2014 - A Year of Excitement

And we're back. After a very leisurely Christmas break, it's nice to pick up the reins again and excitedly look towards 2014 as a year of exceptionally fine spirits. You'll be seeing a few changes to this website during 2014, alongside the release of our forthcoming book, The Spirits Explorers, which is due to be published later this year. After six years of bringing you news, releases and opinions on primarily whisk(e)y, we'll be bringing you a lot more on other unmissable spirits from around the world. Stay tuned with your glasses primed! 

Back in 2013, half of the Caskstrength team saw in the new year with a particularly fun theme: 

A Fawlty Towers party. 

A Damn Good Thrashing awaits...

Alongside turning Ridley Towers into Fawlty Towers, several games featured for the assembled guests (aka Polly, Sybil, the Major, Manuel, Miss Tibbs and Miss Gatsby and other cast members): 

The Gin & Orange, Lemon Squash and Scotch & Water Challenge (where contestants have to make the aforementioned drinks in as quick a time as possible against an opponent - a ref. to the episode 'A Touch Of Class')

Thrashing an Austin 1100 Piñata, which was swiftly despatched with a tree branch to reveal its contents. 

Stupidity aside, New Years Eve was a great opportunity to do a round up of a number of new (old) whiskies which have recently arrived in the post and in our trolleys: Cutty Sark's brand new Prohibition-inspired release, a brace of exceptional 'old' White Horse blends, an Auchentoshan 1975 vintage and perhaps the most prestigious, a 50 year old Bowmore.  

We won't be officially reviewing the White Horse blends, but suffice to say that if you see any cropping up at auction (especially from the 70's and 80's) you will face some stiff competition from us.  Any respective whisky cabinet should contain an old blend in our opinion. Not only do they provide an insight into whisky making of the yesteryear for a less than premium price, but also highlight some very unexpected flavours. The penultimate drink of the evening was an Old Fashioned, made using the White Horse bottle to the left of the picture (thought to be from the early 80's) and its sweet, delicate smoke and malty, creamy fudge notes were absolutely stupendous. Perfect for Basil and Manuel to put their differences aside... for a few minutes anyway.   

The first sample of the evening was a new(ish) offering from Cutty Sark. Commemorating the 80th anniversary of the repeal of Prohibition this robust blend harks back to Cutty's coming of age in the US, and continues the blend's innovative approach. Prohibition will now be available outside the US for the first time, so let's hoist the anchor and set sail...

Cutty Sark - Prohibition -  50%  

Nose: Toasted almonds, battenberg cake, some fresh mint and marzipan, plus a hint of smoke. There is a solid balance between smoke, vanilla, hot buttered toast, dark chocolate and hazelnuts. Pure smoked praline in a glass.

Palate: With the 50% abv this gives a delicate, yet prickly mouthfeel. First up is fresh apricot, followed by mango chutney, toasted oats and tinned pineapple.

Finish: Some spices, cinnamon, oak and a nip of sherry.

Overall: A complex dram. I accompanied this sample with a craft American IPA and the rich, bold flavours of the whisky stood up to the yeasty/hoppy notes of the beer. The opposite of the usual delicate Cutty: bold, rich and malty- yet with bags of fruit.

Next up was Auchentoshan's latest release- a 1975 vintage, bottled at 45.6% exclusively for travel retail. This vintage sits alongside the distillery's other previous vintage releases from the 70's and the 500 bottles are drawn from ex-American oak casks. We reviewed a previous '75 release back in 2011 and quelle surprise, this offers many of the same delicious characteristics.

Auchentoshan 1975 - 45.6% - 500 Bottles

Nose: Wafts of toasted coconut, milk chocolate, light lemon zest and creamy vanilla. The classic complex-yet-inviting bourbon cask notes make this irresistible. No need for any water here- it would be very easy to drown the subtleties on offer.  

Palate: A continuation of the beautiful aromas above. Sweet and creamy, vanilla custard hits first, with a touch of oaky dryness creeping in, but not in an overpowering way. Alongside the cream comes toasted almonds, a smattering of citrus zests, gooseberry fool and a surprisingly fresh sliced green apple.  

Finish: The green apple is smothered in patisserie cream, which sticks to the palate with an after taste of soft brown sugar. Sensational.

Overall: Yet again, this 70's offering demonstrates Auchentoshan at its very best. It will set you back £500 and a flight somewhere (we're unclear as to which airports you'll be able to find it.) But chances are, it's unlikely you'll still find its similarly aged sibling any longer. Scanning through various online retailers we also find that the closer to 2015 we get (and a 40th birthday looming large) whiskies of this nature are becoming more pricey as the months tick by. 

