Distillery and Whisky News March 2021
Hello whisky lovers and welcome to our March edition of Distillery and Whisky News. The end is in sight everyone! Vaccinations are moving fast and there's finally some light at the end of the tunnel.
And we're SO excited at the thought of visiting distilleries again - we're not quite there yet, but it's achingly close - only a few short months to wait and we'll be hopping, skipping and jumping our way on holiday, with a different distillery at every stop!
Can you wait? Us neither! Deep breaths folks - we can do it!
DistilleryTours Podcast: Bladnoch
Nick Savage from the Bladnoch Distillery
This month we had a lovely chat with Nick Savage, Master Distiller at the Bladnoch Distillery in Newton Stewart in Dumfries & Galloway.
Nick tells us about his passion to protect and nurture the stocks at Bladnoch, his earlier work where he applied engineering concepts to improving the life of a cask, the theory behind Bladnoch's genius Waterfall series, and his tasting notes on his favourite malt, the Bladnoch 14 Year Old.
If you enjoy hearing from Nick and would like to taste some of the Bladnoch Distillery’s whisky, use the discount code ‘distillerytours’ at Bladnoch.com for 5% off selected products until the end of April 2021.
Date with a Dram: SMWS
The SMWS's 35.284 - An Invigorating Fizzy Cocktail
The Scotch Malt Whisky Society (SMWS) is the world’s leading whisky club, offering members an ever-changing variety of rare and exceptional single cask whiskies. The Society’s focus is on unique whiskies bottled from a single cask at natural strength without the addition of water or colouring. Find out more and join the SMWS here.
35.284 from the SMWS is our Date with a Dram this month - one of just 243 bottles made.
"Invigorating and a good balance just like a yoga posture" was the initial comment soon followed by fresh, citric, coconut, toffee, pear drops and chamomile aromas. Malty and fruity on the palate neat, digestive biscuits and plenty of pears and peaches next to creme caramel with white pepper.
Water released bergamot and cardamom pods as well as a bunch of Earl Grey roses with wild myrtle as greenery, while the taste now was like biting into a sweet juicy pear and a refreshing Diamond Fizz cocktail made with gin, freshly squeezed lemon juice, pure cane sugar syrup and topped up with brut Champagne.
This 8 year old whisky has an ABV of 60% and is from a 1st fill ex-bourbon barrel.
Competition Time!
Want to be in with a chance to win a bottle of SMWS's 35.284 An Invigorating Fizzy Cocktail? Simply follow DistilleryTours.scot on Facebook and share our 'Date with a Dram' post dated 31 March. The lucky winner will be chosen at random and announced in our April newsletter!
And congratulations to Darren Watts from the North of Scotland who won our March competition to win a bottle of the Aberlour Distillery's Exclusive 13 Year Old Oloroso.
You must be 18 years old or over to enter. We will never approach you for your credit card details.
Venue of the month: The Snug
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A Spey tasting at The Snug
The Snug is Speyside Distillery’s Visitor Experience in the heart of Aviemore. Built in a style to reflect the Distillery itself, The Snug has old wooden beams, stone walls and a hand-crafted bar made from their whisky barrel staves.
Congratulations to the Speyside Distillery on picking up 3 medals this year at the World Whiskies Awards, including a Category Winner award for their 2020 Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival SPEY Single Cask limited edition.
The 2021 release is coming soon, and look out for a future Date with a Dram with the Distillery.
Speyside Distillery's Winners
Find out more about the Speyside Distillery's Snug, their tastings and their whisky on their dedicated page at DistilleryTours.scot and, if you're visiting, please adhere to Covid-19 travel restrictions.
Distillery of the Month: Royal Lochnager
The view from the Royal Lochnager Distillery
One mile from Balmoral Castle, the Royal Lochnagar Distillery sits at the foot of the Cairngorm mountains, fed by the crystal clear water of the Scarnock springs.
Originally called New Lochnagar, it was renamed following the royal visit. Today, the smallest distillery in Diageo's collection, it combines the traditional pagoda kiln heads and techniques like the open mash tun with a modern visitor centre for the appreciation of malt whisky.
Support the Royal Lochnager Distillery and buy a bottle from their online shop.
Find out more about the Royal Lochnager Distillery on their dedicated page on the DistilleryTours.scot website and, if you're visiting, please adhere to Covid-19 travel restrictions.
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