Whisky News

July 2010
Donald Trump in talk with whisky distillers

If it's anything like its sponsor it will be rich and smooth but hard-hitting and perhaps not to everyone's taste. Donald Trump, who plans to create the world's greatest golf course in Aberdeenshire, also has his sights on whisky. Donald Trump, the American billionaire who is building the world's greatest golf course in Aberdeenshire, is turning his attention to another Scottish icon and creating his own brand of single malt whisky.
The flamboyant businessman is in talks with " several " whisky producers as he looks to develop his luxury merchandise brand in Scotland. However if the new venture becomes a success, the tycoon will not celebrate with a dram as he doesn't drink. Following the success of Trump Vodka in the US, he is now looking to expand his drinks portfolio and is keen to launch a range of whiskies as work on his £750 million golf resort gets under way on the Menie Estate. Sarah Malone, executive vice-president of Trump International Golf Links, Scotland (TIGLS), said: We will definitely have a few single malts in the years to come and perhaps a couple of special blends, too, once the clubhouse is up and running.
We are meeting with companies regionally and nationally to identify the very best products for TIGLS and we look forward to commissioning and manufacturing a wide range of products over the coming years. There are tremendous opportunities for Scottish suppliers and the Trump Scotland brand will be synonymous with Scotland's finest. She added: Mr Trump doesn't drink at all, but we're in the land of whisky so we think it would be really appropriate. We haven't done a deal yet, but as soon as we do we will be revealing who will produce it.
We will be working with a leading distillery. I'm pretty sure we can have ourselves a single malt by 2012. We have a great opportunity to produce something very unique and distinctive. A spokesman for the Scotch Whisky Association last night welcomed the move. Mr Trump is trying to create a location that will attract people from all over the world and nothing shows the quality of Scotland more than Scotch. So the two things would naturally come together. I am sure it will be top-of-the-range malt whisky. While some experts recommend whisky is taken only with water, The Trump organisation may consider creating their own cocktails using their new product. Perhaps The Millionaire (whisky, orange Curacao, grenadine, framboise and white of one egg); or the Nineteenth Hole (substituting rye whisky for Scotch, plus sweet vermouth and sherry); or even the Hole-In-One (whisky, vermouth, lemon juice and 1 dash orange bitters)
Mr Trump launched his self-branded vodka, produce by Dutch distiller Jacques de Lat, in 2006, selling 20,000 cases in its first year. Trump Super Premium Vodka retails for around £60 for a litre bottle.

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July 2010
Diageo fills pension deficit with whisky

Drinks giant Diageo has revealed a plan to fill a massive hole in its pension fund with millions of pounds worth of maturing whisky. The whisky barrels should generate an income for the pension fund of £25m a year over 15 years, at which point the barrels can be sold back to Diageo. The sale price is expected to cover the remaining funding gap.
The scheme forms part of Diageo's 10-year plan to reduce its £862m pension fund deficit. The maker of Bell's and Johnnie Walker also said it had transferred £197m into the pension fund, as previously agreed. Diageo said the whisky being transferred into a "pension funding partnership" would be recently distilled and less than three years old. It will be made up of the group's whisky from 27 distilleries in Scotland, such as Talisker, Lagavullin and Oban.

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April 2010
Status Quo guitarist to head Glen Rossie

