Nieuws

Tamnavulin ‘Tempranillo Cask Edition’ (40%, OB, +/-2020)
Tamnavulin-Glenlivet 23 yo 1992/2015 (55%, Cadenhead, Authentic Collection, bourbon hogshead, 258 bottles)

The fourth release in the Private Editions line was the Glenmorangie Ealanta (2013) and in a lot of ways, it was responsible for skyrocketing Glenormangie’s ultra-premium reputation. Gaelic for “skilled and ingenious” this whisky was awarded whisky of the year by Jim Murray in 2013 which instantly made it impossible to find and put a massive feather in Glenmo’s cap.

Setting aside his waning pull, and continuing controversy surrounding him, 8 years ago Jim dominated the whisky world and its rankings and I vividly remember trying to get a bottle.

The day before the rankings came out a friend of mine told me about this “virgin American white oak” (new charred oak) aged Glenmo he thought was stellar. I saw it online at K&L but decided to pick it up in-store the following day instead of online right then. Big mistake.

I stopped by K&L after work, unaware of what had happened, and when I asked about it I got a “you and everyone else” look from their spirits buyer OG. This was my first lesson in whisky buying and timing. And now, 8+ years later, I’m finally sitting down to review it.

Let’s get to drinkin’ and relive a past that didn’t happen because of a man in a fedora.

Glenmorangie Ealanta – Details and Tasting Notes

 

Whiskey Details

Non-Chill Filtered | Natural Color

Style: Single Malt (Scotch)
Region: Highlands, Scotland
Distiller: Glenmorangie

Mash Bill: 100% Malted Barley
Cask: New Charred Oak (staves air-dried for 2 years)
Age: 19 Years
ABV: 46%

Released: 2013 (4th)

Glenmorangie Ealanta Price: NA – Auction, Specialty Store or Private Seller (originally $120)

Related Whiskey

Glenmorangie A Tale Of Winter
Glenmorangie A Tale Of Cake
Glenmorangie Sonnalta PX
Glenmorangie Finealta
Glenmorangie Artein

“Ealanta is a 19 Years Old Glenmorangie, fully matured in virgin American white oak casks with a provenance that stretches all the way to the mountains of Missouri and the Mark Twain National Forest.” – Glenmorangie

Glenmorangie Ealanta Tasting Notes

EYE
Caramel

NOSE
Creamy vanilla, oak, spice, malt, citrus, caramel, light butterscotch and banana taffy.

Wow, the nose on this Glenmorangie Ealanta is wonderful. Robust and full of french pastry elegance.

PALATE
Same creamy vanilla starter but with a heavier caramel, malt and banana (banana caramel malted shake anyone?), fresh pastries, oak, cinnamon and some butterscotch and citrus.

The “oak” note is a bit more subdued here and it’s a bit sweeter than the nose on the whole, but retains its beautiful balance.

FINISH
Long -> Creamy vanilla, caramel, oak, spice and honied graham on a birthday cake fade.

BALANCE, BODY and FEEL
Very well balanced, medium-full body and a slightly waxy feel.

Glenmorangie Ealanta – Overall Thoughts and Score

There has been so much hype about this whisky over the years and I wanted to squash that hype… but I can’t. It’s a really damn good whisky. One of the best in the world? Not really. But an excellent example of the creativity and skillful execution that can come out of Glenmorangie? Absolutely!

It’s like a warm glass of French-made birthday cake. There are these bold “American” notes running through it but they have an elegant delivery that’s almost austere. I know how that sounds, but the Glenmorangie Ealanta is quite a stunning whisky and it has a presence that feels downright classy.

SCORE: 4.5/5 (very good, highly recommended ~ A- | 90-93) – Thanks to Travis for the sample

The post Glenmorangie Ealanta Review appeared first on The Whiskey Jug.

Local apprentices employed at The Cairn Distillery site

Eleven apprentices have had the chance to learn their trade on the construction site for The Cairn Distillery near Grantown-on-Spey.

