The Rum Howler Blog

(A Website for Spirited Reviews)

  • Copyright

    Copyright is inherent when an original work is created. This means that the producer of original work is automatically granted copyright protection. This copyright protection not only exists in North America, but extends to other countries as well. Thus, all of the work produced on this blog is protected by copyright, including all of the pictures and all of the articles. These original works may not be copied or reused in any way whatsoever without the permission of the author, Chip Dykstra.

  • Cocktails and Recipes

    Click Image for Awesome Recipes

  • Industry Interviews

    Interviews

    Click the Image for Great Interviews with the Movers of Industry

  • The Rum Howler Interview (Good Food Revolution)

    Click on the Image to see my interview on Good Food Revolution

  • The Rum Howler Blog

    Unknown's avatar

  • Rum Reviews

  • Whisky Reviews

  • Gin Reviews

  • Tequila Reviews

  • Vodka Reviews

  • Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

    Join 1,090 other subscribers

  • Subscribe

  • Visitors

    • 15,493,554 pageviews since inception

  • Archives

  • Follow The Rum Howler Blog on WordPress.com

Archive for the ‘Single Malt Whisky’ Category

« Previous Entries
Next Entries »

Review: Yamazaki 12 Year Old Single Malt Whisky (Suntory)

Posted by Arctic Wolf on January 17, 2013

SAM_0588 Yamazaki 12The Suntory Group is a large multi-national conglomerate whose holdings include Morrison Bowmore Distillers, Pepsi Bottling Ventures LLC, and Subway Japan among many others. The company was established in 1899 and is one of the oldest Japanese companies in the business of producing and distributing alcoholic beverages. Their Yamazaki 12 Year Old Single Malt Whisky is produced at the Yamazaki Distillery in Shimamoto, Japan. This is a true 12-year-old whisky as Japan uses the same criteria for age statements as countries like Canada and Scotland, namely that every drop of whisky in the bottle must be at least as old as the stated age on the outside label. The Yamazaki 12 Year Old is considered the flagship whisky for the Yamazaki Brand, and I am happy to provide a review here on my website.

Here is an excerpt from the review:

“… A bevy of fresh fruit aromas (yellow apples, honey-dew melon, bananas, and peaches) rise up along side honeyed oak spices. There is a light maltiness (beer-like scent) apparent, with wisps of vanilla, hints of almond and orange peel. The whisky seems lightly smoky with a few sherried notes of raisin and dates making their way into the air …”

Here is the full review which includes a decadent cocktail called Alpine Meadows:

Review: Yamazaki 12 Year Old Single Malt Whisky (Suntory)

Please enjoy my review!

Note: The Yamazaki 12-year-old is distributed by Lifford Wines in my home Province of Alberta.

Posted in Cocktails & Recipes, Japanese Whisky, Single Malt Whisky, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review | Tagged: , , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Yamazaki 12 Year Old Single Malt Whisky (Suntory)

Review: The Singleton of Glendullan

Posted by Arctic Wolf on January 10, 2013

SAM_0540The Singleton of GlendullanAbout two years ago Diageo launched a new (what I am going to term) “entry level” 12 year old Single Malt Scotch from the Glendullan Distillery (in Dufftown) called The Singleton of Glendullan. The malt is part of their Classic Malts Selection, and is produced from spirit aged in both European Sherry Oak casks and American Bourbon Oak casks. I first encountered this Single Malt at a local Food and Wine event two years ago, and I was impressed enough to buy a bottle for myself, and one for a friend that Christmas. My bottle was sipped slowly over time and has long since disappeared; but fortunately for me, I was recently given another bottle to review on my website by the Northern Alberta Diageo Marketing Rep.

Here is an excerpt from that review:

“… As I pour the whisky into my glencairn glass, my nose is greeted with some nice butterscotch and caramel notes which are accented with lightly smokey tones of sherry (think dark fruit like dates and raisins), fresh fruit, some sweet malty notes, and a mild herbal punky peat. As the glass sits, the caramel turns to toffee as the oak spices assert themselves …”

You may read the full review here:

Review: The Singleton of Glendullan

Please enjoy the review!

Posted in Scotch Whisky, Single Malt Whisky, Whisk(e)y, Whisk(e)y Review | Tagged: , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Review: The Singleton of Glendullan

Review: Glenfiddich 30 Years Old – XXX

Posted by Arctic Wolf on January 3, 2013

GF 30 XXXI thought I should start the new year, 2013 off with a bang. A very expensive thirty year old bottle of Scotch from Glenfiddich, which I received as a gift from my wife about one year ago.

