The Glenlivet "Exclusive Whisky Party" (Hong Kong)

Pernod Ricard Hong Kong, in conjunction with the new Whisky Magazine Hong Kong & Macau (which you'll be hearing more about shortly) recently held an "Exclusive Whisky Party" at the recently-opened Seafood Room in Causeway Bay, with stunning views out over Hong Kong harbour.

Despite the name, the party was probably the busiest and most well-attended Hong Kong whisky Party we've attended (and we've been to plenty), with crowds filling almost every inch of Seafood Room's humungous 10,000 combined sq ft space. In one way though, the party was "exclusive", with guests being the first in Hong Kong to try the latest single cask offering - the 52.5% 16 year old "Bletherman". 

Unfortunately we couldn't make the earlier tasting session, and were only able to try it from a tumbler so we don't have detailed tasting notes, but what we did taste we liked - an incredibly rich dram, sherried but not overly so, with a delicious vanilla creaminess. Limited to 570 bottles, we suspect quite a few were gone by the end of the night.

With so many guests, you'd hope there'd be enough to keep everyone entertained...and the organisers didn't disappoint, with cocktails, cigars, a rooftop band performance, food stations (including some fantastic Jamón, but surprisingly little seafood), a choice of The Glenlivet drams (12, 15, 18, Single Cask "Bletherman" and Guardian's Chapter, which we helped select way back in 2013) and a whisky and tea pairing station, not to mention a photo station (where guests could have their photo taken and receive it instantly via e-mail and a few minutes later in printed form).

The highlight though was the game table, where guests tasted whiskies and nosed scents, and used tokens to guess the whisky / flavour. Winners at the end of the night walked away with a bottle of Glenlivet 12 Excellence and the Guardian's Chapter.

With the whisky flowing and everyone seemingly having a great time, the only downside of the night was when reality struck and we realised we had work the next morning...

Oh well, one more "Bletherman" for the road... (when it's gone, it's gone, right?)

Cheers,

Martin.

Upcoming Event: World Whisky Day 2016 at Tiffany's New York Bar (Hong Kong)

World Whisky Day is coming up again this Saturday, and Tiffany's New York Bar at the InterContinental Grand Stanford (featured in our list of Top Hong Kong Whisky Bars) are going all out in conjunction with Pernod Ricard HK, with a 5 hour celebration of whisky, cigars and food. As a bit of a teaser, they were also kind enough to give us this box...

No strangers to holding brilliant whisky events (their inaugural Hong Kong Whisky Festival earlier this year was an absolute smash hit), Tiffany's are planning the event as a mini-festival, with the following highlights:

• Over 100 whiskies from all over the world at $50 or $80HKD/glass
• "Meet the ambassadors"
• Cigar corner
• Outdoor garden lounge
• Jazz performance
• Welcome drink on arrival (Glenlivet 12yo or Chivas Whisky cocktail)

Entry is $120HKD and includes the welcome drink and an engraved Glencairn glass. Full details can be found here.

We've seen the list of drams and there are definitely some winners in there - plenty of favourites as well as some unusual drams that many may not have tried (or even heard of) - Slyrs single malt, Mars Komagatake Rindo and Amorik to name a few. There's also a list of (higher-priced) special drams, inlcluding Arran Smuggler's Series Vol.1, Kavalan Amontillado Sherry Cask, and two Michel Couvreur whiskies (whose range we recently tasted and will write about shortly).

So...what was in the box? A selection of 5 of Tiffany's famous home-finished whiskies, which are finished right in the middle of the bar, in a number of oak casks they have on display. As I write this, I'm enjoying the "Speyside Shiraz Finish" and it's beautiful - smooth and rounded, with some citrus notes and some big red berries, with a lovely toffee finish. No harsh oak or overt tannins either, as you might get with extra cask-finishing. Try them at the bar, and hopefully they release these sample boxes for sale soon.

