The Twelve Drams Of Christmas - Part Two

Following on from Charley Boorman's fab suggestion of Talisker 10 year old as his choice of festive dram, our 2nd dram of Christmas comes from Canadian alternative music legends Arcade Fire. The band have enjoyed an incredible 18 months with their Grammy and Brit Award winning album 'The Suburbs' and we were fortunate enough to work with them on a whisky project in conjunction with their sell out Hyde Park show, earlier this year.

Jeremy Gara, drummer with the band (far right), gives us his idea of the perfect winter warming whisky:

"As my festive dram, I would definitely pick Lagavulin Distiller's Edition from 1994. This is a whisky that was gifted to us by some amazing guys in a Canadian band called Karkwa, that we played with this past September. It's a real curveball favourite of the last long while and a great warming dram in the winter."

Lagavulin - Distillers Edition - Distilled 1994 - bottled 2010 - 43%

Nose: Sweet peat, stewed apple, mixed with a very dry and fruity thick sherry note, courtesy of the Pedro Ximinez casks it is finished in. Very complex and refined.

Palate: Demerera sugar, some hickory wood smoke notes, creamy fudge, some milky cereal and more stewed apple with raisins. Really festive and simply delicious.

Finish: The smoke lingers alongside the dried fruits/raisins. Warming and mouth filling.

Stay tuned for the 3rd instalment of our Twelve Drams Of Christmas. The next one may contain nuts... ;-)

Welcome Aboard!!

Last week, I had a mini travel meltdown, much in the same vein as the wonderfully funny film- 'Trains, Planes and Automobiles'
I first got stuck in an unbelievable traffic jam, all for the sake of a seemingly inept team of electricians digging up the same piece of road, which another seemingly inept team from a telecommunications company had dug up and filled in only days before. Then, on my way to a whisky tasting, my train ground to a halt as the driver had 'clocked off' early with no one able to locate his replacement.

The trilogy of travel tragedy was completed by the return of the volcanic ash cloud delaying some friends I had staying. Sadly, it looks like it might return again next week... NOOOOO!

It's times like this, when there's only really a few options left dear readers;

1. Become a reclusive type, only venturing out on foot to procure more whisky.

2. Charter an overnight piggyback from a large muscular gentleman (ala, Geoff Capes- World's Strongest Man, 1983 and champion Budgerigar breeder)

3. Locate the nearest 70ft yacht and slip on a piped boating blazer.

Admittedly, finding a local yacht is not that easy if you live in Tamworth (or central London for that matter) but the feel of a maritime wind rushing through your locks is enough to get me feeling giddy, quicker than you can say 'Howards Way'

All this leads me to a recent excursion I took over in Venice. There are no cars, or trains to screw up your travelling plans, just lots of open water and even smaller water ways, with which you can traverse this diverse and architecturally unique city.

My last visit to Venice was as a small child and I seem to remember becoming bored within 5 minutes of viewing yet another glass blowing museum with my parents. However this time was very different- it involved drinking Talisker, a visit to the legendary 'Harry's Bar' and a short trip on an immaculately restored sailing vessel.

Talisker has a number of associations with the sea. Firstly there's no escaping that wonderfully evocative coastal aroma, which tells us many a tale about life on the Isle of Skye. It is also one of the destinations on the (now famous) Classic Malts Cruise, which takes would-be sailors on a 200-mile voyage through the Inner Hebrides, from Oban to Skye, and back south via the distilleries of Islay. Now the Italians have got in on the act, with their very own 2000km whisky cruise, starting in Genoa on the West coast of Italy, visiting Naples and Palermo on the way, with the finish line in Venice, to the North East of the country.



The boat in question is a wonderful piece of history. Built in 1897, it has been painstakingly restored to its former glory, with all the modern sailing gizmos such as motorised rigging and sonar all hidden beneath the authentic wooden decking.