Status Quo lead singer Francis Rossi usually only gets this excited when he puts out a single or album and watches the charts for success. Now he admits his first non-music business venture is making his " left foot waggle " as he becomes chairman of an historic whisky brand. Rossi has bought a stake in the 196-year-old Glen Rossie whisky and become its chairman in the deal with The Brand Cellar, a company specialising in acquiring older brands.
Glen Rossie was owned by failed drinks firm First Quench which went into administration last year, and when The Brand Cellar approached veteran rocker Rossi, he said he did not need much time before he took the opportunity. He told The Scotsman: I can feel my innards getting tingling. I'm elated by it. This is something different. The idea of me being a chairman, it's like, 'Oh yes'.
I can't say it's not about money. I don't pretend I don't love money. This looks like a good investment. I grew up in retail so the idea of the turnover I get quite excited about.
When a record comes out we see what the sales are. You see the position in the chart and it's an affirmation of success. I do love the thrill of the sale.
The 60-year-old, originally from Forest Hill, London, said he was first introduced to the whisky sometime in the past decade when a bottle of it was placed on the band's tour bus by a caterer who thought it was funny. Rossi said he first thought it was a joke, a bottle with nearly his name on it. Glen Rossie made regular appearances on tours with the band, known for singles such as Marguerita Time and 28 studio albums including Thirsty Work.
The Brand Cellar approached Rossi about a possible deal on the whisky and a chance meeting in a hotel in Melbourne, Australia, while on tour earlier this year led to his involvement. He said: All of us in rock and roll have tried venturing into business.
I know Floyd did it, U2 did it. We all think we know what we're doing because we earn some money. But we're not businessmen. I didn't have to go punting for it and it's not like I have had an idea. They have come to me. It was quite easy deciding. These guys are going for it, now, and that's similar to making records.
Rossi said his new brand was not cheap p***, thin or watery and he liked the viscosity and density of it.
Keyboardist and bass guitarist Andy Bown always got Rossi to smell things and Glen Rossie smells rather pleasant, he said.
He added: Whisky generally can make me shudder. This tastes like whisky but it doesn't make you shudder. I can't drink loads of anything, but it's something nice to sip late at night. I just like the idea of a drink with my name on it.
The Scotch will be relaunched in a new-look bottle carrying a label in the shape of a plectrum, in a nod to Rossi's music career spanning nearly five decades.

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Februari 2010
101-year-old whisky found under Antarctic hut

Five crates of rare 101-year-old Scotch whisky and brandy have been discovered intact deep in the ice under Ernest Shackleton's Antarctic hut. The whisky along with two crates of brandy were recovered by a team restoring a hut used by the famed polar explorer. Ice has cracked some of the bottles that had been left there in 1909, but the conservation team said yesterday they are confident the five crates contain intact bottles given liquid can be heard when the crates are moved. The crates were found under the hut's floorboards in 2006, but they were too deeply embedded in ice to be dislodged.
The New Zealanders agreed to drill the ice to try to retrieve the crates although any remaining bottles must stay under conservation guidelines agreed to by 12 Antarctic Treaty nations. The pine cases of Mackinlay's Rare Old Whisky and brandy were abandoned on the famous explorer's failed expedition to the South Pole. They were discovered by conservators from the New Zealand Antarctic Heritage Trust, who were excavating ice from beneath the hut where Shackleton and his men sheltered from the harsh winter. The crates show almost no damage from the ice and the company's stag head logo is clearly visible.
The team now hopes to drill down into the ice and remove some of the century-old bottles. Distillers Whyte and Mackay, which supplied the whisky, hope the drink can then be analysed so they can replicate the original forgotten blend. This is a gift from the heavens for whisky lovers, said Richard Patterson, master blender at Whyte and Mackay. If the contents can be confirmed, safely extracted and analysed, the original blend may be able to be replicated. Given the original recipe no longer exists this may open a door into history. We look forward to working with the Trust to try and replicate the whisky for mutual benefit, allow people to taste a true part of history and be part of what must be the whisky story of the century. Shackleton built the hut at Cape Royds on Antarctica's Ross Island in January 1908 to provide a base for his attempt to become the first person to reach the South Pole.
He and his 14 crew members spent nine months there as temperatures dropped to -50C.They survived on supplies of Yorkshire ham, Colman's mustard, packs of Huntley & Palmers biscuits and tins of Lyle's Golden Syrup. The whisky was supplied by MacKinlay's, a family distilling company based in Edinburgh, which was approached by Shackleton in 1907. It agreed to be the official whisky supplier for the expedition and the firm, now part of Whyte and Mackay, still has the original letter confirming this. Mackinlay's provided 12 cases and empty bottles have previously been found but these are the first intact bottles. Shackleton and three companions left for the Pole in late October and after a four-month trek they fell just 98 miles short of their goal after running out of supplies. They eventually left the hut on March 3, 1909 and sailed away leaving behind their surplus supplies, including the whisky and brandy.
The unexpected find of the brandy crates, one labelled Chas. Mackinlay & Co and the other labelled The Hunter Valley Distillery Limited Allandale (Australia) are a real bonus, said team leader Al Fastier. Ice has cracked some of the crates and formed inside them which will make the job of extracting the contents very delicate. The team is confident that the crates contain intact alcohol, given liquid can be heard when the crates are moved. The smell of whisky in the surrounding ice before excavation commenced also indicated full bottles of spirits were inside, albeit that one or more might have broken.