Cheers,
Martin.

Maker's Mark Old Fashioned Week 2016

To celebrate a longstanding favourite whiskey cocktail; the Old Fashioned, Maker's Mark recently launched the inaugural 'Old Fashioned' week at Earl's Juke Joint in Newtown. Running in parallel with Sydney Fashion Week, the inaugural Old Fashioned week is all about showcasing the unique, versatile and glamorous nature of the Old Fashioned cocktail.

We attended the Old Fashioned Week launch event tonight at Earl's Juke Joint where Luke Hanzlicek; Premium Spirits Ambassador for Beam Suntory kicked off the celebration with a demonstration of how to best craft an Old Fashioned. Not to anyone's surprise, the base bourbon used was Maker's Mark.

Running between 12-20th May, 12 bars across Sydney will be participating in the week-long celebration and each bar will showcase their own style of Old Fashioned. At Earl's, the cocktails being showcased included an Old Fashioned, Mr Maker's (Ginger Beer, Bitters, Orange and Mint), Whisky Sour and Whiskey Apple.

The Wild Rover will also host a True Maker's event on the 18th May; a collaboration between Maker's Mark and Simon Anderson (competitive surfer) and Anthony Lister (painter and installation artist).

The 12 participating bars will be The Commons, Earl's Juke Joint, Papa Gede's, Ramblin' Rascal Tavern, Riley St Garage, The Roosevelt, Shirt Bar, Soda Factory, Stitch Bar, The Village Inn, The Whisky Room and The Wild Rover.

With the weather cooling, it's the perfect opportunity to drop by any of the venues above and sample different takes on the Old Fashioned cocktail.

Cheers
Hendy

Yamazaki "Limited Edition" 2016

There's already been one limited, highly sought-after 2016 Yamazaki this year (and we tasted it here), and now there's set to be another - the Yamazaki "Limited Edition" 2016 release.

Following in the footsteps of the 2014 and the 2015 Limited Editions (the former which is still not-terribly-difficult to find in Japan), this year's release is also an NAS, but sounds like it contains whisky from ex Sherry and Port cask(s), with some of the malt aged for over 20 years.

There are some more details here (if you can't read Japanese, you might need to make do with Google / Chrome auto-translation..). Unfortunately there's no information on how it will be made available yet (quite possibly via lottery like last year), but at 10,000yen, at least they're keeping it relatively accessible.

Let the hype commence!

Cheers,
Martin.

"Now & Then" tasting with Charlie MacLean at the Hong Kong Whisky Festival 2016 (Tasted #288 - 293)

At the Hong Kong Whisky Festival back in February, we were incredibly fortunate to share a Balvenie lunch with Scotch whisky writer and industry legend Charlie MacLean. That wasn't our only whisky experience with Charlie, though. Straight after the lunch, we headed upstairs to one of the InterContinental Grand Stanford's function rooms (with sweeping views of Hong Kong Island across the harbour), for one of Charlie's famous "Now & Then" tastings.

"Now & Then" style tastings come in many forms, but usually involve examining whiskies of today against their counterparts from an era gone by. This tasting was no exception, with the focus on Speyside single malts, namely Glenlivet, Glen Grant and Cardhu. Specifically, these gems:

• Cardhu 12 year old of today
• Cardhu "Highland Malt Scotch Whisky" 12 year old (1970s bottling)

• Glen Grant 10 year old of today
• Glen Grant 10 year old (1970s bottling)

• The Glenlivet 12 year old "Excellence" (a more Sherried 12yo bottles for only four countries in Asia)
• The Glenlivet 12 year old from the early 1970s (exact year unknown)

It's not often we get a chance to do such direct comparisons, but we've always found the opportunity to do so hugely enjoyable. This was no exception.

