Whisky Focus - Whisky News Reviews Interviews Events New Releases

• 17th September 2021
  Aberfeldy 18 Year Old Finished In French Red Wine Casks Review
  Aberfeldy 18 Year Old Batch 2921 finished in French Red Wine Casks from the Côte Rôtie appellation is the third limited edition in the distillery's French Red Wine Cask Collection.
   
• 15th September 2021
  Tamdhu Cigar Malt
  Tamdhu celebrates the launch of First Fill European Oak Oloroso Sherry Cask matured Cigar Malt with a unique sherry cask inspired humidor. The big sherried dram is said to mirror the spice, aroma and mouthfeel of aged tobacco leaves used in only the best cigars.
   
• 14th September 2021
  The GlenAllachie 14 Year Old Oloroso Wood Finish
  The latest addition to The GlenAllachie Wood Series is The GlenAllachie 14 Year Old Oloroso Wood Finish, a combination of first and second fill American oak barrels, finished for over two years finishing in Oloroso puncheons.
   
• 13th September August 2021
  Tamdhu Batch Strength 6 Review
  Tamdhu has released the next instalment of their Cask Strength series, Tamdhu Batch Strength 6, and it is an absolutely delicious big Oloroso sherried dram, a pleasure from nose to finish, some quality sherry casks at play here and the cask strength simply adds to the flavour and pleasure experience. Tamdhu is becoming one to watch for fans of a big sherried dram going by the quality of this, highly recommended.
   
• 10th September 2021
  Glenmorangie Lighthouse Onsite Innovation Distillery
  The innovative and creative folks at Glenmorangie, led by Director of Whisky Creation Dr Bill Lumsden, have been busy once again, today Dr Bill and his team opened the doors to a new home for Glenmorangie whisky creation where they can let their imaginations run wild, a ground-breaking innovation distillery within the Glenmorangie distillery site which they have named the Glenmorangie Lighthouse.
   
• 3rd September August 2021
  Royal Lochnagar Scottish Ballet's 'The Sleeping Beauty Cask'
  A unique single cask of Royal Lochnagar whisky, laid down in 1994, has now been bottled ready for auction as part of Diageo’s prestigious Casks of Distinction range. Every pound raised at auction will go to the Scottish Ballet Endowment Fund. All bottling and auction costs have been generously donated by Diageo and Whisky Auctioneer in support of Scottish Ballet.
   
• 25th August 2021
  Karuizawa 1981 The Legend of Asama Only 30 Sets Available
  30 sets of Karuizawa Distillery’s incredibly rare 1981 vintage single cask malt whiskies is being released in exclusive ‘Legend of Asama’ sets encased in bespoke Glencairn Crystal glassware.
   
• 25th August 2021
  The Oxford Artisan Distillery Heritage Corn Whisky
  The Oxford Artisan Distillery has unveiled a new series of experimental whiskies titled Grain Stories which launches with the release of Heritage Corn Whisky.
   
• 24th August 2021
  Tales of The Macallan Volume I
  Tales of The Macallan Volume I, a rare 1950 single malt whisky, is the first edition in a new series of single malt whiskies which tells the story of The Macallan pioneers and their whisky-making legacy.
   
• 23rd August 2021
  Aberfeldy Barrels & Bees In London, Glasgow & Edinburgh
  Leading venues across London, Glasgow and Edinburgh create limited edition Aberfeldy honey laced cocktails to raise awareness of the importance of the honey bee.
   
• 20th August 2021
  Fettercairn Warehouse 2 Batch No.002 Review
  Fettercairn announce the release of the 2nd instalment of their Warehouse Collection, Fettercairn Warehouse 2 Batch No.002, a combination of 38% First Fill ex-American Rye barrels and 62% First Fill ex-Bourbon barrels, and it is outstanding.
   
• 18th August 2021
  Aberlour A’bunadh Collection Of 66 Bottles Goes On Sale
  A rarely seen vertical collection of Aberlour A’bunadh, one of the largest ongoing whisky series of all time, has gone on sale but you will need deep pockets if you want to get your hands on it as it has a price tag of £15,884.
   
• 17th August 2021
  The GlenAllachie 10 Year Old Batch 6
  The GlenAllachie has announced the launch of the launch of the latest batch of their GlenAllachie 10 Year Old Cask Strength Batch 6. Matured in a combination of Pedro Ximénez and Oloroso sherry puncheons along with a small quantity of Virgin Oak and Rioja casks, all personally selected by Master Distiller, Billy Walker.
   