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Januari 2010
100 year old whisky for auction

One of the world's rarest half bottles of whisky is expected to fetch up to £6,000 when it is auctioned in Glasgow next week.
The bottle of Springbank was distilled by J & A Mitchell & Co Ltd in 1900 and drawn in 1927.
Other rare brands going under the hammer include Macallan, Dalmore, Talisker, Bowmore and Highland Park. The rare whisky sale at McTear's Auctioneers is scheduled to go ahead on 3 February.
Comment: I think the whisky is only 27 years old, and if it's bottled in 1927 than the bottle isn't even 100 years old. Strange story.

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Januari 2010
Glenfiddich 50 year reaches Nordic region

William Grant & Sons, distributor Hans Just and leading ferry group Viking Line teamed up to launch the latest bottle of the landmark Glenfiddich 50 year old Scotch Whisky into the Nordic region in late 2009 - with the bottle immediately snapped up by a Swedish customer, Göran Sandberg, for €11,000.
As reported in our extensive coverage of the unveiling and launch of 50 year old, there are just 500 bottles available, with 50 to be distributed worldwide each year for the next ten years. Of the first year’s 50 bottles, ten were made available in travel retail, with the line launched in the channel via Aelia and Aéroports de Paris at Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport on 1 September. The 50 year old, described by William Grant & Sons Chairman Peter Gordon as “ the pinnacle of our whisky-making excellence, ” carries an ultra-premium price point of £10,000 or €11,000. The Nordic launch took place in late November on board Viking Line Cinderella, which hosted one of its regular whisky cruises on the Stockholm to Mariehamn route. These events attract whisky connoisseurs from around the region, with Swedes in particular drawn by the opportunity to sample new or rare whisky's.
William Grant & Sons outgoing Master Blender David Stewart was on the cruise to tell participants about the 50 year old and to discuss the distiller’s whisky portfolio.
Viking Line Tax Free Manager Sales & Purchasing Kim Engblom told The Moodie Report: The whisky category is important for us, and especially on our Swedish routes. New launches are as important as they are in for example, perfumes. They show that something is happening in the category and it keeps up the interest not only for collectors but for ordinary customers
We are becoming a preferred retailer, where our customers know that they will always find something new at tax free prices. It’s also important because it motivates and educates our personnel. Hans Just Nordic Duty Free/Travel Retail Sales Manager Jan Hesdorf added: Interest in the cruise was very high with a lot of attention on the Glenfiddich 50 year old. This is the first single malt whisky that has been sold at such a high price onboard a cruise liner in the Nordic area - perhaps even in the world.
The consumer that purchased the bottle is Swedish with a big interest in whiskies. We could even have sold more bottles as there were customers interested in buying them.
As Sweden is a whisky market there are a lot of whisky enthusiasts looking to buy special bottles and Viking Line has established a know-how and a reputation for offering fantastic tastings and special bottlings of very rare single malt whiskies. These bottles can not be purchased at Systembolaget in Sweden, which is the main reason why these whisky cruises are very interesting for consumers.
Viking Line’s attention now turns to its major whisky cruise events of the year, which take place this weekend on the Stockholm-Mariehamn route. Over two days of cruising, the group will welcome around 4,500 whisky enthusiasts on board, and will showcase a range of Scotch, Irish, US, Canadian and Japanese whiskies. Among the William Grant’s portfolio will be rare cask strength bottlings of Glenfiddich 15 and 21 year old, plus Glenfiddich Private Vintages from 1958, 1959 and 1976. Engblom noted: We arrange whisky cruises once a month (except in summer), but on January 15 and 16 we are having a bigger Whisky Fair on board. This will include master classes and around 20 exhibitors presenting their whiskies at stands where the customers are able to taste the whiskies - and also buy the whiskies at tax free prices.

