Up, Up And Away. Galileo Blasts Off.

Blimey, this really is turning into a superb whisky week. From our BenRiach, to a bevy of Irish whiskies, comes a monster release.  For the past few months, peat fans around the globe have been trawling the inter web in search of any snippets of information on a brand new Ardbeg release.  Such is the fervour surrounding Ardbeg,  no other whisky brand seems to command such intense interest in the build up to a release.

As we've seen with Supernova, Alligator, Rollercoaster and the recent Feis Ile release,  expectation runs high and the peat police are usually out in force, on high alert and with riot shields and baton rounds at the ready, should the distillery not deliver on their promise.

The thing is, in our opinion, they always do. And then some.  Whilst a few out there didn't like last year's Feis Ile bottling, because of its strong PX connections, others absolutely lapped it up -  because it showed Ardbeg in a totally different light.   We can't think of a distillery in recent memory who seems to have as much fun with their bottlings - and give their fans something other than just the liquid itself to talk about.

Ardbeg's miniatures are also out of this world

But down to business.  Galileo eh.  After the news story a few months ago about sending some peated whisky up into space, comes another whisky staring at the stars.    Galileo, the man, was never adverse to controversy.  His theories on Heliocentricism (basically where a planetary system revolves round a sun, to provide life and warmth) absolutely infuriated the church and Galileo was effectively forced to toe the line.  Of course, his beliefs and teachings were pretty crack on and in addition to making huge strides in developing the telescope and compass, his theories on astrology and comets have helped redefine how we view our solar system today.

So a rebel at heart, a pioneer and a man unafraid to take a wildly different approach to his cause.

Ardbeg's Galileo hails from 1999 and like its namesake, aims to do things differently.  Taken largely from ex-bourbon barrels, the bottling has also included some casks of Ardbeg matured in ex-Marsala wine. Sweet, resonant, rich and full of heady fruit, Marsala wine doesn't cock about. Like PX, it will leave its imprint on even the most robust of whiskies, so they need to be used sparingly.

The great news is that with this Ardbeg, we can all party like it's 1999.  The balancing act of classic Ardbeg and fragrant fruit is exquisite and whilst it hasn't anything like Supernova's levels of peat (which, come on, was a little bit silly, wasn't it) it showcases a distillery at the top of their game once again...

Ardbeg - Galileo - Distilled 1999 - 49%   

Nose: Unmistakable Ardbeg, with wafts of cracked pepper, vanilla, some very medicinal soft peat, lemon zest, chopped nuts and sweet acacia honey.  But then something else emerges. The fruit begins to develop, with some softer perfumed notes at first, then something a little bit richer. Raisins and dates spring to mind, but only just a waft mind.  with a drop of water, the fruit develops and in comes a little spiciness and malt. (cinnamon toast)

Palate: Bang in with the classic peat, but with some vanilla ice cream notes, current buns (with a dusting of cinnamon) some lemon zest and a touch of dried fruit. Again, nothing too over powering but just enough to make its presence felt.  With a dash of water, it becomes creamy and sweet, with Caramac bars (Google them) and an emergence of fresh fruit salad. Superb.

Finish:  Lingering notes of malt, with a backbeat of smoke, pepper light fruits (over-ripe plums) and lemon zest.

Overall:  Well, they keep on doing it, don't they.  Another Ardbeg bottling that has balance, depth, doesn't stray too far from its roots, yet offers plenty more in spades.  It has maturity, where previous bottlings have disappointed and the influence of the Marsala is just sublime.   Yes, old Ardbeg is perhaps in the pantheon of THE all time great whiskies, but we really think that the distillery is hitting a golden era of production with bottlings like this.  

In the words of the great Freddie Mercury - 'Galileo, Galileo Figaro Magnifico...'

Ardbeg Galileo is officially released on 1st September, priced at around £70. For more details, visit 

Ardbeg.com

The Art Of Whisky

It’s been nearly three weeks since we returned from our last, epic trip to Scotland.

The video camera has been left on the shelf, the liver has been blasted with milk thistle and the credit card has been encased in concrete and thrown to the fishes off the Millennium Bridge. An action which caused a passing curator from a local modern art gallery to remark this as art, calling it a “modern day take on Found Art with strong references to Duchamp and, in particular, Man Ray’s iconic “Iron With Nails”.

According to the gentleman-scholar I was taking an everyday item, rendering it useless and then returning the raw material to whence they came.

I politely pointed out that we all do this every day, with the food we eat. Surely there is no greater critique of consumerism than actually consuming mass marketed, mass produced items of food: tearing them up with our teeth, breaking the items down with one of the strongest acids known to man and then depositing them in sit-down versions of Duchamp’s Fountain makes us all the greatest modern artists ever to walk the earth.

Needless to say I now have an interactive installation at the Tate Modern: it can be found on every floor and is easily identifiable by the following sign:

Enough of the toilet humour (in the literal sense), let’s get back to reality. And it doesn’t get more real than Monday morning. So what better way to see off the weekend than with a wee whisky.

One distillery that Neil and I have always been in the vicinity of, but never quite managed to get to, is Springbank. Situated in Campbelltown, just down the coast from the ferry terminal to Islay, the distillery produces three different styles of whisky (Springbank two-and-a-half times distilled, the more peated Longrow which is distilled twice and the triple-distilled Hazelburn) and owners J & A Mitchell / Springbank Distillers have to good grace to put them all in a bottle embossed with the words SPRINGBANK DISTILLERY. Other distillers take note.

The Springbank which is sitting in my glass is from Single Malts Of Scotland, an independent bottler owned by The Whisky Exchange. Never shy of a good cask, let us see what this offering brings:

Springbank – 1999 - Cask No. 114 (Sherry Butt) - 53% Vol

Nose: This whisky is a rich mahogany red and the moment you pour the liquid in to the glass, the aroma jumps straight out at you, like an escaped prisoner running hard and fast to avoid the search lights. Energy and guile emerge and, after settling down, rich sherry tones backed with cherry jam, a hint of ginger, loads of really fresh wood spices, like a newly split oak log. With additional time, the waft of a second hand paperback book. Not much changes with a dash of water, save for a drier wood tone.

Palate: The oiliness of the whisky coats the mouth and brings with it a hint of smoke, sweet cure bacon, maple syrup, toffee apple coating. With water, the palate opens up a little more with an enhancement of the sweet, juicy summer fruits which this time add plums and a back palate hint of over ripe kiwi fruit.

Finish: Rich, red cherries (newly picked, warm from the sun), deep wood polish and a hint of minty strawberry and lime cordial. With water, the finish is curtailed a little too soon, but the powerful, sweet and juicy notes from the palate still linger. The slightest hint of salt.

Overall: I thought this offering was fantastic; I wasn’t prepared for quite the assault of rich, sweet and juicy flavours, coupled with great oiliness and real depth. Pow!

Well, what better way to see off a weekend than with a rich, oily and juicy whisky such as this. It almost makes Monday morning seem palatable.