Charlie opened proceedings by explaining some of the background and history of each distillery, as well as some interesting insights that few would know (what Charlie doesn't know about Scotch whisky basically isn't worth knowing). Starting with Cardhu, Charlie talked of its "promotion" to a single malt product in 1968 (based on the success of William Grant & Son's Glenfiddich and others), and its subsequent yoyo-ing between being sold as a single malt and being reserved for blenders, before finally, its return as a single malt in 2006.

At that point we were all eager to dive into the first pair:

Cardhu 12 year old Highland Malt Scotch Whisky - 1970's (40% ABV, 12yo, Speyside, Scotland, £399)
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Colour: Pale yellow gold
Nose: Hugely tropical (passionfruit, papaya, pineapple), with a hint of mustiness but also plenty of freshly cut grass. Sweaty socks. After 20 minutes, loads of creamy caramel.
Palate: Soft, musty, with a slight meatiness and sweet tropical vanilla notes.
Finish: Medium length, with vanilla sweetness to the very end.
Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 90/100. I suspect age may have slightly impacted the nose and palate, but there was enough going on to give an idea of what it would have been like ~40 years ago.


Cardhu 12 year old - modern bottling (40% ABV, 12yo, Speyside, Scotland, $74.99AUD / $768HKD / £34.08)
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Colour: Pale orange gold
Nose: Sweeter and with more caramel than the 70's bottling. There's still fruitiness, but berries and bananas this time.
Palate: Lighter, thinner, still very sweet, with a slight floral acidity and a touch of earthiness.
Finish: Longer than the 70's bottling, but a little less polished, with a little more alcohol burn.
Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 88/100. There were similarities between the two, but clear differences too (as you'd expect).

Next up was Glen Grant - a distillery whose standard OB releases of late I have to be honest, I haven't been hugely fond of. Charlie talked us through the distillery's strong Italian connection (which stretches further back than 2005's Gruppo Campari acquisition), it's position as number 1 single malt in the Italian market, and displayed his incredibly detailed knowledge with tidbits like the fact that in 1916 Glen Grant didn't add the alcohol proof to their labels.


Glen Grant 10 year old - 1970's (40% ABV, 10yo, Speyside, Scotland, £175)
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Colour: Light yellow straw
Nose: Big tropical fruit bouquet - whole oranges, apricots, pears, peaches. A touch of candle wax too.
Palate: Waxy, meaty, with a slightly earthy smoke and hints of wet grass.
Finish: Medium, rich, smoky with a rich toffee finish at the very end.
Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 90/100.


Glen Grant 10 year old - current bottling (40% ABV, 10yo, Speyside, Scotland, $61.99AUD / £29.89)
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Colour: Pale straw
Nose: Strawberry cream and Iced Vovos. Hints of tropical fruit. Then some berries - Monte Carlo biscuits?
Palate: Thin, grainy and sugary-sweet. Not a whole lot to be impressed by.
Finish: Short, thin and bitter.
Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 86/100. Nice nose (initially), but a fairly disappointing palate and finish when compared to the 70's bottling.

With time running out and the small crowd eager to hear more about the whiskies in front of us, and their heritage, it was onto the final distillery of the day - The Glenlivet. Charlie being Charlie of course had a connection to the distillery - his first malt whisky tasting experience with with a school friend, whose dad just happened to own The Glenlivet Distillery at the time...


The Glenlivet 12 years old - 1970's (40% ABV, 12yo, Speyside, Scotland, £168)
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Colour: Orange gold
Nose: Subtle ashy smoke (that was unexpected). BBQ-grilled pineapple, with a very slight mustiness.
Palate: A big robust oily mouthfeel gives way to smouldering smoke and BBQ'd meats. The nose implied this would be sweet, but it wasn't at all - instead rich smoked meats dominate.
Finish: Long, toasted oak, with as light earthiness.
Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 91/100. Not quite what I'd expected, but enjoyable.


