Kilchoman Inaugural 100% Islay – Review

*Thanks to the good folks at Impex Beverages for the sample. The word "terroir", liberally tossed around with reckless abandon by the wine world, is a more nebulous and even dubious term when occasionally tossed around by marketers in the whisk(e)y world. A loose definition of the word could be "a sense of place", more … Continue reading Kilchoman Inaugural 100% Islay – Review

Hart Brothers 1990 Laphroaig 18 Year Old – Review

*Thanks to the good folks at Impex Beverages for the sample. Founded in 1964 by, you guessed it...a couple of brothers named Hart, Iain & Donald, Glasgow-based Hart Brothers began life as booze wholesalers and whisky blenders. A third Hart brother, Alistair, joined the company in 1975 as the master blender and the master selector of … Continue reading Hart Brothers 1990 Laphroaig 18 Year Old – Review

Blackadder Raw Cask 1998 Laphroaig 12 Year Old – Review

*Thanks to the good folks at Impex Beverages for the sample. Unless you find yourself in a dark, fragrant whisky warehouse fairly often, standing in front of a barrel with a pipette in one hand and a nosing glass in the other, there are just a few bottled opportunities to taste whisky (or whiskey, for … Continue reading Blackadder Raw Cask 1998 Laphroaig 12 Year Old – Review

The Dalmore 15 Year Old – Review

*Thanks to the good folks at the Baddish Group for the sample. From what I've read, I gather the solera process of aging sherry  is a black art practiced by blind, deaf, abnormally tall monks who are trained from infancy to be preternaturally sensitive and attuned to tell-tale sounds of liquids aging in oak. They … Continue reading The Dalmore 15 Year Old – Review

The Dalmore Mackenzie – Review

*Thanks to the good folks at the Baddish Group for the sample. Just a few famous MacKenzies throughout history: Sir Alexander Mackenzie (1764-1820) was a Scottish explorer who crossed Canada from the Atlantic to the Pacific in 1793, besting Lewis & Clark's more celebrated crossing by nearly 12 years. Kenneth Mackenzie, 1st Lord Mackenzie of … Continue reading The Dalmore Mackenzie – Review

The Dalmore King Alexander III – Review

*Thanks to the good folks at the Baddish Group for the sample. The legend behind The Dalmore's King Alexander III goes that a quick-thinking member of the Mackenzie Clan saved King Alexander III, who was out hunting,  from the pointy antlers of an angry great stag, and that the King was so grateful that in … Continue reading The Dalmore King Alexander III – Review

Master of Malt 1991 North British 20 Year Old – Review

Thanks to Master of Malt for the sample and apologies for not reviewing this before they once again went ahead and selfishly sold all of the bottles. I know that blended Scotch whiskies make up more than 90% of whisky sales around the globe, that fact gets beaten into our brains every time we read … Continue reading Master of Malt 1991 North British 20 Year Old – Review

Master of Malt 1991 Cragganmore 20 Year Old – Review

Thanks to Master of Malt for the sample and apologies for not reviewing this before you went ahead and selfishly sold all of the bottles. The character of Sir John Falstaff first barreled his way on stage in Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part I, then again in Henry IV, Part II, and finally, in a larger … Continue reading Master of Malt 1991 Cragganmore 20 Year Old – Review

Mackinlay’s Rare Old Highland Malt Whisky – Review

*Thanks to the good folks at the Baddish Group for the sample. In honor of Ernest Shackleton's birthday today (138 years ago in 1874), I was all excited to write about this one, all ready to expound on the leitmotifs of his Antarctic adventures; epic heroism, brave leadership, and stoic perseverance in the face of withering … Continue reading Mackinlay’s Rare Old Highland Malt Whisky – Review

Master of Malt 1996 The Dalmore 14 Year Old – Review

Any industry landscape is littered with companies being bought and sold and changing their names faster than Margaret Thatcher changed his or her underwear, but just for fun, as a brief, related aside, let's take a quick look at the ownership and name changes The Dalmore's parent company went through in the last 22 years. … Continue reading Master of Malt 1996 The Dalmore 14 Year Old – Review