International House of Whisky

As I mentioned in a previous post, WhiskyFest New York was certainly a highlight for the year.  One of things that made the night so memorable was the chance to sample whiskies from four different continents.  While there were obvious and wonderful expressions from Scotland and the US (Kentucky and Utah!), there were really interesting and flavorful samples from some very unexpected locations:

Sullivan's Cove (Tasmania) - When I settled in to WhiskyFest, the first booth I found was Sullivan's Cove.  From The Tasmania Distillery - that's what I'm talking about when I say whiskies from around the world.  The man behind the counter told me about the abundance of pure mountain water and Franklin barley.  That made sense to me.  I sampled the double cask, matured in French and American Oak.  It had a beautiful gold hue.  A little unfinished taste, not the long draw I like.  But still, it had nice vanilla and spice flavor and I just had whisky from Australia so, wow.

Amrut (India) - Sharing the table with Sullivan's Cove were two of the friendliest guys I ever met from Amrut Distillery in India.  I had read about the rise of Indian whisky - it's one of the fastest growing markets for whisky in the world - and I knew I wanted to try it.  The gentlemen explained how the climate presents different challenges to maturation and how much they lose through evaporation in the barrel.  Then they told me about the malt grown in the Punjab in the foothills of the Himalayas.  Himalayan malt in the glass in front of me.  I'm in.  I tried the Fushion and the Cask Strength expressions.  Very grassy and a little buttery.  The Fushion packs wallop - the guys were just waiting for my reaction and then smiled knowingly.  I'd go back for more of that.

Armorik (France) -This whisky comes from Brittany in the north of France. The distillery's website refers to this region as "a cousin of Ireland and Scotland, where the Celtic spirit lives on".  Because of the terrain, the sea air, and the grains, it makes sense that there would be at least one distillery here.  The Armorik Classic has a fruity flavor and hints of sea air.  It's a nice, smooth, fresh whisky that's extremely drinkable.  This would be easily mistakable for a middle of the pack Highland Scotch.

Mackmyra (Sweden) - One of the more recognizable names in international whisky, this Swedish distillery makes their whisky in the traditional style.  It's matured in bourbon casks and finished in sherry and Swedish oak casks.  The malt is dried using a combination including Juniper and peat.  It makes for a truly unique flavor.  Mackmyra is delicate and light, with a little bit of lemon in it and unusual smokiness.

One of my resolutions for the year was to sample whisky from different countries. WhiskyFest certainly helped with that.  Scotland, Ireland, America, Canada, England, Wales, Sweden, France, Japan, Tasmania, and India.  It's all out there waiting for you to try.

Pappy

Three years on the waiting list finally pays off!

SMWS Package

My Scotch Malt Whisky Society package arrived today! Let's do this!

Not for wee boys - 20 y/o Laphroaig

Seven year old Springbank

Photos from Whiskyfest

More photos from Whiskyfest New York
(This is my first attempt with the Blogger app for iPhones, lets see if it works)

WhiskyFest New York 2012

I know I haven’t written a lot lately, but when I get to attend an event like WhiskyFest New York, my first ever whisky tasting, with over 250 expressions, it’s time to bring back the blog.

WhiskyFest is a combination seminar and tasting held annually in New York, Chicago and San Francisco.  It is organized by Whisky Advocate Magazine and its editor John Hansell.  My good friend Dave was celebrating his 40th birthday with his wife at the event, so my wife and I decided to tag along.

Gather. Taste. Discover. Share. OK.

It’s basically set up like any other convention hall.  But where you walk into a home show or IT conference and see samples of gutter guards or computer servers, here you see Oban 18.  About 95 booths-worth.  Needless to say, it was overwhelming.  Before we even entered the hall, my friend grabbed both Dominic Roskrow, noted author, and Dr. Bill Lumsden, chief distiller for Glenmorangie for a quick chat.  In both cases, I was speechless.  The guys were both extremely friendly and down to earth, but I acted like I just met Bruce Springsteen.  Dominic stayed and talk to us for about five minutes.  He had certainly sampled what was behind the doors of the convention hall and he was in a good mood.