• 17th August 2021
  Imbibe Live Line-Up For September Event
  Imbibe Live, the UK’s leading drinks industry event, has unveiled an action-packed masterclass schedule for this year’s event. Taking place from 13th-14th September at Olympia London, Imbibe Live will reunite the industry with a fantastic line-up of tutored tastings, insightful panel sessions and world class cocktail demonstrations, all curated in partnership with Imbibe Live’s ambassadors and leading drinks industry experts.
   
• 16th August 2021
  Bushmills Supports New Evening Standard Stories Festival
  Bushmills Irish whiskey announced as poetry partner and lead spirit sponsor for new Evening Standard stories festival in association with Netflix.
   
• 16th August 2021
  Tamdhu 12, 15 and Batch Strength Miniature Gift Pack Unveiled
  Just a quick one which may be of interest to those of you who may want to explore the Tamdhu Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky range or those who are looking for a whisky gift for a whisky loving friend or relative, Tamdhu has unveiled a new miniature gift pack featuring the Tamdhu 12 Year Old, 15 Year Old, and Batch Strength No. 005.
   
• 16th August 2021
  Jameson Orange
  As the popularity of 'Ready To Drink' spirit drinks and cocktails continues to soar Jameson Irish whiskey has unveiled their new zesty orange flavoured spirit drink entry into this new marketplace, the Jameson Orange.
   
• 16th August 2021
  Glengoyne Unveils Artwork That Will Reveal Itself Over 50 Years
  Michelin-starred restaurant City Social in London has unveiled a one-of-a-kind literary artwork by conceptual artist Jonathon Keats which will reveal itself over the next 50 years. Commissioned by Glengoyne, Scotland’s slowest distilled single malt whisky, the one-of-a-kind piece has been created to slowly reveal the words of a new poem by renowned poet, Cat Hepburn, all around the concept of time.
   
• 16th August 2021
  The Oxford Artisan Distillery Celebrates Fourth Anniversary
  The Oxford Artisan Distillery is celebrating its 4th anniversary and the release of its Oxford Rye Whisky Batch #3 to commemorate the occasion. The whisky was initially matured in American oak casks and then underwent a second maturation in Moscatel wine casks, sourced directly from Portugal.
   
•  16th August 2021
  Smokehead Rulebook Made To Be Ripped Up
  Smokehead has created the world’s first rulebook that’s literally made to be ripped up – and burned! The mystery smoky Islay single malt has brought together some of the UK’s most exciting visionaries, entrepreneurs, and business rebels, including Professor Green and Steven Bartlett, to create the rulebook.
   
• 27th July 2021
  Dunphail Distillery Receives  Planning Permission
  You may recall that back in March this year the team behind London's Bimber Distillery unveiled their plans for Dunphail Distillery, a new 200,000 LA capacity craft distillery in Speyside, Scotland, which they planned to construct through the conversion of an existing farm steading. I am pleased to say that the that plans to open the new Scottish whisky distillery and visitor centre in Dunphail, south of Forres have now been approved by Moray Council.
   
• 24th July 2021
  Fettercairn Distillery Celebrates Replanting of Ancient Forest
  As part of Whyte & Mackay’s expansion of their Scottish Oak programme, Fettercairn is set to celebrate the replanting of an ancient forest and they are set to release the first Fettercairn Scottish Oak bottling in 2022.
   
• 21st July 2021
  Glenmorangie & Ardbeg Whiskies ISC and IWSC 2021 Gold Haul
  Glenmorangie and Ardbeg Scotch malt whiskies have scooped an impressive Gold Medal haul from 2021’s International Wine and Spirit Competition and the International Spirits Challenge.
   
• 20th July 2021
  Whisky Hammer Deal With Hong Kong Rare Whisky Holdings
  Online whisky auction site, Whisky Hammer, and its sister retail business Still Spirit, is poised for global expansion after selling a 49% stake of the Scottish family business to Rare Whisky Holdings, a whisky investment group managed out of Hong Kong.
   
• 19th July 2021
  Whyte & Mackay Expanding Its Scottish Oak Programme
  Scotch Whisky maker Whyte & Mackay is expanding its Scottish Oak Programme across its entire estate of distilleries, the programme seeks to establish the use of native oak as a quality raw material for the wider spirits industry and support the skills required from harvest right through to cask creation.
   