Our short trip around the Venetian coastline started with several restorative cocktails in Harry's Bar, made famous as Hemingway's watering hole of choice and as the creator of the Bellini. Rain had descended giving Venice a murky character, reminiscent of the film 'Don't Look Now', but little was to dampen our spirits as we took the vessel out of the harbour. If anything, the slightly choppy sea and damp air almost gave the impression that a little piece of Skye had come to Italy, perfect for a Talisker tasting!



As I took the wheel (before downing any drams, I assure you) a real sense of calm washed over me- I've never been much of a sailor (my Great Uncle had the sea legs in our family) and for a brief moment, I began to understand how strong-willed men and women can suddenly abandon their lives on land and take to the high seas, in search of adventure and a sense of the unknown. It is a formidable beast the sea, with the ability to turn on anyone who cares to disrespect its authority in a mere heartbeat. Fortunately for me, the sun had just started to come out which signalled the beginning of our Talisker tasting, which included 6 expressions from the range.

We've reviewed a good number of Talisker's on here before, but never out in the open (and certainly not on the ocean!) so I was keen to see how the briney air and the undoubtedly beautiful background scenery would influence the character of this superb whisky. Here are the highlights.

First up: A liberal measure of the 10 yr old, which as expected, gives out bags of soft peat, mixed with a classic salty mouthfeel and slightly hot chilli finish. To coin a phrase from a good friend of ours, 'it goes down like a waterfall and comes up again like a volcano'. A solid and definitive start then.

Next: the 18yo. I haven't tried this for a good while, since I gave the remaining half bottle I had been keeping to my neighbour, as a forfeit for losing a chess match. Grrr.

Talisker 18 yo - 45.8%

Nose: Sweet candied fruit, almonds, (hint of sweet marzipan) classic Talisker peat and a more pronounced pepperiness, with some lovely coal dust notes emerging.

Palate: Humbugs, more candied fruit, with a sweet peat smoke twisting its way around the tongue.

Finish: Lengthy and sweet, with a hint of salt emerging at the death.

Overall: I think this could have only been bettered by having our own Tenor serenading us whilst we drank it!

Talisker Distillers Edition (2009) 45.8% Distilled 1998 - final maturation in Amoroso Sherrywood

Nose: Toffee apples, with a sweet Demerera sugar note, drier sherry notes and a hint of wet hay and soft smoke.

Palate: Much sweeter on the palate than the 10yo, with red apples, more brown sugar, then into the hint of Talisker pepper and smoke that we know and love.

Finish: Woody notes come to the fore, with a sherry/wine note lingering in the mouth.

Overall: You can see the influence of the Amoroso wood on this, but fortunately, it hasn't dominated the original Talisker too much, just nudged it along in a different direction. Very good indeed.

Talisker 30 yo - 2009 bottling 53.1%

Nose: More candied fruit (Rhubarb and Custards - remember them?) but this time floral notes too- rose petals, mixed with a dose of Iodine, soft peat, Cream soda and some white chocolate. So much more delicate than any of the other expressions. With water, a lighter grassy note comes through.

Palate: An explosion of fruit, with strawberries, plums, with a hint of the Talisker pepper. With water, more fruit notes emerge with a lighter creaminess. Also, hints of Earl Grey tea come through. Fruity and aromatic. Not the first thing that Talisker conjures up, but this never ceases to amaze and delight in equal measure.

Finish: Lingering traces of sweetness merge into pepper and a drying cedarwood note.

Overall: A superb expression, made all the more special by the surroundings.



The sun has finally fully reared its head and we shore up the yacht to the quayside, near to the Basilica di San Marco. Quite a few people are drawn to the vessel and before long, more whisky is poured and the conversation is in full flow. Although this will be the yacht's final mooring place for a while, the entire voyage around the coast (expertly skippered by Captain Davide) has been a real success, not only bringing a taste of Skye to Italian whisky lovers but also a sense of adventure. One thing's for sure, it conclusively proves that Talisker is the ultimate Maritime malt- for those of you that fancy taking to the unknown waters, there's only one dram to fill into your hip flasks with!

