By Douglas Fraser Grade: B+ Smokehead Islay Single Malt Whisky is pure Islay whisky at its smokiest, with High Voltage as the cask strength version of the standard Smokehead. The whisky is sourced by Ian Macleod Distillers from an unnamed Islay distillery, and as a single malt, we know the source is just one distillery …
By Richard Thomas Rating: B To a large extent, Waterford Irish Whiskey represents an entrepreneur taking his past experience in Scotland and carrying it over into a new venture in Ireland. Mark Reynier bought a shuttered Islay distillery, Bruichladdich, in 2000, and in so doing he confronted a problem that was novel at the time. …
By Alex Southgate Rating: B In the whiskey world you hear certain names and can’t help but hope for good things. This is very much the case when it comes to Glen Moray, perhaps one of the better known Speyside distilleries. We’ll be diving into one of their 15 year old offerings today and I …
By Douglas Fraser Rating: B Old Elk has a distillery in Fort Collins, Colorado, but at present much of their output is contract produced or sourced through MGP in Indiana. Working with Greg Metze, the former master distiller at MGP and current master distiller at Old Elk, the company arranged to produce their own made-to-order …
By Richard Thomas The American Single Malt isn’t an official thing yet, but it seem inevitable that it will become one in the near future, and heretofore that has been a category dominated by small and medium-sized distillers. Yet it seems Brown Forman is showing some serious interest in the category. First came Woodford Reserve …
By Richard Thomas Rating: B I remember thinking in 2014 that Mark Reynier scored a helluva deal. That was when Diageo, in one of the moves rendered utterly inexplicable by their byzantine corporate veil, sold the Guinness brewery they had spent €40 million upgrading over the course of a decade to him for just a …
By Alex Southgate Rating: B+ It’s always nice to go back and visit old friends and this is absolutely no different when it comes to the distilleries that we know well and love. This being said, I’ve been back to the Fettercairn Distillery on a couple of occasions now, and had a really enjoyable experience …
By Richard Thomas Rating: B+ Ian Macleod Distillers is one of those fixtures of the Scotch industry that the average, casual drinker (even Scotch drinker) has never heard of. That is nothing to be ashamed of; I’d put down some money that 9 out of 10 of the folks who know what The Macallan is …
By Kenrick Thurston-Wilcox Rating: C+ Celebrity-endorsed spirits have become common, using the established star power to boost the status and sales of their products. With products like vodka and gin, it’s relatively easy for a distillery to roll out a product soon after conception, as they do not have to wait any time for the …
By Douglas Fraser Rating: A Blue Run Spirits has been making a name for itself within the bourbon industry over the past few years, helped by their adviser, Hall of Famer Jim Rutledge. Blue Run Reflection I drew on a carefully selected lot of 200 barrels distilled under contract at Castle and Key Distillery in …