And Finally... We make it towards midnight, with a sing-song from Gary Barlow on BBC1 and Kevin Costner's 'Waterworld' on ITV (really... Why??) 

Following on from Morrison Bowmore's Lowland distillery comes the latest release from the company's Islay powerhouse. Bowmore continues to innovate, despite being one of the oldest distilleries in Scotland. The 50 year old, distilled in 1961 is currently the oldest commercially available single malt from Islay.  Two ex-bourbon hogsheads have yielded just 200 bottles, each one priced at an eye watering £16,000.  

Old Bowmore always offers up a wealth of extraordinary discoveries. Take their last benchmark- the 1964 Fino cask release from 2012. Intense tropical fruits, divine creaminess and a waft of the most subtle sweet perfumed smoke. Bowmore of this age ceases to be just a whisky, but is something far more beguiling- as we shall see below.  

Bowmore 50 Year Old - Distilled December 1961 - 40.7% 

Nose: Where to start. The most intense Bowmore nose yet, jam packed full of tropical fruit notes and so much more. Passion fruit, papaya, mango and ripe kiwi fruit mix with plump vanilla pods, parma violets, a wonderful light, floral lavender-influenced smoke, white chocolate and sweet patisserie cream. Quite where the mysterious 'Bowmore fruit' actually comes from is up for debate, but it makes Bowmore arguably the most distinctive distillery on Islay, and for that matter, probably in Scotland too.  

Palate: More of the same beautifully detailed tropical fruit notes. The classic Bowmore parma violets are powerful, but flavours of tinned peaches and cream, vanilla and mandarin segments sit nicely alongside, with a backbone of dry, floral smoke. Exceptional.

Finish: Lingering tropical fruit and a slight oaky dryness lead the light smoke in what is a deeply expressive and complex tongue twisting finale.  

Overall: It's difficult not to sound like a pretentious tit when writing reviews of whiskies like this. But you just can't sum them up fairly using simple reference points. What we have here is one of the truly great whisky releases of the decade, with effortless balance and charm. If money were no object, this would be a whisky that could simultaneously start and end one's journey into malt whisky. It's the equivalent of discovering the end of the masterpiece tome by a venerated author, the playback of a classic album that defined a generation or the photo finish to a world-record breaking 100 metre final (or perhaps a much longer race for that matter!) 

All in all, a stunning way to see in 2014. Quite where the distillery goes from this expression remains to be seen, but here's hoping that Warehouse No.1 contains even more blinding discoveries. 

Now - a few Caskstrength predictions and observations for 2014: 

• Grain Whisky to finally get the recognition it deserves from major distillers -  in its own right. 

William Grant & Sons had the foresight in 2013 to release a single grain whisky as a proprietary brand and it is inevitable that others will follow suite.  Let's never forget just how important grain whisky is in blended whisky and it is great news to see the whisky begin to gain momentum under its own steam. Legendary William Grant & Sons pioneer and former chairman Charles Gordon sadly passed away over the Christmas period, but he leaves his company in vibrant shape, full of innovative ideas and enthusiasm for developing the whisky category.  

• More companies to receive a public hiding for dubious marketing campaigns.  

The Dewar's Saga or 'Barongate' (read about it here if you're unfamiliar) demonstrated an acute and frankly baffling misunderstanding of who the company assumes whisky drinkers are, whilst providing the whisky community with a relatively easy target to bark at. Importantly it also gave everyone a reason to move forward, away from the ass-slapping masculinity of tired whisky campaign ideas several decades old, that still seem to rear their ugly head from time to time. The reputation of the brand took a big dent (rightly so) but we suspect this won't be the last time that a brand gets a marketing campaign catastrophically wrong. We watch and wait with eager excitement... Sharpen your pitch forks. 

• World Cup Fever hits the whisky world.  

The biggest sporting event of the year is bound to have a knock on effect everywhere and given the growing demand in the host nation Brazil for whisky, it is inevitable there'll be a flurry of World Cup themed whiskies.  We recently read that one well-known Islay distiller has allegedly planned something featuring the colours of the Brazilian flag, but until we hear it from the horse's mouth, we'll say no more. 

• Seasoned whisky drinkers get fed up with whisky and move on.  

Previously known as 'The Whisky Shop'

Slightly OTT this one, but given the constant negativity surrounding new No Age Statement releases, price rises and new emerging markets, spirits like Armagnac, rum and mezcal will begin to sound their Pied Piper tunes, proving irresistible to connoisseurs whisky obsessives, thanks to their accessible price points and bold flavours. Whilst you'll still find us at the front of the queue when it comes to reviewing new whiskies, we're also going to be writing a great deal about the aforementioned spirits, simply because we love them and the possibilities they offer.

