Whisky Party

Chuck Cowdery points us to an interesting marketing tactic from Heaven Hill. In honor of the 2012 Presidential Election here in the states, Heaven Hill is releasing a bourbon for your political alignment. Meet Red State and Blue State Bourbons:

Of course, it’s all for a good cause. For every “like” each bourbon acquires on Facebook, Heaven Hill will donate $1 to the VFW Foundation. What’s more, Heaven Hill plans to track sales of each bourbon across all 50 states and use those numbers to predict the results of the upcoming election.

As Chuck Cowdery says, “the irony of both bottles containing the exact same whiskey is probably unintended.”

(FWIW – remember this isn’t the first time an American distiller has hopped on a Presidential Election to sell its whiskey. Everyone remember this one from Maker’s Mark?)

If you’re reading this, you probably like whisky. Want a chance to make some?

The Glenrothes wants to know “what’s your vintage moment.” Share your story in 1,500 words or less, and you could win a trip to Scotland to help make the 2012 vintage of Glenrothes.

The deadline to enter is January 31st, so time is running out. There will be 4 US winners selected, and the trip will occur in May 2012. To enter, visit The Glenrothes website or their Facebook page.

This one is for the geekiest of whisky geeks.

Sensory and Chemical Analysis of ‘Shackleton’s’ Mackinlay Scotch Whisky

I assume that like most hobbyists, whenever I go to a bar I have never been before, I check out their whisk(e)y and beer selection.  I haven’t been going out to many new places lately (or going out for that matter, I guess), but I recently went to Bloodhound in San Francisco to watch the end of the Cal Stanford game.

The funny thing about trying to scope out whisk(e)y behind an only somewhat lit bar is that you become the reason brand and product managers stay employed.  By virtue of bottle shape and bottle label, even in a dark and noisy bar you can do a pretty good job of playing “name that whisky.”   This is where I found myself on that Saturday night after dinner.

On my initial pass, I did not notice anything out of the ordinary.  I ordered a Blood and Sand (side note: it wasn’t an amazing cocktail, Alembic makes a killer one).  On my second pass, I did another look, and saw something out of the ordinary.  I asked the bartender if I could see the bottle (which I’m sure he loved on a busy Saturday night).

The picture accurately displays my vision at this point

On the shelf was a small, slim 200ml bottle carrying some clear liquid and Japanese text.  The bartender took down the bottle, looked at it strangely, and poured himself a glass.

Hitachino Nest White Ale White Dog

The bar had a bottle I had never seen before!  The “name that whisky” brought out quite a surprise.  The whisky was a white dog version of Hitachino Nest White Ale, brewed by the Kiuchi Brewery in Japan, imported by a B. United International in Connecticut.   After the bartender poured himself a dram he poured me one and I took it back to my seat.

The taste?  Umm.  Well.  I wasn’t in any position to be accurately tasting anything.  It was extremely fruity (perfect for SF – hey!) and tasted like a really sharp (not smooth) white dog.  I didn’t love it.  I went back to the bartender after to discuss and he said he thought it tasted like ‘grappa‘ – at the time I agreed.

I haven’t been back yet to retaste, but will do so at some point.  Even though I didn’t love the whisky, I loved the find.  So keep your eye out when you’re in a bar, you too might find a new bottle that instructs you to “PLEASE ENJOY RICH FLAVOR AND TASTE.”

-StrongLikeCask

the light makes the whisky look glorious

Man. Where have we been? Lots of places, and this post is not where we will discuss all of that. However one of the places we have been is San Diego. The job that fuels the purchases and enjoyment of my whisky passion has had me traveling down to San Diego for the past few months. This past week I decided to make it my mission to see some daylight and enjoy the fruits of San Diego’s craft beer scene. San Diego is home to Stone Brewing, Green Flash, and Ballast Point, makers of the phenomenal Sculpin IPA.