Let's Spey Together.... Part One

Enough is enough. In our 2 year existence and after so many good Speyside drams, it was time to brace the wallets and hit Northern Scotland. Yes, we’re back on tour! Joel and Neil hit Speyside (...and one Highland distillery ;-) )

Our journey starts at Aberdeen Airport...

Well...it’s an Airport in Aberdeen. That’s about all we can say about Aberdeen Airport (no Bruce Grobbelaar this time, sadly)



One hour later, driving through windy back roads of the Scottish Highlands, we spied our first Distillery of the tour: Royal Lochnagar!

Royal Lochnagar is a beautiful distillery with only 2 stills, knocking out around 450,000 litres of alcohol a year. To put that in to scale, that’s just under half the 1,000,000 litres Ardbeg pumps out, but much more than Edradour’s 90,000!* The tiny distillery sits on the edge of the Balmoral Estate, which is where it gained its Royal Warrant, although it no longer holds this.

There are stories dating back from Victorian times of various members of the Royal household popping in for a wee dram and a chat. Unfortunately for the staff, all they got today was two slightly over excited English bloggers.

(*figures courtesy of the Malt Whisky Year Book)




We set about a tour of the distillery with manager Donald Renwick, who has an incredible wealth of experience in distillation, including a recent stint as manager of Lagavulin. There are many unusual quirks to Lochnagar- Check out the open mash tun below, which turns the stillroom into a Turkish Bath!




As well as some superb cask samples, Donald treated us to a vertical tasting of the Royal Lochnagar range, including the 12yo, Select Reserve and the wonderful Distillers Edition, extra matured in ex- Muscat casks, which gave the whisky a wonderful nutmeg/rice pudding aroma.

Royal Lochnagar - Distillers Edition - 40%

Nose: Immediate fruitiness, with mandarin oranges, stewed fruits and some sharp citrus elements giving a very fresh and summery feel. With water, some dried grass notes come to the fore, with a floral lavender and over time, a wonderful warming nutmeg covered rice pudding. (Oh I could so easily eat a bowl full right now... better have another dram!)

Palate: Pine nuts, more nutmeg, into a sweet, but slightly aromatic licorice flavour, reminiscent of Bassett's Allsorts (the ones covered in little blue bobbles)

Finish: Drying wood spices, but the floral and licorice notes linger for a very pleasing conclusion.

Overall: Not as well known as the other Distillers Editions, like Lagavulin, Caol Ila or Clynelish, but certainly up there in terms of enjoyment. The effect of the final maturation in the Muscat cask has done little to dent the distillery character but has enhanced the overall flavour and aroma profile. Highly recommended.

The effect of cask type was high on our agenda for this trip and we were very keen to experience as many good and bad examples of maturation (including a cask sample drawn from an old and rather overly woody Cardhu which had almost certainly seen better days)

In our next post, we visit Speyside Cooperage and take our mild obsession with wood to flaming extremes!

Our time in Lochnagar was woefully short but many thanks to Donald and his colleague Stuart for their time, experience and most of all, excellent whiskies. The shop at Lochnagar is a real treat in particular, with a huge collection of the Rare Malts range, which had us both slavering.

The drive to Dufftown is supposedly around an hour if you take the most direct route, but who wants to be efficient, when you're surrounded with scenery like this....!




So we kicked back and literally took the high road, passing by one of Scotland's better known ski resorts- Lecht. Having never been skiing, it is pretty terrifying to see just how steep the runs actually are as we pass by them in the car. I think a winter Caskstrength field trip should be on the cards for later this year when the season opens again- we'll certainly be needing a few drams of something decent though to steady our nerves!

In our next post, Joel eats a record number of Findus Crispy Pancakes, we catch up with Glenfiddich's Ian Millar and we watch a very cool man set fire to some wood, all in the name of great whisky....