...And a few shorter predictions...

• The most staggeringly brilliant release from a distillery/distilleries beginning with E. 

(probably... ;-p )

• Your Grandma asking you which whisky she should put her money into. 

(highly likely and slightly scary)

• Another swathe of new whisky auction sites open for business.  

(including 'Japanese only' perhaps?)

• A massive celebrity endorsed whisky...

(who knows who, but probably on the cards somewhere...) 

• The word 'Dram' to be made illegal, especially during over enthusiastic whisky-related conversations and even more likely when used as an annoying prefix.

( ;-p )

2013 was a blast for us, hope it was for you too.  Keep reading and exploring great spirits in 2014...

Joel & Neil 

Cargo-ago-go

Howdy! Apologies for our apparent absence for the last week, but clearly B.B.F or ('Breaking Bad Fever') has taken over the Caskstrength office and we simply couldn't do anything else in the meantime in the run up to the grand finale...  

In fact, now it's all over, a light seems to have gone out in our world... Fortunately soon to be filled by the announcement of our very exciting new whisky release in the A-Z Caskstrength & Carry On series.   

Think 'D'... 

Think 3D...

Then be afraid... Be very afraid. Stay tuned to www.3DWhisky.com for more updates and announcements and remember: 

7/11/13 is 3D Day... @3DWhisky

But back to business. September has proven to be a terrific month for whisky events and new releases and fortunately, we've been hanging around a few of them (Breaking Bad permitting)

First up was the wonderful Cutty Sark Cargo event on the 12th September, held in Shoreditch, an area hipper and a Hip Hop Hippo in expensive sneakers and a chunky gold chain.   

Cutty Cargo was the first of its kind and a breakthrough moment for this highly regarded blended whisky;  Build a giant cargo crate in a cool location, fill it with very cool stuff: soulful dance artist Jessie Ware, DJ Duke Dumont, performance theatre, a secret speakeasy room guarded by a spiv, cocktails from 69 Colebrooke Row, a burlesque show and sliders, courtesy of hip London restaurant Meat Liquor.  

Oh, all this and 200 happy people, lashings of Cutty Sark over ice and mixers, shots with craft beers and suddenly, you have a blended whisky that's playing in a very different space to most others.  

Cutty has never professed to follow the pack and resort to Scottish traditions, heather and weather and a lingering walk from a lone piper. It was innovative, groundbreaking and contemporary back in 1923 and in its current guise, is still by far the best at breaking down the barriers to blended Scotch whisky that exist in the minds of younger people, which are easily pole vaulted by the white spirits category... 

Cutty Cargo was a test event and we hope to see this coming to many other cities globally in future.  The future's bright. The future's yellow and ship-shaped. 

Last week saw another pivotal moment in the rise of single potstill Irish whiskey, with the release of Redbreast 21 year old, the oldest expression in the Redbreast family and certainly the whiskey that puts aged Irish whiskey firmly in the hearts and minds of those who have criminally overlooked the spirit. 

The 21 year old is the 9th edition to the Single Pot Still range that Irish Distillers have created (which includes, Green and Yellow Spots, Powers John's Lane and Barry Crockett Legacy) and we were lucky enough to be hosted by master blender for Irish Distillers Billy Leighton, who demonstrated the considerable delights of the new whiskey next to the 12 year old and classic 15 year old. The 21 year old is again a mixture of malted and unmated barley, matured in both American oak and first fill oloroso sherry casks.  

Redbreast - 21 year Old -  46% 

Nose: Stupendously fruity on the first nosing, with notes of fresh vanilla, mango, passion fruit, kiwi, ripe bananas and coconut. Dig a little deeper and you'll find some drier spices, some subtle oak tones and a richer, darker caramel.  

Palate: The fruit and vanilla dominate here, with the tropical notes from above leading a trio of orchard fruits (plums, green apples and wine stewed conference pear)  The mouthfeel is fat and buttery, with a superb golden syrup note coating the tongue, before the woody spice of clove and cinnamon get their wicked way with you.

Finish: Lingering and dry, with lighter fruit notes on the death.

Overall: We've featured Irish whiskey a lot over the last month, with the Midleton Housewarming event, a truly terrific Teeling Silver Series 21 year old (which has more fruit than Carmen Miranda's head dress) and this just adds to the tally of greatness coming from the emerald isle.  