At Ballast Point, I enjoyed the mighty Sculpin, a seasonal wet hopped ale called Schooner, and a sour ale called Sour Wench. Most interesting is that I struck up a conversation with Chris who was working the taproom, and we got talking about BP’S distillery operations. They already make some rum and gin, so I asked about whisky. Turns out we are about a month or so away from the release of some Ballast Point whiskey – both bourbon and a whisky version.

It has already been aging about 5 years and the release will be in the couple of hundreds of bottles – think even less than the Anchor Hotaling release. Color me excited.  The picture above was snapped of the whisky barrels aging in the Ballast brewery when Chris turned around.

I know, I know– we’ve been severely out of commission over the summer.  All for good reasons, more or less.  But as Summer 2011 sings its swang song, whisky season is tuning up.  I’m personally pumped for the Scotch Malt Whisky Society’s Extravaganza, as I had a blast at last year’s Chicago event.

Ladies and Gentlemen are cordially invited to enjoy a connoisseur’s evening featuring over 110 rare & exceptional single malt and Scotch whiskies. The evening includes a delicious dinner buffet as well as a selection of premium imported cigars for our guests’ later enjoyment. The Single Malt & Scotch Whisky Extravaganza brings the discerning enthusiast the opportunity to sample the participating whiskies in a sophisticated and elegant environment with genuine camaraderie and knowledgeable representatives from each participating distillery.

All events from 7:00pm-9:00pm. Registration begins at 7:00pm. Business casual, Jackets preferred. Jackets are required at the Chicago & Philadelphia venues. No denim or athletic attire may be worn to the events.

Come one, come all.

Tickets are $135 each, but once again, the SMWS has extended their members’ price of $120 to WhiskyParty readers for the first two tickets they buy (and back to the regular price after that).  Use  promo code ‘WP2011′. Go here to purchase tickets, or call 800.990.1991.  See you at the Chicago event.

-Mike F.

Here's to you, Mr. Shackleton

This all but lost “rare old” recipe for blended Scotch whisky is a tale of two expeditions—one to bring it to its frozen resting place beneath the floor boards of the base hut located at Cape Royds, Antarctica, and a second one to recover it from there.  Ernest Shackleton was one of the great explorers of his age and was able to secure not only funding for the 1907 Nimrod Expedition to the South Pole (provided in part by Edward Guinness of the Irish brewing family), but also provisions of whisky from the Mackinlay blending company plus quite a bit of brandy.  Shackleton’s story of adventure, strife, discovery, and leadership (and boozing) has been recounted much lately, and so here I’ll focus on the results of the expedition undertaken by Al Fastier and his team from the New Zealand Antarctic Heritage Trust to examine and conserve the 33×19 ft. Cape Royds base hut.  They continued Shackleton’s story by unearthing (de-icing?) the crate containing 23 bottles of a style of blended scotch that was popular during the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration.  But the story goes on from there…

Home is where the hearth is

While the histories of archaeology and whisky do have overlaps through time, rarely has there been such a clear and away and intruiging case of this as the discovery of Shackleton’s lost bottles.  But because they are archaeological finds first and foremost (legally, anyway), their recovery was of potentially limited value to whisky drinkers– I mean, you can’t simply open, serve, and ingest an archaeological artifact.  But maybe if you’re Richard Patterson, master blender at Whyte & Mackay, you can….  Under UNESCO international heritage law no artifactual find can be removed from its country of origin unless it is an approved sample for scientific purposes.  Well, the Antarctic Heritage Trust responsible for the preservation of Antarctic material culture, based in New Zealand, worked with Whyte & Mackay (who became the owners of the Mackinlay brand) until they were able to reach a deal in which three of the artifacts in question could be treated as scientific samples.

"It belongs in a museum!"

