Boutique-y Clynelish 20 Year KWM Cask
$175.99
It is finally here... we have been teasing and talking about this whisky for months, and it was worth the wait. We are thrilled to introduce you to our first ever KWM exlcusive single cask from That Boutique-y Whisky Company. Although the bottle doesn't explicitly tell you which "Highland" distillery the whisky is from, there are clues on the label... 578 bottles have been filled exclusively for Kensington Wine Market at 51%. But we have nothing holding us back from telling you that Boutique-y Highland #2 is Clynelish... That's right, this is 20 year old Clynelish!
Andrew's Note on the Whisky & Label
Could that be a cat in the clouds, a Wild Highland Cat perhaps? Is it not strange to see a waxy candle-powered balloon? Incidentally, it is lifting the KWM whisky team aloft. And what of the monument? If we told you it was a controversial monument near the town of Golspie dedicated to the infamous Duke of Sutherland, would that give you all the information you need to know? What Highland Distillery has a Wild Highland Cat as its symbol, a waxy profile, and an infamous Duke as its founder?
This label is a cheeky take on a shared memory, with embellishments, embedded details, and Easter eggs, in the tradition of the best Boutique-y Whisky Company Labels. More importantly, it tells a story, which is personally important to my family. My mother was born into the Clann Gunn in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia. Her ancestors roamed swaths of what is now Caithness and Sutherland in northern Scotland. That is until they were compelled to leave Scotland in the late 18th century, cruelly and rudely displaced to make way for sheep during the early days of the Highland Clearances.
On the label there is a ship at sea, heading to Canada presumably, as hinted at by the flags (the Canadian flag as it is today was only introduced in 1965). On the flat coastal plain at the base of the mountains sheep can be seen grazing. In front of the monument stand a pair of Canadians stand in hockey jerseys. Sam Simmons, Head of Whisky at Atom Brands, and a native Torontonian, stands closest to the monument in what appears to be a hockey jersey. Further back, a native Calgarian, yours truly can be seen waving a white hat, an iconic symbol of "Cowtown", whilst sporting a local hockey team jersey of his own. In the balloon Keith, Evan, Shawn & Curt can be seen waving at Andrew & Sam below. Speaking of those two, what are they doing atop Ben Bhraggie? Funny story that.
When TBWC offered us this cask of Highland Malt, they asked us what we wanted on the label, and I had a cheeky idea. In 2006 I made my first trip to Scotland, and on that trip, I hiked up Ben Bhraggie, a small mountain (really a foothill by Canadian standards) to see the monument of the infamous Duke. Someone had spraypainted the word "Monster" in neon green at the base. When I was sure no one was looking I dropped trow and relieved myself on it. I sent Sam an email of this tale, my connection to the area and my idea for the label. I was sure it was just a little too edgy...
Minutes later my phone was ringing... it was 3 AM in the UK, but Sam wanted to make sure I had seen his reply. He too had hiked Ben Bhraggie in 2005, and he had also paid his own respects to the infamous Duke of Sutherland...
One last little nugget, Keith, who is a personal trainer and headed to Beijing as a Team Canada Skeleton coach, felt his arm didn't look appropriately burly, in an early draft of the label. So we had the artist, Emily Chappell, 'bugs bunny' his arm... In case it isn't already apparent, nothing is sacred (especially when it comes to The Duke of Sutherland and Keith's pipes)!
And the rest as they say is history. On the back of every bottle, That Boutique-y Whisky Company includes the following text: "We are passionate about great whisky, we don't take ourselves too seriously and we LOVE a good story." No wonder these chaps are such a great fit to work with!
May Clynelish's waxiness never wane!
Boutique-y Speyburn 10 Year 50ml
$10.50
This bottle was featured in on Day 11 of our 2022 KWM Whisky Calendar. Read the blog post here.
Full-size bottles of this release can be found here
This bottling of Speyburn Distillery Whisky is brought to us by That Boutique-y Whisky Company. It is a 10-year-old bottled at 49.5%. 1540 500ml bottles were made for the world.
Boutique-y Inchfad 13 Year 50ml
$9.50
This bottle was featured on Day 20 of our 2022 KWM Whisky Calendar.
Also available in full-sized bottles
Along with Inchmurrin and Inchmoan, Inchfad is one of three "Inch"es and a slew of other names/labels made by Loch Lomond Distillery. Also like many of the styles of whisky made at Loch Lomond Distillery since it started production in 1965, Inchfad gets its name from one of the islands within the freshwater lake the distillery takes its name from. This Boutique-y Inchfad is 13 years old and bottled at 49.5%.
For more information on this bottle, check out this video from Andrew Ferguson and Dave Worthington:
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Boutique-y Aberlour 9 Year Old 50ml
$12.00
This mini bottle from That Boutique-y Whisky Company was featured on Day 19 of our 2021 KWM Whisky Calendar
This is the 6th Batch of Aberlour was bottled released by That Boutique-y Whisky Company in 2018. It was bottled at 9 years old and at 49.7%. 3080 of the company's standard 500ml bottles were made in total. Though you cannot tell by the colour of the whisky alone, this bottling of Aberlour sure looks like it could be a lot less sherried than the official releases we see from the distillery.... Interesting.
