Billy from the Whisky Exchange

 

The full line-up

In June we had a special guest to lead the tasting. Billy Abbot from top spirits retailer the Whisky Exchange was with us to guide us through half a dozen choices, (mostly) still available to buy.

Linkwood 10yo

And we kicked us off with an expression from the Whisky Exchange's line-up of Seasons drams. Representing 'Spring' we had a 10-year-old Linkwood, matured in a single refill bourbon cask.

Billy told us the Spring whiskies are aimed at showing off fresh, fruity and zingy flavours. This one delivered, and gave us pears, citrus fruits, a hint of mint and fruity chewing gum. There wasn't much oak in evidence really, giving the spirit itself a chance to come through nicely, and strongly.

Very summery and easy to drink, we thought, ideal to have with a barbecue. It was 57.7% and cost a very reasonable £68.

BBR Macduff 21yo

For the second dram we went to Berry Brothers and Rudd, the legendary London wines and spirits retailer and regular bottler of quality drams. This was a 21-year-old Macduff, matured in a sherry butt.

"Taste the distillery, not the wood" urged Billy, and this tasted stronger than whisky number one, as well it might have done at 58%. This was lovely, really good, with strong notes of pineapple and tropical fruit. Some members thought it was better with a little water. It cost £169.

Ben Nevis

Billy himself was looking back at us from the label of whisky number three. This was part of a series of bottles produced for the Whisky Show, run by the Whisky Exchange, featuring various members of the WE team.

Ben Nevis, owned by Nikka in Japan, is a popular distillery with club members. This was an example of a 'dirty Ben Nevis' we felt, all chewy and tasty with lots of red fruits in evidence. It was 60.2% and cost again a very fair £72.

After a half-time break giving us the chance to recharge our glasses downstairs at the Seven Oaks, we were back for another trio.

Whistlepig 13yo

Dram four was in fact a rye whiskey, from Whistlepig, and for Billy was "the most ridiculous thing we've bottled at the Whisky Exchange." Rather than from Whistlepig's Vermont base, this Amburana Rye was made in Indiana by spirits giant MGP, and was a mix of 95% rye to 5% malted barley, aged for more than 12 years in American oak.

Here's the thing: it didn't really taste like whiskey at all. Very sweet on the nose, it was giving coconut and mint, almost mint choc chip ice cream. It had spent a mere ten days in an amburana cask, a trendy and very aggressive South American wood that imparts flavour on liquid very quickly. This gave it so much flavour, especially on the nose, and it ended up reminding us of liquor chocolates or After Eight mints. Weird in a good way. It was £175 and 43%.

Kilchoman 11yo

Back to Scotland for whisky five and to Islay for some Kilchoman. Billy had picked out an 11-year-old, aged in a first fill ex-bourbon cask and bottled for the 2023 Whisky Show. "This is non-messed with, unadulterated stuff."

At 54.5% this was "not overpowering, just nice." This was smoky and peaty, but more in a subtle barbecue rather than punch in the nose sort of way. It was £140, and so there were perhaps one or two cheaper options from earlier in the night more likely to get us reaching for our virtual wallets.

G&M Caol Ila

We finished off with the very last bottle of something special.

A 19-year-old Caol Ila, so another Islay whisky, bottled by Gordon and Macphail back in 2021. Billy told us when smoky whisky gets older it tends to become more fruity and mellow, and this is a good example. It is apparently unusual to get such an old Caol Ila, as the younger ones tend to be very nice.

This smelt absolutely great. So much so we almost didn't want to taste it. But it was delicious and gave us a huge amount of flavour. It was 57.6% although you can't get it anymore.

Which brought us to the dram of the night voting, and all six secured at least one vote, always the sign of a great tasting. The winner though was the Ben Nevis with ten votes, just ahead of the opening Linkwood in second and then the Caol Ila third.

Our thanks to Billy for visiting us and picking out such a great selection, and to all club members and guests for coming along.

Mysterious Drams for Hallowe'en

The full line-up, plus a pint.

October's tasting took place on Hallowe'en night itself. Club members took refuge from the ghoulies in the safe surroundings of the Britons Protection, where Rich P took us through a selection of mysterious drams: selected because they were all independently bottled without the original distillery name on the label.

