Benromach: It takes two
I head up to Forres to check out Speyside's smallest distillery...
Cocktails in the afternoon
An afternoon of cocktails and Japanese whisky history was the theme last week.
Like father, like daughter
When I was 17, my dad gave me plane tickets to Colombia. It was my grad present.
Now, this might seem a bit of a strange thing for me to be divulging to you. After all, Colombia isn’t exactly famed for its whisky.
But the basis behind this story is that my dad gave me a present far removed from what other kids got. It wasn’t a car or a grad ring. Instead, wrapped up within those plane tickets was a message: go and follow your dreams, take a risk, and have fun.
So, despite the obvious dangers of heading to a rather fractious country, he saw me off on the plane and let me spread my wings. It couldn’t have been easy. You see, my mom passed away just as I was reaching my teenage years, so my father had the arduous task of seeing me through those highly emotional times on his own. I can only imagine that, therefore, letting his teenage daughter go to South America was more nervewracking for him. But he let me do it nonetheless.
What he instilled in me was to take chances. And I’ve been trying to do that ever since. Writing about whisky, for example, was a dream. But my father taught me to take risks – the road less travelled, if you will – to achieve what I wanted.
Therefore, this father’s day I wanted to tell you that little tale in the hopes you take a minute to reflect on what your fathers have done for you. Hallmark card sentiments aside, I couldn’t have become what I am today without his wise words and lack of judgment about my choices (going to university on the other side of [...]
The life of a whisky sommelier
Angelo Gobbi, The Athenaeum Hotel's whisky sommelier, has one of the world's coolest jobs.
From Dalwhinnie to Lagavulin: Diageo drams
I try out some interesting Diageo Distillers edition drams in this latest review.
The Whisky Lounge London: Review
The Whisky Lounge London show brought whisky to 1,800 willing attendees!
Bistro du Whisky with SMWS
Food & whisky: two of my favourite things in the world!
Whisky Live London Favourites
At Whisky Live London this year I tried an extraordinary number of drams, caught up with some fantastic people and reveled in the whisky shenanigans.
It was also the place where three of us whisky sistahs (Whisky Girls founder, Allison Patel, and Whisky London founder, Cat Spencer) managed to get together in the same room for a cheers! As such, there were many a memory made that day.
My goal was to try only whiskies I’d not had a chance to drink before. So, here are my favourites from the fest:
The Glenlivet, 16 yo Nadurra: 57%
Aroma: I got the very odd hints of cinnamon and milk – a similar scent to hot milk with sugar and a cinnamon stick! Milk is not a smell I’d not noted before in a whisky, so I was intrigued! There was also a slightly biscuity note and aniseed.
Palate: A sugary sweetness like super-sweet Hershey’s chocolate, slightly oily and heavy in the mouth (due to the non-chill filtering) but with a teeny hint of citrus. A few drops of water cut the full-on mouthfeel and I preferred it that way. The Glenlivet team had paired each of their whiskies with chocolates and this was matched with a white chocolate, which worked beautifully. It was a vanilla burst on the palate.
Old Pulteney, 3o yo: 44%
This very special dram costs a whopping £250 a bottle so the festival was a great place to get my hands on some, since I won’t be buying a bottle any time soon. This version is matured only in ex-bourbon casks, is non-chill filtered.
Aroma: On the nose I got a salty-sweetness that leaned more towards the sweet side, an uncommon thing compared to other Old [...]
London By Night: An evening with SMWS
London by night, with a whisky in hand, would have made Sinatra swoon!
Whisky Squad #31
In the UK – and abroad – Irish Whiskey can sometimes be passed over in favour of the output from its British neighbour. But, this shouldn’t put you off. It’s a different style, has an intriguing history and creates a lot of fantastic products.
At a recent tasting with the Whisky Squad, I had the opportunity to try five great varieties and learn about the country’s history from Tim Forbes, an Irishman (and now Londoner) who runs the Whisky Exchange’s blog.
In short, Tim told us that Irish Whiskey had – in the late 19th century – been highly profitable. But, during a period of 20-30 years, it saw itself decimated due to Prohibition in the US, a trade war with the UK and a huge increase in the output of blended Scotch whisky due to the Scottish decision to embrace the Coffey Still, which decreased the cost of production.
Throughout the 20th century, distilleries in Ireland were merged continuously until it was all made at only one distillery (Midleton). This remained up to the point Cooley came into the picture in 1987, although this company has since been bought up by Beam Inc., an American spirits company.
Despite this concentration of ownership, Irish Whiskey still provides a wide variety of taste.
So, what did I think of the five I tried? Here are my thoughts:
#1. Inishowen Peated:
This peated whiskey is made from a mix of malt and grain. On the nose, I got spearmint and chocolate, while the taste provided flavours of pancakes, coffee, rubber and Terry’s chocolate orange. It had a nice mouthfeel and was softly pleasant. Not my favourite of the night, but a good starter.
#2. Bushmills Black Bush:
I found this to have [...]