Gordon & MacPhail, the Elgin based family firm behind the new distillery, committed to employing as many local firms as possible during construction. With more than 90% of work going to local companies, this approach has helped to create a number of opportunities for local apprentices.

Ewen Mackintosh Managing Director of Gordon & MacPhail commented “We have a strong commitment to our local communities. We wanted to ensure the building of The Cairn helped boost the local economy and we’re really pleased this has involved supporting young people to pursue apprenticeships.”

The main contractor, Morrison Construction, has employed four joinery apprentices during the construction period, including one who completed their apprenticeship in November. EJ Parker Technical Services had three electrical apprentices on site working on the electrical installation and plumbing, heating, and ventilation. A further two apprentice stone masons have been employed by AB Masonry at The Cairn. A mechanical engineer apprentice and an electrical apprentice were also employed by Forsyths, who manufactured the distilling equipment at their workshops in Rothes and Elgin before installing it on site.

The Cairn Distillery is due to open to visitors in the summer of 2022 and will offer a range of immersive visitor experiences, whisky tastings and a bistro with a menu shaped by ingredients from the local area.

This will be the second distillery for Scotch malt whisky experts Gordon & MacPhail who bought and re-equipped Benromach Distillery at Forres in the 1990s.

Gordon & MacPhail’s ongoing commitment to local business was demonstrated last year with the news that more than 90% of the £20m investment in The Cairn Distillery near Grantown-on-Spey had been awarded to firms in the North of Scotland.

Olivia McGillivray, one of Morrison Construction’s apprentices, on site at The Cairn Distillery

L-R Olivia McGillivray and Scott Murray, two of Morrison Construction’s apprentices on site at The Cairn Distillery

Notes 

Gordon & MacPhail is a family-owned premium spirits company based in Elgin, Scotland. Owner of Scotch whisky distilleries, Benromach and The Cairn, Gordon & MacPhail is also a Scotch whisky maturation expert, the owner of Scottish Gin brand, Red Door and the operator of a wholesale business in the United Kingdom selling premium Scotch whiskies and spirits, along with a high-quality retail outlet.

The company owns Benromach Distillery located in Forres in Moray.  Benromach Single Malt Scotch Whisky is handcrafted using traditional methods by a small team of distillers using the finest Scottish barley and the purest spring water from the nearby Romach Hills. The multi award-winning portfolio of single malts is enjoyed by whisky drinkers worldwide.

The company launched Red Door in the summer of 2018. Created at Benromach Distillery, this award winning, small batch Scottish gin now forms a strategic part of the company’s product portfolio.

Work commenced in July 2020 on The Cairn, the company’s second distillery, overlooking the River Spey towards the Cairngorms.  The new site will add further distillation capacity and brand ownership to the company’s asset base and is a key part of the plans to continue building a long-term sustainable business.  A high-quality visitor experience offering tours and tastings will also attract visitors from around the world.

Since the founding of the business in 1895, Gordon & MacPhail has sent casks to Scotch whisky distilleries throughout Scotland to be filled with new-make spirit, before being left to mature for many years either at the distillery or in their bonded warehouses in Elgin.  The Gordon & MacPhail portfolio offers some of the world’s rarest and most sought-after Single Malt Scotch Whiskies to discerning whisky drinkers globally.

The company’s wholesale business serves customers throughout the United Kingdom selling Benromach Single Malt, Red Door gin and Gordon & MacPhail whiskies into the on and off trade. The business also exclusively represents a number of ‘distributor’ brands and stocks premium whiskies and spirits.

The retail shop in Elgin remains the ‘spiritual home’ of the business, 125 years after it was first established in 1895.  The shop is home to a large selection of Single Malt Scotch Whiskies and is a destination for many whisky aficionados from around the world.

We wanted to give you a quick update about what’s happening at Sotheby’s – both now and in the pipeline. We closed 2021 with sales of Spirits totalling $21 million, and 2022 looks set to be an equally exciting year.

