Edradour Super Tuscan Matured
$98.99
Balblair 1983
$449.99
Bottled at 46% from Ex-Bourbon casks this whisky is superb, one of the best in the current range. After 30 years it is very tropical and delicate.
Distiller's Tasting Note
Nose: On the nose there are warm aromas of butterscotch, toffee and vanilla that come from the long years of maturation in American oak ex-bourbon barrels. Citrus fruits can also be detected in the aroma adding to the complexity of this exceptional Vintage.
Taste: On the palate it is sweet and spicy; with overtones of fresh fruits and honey.
Finish: A long, warming and full bodied finish.
Scotch Malt Whisky Society 112.10
$159.99
A COMFORTING HUG IN A MUG
This 14 year old Highlander came from a refill barrel and is 57.4%.
Flavour profile: Juicy, oak & vanilla
Outturn: 147 bottles
Panel's tasting note: "The neat nose had honest sweetness (golden syrup, honey, fudge), plenty of vanilla and cereal notes (grainy bread, Ovaltine) – even tropical fruits, but a hint of cleaning cupboards made some of us hesitant. The same applied to the palate, which was lively, even feisty and almost effervescent (Campinos, juicy oak, Maltesers). However, a drop of water brought resolution and redemption – the nose became fresh, juicy and tropical, with caramel, vanilla and new-baked bread. The palate completely dispelled any doubts – its complex character provoked comments like ‘Delicious vanilla, marshmallows, strawberries and white chocolate’ and ‘Like a comforting hug in a mug’."
Drinking tip: "If ever a whisky had its sins washed away in the water of baptism – this is it – don’t even bother trying it neat – unless you want to see for yourself if we are right"
Springbank 16 Year Local Barley
$197.99
COMING SOON! - Taking Pre-Orders - !!!NOT SOLD OUT!!! - Limit 1 per customer.
This very sought after new Springbank release is the first since 2001. It is the first in a series of 5 whiskies to be released over 5 years. The whisky is 16 years old and was distilled from barley grown at Low Machrimore Farm in Southend, a few miles outside of Campbeltown. Bottled at 54.3% only 9000 bottles have been released world-wide, with just a tiny fraction of that coming to Alberta.
Distiller's Tasting Note
Nose: Initially Sweet and briny before notes of butter shortbread, vanilla, pear drops and raisin develop.
Palate: Sweet and rounded with a very subtle peat influence combining with butter tablet, soft fruit and mineral notes.
Finish: A long evolving finish with notes reminiscent of our earthy dunnage warehouses. The peat is slightly more prominent and integrates well with lighter notes of candy and lemon zest.
Maltbarn Glen Garioch 1993
$289.99
Distilled in 1993 and bottled in 2015 at 52.5% after 21 years in a Bourbon cask. Only a dozen or so bottles of the 142 from the cask have come to Canada, exclusively to KWM.
Andrew's Tasting Note
Nose: beeswax, Old English Butterscotch ice cream, olive oil pancakes with white chocolate chips and mixed berry compote for syrup; thick, chewy and enticing.
Palate: insanely creamy and oily, very fruity and rich; more beeswax and Old English Butterscotch ice cream; the olive oil pancakes are still there with white chocolate chips, a side of mixed berry compote and some chewy bacon.
Finish: long, creamy and toasty with subtle fruits and toasty but juicy oak that all fade into a coating beeswax.
Comment: I can't decide whether there is a trace of smoke in this one, but ultimately who cares it is lovely with loads of fruit and massive creamy beeswax notes.
Dalwhinnie 25 Year 48.8%
$699.99
Released as part of Diageo's 2015 special releases, this is only the 2nd Dalwhinnie 25 year old ever bottled. Distilled in 1980 and matured in Refill American Oak, 3000 bottles were released at 48.8%. Only 6 bottles coming to KWM!
Distiller's Tasting Note
Nose: Quite closed, soft and waxy at first, then grassy, with notes of hay soaring above a sweet, malty base. Things open up to reveal fresh high notes of vanilla and floral honey, and heathery moorland and peat.
Palate: Smooth, creamy texture. Menthol-cool, lightly sweet and citrusy with a fresh edge; malty too, with an unusual yet pleasingly perfumed mid-palate. Finally, drying at the back.
Finish: Quite short and appetisingly dry. Cooling, minty with fragrant pine resins and some very late smoke, finally becoming leafy. With water, dry, warming and softly pungent.
Note: From the highest, coldest distillery in Scotland comes a creamy, aromatic, and crisply-focused Dalwhinnie. Drier and less honeyed than you may expect, it drinks very well, both straight and with a little water.
Glendronach Cask Strength Batch 5
$116.99
Since their launch a few years back the Glendronach Cask Strengths have been one of the most popular whiskies in our shop! Glendronach Cask Strength Batch 5 has been bottled at 55.3%, with approximately 12,000 bottles released world wide. Glendronach selects Pedro Ximenez and Oloroso Sherry matured whiskies for the Cask Strength releases.