About The Label
"The label on our Aberlour bottling features the Mash Tun whisky bar in Aberlour - though who’s that nervous fellow peeking out of the window?"
Boutique-y Strathmill B10 14 Year
$98.99
This whisky was featured on Day 13 of our 2023 KWM Whisky Calendar. You can check out Evan's blog post on the whisky here.
This is the 10th Batch of Strathmill to be bottled by That Boutique-y Whisky Company. 417 bottles were filled at a strength of 55.5% of this 14 Year Old.
Boutique-y 10 Year American Bourbon
$89.24
10 year old Kentucky Straight Bourbon, at 45.8%.
That Boutique-Y Whisky Company seems to have a fixation with placing hooved animals on their labels right now. Whisky from Scotland often gets a deer on the front. Irish Whiskey is denoted by a horse. Canadian Whisky gets a moose. This American Bourbon gets a bison... or is that a buffalo?
Could this Buffalo be a hint, allowing us to Trace the providence of this whiskey? Who knows... Maybe it is actually a red herring.
Producer Description
"Stampeding it’s way straight from Kentucky, here comes TBWC’s American addition to its “Core” range, bearing a 10 year old age statement, and a bison,
"Our 10 Year Old Straight Bourbon Whiskey is a true reflection of Kentucky tradition, distilled from a classic corn-forward mash bill (77% corn) and aged in deeply charred American oak barrels. Layers of vanilla, dark toffee, and toasted pecans are complemented by warm baking spices and a touch of leather, leading to a velvety, well-rounded finish."
Boutique-y Dailuaine B8 9 Year
$76.49
This 9 year old Dailuaine was distilled in 2010, filled into a hoghead and then finished in First Fill ex-Bourbon before bottling at 44.74%.
Producer Note
"Our eighth batch from the Dailuaine distillery is a wonderful 9 Year Old, a release of just 374 bottles at 44.74% abv. Distilled in july 2010 and initially matured in a refill hogshead. For the USA Series, we’ve finished this beauty in a first-fill ex-Bourbon barrel our favourite wax-dipped Kentucky bourbon distillery."
About The Label
"The label actually features two sulphur molecules (go on, Google them!) Sulphur Dioxide SO2 and Hydrogen Sulphide H2S, one of which appears to be good and the other very bad, evil even!"
Boutique-y Nc`nean Batch 4 5 Year
$64.00
Nc'nean is a relatively new (2017) Scottish distillery in the Western Highlands. The 4th release from That Boutique-y Whisky Company is a 5 year old bottled from a single STR cask at 60.1%.
Producer Description
"Nc’nean is one of the new wave of Scottish farm distilleries. Founded in 2017 by Annabel Thomas, on her family’s farm at Drimmin, on the Morvern Peninsula in the Western Highlands. Nc’nean has been designed as the first fully organic modern distillery in Scotland powered by 100% renewable energy."
About the Label
"The farm distillery was designed by the late distilling consultant Jim Swan to produce a light, fruity and estery spirit. A character intensified by slow mashes, long fermentations, horizontal lyne arms, and shell and tube condensers, with a high, narrow spirit cut. Our 5 Year Old Nc’Nean is from a STR (shaved, toasted and re-charred) red wine cask, and bottled at natural cask strength We’ve gone for the classic ‘Whisky Galore’ for our label inspiration for this one. Founder Annabel Thomas is leading her whisky team, affectionately known as the ‘Quiet Rebels,’ up the rocks to their remote distillery on the Morvern Peninsula. That’s the Sound of Mull in the background. They’re carrying crates of whisky cunningly disguised as ‘Doug Treats’ (Doug is the distillery’s dog) and there’s the ‘mark of the Swan’ branded on the leading crate."
Boutique-y Speyside #4 B12 23 Year
$238.49
Distilled in 1994, this 23 year old undisclosed Speyside single malt is possibly from Glenlivet, finished in First Fill Ex-Bourbon before bottling at 45.7%.
Producer Note
"A cracking 23 Year Old Single Malt from an undisclosed Speyside distillery that allegedly started it all! For the USA Series, we’ve finished this mature malt in a first-fill ex-Bourbon barrel from our favourite wax-dipped Kentucky bourbon distillery."
About The Label
"This label is based on the beginning of a Manga-inspired story featuring Dave Worthington as a ‘Wild West of Scotland’ a whisky warrior. This will be the first story of the series of labels of his detailed adventures. Beginning with this one the bestowing of his powers by the Whisky Gods. The setting is dark with just a few single spot lights on Dave to give light around him. There are heads carved within the stone surrounding him, as he is in a chamber. To the left hand side in the foreground is a cloaked women with her hood down. Her head is raised, mouth open and arm raised aloft, clutching Banjolnir, a Banjo, the mystical instrument of the Whisky Gods which is fizzing with light energy. In the centre Dave is kneeled with his head bowed but in respect, not fear, mindful of the awesome responsibility being given to him. He is dressed in jeans, a shirt and waistcoat, with a single leather, Bandolero strap across his chest - with, instead of bullets, a range of different pipes as well as a couple of harmonicas in it. His beard should have some real quality to it - it is quite likely that his beard may turn out to be where his power is held as the story evolves.""