Browsing Yearly Archives for 2017

St Patrick’s Day is the day when Ireland celebrates its patron saint, both a religious and cultural festival. As it approaches, how should you mark the occasion and more importantly, what should you drink? There’s…

Today is International Women’s Day, so what better way to show our support than by looking at the way women have shaped our industry over the years. I started out in the industry more than…

When it emerged that we would be selling a special charity bottling of Lagavulin we were very excited, not only because it’s great to be involved with such a distinguished distillery, but also because all…

We’re very fortunate at The Whisky Exchange not only to stock a huge range of whiskies from independent bottlers, but also to work closely with our sister company, Speciality Drinks Ltd, which is an independent bottler itself. This…

We often get asked which whisky is a good investment – and it is always a difficult question to answer. There are many ways to look at what has proven to be a good investment,…

Iceland has become the place to visit in the past few years. With miles of mountains, lagoons, glaciers and geothermal springs and a high chance of seeing the Northern Lights, it’s become well known as…

South African wine has always held a place in my heart – while on holiday there, I had my first-ever tasting. Those were the days of swallow not spit…there was no assessment of the wines…

The nights are cold and spring is still far away, but fear not as we visit the warm tropics of Asia in our second instalment of Ladies Night! This session was hosted by the wonderful…

Whisky and food are a great match. I’m not talking about drinking shots with dinner, but instead am looking to the drinkers and eaters of Russia and the Iberian peninsula. Vodka and Zakuski (Russian starters),…

Not everyone likes sweet, pink and fizzy. Hallmark certainly isn’t my idea of a romantic sentiment, and it’s OK if it’s not yours, either. But it does make Valentine’s Day a tricky one to celebrate…

Of all the things that have crossed my path since starting to work in the drinks world, judging whisky competitions is one of the most enjoyable. However, many people don’t know what’s involved. The final round…

I’ve been lucky to attend plenty of whisky tastings. The latest was a tour through the new batch of Diageo’s Special Releases hosted by whisky educator Colin Dunn – and it was superb. But as…

Gin is in a fantastic place. It’s booming in the UK, with new distilleries popping up on a weekly basis and established distilleries producing increasingly wild and wacky recipes. However, along with the explosion of…

In the second part of our exclusive interview, Jim Murray explains his strict rules for choosing his World Whisky of the Year, his response to critics of the Whisky Bible, and his retirement plans. You…

In the first part of our exclusive interview, Jim Murray tells Stuart how Lord Lucan helped him get into whisky, how he helped create the rye boom, and why sulphur is the enemy of a…

The Whisky Exchange blog was busier than ever in 2016, with so much happening in the drinks world to talk about, from shock EU rulings to legendary masterclasses and cool cocktail trends. Here are some…

The whisky market moves quickly. In the past year, we’ve seen hundreds of new releases at The Whisky Exchange – single casks, special editions, ongoing bottlings and the occasional relaunch. However, with so many whiskies…