And thus began a process similar to what can be termed ‘experimental archaeology.’  Generally, a researcher engaging in this approach to archaeology will find an artifact (or building, etc.) and attempt to duplicate it, using what they perceive to have been the tools and methods available to the ancients, and trial and error until the end product is identical (or nearly so) to the artifact.  Thusly, this generates a better understanding of the ancient processes of production (and so, the true end result is not the duplication, but the knowledge gained from achieveing it).  With the Mackinlay’s bottles, Richard Patterson and his crack team may have been interested in discovering the nuanced differences between whisky production a hundred years ago and today…

A close examination of this Rare Old specimen

But the true end goal here was to create what is certainly no longer available– the early 20th century Mackinlay’s Rare Old Highland Malt Whisky that Ernest Shackleton provided to his expedition and stored beneath the floor of his base hut.  Ten of the eleven bottles that the conservation team thawed in New Zealand were perfectly intact, enabling Patterson’s team to engage in an effective combination of laboratory, visual, and olefactory analyses.

By looking at the “cask extractives” present in the liquid Patterson was able to determine that Mackinlay’s aged the scotch in sherry-seasoned, American white oak casks.  Through the chemical components of the phenols present the lab team discovered that the peat was cut from bogs in the Orkney Islands (home to the Highland Park distillery).  In order to reproduce the flavours and aromas detectable in the original spirit, Whyte & Mackay blended various Highland and Speyside malts such as Glen Mor and Dalmore, as well as several others, that had been aged anywhere from 8 to 30 years.  I’ve heard that the very lucky few who were able to taste the original(!), such as Dave Broom, have indicated that the replica does indeed live up to Shackleton’s own.

Both stories go on well past this point, and I implore everyone to delve further into both of them as well as other experimental booze recreations (such as Dogfish Head’s Midas Touch, for instance).  But it’s time to raise a glass and taste some history.  We’d like to thank the good people at Whyte & Mackay for providing the sample, but also Matt and Karen at WhiskyForEveryone for going through all the trouble to send it from the UK to sweet home Chicago.  Cheers guys.

A reconstruction of ye olde liquid

Abv: 47.3%

Color: Pinot Grigio

Legs: average; slow but oddly big for the abv.

Wee-est of drams

Nose: creamy and musty, with fleshy plums, white chocolate, sweet peat, ferns or moss, a little pepper, and distinct lemony notes.  Water brings out some floral notes.

Palate: orange pulp, toasted malt, spices (white pepper), a good bit of peat ember, and maybe a hint of lavendar.  Smoky.

Body: substantial, sweaty, and weighty.

Finish: medium or more, with sweet roasted peanuts and semi-sweet chocolate chips.

History, reimagined

Overall: As Matt (of WFE) mentioned to me, it stands up on its own, but it’s the story/ies of its recovery and recreation that set this historical recipe apart.  But with a second tasting I gotta say that I really kinda like this thing, and I wish I had a full bottle.  It’s interesting and exciting, but it also intrigues and satisfies with a citrus-and-smoky combination that highlights a fairly complex dram.  Good work all around, in my opinion.

Other Opinions: As this is a blend of several Highland and Speyside single malts, there’s enough going on to give everyone plenty to write about.  But the weighty, smoky style that Patterson recreated is apparent to all.

• Domonic Roskrow, at Malt Advocate, likes the lemony, smoky nose and the full, citrusy, peaty, and peppery palate, giving it a 92.
• The Whisky Boys give it 4 out of 5 “corks,” citing the fruit, smoke, vanilla nougat, a bit of chocolate, and “a touch of pepper.”
• Gal at Whisky Israel calls the crisp apple, toffee, smoked leaves, and “apricots dipped in rose water” on the nose with a powerful, smoky, and fruity palate of tea leaves with prunes and dark chocolate “splendid stuff.”
• Yossi at the JSMWS sees a Springbank mixed with bourbon-aged Port Ellen and finds it “well balanced, composed and thoroughly delicious.”
• And finally, our comrade in blogging, who made this post possible, Matt at WhiskyForEveryone does a masterful job (as usual) bringing you up to speed about the background of the original Mackinlay’s blend.  He gets a lot out of this replica, giving the nose a moment to unveil layers of vanilla, butterscotch, green and tropical fruits, walnuts, burnt sugar, musty peat smoke, et al.  Then for the palate Matt notes a tangy sweetness followed by creamy richness and then peat smoke and wood spice.  ”A good dram in its own right.”  I’m starting see the walnut really come through on the nose, now that you mention it.