Currently open for bidding (until 18th February) is Whisky | Asian Spirits featuring The Three Continents Collection Part II, Sotheby’s first ever spirits sale consisting of only Asian Spirits. It is made up of bottles from The Three Continents Collection Part II, (The first part of The Three Continents Collection – which numbers some 5,000 bottles of Scotch, Japanese and American bottles in total – debuted at auction in December 2021, selling for two times its low estimate.)

The sale also sees bottlings of Karuizawa dating from 1980 all the way through to 2000, the year in which the distillery closed, as well as a handful of non-vintage bottlings, alongside a number of rare Hanyu bottlings. Last but not least, the very best of both the Suntory and Nikka portfolios are on offer, with sought after single bottles and the opportunity to bid on full cases of six and twelve bottles across several price brackets.

Demand for US whiskey seems to have grown significantly over the last year. Next month will see Sotheby’s increasing its American Whiskey offerings significantly, further to our first American Whiskey Single Owner auction in New York in April 2021 with The Thoroughbred Collection, which comprised rare Bourbon and Ryes from one dedicated enthusiast. The sale total achieved more than 300% of its low estimate at just shy of $1 million, and set a new benchmark for what the future of Whiskey auctions will look like.

On March 19th in New York we will host a US Whiskey-only auction featuring two significant collections. The first: American Muscle, a collection accrued over the last 10 years by one of California’s most renowned Muscle Car drivers featuring a significant selection of Willett, Four Roses and Van Winkle. The second: The Three Continents Collection Part III (containing just US Whiskeys).

Looking ahead, we will be holding a sale of Spirits as part of our Spring series of auctions in Hong Kong in April, and beyond that on the horizon, a sale of Asian spirits in May and Scotch Whisky in June, both in London.

Whisky  | Asian Spirits featuring The Three Continents Collection Part II, New York, 2 – 18 February

American Muscle | Rare Whiskey, Bourbon & Rye, New York, 19 March

With Deanston Master Distiller, Brendan McCarron

Tickets on sale now

Tuesday 22 February 2022
7.30pm-10.00pm
£35
Limited Spaces

Tickets on sale now

Book now

There is a reason this distillery won our coveted title “Whisky Of The Year” and now we get to show you why. Join host and Master Distiller of Deanston, Brendan McCarron, as he guides you on an unparalleled journey through the Deanston portfolio.

This tasting offers you the opportunity to delve into some of the core whiskies in the Deanston range so you can experience exactly what makes them the true embodiment of this iconic distillery. And what’s more, you’ll have the exclusive opportunity to taste coveted cask samples that have never been tried before!

Join us for the evening to taste these stand-out whiskies and learn the story of Deanston from the very man who creates each and every one.

THE LINE UP

Deanston Virgin Oak
Deanston 18 Year Old
Deanston 2013 Organic Fino Finish Bot.2020 Union Exclusive
Deanston Organic Cask Sample
Deanston 20 Year Old, Manzanilla Cask
Deanston 25 Year Old Ex-Bourbon & Oloroso Sherry Cask Sample

“The entire line-up is a variety of very special samples to show the range and diversity of Deanston’s waxy spirit, with the cask samples being particularly exquisite. They are genuinely single cask, never before seen one of a kind samples just for this tasting. “

Brendan McCarron, Master Distiller, Deanston Distillery

TUESDAY 22 FEBRUARY 2022
7.30PM-10.00PM

£35

Tickets on sale now

BOOK NOW

Book now

 

The exceptional GlenDronach 50 Year Old has arrived…

This rare expression was distilled in 1971 and filled to Pedro Ximenez and Oloroso sherry casks from the bodegas of Jerez, Andalucia. Left to mature quietly in The GlenDronach dunnage warehouses for half a century, this Speyside single malt represents a milestone achievement in the near 200-year history of the distillery.

Register Your Interest→

The Glendronach 50 Year Old

£POA

Personally selected by Master Blender Dr Rachel Barrie, this limited edition release is the first ever 50-year-old expression from the distillery. Just 198 individually numbered bottles have been produced, each one presented at a natural cask strength of 43.8% abv.

