The Whisky Exchange BLOG

I’m delighted to have a preview bottle of the general release of Ardbeg Corryvreckan sitting on my desk, so I thought I’d dip in and share my thoughts in what has turned out to be the first blog post for a few weeks (due to me busting a gut on a separate project, about which more in the very near future). 

Actually, I’ve had this bottle for over a week, but it’s been embargoed so I had to keep it under my hat.  It wasn’t easy, let me tell you – for one thing, hats don’t suit me.  Also, I have a very small head.

Ardbeg Corryvreckan - not ideal under headgear

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After the last blog’s doom and gloom in the whisky world I thought I’d try and get a bit more upbeat, so this post is going to be more about fun events, websites, good news and other cool new whisky stuff.

First though, a word about the annual industry bunfights, and with gongs getting handed out left, right and centre, it’s been a great couple of weeks for Benriach and Cooley at the IWSC (International Wine and Spirits Challenge) and the confusingly-similarly-named ISC (International Spirits Challenge).  Glenglassaugh also did well, with two trophies for its (sadly quite pricey) 30 & 40yo expressions.

A Cooley representative, yesterday

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No post last week due to the fact that my colleagues and I were all up to our eyes in the preparation for (and subsequent execution of ) the Herculean task that is the TWE stockcount. 

In the meantime, a blizzard of whisky news has been pinging into my inbox.  Back at my desk, I find myself with an incredible amount of press releases, some with good news, some bad.  The whisky blogs have certainly been buzzing, and I’m coming late to the party (as usual), but I’ll throw my tuppence-worth in anyway.

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This just in from Mark Reynier’s Bruichladdich blog:

New Octomore - same bottle, new box

Apparently this year’s release was peated to 140ppm before distillation.  Yikes!

Octomore bottling line

Sukhinder sent me over a brochure for a new Swedish whisky, so I thought I’d share.  The company is called Ådalen Destilleri AB and their single malt will be made in a converted power station (interestingly, they plan to be a green distillery, using organic barley and building a biogas facility on-site with the aim of becoming self-sufficient for steam and heat).  The single malt will be called Box, after an old sawmill on the old power station site.  Projected capacity is pretty small at 140,000 litres per annum.

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Shame about the weather

The 6.30 wake up call resonated through our ears like plates being dropped in a restaurant; initial shock followed by reluctant applause.  But you get on with enjoying your lot and pay your bill at the end.  And a reasonable bill it seemed as we made our way up the A83 to Kennacraig for the 9.45 ferry to Port Ellen.

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This just into my inbox:

“To celebrate this year’s Islay Festival of Malt & Music on 23-30 May, Diageo is once again making available two special Festival editions of its Islay Single Malt Scotch Whiskies. These very limited editions will be available only to personal shoppers, with a limit of one bottle per person.

Lagavulin (Click to enlarge)

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Hello everyone, and first of all can I say a big Thank You for all your contributions to last week’s Supernova / Octomore post, which has provoked a fascinating exchange of views in the comments section.

Now, this next item is not exactly new, but has only just come to our attention via the peerless Serge over at the equally peerless Whiskyfun.com and is simply too good for us to pass up (I hope that this is ok with Serge, especially as Whiskyfun has no comments section!). 

It would seem that the repositioning of Glenmorangie by Louis Vuitton-Moet Hennessy has just been ramped up by several hundred notches (deep-discounting in supermarkets notwithstanding), if this offer from The Robb Report (a website/blog devoted to rich men’s playthings) from December is anything to go by:

“Ultimate Gifts: 17th Man of Tain

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It has been widely reported that LVMH (that’s Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy), parent company of Glenmorangie plc, have agreed to flog off their unloved step-child Glen Moray to fellow French company La Martiniquaise.  Financial details of the deal have not been disclosed, but the deal is expected to be finalised by the end of October.

It’s not news at all that Glenmorangie have been looking to shift Glen Moray for some time, being unwilling to invest any money that could be better spent on pewter mugs and fancy leather boxes with which to garland the increasingly absurd new releases of sister distilleries Ardbeg and Glenmorangie.  With LVMH being a luxury goods company, it was clear that attention (and investment) would be focused on the blue chip distilleries.

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