-Mike F.

Chicagoans, this Friday my favourite booze dealer welcomes Laphroaig Global Brand Ambassador Simon Brooking who will be introducing the distillery’s lastest Feis Isle expression… yeah, I’d be pretty psyched about this since it’s the first time it will be available in the US.

Simon Brooking from Laphroaig will launch the new Islay Fest release, Cairdeas, at the store Friday, June 17th at approximately 6:30PM.

Warehouse Liquors is located in the South Loop at 634 S. Wabash Ave.

Here’s what Master Distiller John Campbell had to say about it:

I wanted to create a single expression, but something rather different.  After much careful sampling (tough job!) I found a fantastic set of Makers Mark ex-bourbon barrels that have been maturing in No.1 warehouse right by the sea for 8 years. The quality of the barrels was such that the spirit had the smoothness of a much older whisky yet had an extraordinary set of flavours that can sometimes get lost in older expressions. It goes without saying that the characteristic “peat punch” is there in spades, but balanced with a beautiful set of spices and fruits.

See you guys there.

-Mike F.

Reminder: Thanks to Villeroy and Boch, to win a set of Villeroy and Boch glasses, insert your whisky and tweet: “Thanks @whiskyparty and @villeroyundboch Send me a glass and I will raise it and drink “

You can play "More Than a Feeling" by filling these with whisky and rubbing the rims.

Villeroy and Boch Single Grain Lowlands Whiskey Tumbler

The box for this Villeroy and Boch whisky tumbler lists the whisky for which it is meant. It reads, “For light, mellow and fresh-tasting Scotch Whiskies with a fine fruity aroma to strong bouquet, such as Single Grain Whisky and Lowland Single Malt Whisky.” For this review, I used the triple distilled lowland Auchentoshan Classic single malt whisky at 40%ABV.

Size/Shape : The whisky tumbler edges out the Glencairn glass in height by about half an inch, and it is ALL bell, with a base that is only about 3/4 of an inch thick. The glass does look like a wine glass, though with a smaller mouth (the mouth itself is larger than the Glencairn glass, though).

Feel : Though it is mostly the bell that defines the glass, it does not feel dainty, rather it feels fairly hefty, solid and well crafted.

Drinking : Wow! Check out the nose on that Auchentoshan. It brings the muted nose from the Glencairn to sharp relief. And you have a huge bell from which to swirl and check out the legs. With the wider mouth, you can also stick your nose INTO the glass easier, even when sipping, which is nice. The whisky flows smoothly and slowly to the front of your mouth, delivering all the delicious baking spice, fruit, and butterscotch that you would expect from the nose.

Overall : Since receiving these glasses, I have gone back to this Lowlands glass continuously. The large bell really gives life to whiskies, and it’s a solid feel in your hand. The only things it has against it are that it’s hard to know how much whisky to pour into it (since it’s large), and it doesn’t really look like a whisky glass. The other single malt tumblers from the Villeroy and Boch collection look similarly shaped, with just shorter walls and less of an inward angle. At $50 for two, they are still an investment, but they help provide a tremendous amount of enjoyment of your whisky.  If you have to choose, I would think that this tumbler might be the best investment out of the collection, just because of the greater bell size.

note: A big thanks to Debbie at Villeroy & Boch for sending us a few glass samples and for letting us  give a pair of these glasses away to a reader.  We apparently just like giving things away.  If you want to be in the running, tweet us by 5 PM Sunday, June 12th, with the whisky you’ll be drinking with the glassware.  We’ll figure out someone to send them to and DM you.