The Glenlivet 12 years old "Excellence" - current bottling (40% ABV, 12yo, Speyside, Scotland, $498HKD)
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A more heavily sherried 12 year old release from The Glenlivet only available in four markets in Asia.
Colour: Yellow-orange gold.
Nose: Light, floral, fruity - peaches and pear slices.
Palate: Smooth but a little thin. The floral and fruity notes continue, with honey-drizzled pears and a touch of Brazil nuts.
Finish: Medium to long, with a sweet nuttiness - think sugar-coated almonds.
Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 90/100.

To experience a masterclass like this, and compare 3 of today's single malts with their 40+ year old (and yet same-aged) counterparts was truly a fantastic experience. To do so with one of the absolute legends of the Scotch whisky industry was just incredible. To then have Charlie sit down and provide detailed notes on my own little single malt small cask maturation experiment was amazing, but more on that later....

Cheers,
Martin.

TimeforWhisky.com would like to thank InterContinental Grand Stanford for the media ticket and invitation to the lunch and masterclass with Charlie MacLean. A round of applause needs to go to John and James too (they know who they are), for putting on such a fantastic show - a first-year effort, no less.

Whisky & Alement launch Japanese "Bar White Oak" pop-up in Melbourne

We've reviewed our fair share of bars on this blog, and have written about the best whisky bars in Hong Kong and best bars in Sydney before, but when it comes to whisky bars, depsite having visited some amazing ones all around the world, there's still one that ranks #1 in our books - Whisky & Alement, in Melbourne.

Is it the huge collection, the SMWS partnership, the convenient location, the great hours, and the awesome events? Sure, it's all of that, but most of all, for us, it's two things:

• The awesome, awesome staff and owners (friendly, knowledgeable, just lovely, down to earth people); and
• The variety of their collection. The owners and staff are true whisk(e)y fanatics, and it shows in their incredibly well thought-out selection.

...so when we heard they were opening a pop-up bar focusing solely on Japanese whisky (dubbed "a 6 month Consumable Exhibition of Japanese Whisky"), we knew it was something to be excited about. Introducing, "Bar White Oak".

The full press release is below, but all you need to know is that there'll be ~150 Japanese whiskies, and it's open 7 days a week from 18 May, for 6 months, and you should get into it. Oh, and there's a Highball tap!

"Whisky and Alement owners, Julian White and Brooke Hayman have teamed up with Kelvin Low (formerly of Heirloom Restaurant) to create a pop-up bar that will serve Australia’s largest publicly available collection of Japanese whisky. The bar will serve up to 150 different Japanese whiskies including rare releases from the demolished Karuizawa distillery, unusual blends of the 1980’s and recent award winners such as the Yamazaki Sherry Cask 2016 release.

Open 7 days from 18 May for a limited six-month period, Australia’s only bar solely dedicated to Japanese Whisky has been dubbed a “Consumable Exhibition” to honour the incredible history of Japanese whisky and how it came to carry the value and rarity of today. The bar will offer a rare chance to try Japanese whiskies of the late 20th Century at affordable prices before they become so rare and expensive that they’re reserved only for the cupboard’s of avid collectors.

To compliment Bar White Oak’s whisky selection, Whisky and Alement have built Australia’s first, permanent Whisky Highball tap (draught system) similar to those used in bars across Japan. A Highball is ordered as an “in the meantime” drink while everyone is looking at the menu, or to cleanse the palate between flavours as a refreshing, light alternative to beer.

Julian White and Kelvin Low will also be launching a series of Japanese Whisky Tastings during the six-month operation of Bar White Oak. Tastings planned include a Japanese Introductory Tasting, an Intermediate Japanese Tasting, and several different rare Japanese Whisky Tastings. White and Low both intend to add a light element to the events with a little Japanese humor. Dates are expected to be released in early May via the Whisky and Alement mailing list."

TRADING HOURS from 18 May 2016
Sunday & Monday – 4.30pm to 11pm
Tuesday to Friday – 4.30pm to 12.30am
Saturday – 7pm to 12.30am

LOCATED inside Whisky and Alement at 270 Russell Street, Melbourne VIC 3000

Cheers,

Martin.