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Januari 2010
The $90,000 Macallan Linley Whisky Cabinet

A one-of-a-kind bespoke cabinet designed by Viscount David Linley containing six extremely rare bottles of vintage single malt whisky from famed Speyside distillery The Macallan is on offer at Harrods in London for about $90,000. Macallan commissioned the royal cabinetmaker to produce the exquisite piece solely for Harrods, designed to be ultra luxurious and unique in every way. The six precious bottles are Macallan's prized 1937, 1940, 1948, 1955, 1966 and 1970 vintages. Handcrafted in Linley's workshop from solid English Burr Oak with mirrored interior panels the cabinet also includes six bespoke Linley-designed crystal whisky tumblers as well as a cigar humidor in the fold-out side compartments.

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Januari 2010
Dutch seize cocaine on Jamaican whisky ship

Dutch authorities have seized more than a tonne of cocaine hidden among containers of whisky on a cargo shipment from Jamaica, their largest seizure ever from the island nation.
The 1,100 kilos of the drug, with a street value of more than 30 million euros, has already been destroyed. “We’ve had bigger seizures but not from Jamaica,” a spokeswoman for the public prosecutor said.
A special team comprised of seaport police, customs, the financial crimes investigation service and the public prosecutor’s office found the container last week in Rotterdam, Europe’s biggest port, they said in a statement yesterday.
The container was targeted for an in-depth search “based on a risk analysis of customs,” they said, and was immediately identified as suspicious by a drug dog.
Police arrested five men on Monday at the warehouse in Amsterdam where the container was delivered.
The U.S. Justice Department has called Jamaica an “increasingly significant transshipment point” for cocaine from South America, mostly to the United States but also to Europe. The island nation is on a U.S. list of 20 countries singled out as being major production or distribution centres for drugs.
The Netherlands remains one of the primary entry points for cocaine into Europe. British drugs research group DrugScope has said that the Netherlands and Spain, together, account for nearly two-thirds of all European seizures of cocaine.

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December 2009
English Whisky Makes a Comeback

England has now been put back on the whisky map, a century after the last English distillery closed.
The English Whisky Co has now launched the first English peated single malt whisky for one hundred years. Reactions to the launch stunned the distillers: a long queue stretched around St George's Distillery and customers drove from all over the country to purchase one of the first bottles released to the public.
The distillery, on the banks of the river Thet just off the A11 between East Harling and Roudham on the B1111 in East Anglia, produced its first 'run' in November 2006 when workers filled the first barrel of St George's whisky. There are now some 13 casks of whisky produced a week, which has led to a good stock of the malt spirit. This sits in Kentucky barrels for three years before it can be called "whisky".
The initial 390 six-bottle cases (70cl bottles at 46% abv) will be available from the English Whisky Co in May, 2010 at £195 + tax per case.
The first 500 bottles of Chapter 6 single malt flew off the shelves within three hours of being put on sale. This realised a long-held dream for the farming family behind the project: the Nelstrop family. They had long grown and sold barley to Scottish distilleries and could not see any reason why they could not turn this barley into their own distillation.
Fans of Scotch do not have to worry that the English are taking over: there are 107 distilleries in Scotland and still only one in England. To rub salt into Scottish wounds, the family employs Scottish whisky-makers: former Laphroaig distiller and whisky lifetime achievement award-winner Iain Henderson and David Fitt.

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December 2009
Ardbeg's Big Bottle to tour Manhattan

New York has hit the bottle as Ardbeg Single Malt Whisky toured the streets of Manhattan.
The Big Bottle, one of ten produced by Edinburgh agency Story, which briefed Cod Steaks in Bristol with their creation, is being placed strategically in landmark locations through out New York to direct the public to the Ardbeg tasting team which is set up at nearby venues.
The remaining Big Bottles are destined for other worldwide cities such as Hong Kong, Berlin and Milan.
Hamish Torrie, brands director at Glenmorangie said: “The Big Ardbeg Bottle has had a tremendous welcome in New York with frequent acts of bottle hugging reported. The bottle was happy to pose for group photographs. And people very much enjoyed the whisky too.”
Dave Mullen, creative director of Story said: “With 50,000 members in 123 countries, the Ardbeg Committee is growing bigger every year. The same goes for Ardbeg’s reputation as a big and untamed spirit. The Big Bottles will be very effective at spreading the Ardbeggian message worldwide wherever they go.”