Chris, Dominic Roskrow, Dave

When the doors did open, it was all too much.  We made our way over to the Diageo table for samples of Oban 14, 18, and Distillers Edition.  At the same table, we tried Talisker 10 and Distillers Edition and Lagavulin 12, 16, and Distillers Edition – all owned by Diageo.  It was a one-stop shop!  The Oban 18 and Lagavulin Distillers Editions were the stand outs at this table.

It was at this point – only ten minutes and eight whiskies into the evening – that I knew I needed a game plan.  I knew I wanted to hit old favorites, like Ardbeg and Highland Park.  But I really wanted to experience something new.

Dave, Bill Lumsden (gracious enough to pose in front of Ardbeg), Chris

And so I did, we looked for whiskies from around the world.  We tried whisky from four continents.  We met Dave Perkins, the owner and founder of High West Distillery in Park City, Utah.  It's the only ski-in gastro-pub in the world (of course it is).  He shared some of their excellent Rye Whiskey (OMG Pure Rye was phenomenal).  Then, he grabbed us by the shoulders and told us to come with him.  He took us over to a private bottler (Samaroli) who had some amazing samples.  "If you guys really like whisky, you can't leave here without trying this Tomintoul '67."  And he was right, just a perfectly balanced Speyside whisky, one of the most mature I've ever had.
 
With that, he was gone.  And I realized that even though he worked with rye in the Rocky Mountains, and there were countless Bourbon booths, and guys in kilts peddling scotch we were all just whisky fans - and that made it a great night.

<Look for more entries from WhiskyFest, including some of my favorite samples, more about the four continents, and maybe a guest entry>

The New Kid in Town

Kilchoman Spring 2011 Release
3-4 years old
46% ABV

Every 120 years or so, someone decides to build a new distillery on Islay.  In 2005, that distillery was Kilchoman.  One man (with 900,000 pounds) decided that a farm distillery on Islay would be a good idea.  As a farm distillery, the whisky is completely produced on site -  the barely used in production is grown and malted at the distillery, and the bottling and storage occurs on the farm as well.

The distillery is on the western side of the island, about 5 miles from Bruichladdich.  Unlike the other Islay distilleries, Kilchoman in situated inland.  I wonder if in the future, more matured expressions will differ from the neighbors' a little bit without the constant buffering of sea air.

Onto the whisky:
Color: Classic Islay pale straw.  Even though the whiskey got a few extra weeks in sherry casks, there’s not a lot of evidence in the appearance.  With a mix of the three and four year old, you wouldn’t expect there to be.

Nose: Pure Islay here.  It doesn’t matter that it’s a three year old, the peat and the smoke are here in large quantities.  A little vanilla as well.

Taste: The peat’s still there, but more mild than I expected based on the nose.  You can taste some berry fruits as well.

Finish: This is where I could really tell Kilchoman was still a toddler – the finish was very thin and short with virtually no peatiness.

Overall, it was a good representative of an Islay whisky.  If they’ve achieved this much in six years, I think Kilchoman may be one to watch.

Wait, what’s it called again?

Sheep Dip Blended Scotch Whiskey
40% ABV, Blended 8 Year Old

So, first things first, the name.  Scottish farmers began referring to whiskey as sheep dip in an effort to hide it from the excise man to avoid paying taxes.  The farmers would hide their whiskey in barrels marked “Sheep Dip”.  At the time, that was also a generic term used for an insecticide used on sheep to kill various ticks and lice.  I wouldn’t look in a barrel labeled Sheep Dip . . .

Now, to the whiskey.  This one's pretty good.  It's a really enjoyable blend.  And if you're a bourbon drinker looking for a way in to scotch, this is a good choice.  There's a hint of sweetness that will be familiar to you.