Tasted #287: Teeling Whiskey 15 year old "The Revival"

Teeling Whiskey Co, which we've talked about once or twice (ahem) on this blog before, and which launched in Hong Kong earlier this year, recently launched their new 15yo "The Revival" in Australia. Ahead of a (hopefully) soon Hong Kong launch, we were lucky enough to be given an advance preview tasting (along with some always-appreciated Teeling swag). It was also our first time christening our new TimeforWhisky.com Glencairn glasses!

Teeling Whiskey Co 15 year old "The Revival" (46% ABV, 15 years old, Dublin, Ireland, $159.99AUD / £83.78)

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Colour: Yellow gold.

Nose: Sweet, but not one-dimensionally so. Citrus sweetness. Confectionary sweetness. Umm..carrot juice? Lots of carrots! Corn bread. After a few more goes, some vegetal notes, coconut and even some lemon. Something for everyone!

Palate: Smooth and viscous, and incredibly rich. Sweet demerara sugar, mollases, with an underlying meatiness and hints of sesame and toasted oak. It's intense, but never overwhelming. Very well put together. A hint of sherbert bon-bon lollies, grapefruit flesh, and green papaya.

Finish: Long with a hunt of smoke, a decent amount of oak, chamomile tea and some vegetable juice.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 91/100. Certainly a mixed bag of flavours, but all up very enjoyable.

Cheers,

Martin.

TimeforWhisky.com would like to thank Teeling Whiskey Co for the sample.

Tasted #286: Glenmorangie Milsean

As mentioned back in March, Glenmorangie's Milsean recently launched in Australia, and we're now pleased to say it's also launched in Hong Kong. MHDHK were kind enough to send us this lovely gift pack recently, so we could bring you our thoughts on the latest Private Edition.

As with some previous Private Editions (including 2015's Tùsail and 2014's Companta, but unlike 2013's 19 year old Ealanta) the Milsean carries no age statement. What it does carry, though, is Dr Bill's signature of experimentation - this time in the form of finishing in re-toasted Portuguese red wine casks, from Portugal's Duoro Valley. 

With all his experimentation, it wouldn't be inaccurate to consider Dr Bill the "Willy Wonka" of the whisky industry, and never has that been more evident than in this new release. Just look at the packaging for starters...

Clearly we were going to be in for a sweet treat with this one...

Glenmorangie "Milsean" Private Edition (46% ABV, NAS, Highlands, Scotland, $1,130HKD / $159.10AUD / £75.95)

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Colour: Copper-tinged gold.

Nose: Sherbert, candied orange peel, jelly babies (red ones) and Redskins. Yep, it's sweet alright.

Palate: Fruity, spicy and sweet, all at once. Citrus fruits, hints of ginger and Szechuan, and loads of confectionary sweetness. It's unmistakably a Glenmorangie, but adds Asian spices, Saffron, candied ginger, raisins, nectarines and rum-soaked pears as time goes on. There's a fair bit going on, but the underlying theme is definitely "sweet".

Finish: Medium to long length, with a tongue-tickling sherbert-like end to what is a sweet and enjoyable experience.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 90/100. This one definitely sits in the "dessert whisky" category.

Cheers,

Martin.

TimeforWhisky.com would like to thank MHDHK and Why Not? Asia PR for the Milsean gift package. Glenmorangie Milsean is available in Hong Kong at city’super, Rare and Fine Wine, Brix Wine Cellar and Lillion Wine, and currently purchasers will receive a complimentary 75g box of candies from Mr Simms Olde Sweet Shoppe when buying a bottle.