To win, insert your whisky and tweet: “Thanks @whiskyparty and @villeroyundboch Send me a glass and I will raise it and  drink <insert whisk(e)y>“

You can play "Boots of Spanish Leather" by filling these with water and rubbing the rims.

We like drinking whisk(e)y here.  A lot.  It seems the more you appreciate whisk(e)y, the more you care about glass out of which you drink.  There are regular rocks glass, a gibraltar glass, a snifter, or one of any number of specialty glasses.  These specialty glasses are the kicker, though.  As I have gotten more into whisk(e)y, the glasses have brought a great deal to my experience.  They have even helped my friends, as I can gift great glasses to them and hopefully help bring them the same geeky enjoyment I get out of whisky.  It seems the standard nowadays is the Glencairn glass (Malt Advocate’s Industry Leader of the Year), and I both own and have gifted a few.  But as whiskey becomes more popular, glasses and competitors to the Glencairn follow.

Villeroy & Boch, a publicly traded German ceramics/glassware company dating from 1836 (with individual origins back to 1748) sent us a few glasses to try out.  With Father’s Day coming up on June 19th, they wanted to bring attention to the fact that their glasses could make a fine gift (and not to get too salesy, because I honestly hate that and it’s not what we’re about, but in looking for links for this post, I just discovered that their online store currently has all the glass pairs on sale for $28 with free shipping which makes these pretty awesome).  They sent us the Canadian Whisky Tumbler from the American Bar series, a Single Malt nosing goblet and a Single Grain Lowlands Whisky Tumbler from the Scotch Whisky collection.  All in all, these were three glasses out of their collections that contain 13 different specialty glasses and 3 different carafes.

Upon immediate impression after opening the box, the Villeroy & Boch glasses are large.  And I mean huge.  Check out the picture above.  They dwarf other whisky glasses.  They feel extremely nicely weighted and solid in the hand, but wow, they seem large.  This isn’t necessarily a bad thing obviously, but when you’re used to somewhat dainty Glencairn glasses or heftier mid-height rocks glasses, these glasses do take you aback.  The Single Malt glass and tumbler are more akin to wine glasses and the Canadian whisky tumbler is like a quadruple shotglass with a gorgeous weighted base.  The glasses look extremely impressive, well crafted, and for lack of some better words, enticingly fancy next to your bottles of whisky.  I will place up an individual review of each glass this week, but want to do this overall post so as not to make these too long. You can see a sneak peak of each of these glasses in the picture above (along with some of their specialty glass peers).  In order, they are the Villeroy and Boch Single Malt Nosing Goblet, the Villeroy & Boch Canadian Whisky Tumbler, the Villeroy & Boch Lowlands Single Malt Whisky Glass, the Celtic Malts Spirits Glass, the Riedel Vinum Single Malt Whiskey Glass, and the Glencairn Nosing Glass.

Overall

I decided to review these glasses using (for the most part) the whiskies for which they called.  For each glass, I also used a control of a Glencairn glass (my normal tasting glass) in order to compare and contrast.  Overall, though I thought them a bit funny at first because of their size,  I liked them a lot.  They truly look and feel extremely impressive and step up the whisky glass game in a big way (they easily dominate the Riedel single malt glass).   Though I like the look and feel of the Canadian whisky tumbler, I don’t think it’s a great whisky vehicle and aside from looking/feeling awesome, not worth the price of admission. I would gladly recommend both the Single Malt Nosing Goblet and above all, the Lowlands Single Grain Whisky glass.  They both deliver an outstanding whisk(e)y drinking experience that I was surprised I did not get through the Glencairn.  At $50 a pair, they are not cheap (and cost more than many bottles of the good stuff that we review), but they really do add a great deal to the whisk(e)y tasting experience and would make a great Father’s Day gift (or any gift, really – one of those things that you would love and want but probably don’t want to pay for yourself).   Update: Based on the current store price of $28 a pair, I wholeheartedly recommend you jump on them.  Please check back later this week for the individual review for each glass.

-StrongLikeCask