Overall, there's a really nice, rich golden color to the blend.  The nose is very flowery and sweet.  The blend supposedly draws on whiskies from the four main regions of Scotland (Islay, Lowland, Highland, and Speyside).  But I think the Islay whiskey was added with an eye-dropper - it's there, but it's faint.  There's a distinct maltiness to the flavor, as well as the bourbon inspired sweetness, which may be a testament to the barrels (probably not labeled Sheep Dip to throw the tax man off the scent) used to mature the whiskies.  The finish, long and drawn, finally yields a little more of that Islay peatiness I never mind tasting.

You'll remember the name of this whiskey if you see it on the shelves.  It would be a good addition to your collection.

A new year, new opportunities

So, I turned 40 last weekend. Predictably, and wonderfully, I received a number of new whiskies to try. In no particular order, I added to my happy (birthday) inventory:

• Oban 14 
• Macallan 12
• Sheep Deep, which is a top end blend with a pretty cool story
• Glenlivet 18
• Lagavulin 16
• Blanton's Bourbon
• Glen Garioch 

Wow, it feels even better when you list them all. I could get used to being 40. Even better, I feel like there's a review out there for each of them. Coming soon!

Let me know if there's any you'd like me to report on first.

The Dearly Departed

Rosebank (Connoisseurs Choice Bottling)
1991 - 17 years old
43% ABV

One of my goals for 2012 was to sample more whiskies from mothballed (closed) distilleries.  Well, I may have sandbagged that one a bit since I had a lovely sample of a 1991 Rosebank Connoisseurs Choice bottling on top of my liquor cabinet when I wrote that.  Regardless, it was time to open it last Saturday.  Time to sample my little bit of history.

For me, the appeal of a mothballed distillery is that you are, in a way, drinking history.  Mothballed distilleries are closed, they're not producing any more spirits.  Their remaining inventory exists in barrels, maturing either in the distillery warehouse, or more often, purchased by an independent bottler for sale under their label.  Rosebank and Port Ellen are the two most well known mothballed distilleries in Scotland.
Rosebank began operations in the late 18th century (perhaps as early as 1790) on the banks of the Fourth-Clyde canal in the Falkirk area of the Lowlands.  At the time, its position on the canal - the British Superhighway of the era - was an asset to their business.  However, from the moment the canals lost business to the roads, the distillery's location became a liability.  Rosebank's ingredient costs rose.  It cost more to get their product to market.  The fact that the distillery remained open until 1993 is a testament to the quality of the whisky.  Rosebank, according to Michael Jackson, "was the finest example of a Lowland malt.  It was a grievous loss."

To the whisky itself.  I knew it was a Lowland whisky, so I had an idea about what I was getting myself into.  Rosebank had a light, golden color.  The nose was very mild and slightly floral.  What I was really waiting for was the taste - it's a 17 year old mothballed whisky for god's sake!  I was not disappointed.  Even for someone like me, who sometimes struggles with the palate, there were a ton of different flavors.  There was fruit, but more like the non-citrusy fruits like pears or apples.  There was also some spiciness and creaminess.  There was a lot going on.  And then, the finish, the last fleeting taste you get in the back of your mouth after you swallow, was minty!  That was a new one for me.  So new, in fact, that I consulted my Michael Jackson Complete Guide to Single Malt Scotch to make sure I wasn't overthinking it.  Sure enough, he found mint as well.  Vindication.
All in all, this is an excellent whisky, one that leaves you wanting more (when there just isn't any).  And I think I'll be continuing my search for more whisky history.

Finally - a Whisky Tasting

I love a good whisky tasting.  It's a great way to get introduced to a lot of new whiskies in one night.  It's also a good excuse to hang out with the guys for a while.  I've been to a few tastings in the last five years and learned a ton.  So, last Saturday, when I hosted my first whisky tasting, it was like Christmas Morning for me.  I pulled a couple of key elements together and was ready to go:

• Invitation list: for this tasting, I basically invited the local friends that I knew enjoyed some type of whisky, bourbon, or even a beer.  I asked everyone to bring a bottle of whisky or bourbon, if they had one.
• Whisky: I emptied my cabinet, save a couple of airplane bottles.  I organized the whiskies into different regions, along with bourbon, Canadian, Japanese and Welsh.  My six-year old daughter provided the labels for the regions.