Islay Adventure (Tasted: #282 - 285)

When an offer to sample four different Islay bottlings was put up on Dram Full Sydney by Nicholas of whisknick, I jumped at the offer. In the line up were four bottles that Nick brought back from his Scotland trip, including:

1. Port Charlotte Valinch Heavily Peated - a DIY bottling that is available to visitors of the Bruichladdich distillery
2. Laphroaig 10 Original Cask Strength - this is the one expressions I've heard mentioned quite a few times, positively
3. Bowmore Hand-Filled - filled with 17yo Bowmore whisky aged in a Bordeaux wine cask; and
4. Ardbeg Perpetuum Distillery Reserve - having had the regular Perpetuum release on Ardbeg Day, it was good to compare the two. 

The night itself was unassuming, being hosted at Tokyo Bird, the local yakitory / whisky bar in downtown Sydney. It was a night about the four whiskies and the good company of other Dram Full Sydney members.

Port Charlotte Valinch Heavily Peated ex-Oloroso Sherry Cask (63.2% ABV, 10yo, bottle 348/680, Islay, Scotland, not commercially available)
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One should get rather excited when presented with a bottle of Port Charlotte, or Octomore or Bruichladdich for that matter. Over the years, under the helm of recently retired Jim McEwan (who we met back in 2014), different expressions from the three Bruichladdich lines continued to impress drammers. This Port Charlotte 'Valinch' ex-Oloroso expression was no different - though being a DIY bottling range, sadly, one must return to Islay for a refill. So with the malt heavily peated, yes, complex and enjoyable, certainly.

Colour: Gold

Nose: The nose is filled with jamon, yes, Spanish Iberico jamon and caramel ice cream. The sherry and oak carries through on the whiff.

Palate: The palate is nice and complex and cask strength big. There's the big douse of peat, cherries, strawberries followed by a briny note and black pepper spices that come out at the end. 

Finish: Extremely long, peppery with a hint of brine. There's a slight oak in there too.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 92/100.

Bowmore 'Hand-Filled' - Bordeaux Cask (57.3% ABV, 17yo, Islay, Scotland, no longer commercially available)

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I was excited to taste this special Bowmore and as with the Valinch, I knew that this might have been the only opportunity to taste this particular Bordeaux cask matured expression (unless of course, I make the trip to Islay). The use of a Bordeaux cask reflects the slightly different path this Bowmore takes when compared to its traditional lines. Similar to the recent release of the Mizunara Cask Finish last September (which Martin tasted here), it seems that Bowmore is in the midst of experimenting with different non-traditional casks over the past few years.

Colour: Almost cough syrupy; amber / red

Nose: The nose is sweet, vanilla, mascarpone and lemon cheesecake

Palate: The palate carries through the citrus 'tropical' note with plenty of lemon and lime on the first taste before becoming extremely peppery and mellowing out into a sweet cheesecake. I can't seem to pick up the light Bowmore peat, where has it disappeared to?! The age of this particular malt may shed some light on the whereabouts of the peat. The palate is exciting nevertheless.

Finish: Just like the PC Valinch, the finish on this is extremely long.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 92/100.


Laphroaig 10 'Original Cask Strength' (56.3% ABV, 10yo, Batch 007, Islay, Scotland, $1,880HKD)

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One of the favourites from Laphroaig's core range - a cask strength play of its highest selling, ever-classic, Laphroaig 10. This was my pick of the four expressions on the night.

Colour: Copper

Nose: There are loads of Laphroaig peat notes on the nose, just like its classic brethren, this Laphroaig stands out as a Laphroaig. The salty, maritime, damp forest woody notes are heavily present on the nose. Though what I also found on the nose were a subtle layer of sweet strawberry and tropical fruits.

Palate: The higher ABV hits you quite strongly, followed by the strong maritime notes from the nose that are mixed with the peppery spices. The heavy Laphroaig peat note comes at the end, as combined with a hint of malty vanilla.

Finish: Extremely long and the peat smoke, along with the residual spices linger for some time and more.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 94/100.