Andrew's Tasting Note
Nose: prunes, marmalade, new leather and Demerara sugars; building spices: ginger, cardamom and anise with treacle sauce and cooked plums; a touch of tobacco, cedar and cocoa powder.
Palate: honeyed and fruity with loads of cedar and spices; more Demerara sugars and treacle sauce with anise, ginger, cardamom and cinnamon hearts; more marmalade, prunes and underneath some softer fruits like melons and bright orange; still plummy the palate evolves and comes in waves.
Finish: long, smooth and leathery with dark and lighter fruits that fade out slowly with the notes of cedar and spices.
Comment: it is damn near time to do a vertical of these and see how this one stands up to the previous four releases; it could be my mood, I'm just back from a little time off, but I think it is brilliant!
Distillery Tasting Note
Nose: A perfect combination of sweet golden sultanas and rich fig syrup holds a contrasting warmth of ground almonds, orange bitters and a gentle dusting of black pepper.
Palate: Demerara sugar-glazed dark fruits lighten to apricot syrup infused with stem ginger and vanilla. Crisp candied peel and gentle cigar box spices combined with mellow notes of freshly mashed barley add great complexity to the long, classic palate.
Finish: The combination of elegant sherry influences and robust Highland style creates a perfect example of the traditional GlenDronach character.
Bruichladdich Octomore 7.3 Islay Barley
$149.99
Don't panic, it isn't sold out yet, it is new! More bottles coming...
This is the 2nd Release of Octomore Local Barley, produced from malt peated to 169ppm and bottled at 63%. The whisky, heavily peated as it is was distilled in 2010 from barley grown the previous summer at Lorgba. The whisky was fully matured partially in Ex-Bourbon barrels (80%) and partially in Ex-Wine barriques from Spain, from the Ribera del Duero bodega (20%).
Andrew's Tasting Note
To Come!
Distiller's Tasting Note
Nose: Opens with the unmistakeable hit of peat smoke followed by ozone and salt spray, then lemon cake. The marine notes characteristic of maturation by the shores of Lochindaal. Warm the glass in your hand and wait as apricot jam, cinder toffee, vanilla, buttercups and lilies rise and interweave.
Palate: The texture is a striking testament to the Distiller’s art, rich and satin smooth despite the high strength. Initially there is salt on the lips with sweetness from the American Oak combining with the peat smoke. A second sip uncovers the heart of the dram through layers of peaches, apricot, melon and ginger syrup. Once there, malted Islay barley and toasted oak compliment floral notes of wild thyme, mint and buttercup.
Finish: Everything about this dram speaks of Islay and our slow distillation, the peat smoke and salt spray powerful yet gentle and complex. The Islay-grown barley gives a character like no other. The culmination of many hours of hard work, determination and skill, long after the glass is empty the peat embers from this whisky remain alive on your taste buds.
Mood: Walking an Islay beach with the wind at your back. Salt-laden sand blowing past your feet. Returning home to a peat fire and the warmth of the family hearth. Contentment.
Bruichladdich Octomore 7.4 Virgin Oak
$125.99
Don't panic, it isn't sold out yet, it is new! More bottles coming...
The Octomore 7.4 has been peated to 167ppm matured in new (virgin oak) and bottled at 61.2%. Distilled in 2008, 12,000 bottles were released world-wide. It is exclusive to just a handful of shops in Alberta including two in Calgary, one of which is KWM!
Andrew's Tasting Note
Coming soon!
Distiller's Tasting Note
Nose: There is huge presence with this whisky, taking the cork from the bottle will unleash something unique. The room fills with the sweet, smoky aroma as the first glass is poured and you know this is the prelude to a whisky like no other. The smoke is powerful but tempered by sweet, rich oak, two heavyweights that complement each other - there is balance between them. As the whisky opens, the complexity and intensity of the virgin oak gives notes of dried fruit, raisin and apricot then toasted bread, chocolate orange, coffee, coconut, buttery vanilla. There is a hint of barbeque and pine needles along with more fruit, this time from the spirit – green apples and grapefruit with a dusting of cloves and cinnamon. It is captivating.
Palate: Prepare for an elevation in the octomore experience. As the first taste of 7.4 meets your taste buds the sensation is truly spectacular. The mouthfeel is rich and sumptuous then there is a detonation of flavour. Sweetness, peat smoke and the richness of toasted oak clamour for your attention as the warming strength of the spirit ignites. Wow! A drop of water will release exotic coconut and clove, lemon peel, caramel, turkish delight. Sweet orange blossom honey and more and more oak fill the palate, all of this is veiled in peat smoke, almost medicinal in its character it is peppered with sweet spicy notes of cinnamon and clove. The floral, fruity, style of Bruichladdich is evident through all the power of the oak and smoke reassuring us that we have not let this age too long in the intensity of the fresh oak casks.
Finish: True to our beliefs this distillation was slow and careful to ensure the texture and balance is perfect and this allows the flavour to last for an eternity. Honeysuckle and rose mingle with liquorice and clove, dried dates, apricots and honeyed vanilla released from the oak will slowly fade then the smoke will linger for an age competing with the sweetness of the oak for the last word on an unforgettable experience.