 

• Ground rules: I kept this one pretty open ended.  This was not like a wine tasting where everyone goes in some predetermined order and takes notes on tannins and oakiness.  It was basically, "see whisky, try whisky".  That's not to say people didn't have opinions about the whisky, or didn't consider the regions when trying different expressions, but I tried to keep it pretty light. If people had questions, I tried to help.  I also had some whisky guides out to help (thank you Michael Jackson).

The results?  Well let me first say, I was the host, I wasn't driving and everyone asked me to try the whisky they brought.  So I had a bit of a headache the next morning.  Besides that, however, I think a lot of people had their eyes open to some new things. 

• The international section (Welsh Penderyn and Japanese Yamazki) surprised a lot of people not only with the quality, but also with the fact that it existed at all.
• Bourbon is back.  The 1792, Old Van Winkle, and a new one - Bulleit - were all so well received that the Blantons was not even cracked.  Seriously, if you like Bourbon, check out Bulleit Frontier Whisky. Excellent.
• I think I mentioned Crown Royal as one of the whiskies to drink on a golf course (it comes with a bag to keep your keys in!).  I'm going to go ahead and upgrade that recommendation to Crown Royal Black Label.
• Caol Ila - One of the less popular Islay whiskies, Coal Ila is known for it's more subtle peating and its oily finish.  I hadn't had a bottle in the house for a few years, and I didn't realize how much I missed it.
• Winners.  At the end of the night, there had to be a winner - so we voted for our favorite whiskies.  The winner was a Macallan 15 Year Old Fine Oak expression.  It really surprised me how much I enjoyed this.  I've passed Macallan in the shop without stopping for so long, and I'm kicking myself for it.  Second place was a tie between Highland Park 15 and the Bulleit.

All in all, I think it was a successful first tasting.  Everyone learned something, tried something knew, and seemed to genuinely enjoy themselves.  And they didn't drink all of my whisky either!

This blogger's goals for 2012

I'm not really good at New Years' Resolutions.  They tend to be a bit tactical.  Some of my previous gems include, "learning how to sharpen knives" (aced it) and "getting better at doing cool card shuffling" (a little better, I suppose).
But when it comes to this blog - and this hobby in general - there are definitely some goals I have for 2012:

• Write more - I wrote 21 posts in 2011.  I think I can do more.  There is a world of whiskies to explore.  If anyone reading this has any ideas or requests, let me know.
• Expand my audience - I have 3 followers.  3.  Thanks guys.  I'm trying to figure out ways to increase readership, posting articles on Facebook and Twitter.  If you read this, and like this, please follow it.  And please forward it to your friends (or enemies if you don't like it).
• Conduct an interview - last goal for the blog - I'd love to get an expert's opinions out there, to learn and to share.  Keep an eye on the blog to see if I succeed.  

Personally, I also have some goals in expanding my knowledge and experiences with whisky:

• Try a whisky from a "mothballed distillery" - when you drink a whisky from a distillery no longer producing barrels, you are drinking history.  There's no more of this coming down the pike.  Mothballed whisky is, obviously, rare.  It's also highly sought after.  Rosebank and Port Ellen are two great examples - these distilleries produced, according to what I've read, excellent whisky.  But economic conditions made it impossible for them to continue.
• Keep exploring the world - in the last two years, I've had expressions from Scotland, England, Wales, Ireland, Japan, Canada and America.  All of these whiskies are made from slightly different ingredients and processes.  I'd like to keep going: there are a few more distilleries in Japan and Scandinavian whisky out there.
• Bourbon - Small batch bourbon is exploding on the market right now.  I've just secured my first bottle of Old Van Winkle, and I'd like more, please.

Well, I think that's a pretty exhaustive list.  If I achieve half of it, it should be a pretty good year.  What about you?  Let me know what your goals are for the year.  Maybe I can help . . .