Secret Irish

There are lots of reasons why distilleries might do this, from selling off whisky that doesn't fit their own flavour profile or simply to maintain control over their branding and how it's used. It means lots of interesting liquid is out there for us to try if you are able to explore beyond the better known labels.

Our own journey started with something bottled by Master of Malt, the online booze retail behemoth. Their 13-year-old Secret Irish (the number of distilleries this could realistically be from at that age is very limited, but nevertheless) came in pretty strong at 57.5%. And it was a proper vanilla bomb, very punchy but still eminently drinkable despite the strength and without adding water.

We got a real buttery, pastry taste. Like an almond croissant. But also butterscotch and, when some drinkers put a bit of water in anyway, some notes of creme brulee. At £70 we felt this was pretty good value. A bargain, even!

5yo rye

Dram two was the first of a couple of visits to Edinburgh-based indie bottler Fragrant Drops, run by erstwhile club members George and Rachel. We had an Indiana rye which, for those in the know, means distilling giant MGP. A 5-year-old, this was particularly rye-y, like rye bread. "Big caraway vibes" someone suggested. Grassy, minty, with notes of black pepper too.

This one divided the room a bit. Someone thought it tasted like carpet, but I was in the camp that absolutely loved it. It was 57.1% and cost us £68.

D Taylor Speyside

 we were heading to Scotland and a Duncan Taylor bottling from an unknown Speyside distillery. Part of its Octave collection, the expressions are all finished in smaller casks giving the whisky more contact with the wood over a shorter period of time.

This was a nice colour and smelt sweet. There was cereal on the palate, which came out a bit more with water. The thing that maybe lingered the most was a toffee apple taste, ideal for the time of year. It possibly paled a little in comparison to the others we'd already had, and there were mixed views in the room again. The suspicion was this may have been a Glenfarclas, although it curiously didn't really taste all that much like it. Just 89 bottles of this were produced, it was 54.2% and cost £86.

Grapefruit sour finish!

Following a half-time break to recharge our glasses downstairs at the Britons, we were back for four more drams.

Rich dubbed the second half 'trick or peat' and we kicked off with a bottling from Murray McDavid, with the liquid inside a Ledaig unusually finished in a grapefruit sour cask. The grapefruit came through more on the nose than the palate, but the finish really lingered for an absolute eternity. There was a peaty hit followed by a fruity, citrussy bit at the end. Fresh and zingy, we felt this worked well all round.

Some polarised views again but I have to say, I thought this was terrific. Good value again at £59. It clocked in at 54.4%.

An 18yo Highland

Closer to home for whisky number five, and Manchester's own indie bottler Chorlton Whisky. We had an 18-year-old from a Highland distillery to try. Smooth and creamy, this reminded someone of Juicy Fruit chewing gum. The best all-rounder of the night so far, we felt.

This was most likely to have been a Ben Nevis. It certainly tasted like it, according to the real whisky savants in the room. Very nice in general. It was 54% and there are still some left at £120.

10yo Orkney

It was back to Fragrant Drops for dram six, and this was a 10-year-old peated Orkney, which meant a Highland Park we thought. Fully matured in a red wine barrique, there were certainly high hopes for it.

Ooft, this was something. At 64.1% though, was this just a touch too much? It was extremely chewy but some felt it was a little too strong and not actually all that easy to drink. Some picked out an oiliness, for others on my table it was a bit confusing with the nose more satisfying than the palate. Lots of people really, really liked it though, so it was perhaps just my corner of the room that was a bit sceptical. It certainly cut through well, which is no mean feat at the end of the night.

Big Peat Hallowe'en

Well, it wasn't quite the end. We had one bonus dram left to enjoy, a Hallowe'en special Big Peat, a blend of Islay whiskies from Douglas Laing.

This was good but it was a bit late in the evening to take a real view on that, especially following the powerhouse last dram from Fragrant Drops. It was a 2021 version and cost £50 at the time, with an ABV of 48%.

This brought us to the dram of the night voting, and it was a narrow victory for...  the Fragrant Drops 10-year-old Orkney! The sixth dram picked up 11 votes, just two ahead of the Chorlton Whisky bottling, with the Murray McDavid grapefruit sour finish third. Perhaps no surprise that three big peaty drams would dominate the evening, as there are plenty of peat fans in the club, but three very worthy drams nonetheless.

