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Islay with a Dug

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Pic:  @jwbassman Visiting Islay with a dug (dog)? Here's a wee guide to the distilleries Gus and I visited in April 2019. Hopefully this can help some folks planning a trip. NOTE: None of the distilleries allow dogs on tours, the only one that does (that I know of) is the excellent Lindores Abbey in Fife. Ardbeg No dogs allowed inside the premises (which was a bit gutting as the cafe is so good) but they are allowed around the grounds which made for some good pictures. Ardnahoe No dogs allowed inside. Bowmore Dogs allowed in the shop and the bar. Gus's favorite area was round the back of Warehose No.1 which provided first class toilet facilities with some stunning views. Bruichladdich Really dog friendly shop. Treats, water and hugs provided. Excellent. Bunnahabhain Same story as Bruichladdich. Spent 30 mins here in the shop just chatting while Gus slept on the floor. Caol Ila Diageo.. No dogs allowed inside b...
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Glenfarclas 9 year Old - Southport Whisky Club Bottling

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Glenfarclas. Not a distillery I have sampled a great deal from before.  I've never owned any either, a part from a half bottle of the 105 received as as a gift a couple of years ago, which I really enjoyed. Not sure why, they have just never really caught my attention. Perhaps its the old school branding or maybe because their online presence is practically non-existent. Granted, both are poor excuses for not exploring more of "Probably Speyside's Finest Distillery" range, as it should all be about what's inside the bottle should it not? However, these things matter and Glenfarclas might be missing a trick here to draw more people in for a dram or two. Anyway, on to the dram in hand. This Glenfarclas is 9 years old and 1 of of 300 bottles produced especially for the @SouthportWhisky Club and  Vino , an independent wine and spirit merchant in Edinburgh. How did I get one? Thanks to my Malt Mate  @jwbassman , who heartily reccommended the whisky an...
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Daftmill 2006 Winter Batch Release

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I've been interested in trying a Daftmill release for some time but the opportunity hadn't presented itself. I was tempted to try one in The Pot Still one night (can't remember the bottle details) but it was £30 or so for a dram and I wasn't rich (or drunk) enough to splash that sort of cash. Enter  @stewedwhisky  who, after a wee Twitter exchange, very generously sent a sample of the 2006 Winter Batch Release for me to try. Granted a licence to distill in 2005, Daftmill didn't rush into releasing whisky after only 3 or 4 years, instead choosing to wait a fair while longer with the Daftmill 2005-12 Year Inaugural Release. Located near Cupar, Fife the distillery itself  is built in a old converted farm building  and has a maximum production capacity of 20,000 litres of spirit per year, making it a very low volume/highly desirable whisky. So, is Daftmill worth the hype? Daftmill 2006 Winter Batch Release  ABV 46% Nose - Autumnal orchard frui...
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Glen Moray Tweet Tastings

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Time for another  TweetTasting , and one which has become a bit of a special, annual event on Twitter for us whisky geeks. Four 100 mL  Glen Mora y samples arrived from  Steve at The Whisky Wire  with all participants invited to share thoughts on the drams during the night.  The presentation of the drams has to be commended, with the sample size and the packaging all of the highest quality. Well done Glen Moray, it is very much appreciated! So, on to the whisky.. Rhum Agricole 3060 of these bottles have been produced. The Rhum Agricole Cask Finish Project is  finished in cane rum barrels from Martinique.  Age - NAS ABV - 46.3% Nose - On the nose the Rhum Agricole initially offers up bananas and some coconut in the form of suntan lotion. Very buttery, deep flavoured rum and raisin ice cream. A larger sniff releases some menthol and eucalyptus notes too. Taste -  The Rhum Agricole in the mouth is warming and spicy ...
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Whisky Works Tweet Tasting

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I was fortunate enough to be picked for the Whisky Works Tweet Tasting event in October. All particpants were issued with four very generous samples from which we were to tweet our thoughts in a live online tasting event organised by Steve at The Whisky Wire   . The Whisky Works are a small bottling and blending company run as an independent arm of White and Mackay. Their whiskies are catagorised into Classic -  aged, rare whiskies and Modern Experiments -  the use of uncommon maturation methods. Two from each range were included as part of the tasting all four  whiskies are still available at the time of writing. King of Trees This one is a ten year old blended Highland malt coming in at 46.5% ABV. A portion of the blend has been matured in a cask manufactured using wood from 200 year old, wind felled Scottish oak trees. Something of a rarity in whisky maturation. Nose -  light and delicate, green fruits, apples and pears in a vanilla sauce. T...
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Lindores Abbey Visit

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Lindores Abbey is a relatively new distillery, beginning production of spirit in 2017 in the village of Newburgh, Fife.  However, distilling was taking place here as early as 1494. The  earliest written reference to Scotch Whisky (or Aqua Vitae, as it was then known), appears in the Exchequer Roll of the same year. It mentioned a Brother John Cor, a Lindores monk, who was commissioned by King James IV to turn 8 bolls of malt into Aqua Vitae.   That amounts to around 500kg in today's money and would have been enough to make about 400 bottles of whisky. I visited along with a willing fiancee, bulldog and two very unwilling kids in July 2019 for a tour and some lunch afterwards.  Initial impressions on arriving was that the place was immaculate. A lot of care and attention to detail has been incorporated into the design of the building with a lot of the materials used in the build sourced from the local area. The 50 foot long oak table was the mai...
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Bowmore - Vaults Secrets Tour

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Wednesday, April 10:30 am. Not the usual time to be enjoying a dram (maybe it is for some folk) but here I am sitting sipping a Bowmore Vault First Edition in the distillery bar overlooking Loch Indaal. This is the the Bomore Vaults Secrets tour and already the signs are it's going to be good. It started when the Father in Law and I were called by our guide, Kim, for the tour to find we were the only two on it. A private tour round Islay's oldest distillery? Sign me up! The tour started with us being issued our own Bowmore branded lanyards and Perfect Dram glasses (always a good sign of the amount of whisky you can expect on a tour when you get a lanyard) which were promptly filled with a good measure of Vault First Edition. A nice wee opener and a welcome reward after the grueling 500ft or so walk in the sunshine from our accomodation to the distillery. After the drams, Kim took us from the bar to the Malt Barns which are situated over three levels in a building ...
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