Ardbeg Perpeetum - Distillery Reserve (49.2% ABV, NAS, Islay, Scotland, no longer commercially available)

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The Distillery Reserve of the Ardbeg Day release which saw a combination of bourbon and sherry cask-matured Ardbeg whiskies bottled at a slightly higher ABV of 49.2% (as opposed to the standard release ABV of 47.4%). As Martin confirmed with Dr Bill himself last year, the whisky in both bottlings is the same, with the exception of the higher ABV in the distillery reserve. 

Personally, between the two releases, I found the Distillery Reserve offers slightly more on the nose and on the palate. The longer finish also makes the Distillery Reserve that tad more enjoyable than the standard release.

Colour: Light brass

Nose: The nose is familiar to the standard release, with the added peanut brittle followed by hints of wet moss with hints of iodine, sea brine and oh, peat that comes through quite gently. I also noted a touch of wine gum as the peat settles.

Palate: The palate on the Distillery Reserve carries a slight sweeter overtone, I get cherries and berries. The touch of vanilla, blends with the sweet notes before opening up to the dark chocolate, brine and the light peat smoke. In comparison with the standard release, I quite like the Distillery Reserve release given the slightly altered and sweeter palate.

Finish: The finish is long, I feel that the finish continues on for some time (it might be due to the slightly higher ABV). Similar to the standard release, the finish is mouth-coating and sweet with light spices.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 90/100.

The night took all of us on a journey through Islay and with all the unique bottles, it was certainly one hell of a night. Thanks to Nicholas for organising.

Cheers
Hendy (Sydney)

The Singleton of Dufftown 21 & 25 year old Hong Kong launch (Tasted #278 - 281)

This evening MHDHK introduced two new expressions from The Singleton to Hong Kong - the Sherried 21yo, and the ex-Bourbon cask 25yo, both from the Diageo-owned Dufftown Distillery in (you guessed it) Dufftown, Speyside. Held at the stunning Paradis in Central, the event included a guided tasting of both the 12 and 18 year old (from the Highlands-based Glen Ord distillery), as well as the new releases.

First though were the cocktails, which saw The Singleton taking the place of spirits that are usually something other than whisky, such as the Singleton Espresso Martini (made with The Singleton of Glen Ord 12) and the mojito-esque Singleton Smash (made with The Singleton of Glen Ord 18). Our favourite though was the Singleton Carre, based (we suspect) on the Vieux Carré, swapping out the rye for single malt. A delicious twist, made even more so by the assortment of accompanying canapés.

It wasn't long before it was time to take our seats, and hear Marketing Director Drew Mills talk us through the tasting lineup, providing a little more insight into the whiskies we were about to taste. For example, we've known for a while that The Singleton is popular in Asia (particularly in travel retail), but didn't know that in Taiwan (widely known as being the most significant single malt market in Asia), The Singleton enjoys the position of #1 single malt. Of course, to be fair "The Singleton" is not a single distillery, but rather a brand which represents multiple distilleries' single malts. An impressive statistic nonetheless.

Drew explained that whilst the 12 and 18 effectively follow the same maturation (the latter simply for another 6 years), the 21 and 25 are matured in an entirely different fashion, with the 21 aged in ex-Sherry casks (style and bodega not specified), and the 25 aged in ex-Bourbon American Oak casks. We also learned that casks from The Dufftown Distillery are prized by Johnnie Walker blenders when producing Johnnie Walker Blue Label, 

..and with that background, it was time to taste!

The Singleton of Glen Ord 12yo (40% ABV, 12yo, Highlands, Scotland, $535HKD / $70AUD)
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Colour: Orange gold.

Nose: Orange peel and milk chocolate. Smooth, creamy vanilla.
Palate: Slightly thin at first, but rounds out soon after. Candied almonds and orange zest, with a slight earthiness.
Finish: Short, earthy, with the faintest hint of smoke.
Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 89/100. An enjoyable, approachable everyday sipper.

