Scotch Whisky

The stunning presentation

Glen Scotia Four Quarters at Distillers One of One

I was in Edinburgh earlier this week to taste Glen Scotia’s Four Quarters set that is heading to the Distillers One of One charity auction. It is rare that a single tasting manages to cover history, technique, design and philanthropy with the same clarity. This did. Four single malts from the same month in 1999, each a quarter of a century old, and each showing a different facet of Campbeltown’s character through its choice of cask.

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Glenmorangie

Three New Whisky Releases To Buy

White Peak Distillery’s Necessary Evil Returns

Turn off the A6 and into the Derwent Valley and you’re in another world. The old Johnson & Nephew wire works loom over the river, relics of a time when men clocked in for twelve-hour shifts and left coated in soot and metal dust. Today part of that site is White Peak Distillery, founded in 2016 by Max and Claire Vaughan. What could easily have been left to crumble has instead become Derbyshire’s first whisky distillery, with a still house that feels as much cathedral as factory.

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The Tamdhu 21

Tamdhu 21 Year Old: A Brilliant New Expression

Tamdhu’s latest release, a limited 21-Year-Old single malt, extends the Speyside distillery’s commitment to sherry-cask maturation with a decisive turn toward European oak. Bottled at 47.5 % ABV, unchill-filtered and with no added colour, this coming-of-age expression stands as a flagship for the brand’s evolving style: bold, structured and unmistakably Tamdhu.

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Loch Lomond Whiskies

Discovering Loch Lomond Distillery

Few distilleries divide opinion quite like Loch Lomond. Often underestimated, sometimes misunderstood, it doesn’t trade on bucolic charm or romantic tales of illicit stills. Instead, it is rooted in industrial ambition and technical ingenuity - qualities that, ironically, have led to some of the most distinct single malts coming out of Scotland today.

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Mossburn Calvados Cask

David's Drink Diaries - Issue 21

Mossburn 12-Year-Old “Famille Dupont” Calvados Casks 57.2%

Mossburn Distillers and Blenders continue to impress with their thoughtful and innovative cask finishes, and this 12-year-old expression is no exception. Neil Mathieson, Mossburn's master distiller, has selected 18 casks from four Speyside distilleries to undergo a finishing process in Calvados casks sourced from the Dupont family.  

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The Pursuit of Pleasure

Hedonism and House of Hazelwood Create "The Pursuit of Pleasure"

House of Hazelwood and Hedonism Wines have come together to create the ultimate expression of indulgence: *The Pursuit of Pleasure*, a 52-year-old Blended Scotch Whisky.

Regular readers will know I’m a longtime admirer of House of Hazelwood, but what you might not realise is that I’m also a fan of shopping for whisky and Armagnac at Hedonism Wines, just off Berkeley Square in London. So, when I heard these two were collaborating to create a whisky, I was immediately intrigued.

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Renoir

Johnson Reserve Whisky - A New Name In Luxury

Earlier this year I attended a splendid lunch at the private members club Oswald's, in the heart of Mayfair. Upon entry our phone cameras were taped over, ensuring we complied with their no photography policy. This is not something I mind, as it meant full dedication to tasting the whisky from our hosts, the Johnson family. It was a lavish luncheon with many of the whisky worlds great and good in attendance. Looking at the crowd, it was obvious the family were keen to impress and get their whisky in the hands of some fine writers. I like their confidence. 

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The Silk Traveller

House of Hazelwood Release Their Third Collection of Extraordinary Whisky

I have written about the House of Hazelwood extensively before. On this occasion, I thought it would be interesting to interview Jonathan Gibson, a director of House of Hazelwood to find out how they curated this, their third, extraordinary collection of whiskies. My tasting notes are below the interview. 

Roughly how many barrels were tasted before selecting the whiskies included in this collection?

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