Drumshanbo Single Pot Still Whiskey
$71.99
One of the many newer distilleries on the Irish Whiskey scene is the Shed Distillery, which was founded in 2014. The Drumshanbo Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey is triple distilled with a grain combination of malted barley and Irish Barra Oats. The resulting spirit is aged in a combination of ex-Bourbon and ex-Oloroso casks.
What is Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey you ask? It is whiskey made using a combination of malted and unmalted barley. Why do this, you ask? Why, to dodge taxes, of course! The Malt Tax came into being in Ireland for a short time starting in 1785, enforced by the (insert expletive said in your best Irish accent here) English. The Irish, being Irish, decided that they didn't need to use malted barley for the entirety of the mash used to distill whiskey and started adding portions of unmalted barley. Necessity being the mother of invention, this eventually became a legitimate style of whiskey-making that is now not just celebrated but codified into law in Ireland with the Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey classification.
From the Producer
"Every precious drop of Drumshanbo Single Pot Still Irish Whiskey has been triple distilled at the Shed Distillery using Malted Irish Barley, Un-malted Irish Barley and Irish Barra Oats. Aged in Sherry Oloroso and Kentucky Bourbon casks with no added colour and no chill filtration, this 43% Single Pot Still has been proudly distilled by our Head Distiller, Brian Taft."
Glendalough 7 Year Mizunara Finish
$113.39
Japanese Mizunara Casks: So hot right now! They can magically be used to finish any whisky and make it more expensive in the process. This single malt whiskey was initially matured in ex-Bourbon casks before a period of finishing in Mizunara oak. The result is at least 7 years old and bottled at 46%.
Glendalough Distillery was founded by five friends in 2011. It was the first craft distillery to come online in Ireland in the modern era, and heralded the upcoming boom of distillery and brand growth Irish Whiskey would soon undergo. Glendalough Distillery resides in a valley within County Wicklow, about an hour's drive south of Dublin. It has been owned by Mark Anthony Brands since 2019.
Producer Description
"As the first Irish whiskey distillery to use the rare and exotic Mizunara, we had very much ventured into the unknown. Bringing Irish single malt and Japanese oak together went far off the beaten path, literally.
The volcanic northern-most island of Japan, Hokkaido is where we found Mizunara, the most sought-after oak in the whiskey world which we use to age our 7yo Irish Single Malt.
The trunks of these uniquely beautiful trees are prone to growing twisted and are notoriously difficult to cooper due to its porousness. However, therein lies its saving grace, whiskey can seep deeper into the wood extracting more flavour from this unique cask."
Writers Tears Double Oak Whiskey
$64.79
The Double oak from Writers' Tears is created by combining both Single Pot Still and Single Malt Irish Whiskey matured in ex-Bourbon Barrels and ex-Cognac French Oak casks. The result is bottled at 46%.
Redbreast 27 Year Irish Whiskey
$742.49
Bottled at 55.9%, this triple distilled single pot still Irish whisky was matured in Bourbon & Sherry casks before finishing in Tawny Port Pipes.
Compass Box Great King Street Glasgow
$62.99
The Glasgow Edition of Compass Box's Great King Street series is a more heavily sherried and peated blend than the original Artist's Series. The whisky has been created as a tribute to the style of blend popular in Glasgow during the 1930s.
The whisky is composed of 33% Lowland Grain with 67% malt from Islay, the Speyside and Highland. The whisky was matured in high proportion of First Fill Sherry and a mix of First and Refill American oak and a small amount of French oak.
From the Distillery: "In his 1930 book “Whisky”, Aeneas MacDonald teaches us that Glaswegians historically preferred fuller bodied and more flavour-packed whiskies than people in other parts of the world. So what better name for a whisky such as this? You’ll find here a rich vein of peaty-smokiness, underpinned by sherry cask-aged whiskies, full of dried fruit and wine character. The palate is full and round, with a sweetness typical of whiskies from our company."