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December 2009
Tamdhu comes to an end

Sad news from the world of Scotch whisky on which to end 2009 is that The Edrington Group plans to close its historic Tamdhu distillery and associated maltings on Speyside. The site is to be put on a 'care and maintenance' basis next April, and there are likely to be some 30 job losses, both at Tamdhu and at other facilities owned by the Group.
These include The Macallan, Highland Park, The Glenrothes and Glenturret distilleries, along with the Buchley warehousing complex at Bishopbriggs in Dumbartonshire. An Edrington spokesman says that "Whilst Edrington's brands continue to perform well in international markets, and the Group is confident about returning to growth in the medium term, the current economic downturn has flattened sales over the past year. There are early signs of stability returning to the Group's markets. However, the downturn has required Edrington to rebalance its distillation capacity."
Graham Hutcheon, group operations director, explains that the proposed measures are designed to ensure the long-term sustainability of Edrington's Scotch whisky operations, noting that " They will allow us to ensure that our business is the right size and shape to support current and future activity levels." Tamdhu is situated close to the River Spey, at Knockando, and dates from 1896/97, when the late Victorian whisky boom was at its height. The distillery is notable for operating the last Saladin malting system in the Scotch whisky industry, and currently its malt supplies not only Tamdhu itself but also other Edrington Group distilleries.

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November 2009
$5K for bottle of Scotch? Oh, for the love of peat

It's safe to say the Winnipegger who bought a 750-ml bottle of White Bowmore Islay single-malt Scotch whisky last week -- the most expensive bottle of liquor ever sold in the province -- didn't pick up any Coke or orange juice to go with it.
With a price tag of $4,500 -- $5,040 after taxes are included -- the White Bowmore, which was distilled on an island off the western coast of Scotland in 1964, aged for 43 years and bottled last year, topped the $3,895 fetched for each of four bottles of Black Bowmore last year. (One bottle of Black Bowmore is still for sale at the Grant Park Shopping Centre liquor store.)
Will your taste buds thank you if you drop $4,500 on a bottle of single-malt scotch? Here's an excerpt from the tasting notes of White Bowmore: "The colour is golden syrup with amazing aromas of Gallia melon, mango and papaya. On the palate, there are hints of mixed exotic fruits, vanilla and maple syrup with just a trace of Bowmore peat smoke. The finish is surprisingly clean and incredibly long."
Gary Dawyduk, product ambassador for the Manitoba Liquor Control Commission, said such high-end whisky is best served straight up in a tulip-shaped whisky glass. "You'll get an absolute explosion of flavour and a finish that will go on seemingly forever on your palette. You'll get the privilege of knowing what you're tasting is one of the most prestigious products produced. You'll be celebrating the labour of the people who made it and the distiller that produced it," he said. "You can only do it justice by sipping it straight," he said, scoffing at suggestions of various mixes or ice.
Billy Casselman, Prairie manager for Saverio Schiralli Agencies Ltd., which represents Scotland-based Morrison Bowmore Distillers in Canada, said two bottles of White Bowmore were brought into Manitoba last week. One sold immediately out of the St. Vital Square liquor store while the second remains on display at the Bunn's Creek location on Henderson Highway. (Only 732 bottles were made in total.) "Despite the economy, the upper crust still has disposable income for select products," he said.
The white and black varieties of Bowmore are named for the casks in which they're aged. The black was aged in sherry casks and has a darker colour while the white aged in bourbon casks and is lighter in colour. They're both distilled from single malt barley.Dawyduk said the Bowmore varieties are unique in that most whiskies don't age well beyond 15 years. The average bottle retails for about $80 in Manitoba with a low end of about $40.
"Very few can age as old as this and in the distiller's opinion still be something worthwhile drinking. The average age has been increasing in the last 10 to 15 years. (Traditionally), fine wines from France have been prestigious and collectable. This has extended to single-malt scotch whisky," he said.
This isn't the end of the Bowmore tale, however. Both Casselman and Dawyduk said plans are underway to bring a number of bottles of Gold Bowmore to Manitoba next year. Aged in both bourbon and sherry barrels, Gold is a mix of the black and white varieties and is expected to retail for about $4,500 before taxes.
Two weeks ago, three bottles of Bowmore, one each of white, black and gold, sold at Christie's auction house for a total of US$21,600.
"It's a good investment for some people," Casselman said.