Discover more about the release at our blog → 

The GlenDronach
50 Year Old

The nose is rich and seductive with layers of dark cherry, plum and smouldering tobacco, with light notes of bramble, orange and cranberry. The palate has dense notes of dark chocolate, tobacco and cocoa, countered by elegant plum, black cherry and velvety espresso.

Register
Your Interest

Glen Grant 12 Years

Selected for the UK market. Single refill sherry hogshead yielding just 286 bottles.

£74.46

Shop Glen Grant 12 Years »

Glen Grant 12 Year Old 2009 vintage Speyside single malt Scotch whisky. Single refill sherry hogshead #900932 bottled September 2021 by Gordon & MacPhail for the Connoisseurs Choice series exclusive to the United Kingdom market. 286 bottles.

Nose: Sherry aromas interwise with Autumn spice and morello cherry. Sultanas and orange peel come to the fore alongside baked apples.

Taste: Sweet and smooth stewed fruit comes with blackcurrant and hazelnut. Cocoa powder and huiner spice give way to honeycomb.

Finish: A full finish with lingering spice and red berries.

Established in 1840 by brothers James and John Grant, the business prospered and in 1897 Glen Grant No. 2 Distillery was established across the road in order to meet the high demand for Glen Grant whiskey. During the late nineteenth century a Victorian garden was laid out in the valley behind the distillery and is now open to distillery visitors. Glen Grant is a Speyside malt whiskey distillery situated in Rothes equipped with eight stills and an on-site bottling plant. Gordon & MacPhail has released some rare vintage single malts dating back to the 1950s.

Mark’s Whisky Ramblings 427: Lagavulin 11 Year Old Offerman Edition

Mark Dermul, Belgian whisky blogger, tries a US-only Lagavulin. Nick Offerman is an American actor and comedian who makes no secret of the fact that he loves to drink Lagavulin. He even had this included in the script by the screenwriters of the TV series Parks & Recreation, so that his character Ron Swanson also likes Lagavulin. It was inevitable that a Lagavulin Offerman Edition would appear, being an 11-year-old.

https://youtu.be/w_SldtEodi0

Royal Brackla 12 yo (46%, OB, 2021)
Royal Brackla 16 yo 2001/2018 (46%, The Whisky Lodge, Orcines, bourbon hogshead, cask #14)

By Richard Thomas

Rating: A-

The Tomatin-Glenlivet Distillery is named for the village of Tomatin, plus the common practice 19th Century of tying the name Glenlivet onto things. If you making a study of distilleries in Scotland in 1897, when Tomatin was founded, you would have found quite a few this-Glenlivet and Glenlivet-that distilleries, and none of them had anything to do with the distillery we call simply “Glenlivet” today, so never let that throw you. The distillery was acquired by Takara Holdings, a Japanese sake and shochu maker, back in 1986.

Tomatin 30 Year Old is an expression that has a bit of a recent history. The current version dates to 2018, when they introduced Batch 1 to replace the 1988 Vintage expression, and at the time of writing they were on Batch 4. However, there was a 2,000 bottle release of 30 year old malt from Tomatin back in 2011, and there may have been other 30 years olds before that, but that would be before I started paying attention.

The Scotch
This well-aged malt looks like an extract of gold in the glass; the liquid looks so rich that to call it simply “golden” isn’t good enough. Sniffing at the glass gave me honey, pineapple and wildflowers, with a whiff of hoary, peppery old wood hovering in the background. Sipping takes that basic structure and advances a step wider in all directions: the honey grows richer; the pepper turns into gentler, more diverse spices; papaya joins the pineapple. The finish then evolves further, while pulling itself in a bit, to linger on with red fruits and cinnamon.

Frankly, if one trotted out a dram of a 30 year old malt and it wasn’t complex, that would be a disappointing waste of time in the cask. This one is both rich and complex, bordering on sublime without quite managing to get all the way there for me.

The Price
My price check shows you should expect to pay about $500 for a bottle of one of the four batches.