About the label: "For decades, The Wellington Statue, outside Glasgow’s Gallery of Modern Art, has been cheekily topped by a traffic cone, something the local population has taken to heart as a symbol of their sense of humour. It has become one of Glasgow’s most iconic images, and graces our label for the Glasgow Blend."
House of Hazelwood 46 Year Blend SOS
$1,979.99
Dubbed "The Spirit of Scotland", this 46 year old Blended Scotch Whisky from the House of Hazelwood has been bottled at 43.6%.
Producer Description
"First created in 1994 to commemorate the 500th Anniversary of the oldest recorded reference to Scotch whisky within the 1494 Exchequer rolls of Scotland, this gloriously complex double-matured Blended Scotch Whisky is a piece of Scottish distilling history. This exceptional blend was first created in 1994 to commemorate the 500th Anniversary of the oldest recorded reference to Scotch whisky within the 1494 Exchequer rolls of Scotland. Since first being blended, the spirit has lain in cask for a further 28 years, developing with every year and building into a truly exceptional, fully unified Blended Scotch Whisky. "
Decadent Drams Blended Scotch 12 Year
$197.99
Acurious creation from Angus and the team at Decadent Drinks, the blend might be 12 years of age, but there are components which go back to the early 1970s. 53% 87.58pts Whiskybase
Producer Description
"We don’t usually dabble in blends. Angus will happily remind anyone that he’s an “out and proud malt snob” nine days out of ten. But every now and then, fate drops something into your lap that’s too good to ignore. In this case, it was a tiny parcel of very old, very low-strength North of Scotland grain whisky from 1973. The kind of spirit that practically begs to be given a stage rather than left gathering dust. We married it with sherry-matured blended malt, then folded in a few venerable Speyside malts (peated and unpeated) before giving the whole lot over a year’s rest in a refill sherry hogshead. The result was bottled at a judicious 53%, a few degrees down for balance and drinkability. For the label, there was only one choice: Charlie MacLean. The original champion of blended Scotch, whisky legend, friend, and inspiration. If anyone deserves to front our first foray into blends, it’s him. This isn’t just a blend, it’s a love letter to the category from a bunch of supposed malt snobs. And if you’re going to break your own rules, you might as well do it properly."
Johnnie Walker Green Label 15 Year
$92.69
A vatted (blended) malt from Johnnie Walker. Jim Murray awarded this 15-year-old Green Label a very impressive 95 points in his 2010 Whisky Bible! Gorgeous notes of dark chocolate, coffee and oak — and a great price — make it a standout. The cornerstone malt in the Green Label are provided by Caol Ila, Talisker, Cragganmore and Linkwood distilleries respectively. Bottled at 43% ABV.
From The Producer
"Johnnie Walker Green Label is crafted from a palette of Speyside, Highland, Lowland and Island malts matured for at least 15 years – all perfectly balanced to bring together the intense aromas of crisp cut grass, fresh fruit, wood smoke, deep vanilla, and sandalwood."
G&M CRN57 The Cairn 57 Year
$6,479.99
This 57 year old "Blended Malt" is part of a range of whiskies released by Gordon & MacPhail to highlight what they are doing at The Cairn Distillery. The distillery's own whiskies won't be ready for some time, but in the interim they have created bottlings to show what the spirit might be like in 12, 18, 25, 30, 40, 57, and 70 years. The Cairn Distillery sits at 57 degrees north latitude-wise, hence the name CRN57 for these releases. 43.1%
Producer Description
"The Cairn Distillery sits at 57 degrees north of the equator in the Cairngorms National Park, inspiring the name of our range of blended Scotch whiskies. Each has been created to provide a taste of the future, replicating the aromas that may be found in the single malts released in decades to come.
"Our ‘57’ delivers spicy characteristics of cracked black pepper, roasted coffee bean and dried tobacco. There are also delicious notes of zesty orange, butterscotch and vibrant citrus. This very special whisky represents not only where we have come from but where we are going."