• 16th July 2021
  Talisker Rewild Tour And Challenge
  Talisker launches Rewild Tour and challenges bartenders to create a cocktail that embodies the Wild Spirit character of Talisker.
   
• 16th July 2021
  Bimber 2021 Country Collection
  Bimber unveils the their Country Collection 2021 which includes includes a line-up of 24 single cask, single malt whiskies drawn from a variety of different cask types.
   
• 15th July 2021
  MacNair’s Boutique House of Spirits
  Introducing the new MacNair’s Boutique House of Spirits range which encompasses their new-look Lum Reek Blended Malt Scotch Whisky, and a brand new small-batch rum line named Exploration Rum.
   
• 14th July 2021
  Spearhead Single Grain Scotch Whisky From Loch Lomond
  Introducing Spearhead Single Grain Scotch whisky, produced using 100% malted barley and a continuous Coffey style still at the Loch Lomond distillery. The spirit has then been aged in ex-bourbon barrels before finishing in a combination of fire and infrared-toasted virgin American oak barrels.
   
• 12th July 2021
  Oxford Rye Whisky Batch #2
  Following the inaugural release back in April this year comes Oxford Rye Whisky Batch #2. The English rye whisky was produced by the new small English micro distillery using ancient heritage grains, grown by the distillery’s certified organic and regenerative farming partners. These grains require no pesticides, fungicides or herbicides, supporting sustainability and biodiversity in their fields.
   
• 9th July 2021
  Jameson Black Barrel Takes Double Gold At ISC 2021
  I am sure it wont come as much of a surprise to those of you who are familiar with it, it doesn't surprise me at all that Jameson Black Barrel celebrated a Gold Outstanding and 98 points from the International Wine and Spirits Competition 2021, and an impressive Double Gold medal from the International Spirits Challenge.
   
• 7th July 2021
  Cotswolds Hearts & Crafts Pineau des Charentes Review
  Review of Cotswolds Hearts & Crafts Pineau des Charentes Cask the second release in the series, this one has been fully matured in Pineau des Charentes French oak casks, an enjoyable dram overall, a good balance of oak and fruit on the nose and mouth before the fruit is outdone by the French oak on the finish.
   
• 6th July 2021
  The Macallan Partners With Bentley Motors
  The Macallan single malt Scotch whisky has teamed up with luxury British automotive manufacturer Bentley Motors in a unique partnership that will build on their rich heritage to develop distinctive collaborations and further their vision of a more sustainable future.
   
• 5th July 2021
  Inspiring Recipes To Make It A Glen Moray Summer
  Glen Moray have teamed up with some creative food and drink specialists to inspire drinkers to ‘shake, sizzle, sweeten and share’ their Glen Moray single malt this summer. From delicious fruit-infused cocktails to sip in the garden to spicy steak sauces to sizzle on a barbecue and refreshing iced desserts for after.
   
• 2nd July 2021
  Scallywag Chocolate Edition 2021
  Just in time for World Chocolate Day on 7th July Douglas Laing has unveiled the next instalment of their big rich sherried Speyside dram, Scallywag Chocolate Edition 4.
   
• 2nd July 2021
  Do You Have A Bit Of Jameson In Your Ancestry
  If you have ever wondered if you have a historic family connection with Jameson Irish whiskey or perhaps you are aware of a connection and you would like some more detail then you are in luck as Irish Distillers, producer of Jameson as well as some of the world’s best loved Irish whiskeys, and Ancestry, the global leader in family history, are working together to share 100 years of Jameson employee records online.
   
• 1st July 2021
  Ardbeg 8 Year Old Committee Release
  Ardbeg today launched the next instalment of their Committee exclusive bottlings, this time up Ardbeg whisky fans are being treated to a youthful Ardbeg 8 Year Old expression which has been matured in ex-Sherry casks. Said to be a smokier Ardbeg, but balanced by the ex-Sherry casks it has been bottled at what must be a flavoursome 50.8% ABV.
   

See earlier Whisky News from 2020 >>>

• Whisky News 2021
   
• Whisky News 2020
   
• Whisky News 2019
   
• Whisky News 2018
   
• Whisky News 2017
   
• Whisky News 2016
   
• Whisky News 2015
   
• Whisky News 2014
   
• Whisky News 2013
   
• Whisky News 2012
   
• Whisky News 2011
   
• Whisky News 2010
   
• Whisky News 2009