Thanks to all club members for coming and to the Britons for hosting us once again. And special thanks to Rich for running such a great tasting!

 

Best of The Whisky Exchange Show

The November line-up.

Committee members Martin, Anna and Adam came back from a visit to The Whisky Exchange's whisky show in London clutching two bottles each. And so it was that the club membership gathered upstairs at the Briton's Protection on the last Thursday in November to knock through them all in the usual style.

G&M Macduff 18yo

None of the six whiskies on show were standard distillery bottlings with a range of independents represented. And we kicked off with one of the oldest and best-known names in the field, Gordon & Macphail.

This was an 18yo from the Macduff distillery. On the Moray Firth coast, the distillery's official bottlings appear under the name Glen Deveron, named for the local river, so expressions under the Macduff name are the preserve of indies only.

On this occasion we were drinking a 58% whisky that was big and strong straight away. We got pear drops and vanilla, and one of the tasting notes which struck a particular chord was grapefruit. Some drinkers thought this started off well but perhaps didn't quite live up it, with the alcohol coming through a bit much. It was £100 but is now sold out.

27yo Bunnahabhain

We're not necessarily big fans of spending large sums of money on packaging, but even we had to admit the box for our next bottle was very nice indeed. What was inside was a 27yo Bunnahabhain, part of the rather premium Single Malts of Scotland range from Speciality Drinks, which is in turn another part of The Whisky Exchange business.

This went down a storm. Very smooth, with a definite hint of butter - like melting butter on a crumpet as someone put it. There was definitely some citrus around too. A bottle will set you back £230 though! So although a lovely drop, perhaps not quite worth the price tag. It's a very drinkable 48.4%.

Another distillery which relatively rarely appears under its own name is Glen Elgin, and that's where he went for the third dram of the evening.

22yo Glen Elgin

Glen Elgin is most commonly used in the White Horse blend, still one of the biggest sellers worldwide. But we had a 22yo single malt bottling from Signatory to try.

We were told the distillery is noted for producing particularly fruity drinks, in part because of a long fermentation process. And this was certainly fruity, with a waxiness about it too.

Certainly a good drink but trying to follow those opening two drams, which had both been particularly punchy, was always going to be hard. So it maybe wasn't surprising this divided the room a little more. It's 49.5% and comes in at £107.

After a half-time break and a chance to refill our pint glasses downstairs at the Briton's, it was back for the next three whiskies, and we went west to Ben Nevis.

21yo Ben Nevis

This was a 21yo sherry cask whisky, clocking in at 47.5%, bottled by The Whisky Exchange under a range it's calling The Future of Whisky - this particular dram apparently representing 'Past Future' because it was what people used to think the future of whisky would be like.

By the time we'd got our heads around the logic of that, this particular dram was already in our past. We felt that while the bottle looked as snazzy as the concept, the contents possibly didn't quite live up to that promise.

But then again, after a couple of memorable, flavourful whiskies to start the evening, anything coming along later was maybe inevitably on a bit of a hiding to nothing. At £130, we weren't reaching for our phones to order any bottles, although they seem to have sold out anyway.

14yo Hunter Laing Glenrothes

The sherry theme continued with whisky number five, but this was more of a full-on sherry monster. From the Glenrothes distillery, it was a 14yo bottling by Hunter Laing and its First Editions range.

This proved very popular with the membership, although with many having a known taste for big sherried whiskies this wasn't much of a surprise!

A couple of the tasting notes from the drinkers in the room were maple syrup and chocolate which probably says it all. It's 49.8% and at £73 or thereabouts doesn't represent the worst value in the world, especially if your Christmas list is looking a little bare.

12yo Ledaig

The last dram was a 12yo Ledaig from the Tobermory distillery in Mull, again bottled as part of The Whisky Exchange's The Future of Whisky range, this time representing 'Present Future'.

Another sherry cask one here, but much more of a peat king. By this stage of the evening my notes had become predictably short, and all I managed to get down was "we loved it". It's 58.4% and was £80 but has already all gone, sadly.

The voting for dram of the night came down to a straight fight between the Bunnahabhain and the Ledaig, with the Bunna taking it by 12 votes to 11, with three other whiskies getting two votes each.

