posts passing on the internet and although I was intrigued by the titles and contents I never really took the time to read all the articles. Always to busy, you know?

Since I finished my own distillers education in 2020, the topic of terroir influence in whisky was and still is intriguing. Although at first sight you would not expect a big impact of terroir on the flavours you get in grains and even further down the line in spirits. I COULD NOT HAVE BEEN MORE WRONG.

If you are not familiar with Waterford Distillery, please read up on it. These guys really put the proof out their: TERROIR DOES IMPACT THE FLAVOUR IN WHISKY!!!

I really hate it that I am not part of their project. It is probably the most exciting news and development in the business. Although it is a hard project to follow from A to Z, it really seems to be worth the effort. In short, they distil and mature all their whiskies the same way, so no differences their, unless you want to discuss the uncontrollable, different influences that can take place in for example maturation. Every harvest from every farm they work with is kept separately and is distilled on its own. So what you get is the impact of the TERROIR, the soil, the weather,…

So, if you are looking for something exceptional, a series worth collecting to drink and compare each bottling next to the other, the get an education in terroir impact on flavours this is it. So far everything I tried has been fabulous, even though it is still young stuff.

Now available:

Waterford Single Farm Origin Ballymorgan 1.2

Waterford Single Farm Origin Sheetown 1.2

Waterford Organic Gaia 1.1 – The Arcadian Organic Gaia 1.1

Nestled in the Valley of Forgue, deep in the East Highland hills of Scotland,
is The GlenDronach, one of the oldest licensed distilleries in Scotland.
The GlenDronach is of true Highland style; a rich and full-bodied spirit,
perfect for long maturation in Spanish sherry oak. At The GlenDronach
Distillery, we have carried forth the tradition of our founder James Allardice
since 1826, maturing our complex Highland spirit in the finest Pedro Ximénez and Oloroso sherry casks from Andalucía in Spain.

Pedro Ximénez casks impart rich, deep fruit flavours, whilst dry and nutty notes come from our Oloroso casks.

Every expression of The GlenDronach Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
has been crafted for depth of colour; rich,full-bodied complexity; and a long, satisfying finish.

The GlenDronach Cask Strength – batch 9 offers connoisseurs a deep insight into the distillery’s signature character, by bottling at the whisky’s natural cask strength of 59.4%. The ninth release of this expression has been matured in Pedro Ximénez and Oloroso sherry casks, resulting in a characterful and richly-sherried Single Malt, with the full depth of maturation in Spanish oak.
Add a drop or two of water to reveal a cornucopia of flavour; from treacle toffee and raisin-filled toasted brioche, to baked apple and bramble pie and star anise. The depth of flavour continues into The GlenDronach’s signature long and lingering finish.

Each Cask Strength release has been bottled without chill filtration and at high strength, as was the custom before the turn of the 20th century. As with all The GlenDronach expressions, all of the natural colour is drawn from slow maturation in Spanish oak casks.

Order here

THE GLENDRONACH CASK STRENGTH BATCH 9

Nose: Cocoa, liquorice root and baked orange on a base of sultana bread and crème brûlée.

Finish: Layers of richly roasted malt, and a lingering dark chocolate, espresso finish.

Colour: Deep copper

Taste: Treacle toffee and raisin-filled toasted brioche crescendo to baked apple and bramble pie, butterscotch and star anise.

Since 1782 the Teeling family have been crafting Irish whiskey. The Teelings are renowned for their vision in doing things differently and their whiskeys embody this entrepreneurial spirit. 2015 marked the year a new generation of Teelings returned to their distilling roots in the Liberties area of Dublin City. The Brabazon Bottling Series is a limited edition collection of unique Irish Single Malts capturing the full impact and flavour crafted through fortified wine cask maturation.

proudly bottled at 49.5% ABV
with no chill filtration, for true character.

Order here

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The Brabazon Bottling Series is a limited edition collection of unique Irish Single Malts capturing the full impact and flavour crafted through fortified wine cask maturation. For the Brabazon Bottling Series 4, we have sourced unique barrels used by a long forgotten historical style of Portuguese Port to produce a truly unique and distinctive bottling of Teeling Whiskey. Carcavelos is a style of Portuguese fortified wine dating back to the 18th century. These rare Port barrels were filled with our Single Malt distilled in 2007 and left for over two years to impart the full range of flavour and character on the whiskey.

tasting notes
A truly unique whiskey bursting with soft citrus fruits and distinctive prickly spice.

Fruit, caramel and toffee on the nose, with a complex orchard fruit, honey and marmalade sweetness flavour profile. Notes of dry fruits, malt and hints of cookie dough for the finish.