The Singleton of Glen Ord 18yo (40% ABV, 18yo, Highlands, Scotland, $1,450HKD)
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Colour: Copper gold.

Nose: Not dissimilar to the 12, but much sweeter, with much more confectionary.
Palate: Vanilla, strawberries and whipped cream. A fuller mouthfeel than the 12. Some candied orange peel.
Finish: Medium length with a little more smoke than the 12.Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 91/100. A nice step up from the 12, yet still very approachable.

The Singleton of Dufftown 21yo (43% ABV, 21yo, Speyside, Scotland, price TBC)
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Colour: Yellow gold.

Nose: Prawn toast, honey ginger, mum's sherry-soaked Christmas compote (particularly those sherry-soaked peach slices. Yum.)
Palate: "Wow" was the first response. Fantastic. Sweet, rich, creamy, with a seemingly perfect ABV (and that's coming from someone who loves cask strength whiskies). Sesame, boiled lollies, some bortrytis semillon and loads of berries.
Finish: Long with a hint of smoke, fruit compote and lots of red berry fruits.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 93/100. Very, very good.


The Singleton of Dufftown 25yo (43% ABV, 25yo, Speyside, Scotland, price TBC)
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Colour: Light orange gold

Nose: Smooth and round but with much more tropical fruit than the 21yo.
Palate: Much spicier, slightly hotter. LEss stewed fruits and more tropical fruits - lots of apples, pears, passionfruit and even a hint of pineapple.
Finish: Longest of the four.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 92/100. A great dram but given the choice, I would (and did) have another 21!

The Singleton of Dufftown 21yo and 25yo are now available at SOGO Causeway Bay B2/F Freshmart (price TBC). Until 31st May, anyone who purchases a bottle also receives a pair of Singleton Glencairn glasses.

TimeforWhisky.com would like to thank MHDHK for the invite and for yet another brilliant Hong Kong launch event.

Cheers,
Martin.

Tasted #277: Nikka (Yoichi) "Woody & Vanillic"

At the height of the Japanese whisky craze last year, anything and everything Japanese seemed to fetch quite a pretty penny. Nevertheless, the old adage is that one should really enjoy the whisky and not to hoard it for resale. Though personally, I am of the opinion that the trend might slightly buck, given a number of softer than expected sales at the recent Bonham's auction that Martin attended recently.

Enough with the trend analysis though. Locally, I was at Tokyo Bird recently and Bar Manager Yoshi introduced me to a range of Yoichi 12 year old single malts that they had added to their collection last year. The range comprises three expressions;

• 'Sherry & Sweet'
• 'Woody & Vanillic'; and
• 'Peaty & Salty'.

all imparting different notes. Though not rare and certainly not astronomically priced, the Nikka line up was thoroughly enjoyable and delicious. The 'Woody & Vanillic' was my favourite of the three with loads of vanilla, oak and strawberry with a lingering finish. It was delicious stuff.

The below shows all three expressions lined up though I can't seem to find the original shot so I am relaying my Instagram take of the shot.

Nikka Yoichi Woody & Vanillic (55% ABV, 12yo, Yoichi, Japan, $1,480HKD)
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The nose and palate pack quite a bit of sophistication and I do like the big hit of vanilla though the 'woodiness' may not resonate with everyone. Quite a simple dram that you can enjoy any day of the week.

Colour: Amber

Nose: Exciting - there's loads of vanilla, banana, raisin and sweet candy.

Palate: Rich and chewy, the vanilla continues on the palate and you can also taste the oak (perhaps what led to the woody name). I also get a nice layer of sweet notes; sweet red frogs (candy), strawberry, pineapple. The palate then slowly fizzles and becomes peppery, black pepper.

Finish: Reasonably long though quite oaky and tannic.

Rating (on my very non-scientific scale): 90/100.

Cheers
Hendy (Sydney).