Thank you to everyone old and new who attended another extremely busy tasting, as well as to the Britons for hosting us and in particular to Anna, Martin and Adam for coming back from the show which such an interesting and excellent range of drinks for us to try. Up next: it's the Christmas party!

Here they all are.

Scotch Malt Whisky Society Special

The line-up of SMWS bottlings.

For April's meeting of the Manchester Whisky Club we were in the hands of committee member Martin, who had been squirreling away bottles from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society for us over a period of months.

The drams.

Some club members were already part of the SMWS, but for the uninitiated it's a society which offers exclusive bottlings from distilleries right across Scotland, as well as access to various events and the club locations in Edinburgh and London. Basic membership is £65.

All of the bottlings produced by SMWS are given wacky names based on the tasting notes, and so it was that we began the evening by drinking an Alluring and Amusing - in reality a Tullibardine. Coming in at no less than 60.9% it was quite a way to get the night started, and a welcome one as we think it's the first Tullibardine we've ever had at the club.

Alluring and Amusing.

This was "sharp" and "gorgeous on the nose" with bits of pear drops and stewed apple. Perhaps in fact, we preferred the nose to the palate, which was particularly spicy. This held true even with the addition of a few drops of water, although this did open things up a bit. It's £48, although as with all SMWS bottlings it's members-only, unless of course you can pick one up on an auction site, where chances are you'd be paying a good deal more.

Big Boozy Trifle.

Big Boozy Trifle was next, an alias applied to a 15yo whisky from Cragganmore.

This was as peppery as the first dram was spicy, so dry and peppery in fact the mouthfeel was more like a savoury popping candy than a typical drink. Matured in first-fill French oak, and a weighty 56%, with other comments from the room comparing it to Rich Tea biscuits and having "a light bit of smoke" about it. It was £61.

The third whisky of the evening was perhaps inappropriately timed, as it's known as Winter Is Coming. Underneath the label it's a 10yo from Craigellachie in Speyside.

Winter Is Coming.

This one also packed a bit of a punch, at 59.3%. It was "sulphury" with a "sharp apple nose". This was a real livener of a drink, certainly interesting, although it probably divided the room a bit more than the previous two, which had admittedly both gone down very well. The general consensus was that this was still a good whisky, but maybe just lacking a bit of the quality of the earlier drams. It's £51.90.

There are plenty of sherry monsters in the club and we got to try a whisky of the same name after the mid-tasting break. They actually called one A Real Sherry Monster. This time, it's a 19yo from the Ben Nevis distillery.

A Real Sherry Monster.

"My God, that's a sherry monster and a half" was one of the early comments, suggesting there's no danger of the SMWS being hauled in front of anyone over the Trade Descriptions Act. The distillery has a reputation for going particularly well with sherry casks, Martin told us, and so maybe it was no surprise that this whisky proved popular with us. Huge on the nose, albeit with a slightly short palate, but at £75 this was quite the bargain for a bottle of Ben Nevis.

Dram number five was a bit of a mouthful - Peat Smoke, Pipe Ash and Pata Negra was the title (the latter means 'black hoof' in Spanish and is usually used to mean some kind of high quality pork product). At 53.2% this was, incredibly, the lowest ABV of the night, and it came from the Bowmore distillery on Islay.

Peat Smoke, Pipe Ash and Pata Negra

This was billed as "moving into the peat zone" and so we were, with a lot going on here. Comments included "superbly smoky" as well as "gorgeous" and "a lovely dram". At £70, this was considered another bargain.

And we stayed on Islay for the last dram of the evening, moving to Laphroaig for a bottle called Sailing Ship in Stormy Seas.

Sailing Ship in Stormy Seas.

This was an 18yo, heavily peated, clocking in at a mighty 60.9%. This left us with the taste of saltwater all over our lips, indeed it was "lip smacking". Frankly, you could tell it was the end of the night because that was all I actually managed to write down about it, but suffice to say we enjoyed this one very much too.

On to the dram of the night voting we went, and amid a great field it was a big win for number five, the Bowmore, which notched 11 votes.

Thank you to Martin for collecting such a fine array of SMWS bottlings, and of course thanks to the Society for producing them in the first place! Thanks also to everyone at the Britons Protection for hosting us once again and all the members and waiting list guests who came along.