It’s that time of year again: the Diageo Special Releases 2016 are here. Well, almost here – they’re earlier than usual this year and should be hitting The Whisky Exchange website on the evening of Wednesday 21 september. Other than that, it’s business as usual.

For those who don’t know them, the Diageo Special Releases are a yearly range of whiskies that appear every autumn, and have done for the psat 15 years. Diageo owns more distilleries in Scotland than anyone else, but not all of them get much exposure – the Special Releases are an opportunity to fix that.

There are a...

The other day I was part of a Tweet Tasting organised by The Whisky Wire. Always a nice opportunity to get acquainted with some of the offerings of a distillery, in this case Glen Moray . I have to say I had tried some excellent 1950s – 1960s – 1970s Glen Moray but none of their recent production.

Glen Moray distillery is located in Speyside, in the outskirts of Elgin. When started in 1828 it was originally a brewery, but it was converted in 1897. It was part of the Glenmorangie / LVMH group and sold to La Martiniquaise...

A couple of months ago Sansibar bottled a ‘very old’ blended Speyside malt for the Swedish Whiskyklubben Slainte . Even if that name doesn’t ring a bell, then perhaps the names of the driving forces Magnus Fagerström and Hasse Peters will.

It’s a semi-private bottling – some bottles found their way to certain whisky stores.

Speyside blended malt ‘very old’ (45,3%, Sansibar for Whiskyklubben Slainte 2015, sherry butt, 554 btl.)

Nose: a little less elegant than all these wonderful 1970s undisclosed Speysiders. Also less sherried than some of the XO bottlings (see this or this ). Some yellow fruits,...

The Glover 14 YO, 44,3 % The Glover is a fun new project from independent bottler Adelphi. You can Läs mer about it here. The basic premise is to take fine Scotch single Maltwhisky and marry it with equally fine Japanese single Maltwhisky, to create something that is hopefully greater than the sum […]...

Bruichladdich is one of the leading experimenters when it comes to cask finishes and wine casks in particular. I must admit that I’m generally not a fan, so I was slightly wary when I read this Bruichladdich 2005 bottled by Claxton’s was fully matured in a Rioja wine cask .

Bruichladdich 11 yo 2005 (57,2%, Claxton’s 2016, Rioja wine cask #1605-1052, 320 btl.)

Nose: no need to stick your nose into the glass, really, the red berries and wine gums will come right at you. Prunes. Hints of Spanish PX-matured brandy. After that, it turns towards tobacco notes,...

Tomatin has launched a series of travel retail expressions, now available in airports across Europe. This is the range:

• Tomatin 8 Year Old , from bourbon and sherry casks (40% – € 35)
• Tomatin 12 Year Old , from bourbon and sherry casks, a 1 litre version of the normal expression (43% – € 42)
• Tomatin 15 Year Old , matured in North American oak (46% – € 55)
• Tomatin 40 Year Old , matured in Oloroso sherry casks (43% – € 1250)

In addition to the Tomatin malts, the new range also includes a 1 litre bottle of...

Ardmore 25 Year Old was released in 2010. Originally a travel retail exclusive, it could also be found in regular stores later on. Like the Ardmore 30 Year Old, it was phased out with the recent branding makeover.

Ardmore 25 yo (51,4%, OB +/- 2012)

Nose: pleasantly gentle, with soft smoke but also sweet apples and a hint of vanilla biscuits. Dried berries. Some marzipan. Also a slightly sharper side, like pickled peppers. Earthy notes. Vague meaty touches. Mouth: same duality. Vanilla roundness and creamy fruits, then moving towards leathery notes and herbs or dried grass, including a...

Whether it is to heat up in the middle of a storm, celebrate summiting a peak or having a well-earned nightcap, a carefully chosen spirit can elevate a weekend in the Scottish Highlands. Here are four selections that we suggest you give a try next time you take a trip into the mountains.

The Raincoat – Duppy Share Rum

Classic Scottish weather – sideways rain

You maj think it’s a strange choice to bring a sun-soaked Caribbean rum into the rainy hills of Scotland, but this fun-sized bottle of rum offers welcome spice in the midst of a cold storm. The...

This Craigellachie 1997 was bottled by Gordon & MacPhail in 2014, but it can still be found in stores. After all the distillery doesn’t have a sexy image and I guess most bottles are bought by insiders or as an impulse purchase?

Craigellachie 1997 (46%, Gordon & MacPhail Connoisseurs Choice 2014, refill hogshead & bourbon barrels)

Nose: very fruity and summery. Green apple (skin), green tea, hints of kiwi. Soft mineral touches. A little vanilla. Nice and light but it’s not entirely clean, there’s something of used matches and a kind of butter milk note that I find...