The Glenfiddich Distillery was founded in 1886 by William Grant in Dufftown, Scotland. The Gaelic word “Glenfiddich” translates to “Valley of the Deer” in English and as a result the Distillery has adopted the emblem of a large male stag to symbolize the distillery and their whisky. According to the Glenfiddich website, their Malt Master personally selects each Oloroso Sherry and Bourbon Cask that goes into the Glenfiddich 30 Years Old Whisky by nosing and tasting each of them to ensure that they contribute the right character and flavour into the final Malt which is produced from only a handful of vattings each year.

Here is an excerpt from my review:

” … The initial nose brings forward a rich menagerie of wood and honey spices. I sense some willow thicket in the air above the glass as well as a grassy meadow complete with clumps of heather and faint wiffs of woodsmoke as if there were a campfire nearby. As the glass breathes the woody notes grow bringing forward stronger impressions of willow, balsam wood, and oak …”

You may read the full review here:

Review: Glenfiddich 30 Years Old – XXX

Happy New Year Everyone!

Posted in Scotch Whisky, Single Malt Whisky, Whisk(e)y | Tagged: , , , , | Comments Off on Review: Glenfiddich 30 Years Old – XXX

Bowmore 1957: Bottle No.1 sells for £100,000

Posted by Arctic Wolf on December 19, 2012

I am not sure how many of you remember my previous posting Revealing Some Magic: The Oldest Bowmore Ever; however, I am pleased to pass on the following press release:

_______________________________________________________________________________

Bowmore® Islay Single Malt Scotch Whisky Announces

The No. 1 Bottle of BOWMORE 1957 – 54 YEARS OLD

Has Sold For £100,000

clear 1957Islay, Scotland (December 19, 2012) – Bowmore®, the first Islay Single Malt whisky, is delighted to announce that the No. 1 bottle of its oldest ever expression, the exceptionally rare Bowmore 1957, 54 Years Old has been sold for £100,000 (approximately $160,000) at the Bowmore Distillery on Islay. This bottle is not only the oldest whisky the distillery has ever released, it is also the oldest Islay Single Malt ever released.  As promised by Morrison Bowmore Distillers, owners of Bowmore, all the net proceeds will be donated to five Scottish charities. The owner, a resident of the United States, would like to remain anonymous.

Distilled in 1957 and bottled in 2011, this 54-year-old marvel has been maturing in the finest oak in Bowmore’s legendary No. 1 Vaults, the oldest maturation warehouse in Scotland. Only 12 bottles exist in the world, two of which are kept in the Morrison Bowmore archives and nine now remain for sale at the Bowmore Distillery.

Bottle No. 1’s profit will be donated to five Scottish charities that encompass a variety of worthy causes: Alzheimer Scotland (care for people with dementia, their caregivers and families); The Beatson Oncology Centre (care for cancer patients receiving treatment in the west of Scotland); Chas (children’s hospice services); Erskine (medical care for Armed Forces); and Marie Curie Cancer Care (cancer care and research).

Says Mike Keiller, Morrison Bowmore Distillers Chief Executive Officer,

“We are delighted to have sold bottle No. 1 of our Bowmore 1957 just before Christmas allowing us to keep our promise to donate all the net proceeds to charity as our gift to those in need in Scotland.”

A collection of 1957 casks were bottled in 1995 but one in particular was held back because it was more exceptional than the rest.  Since 1995, the whisky in that cask has been examined every six months to check the quality, the taste, the developments and changes the spirit was taking on its aging voyage. In 2011 it was determined that the liquid had reached its potential and was bottled.

_______________________________________________________________________________

According to information sent to me the five Charities will each receive £11,000 for Christmas from this sale!

Now that’s a nice Merry Christmas Story!

 

 

 

Posted in Fund Raisers, Scotch Whisky, Single Malt Whisky, Whisk(e)y | Tagged: , , , , | Comments Off on Bowmore 1957: Bottle No.1 sells for £100,000

Tasting the Glenfarclas Range with George Grant

Posted by Arctic Wolf on November 13, 2012

This Sunday, November 18th, the Edmonton Golf and Country Club (6201 Country Club Rd NW, Edmonton) will be the location for an extraordinary tasting event hosted by George Grant, the Sales Director for the Glenfarclas Distillery where the entire core range of Glenfarclas Whisky will be discussed and of course, tasted. (Mr. Grant is part of the 6th generation of the Grant Family who originally purchased the distillery in 1865. His family still controls and manages the distillery today.)

The line-up for the tasting will be as follows:

Price: – $65 per ticket

Please call  780-904-2684 for more information!

(This is quite truthfully an impressive range from one of the only remaining distilleries in Scotland which is independently family owned and managed. I hope I see some of my readers there. Sláinte!)

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Posted in Extras, Festivals and Events, Scotch Whisky, Single Malt Whisky, Whisk(e)y | Tagged: , , , , , , | Comments Off on Tasting the Glenfarclas Range with George Grant

« Previous Entries
Next Entries »