This Ship Has Sailed. Our Limited Edition Cutty Sark Is Released

Ahoy there, mateys! After much to-ing and fro'ing from Port to Starboard we are delighted to let you know that our very own Cutty Sark blended whisky has set sail and is released TODAY!!!

Ship-shaped and bristol fashion... it's the
Caskstrength Cutty Sark

For those of you who don't know about our endeavours,  this special limited edition of Cutty Sark is bottling 'C' in our quest to release the A-Z of Whisky (after sell out releases from Arran and BenRiach)
The Cutty Sark we've blended under the watchful eye of Master Blender Kirsteen Campbell is the official release to coincide with the 90th anniversary of the blend, which started life in the Mayfair offices of Berry Bros & Rudd on the 21st March 1923.

We've blended just 500 bottles of this whisky, adhering to the classic Cutty house style of an easy drinking-yet-flavoursome blend. However, we've snuck in a little light smoke, alongside keeping the strength way up there - so much so that it is bottled at 51.4% or 90 UK proof in homage to the 90th anniversary. All bottles are hand signed by our good selves and the lovely Kirsteen.

The first 100 bottles sold will include a fantastic double sided screen printed tote bag (in Cutty yellow of course!) and a very special limited edition newspaper that we've had printed especially, with exclusive interviews, page three stunnas, cocktail recipes and all the usual chitter chatter you'd expect in a tabloid called The Daily Cargo.

The whisky will be available exclusively from Master Of Malt priced at £34.95...  Click here to buy or follow the link: http://www.masterofmalt.com/whiskies/cutty-sark/caskstrength-and-carry-on-whisky/

Happy sailing folks and happy birthday Cutty Sark...

Caskstrength & Carry On 'C'... REVEALED!

Here it is folks... Caskstrength & Carry On 'C'

Hello tender folk.  Two years ago, Caskstrength embarked on a fairly ambitious adventure.  Looking at the landscape of the whisky business, we set a long term plan to try and bottle something whisk(e)y-related from every letter of the alphabet.  We began with Arran and the reaction to the whisky was certainly overwhelming.  So we moved on to BenRiach, which was equally well received.  Yippee we thought.

Next up and our search for a suitable 'C' was a little bit tougher.  Whilst there are no shortage of distilleries beginning with the letter C, none of them felt quite right and we decided to focus our attention on the world of blends.  Let's not forget folks that blended whisky is FAR more important in the grand scheme of things than the humble single malt. In fact, without the buoyancy of blended whisky internationally, many of our favourite distilleries would simply cease to exist.  As a result we feel that it's hugely important to take a sledgehammer and smash the snobbery against blended whisky squarely in the face, banishing it to the world of the beard (ok, not all beards), the sock/sandal combo and the anally retentive whisky bore, who won't drink anything else save for the most obscure single casks.

So with all that in mind, we decided to approach one of the most popular and enduring names in blended whisky to see if they'd be up for letting us have a tinker with our own version.  Amazingly, they said yes and thus began our fantastically educational journey into how to put together a limited edition Cutty Sark Blended Whisky. Below is a short film giving some background into how much fun we had putting this together.

Caskstrength 'Reveal' Video from Caskstrength Creative on Vimeo.

**for those of you reading this via our mailing list, you can lick here for the video**

Our Caskstrength & Carry On Cutty Sark will be officially unveiled on the 25th March and on sale from the 27th March, once again through our dear friends at Master Of Malt.  Bottled at 51.4% (UK 90 Proof) the release ties in with the 90th anniversary of the blend, which was officially born on the 23rd March 1923.  Just 500 bottles have been blended by Caskstrength alongside the totally brilliant Cutty Master Blender, Kirsteen Campbell.

The price for this limited edition, high strength blend will be around £35 RRP and the first 100 bottles sold will come with this attractive-yet-functional-Cutty-coloured-double sided-tote-bag AND a special commemorative newspaper we've had printed to mark the release!  Can't say fairer than that, can we!!

As this is a relatively robust whisky (cask strength, in a sense) it works well with a dash of water, in a cocktail, as a highball or just on its own, hopefully proving that the blend is the all-round superstar of the whisky world.

We hope you enjoy drinking it as much as we have putting it together.

Cheerio, Neil & Joel

Stormin' Stuff

Fish. A man who knows his knitware
as well as his weather. 

Storms eh.

Here in the UK we get our fair share of them.  From the notorious 'four seasons in a day' that complete the Islay experience, to a great summer's day out ruined by watching a rain soaked cricket pitch from the back seat of a fogged up Austin Maxi. As a nation, we're absolutely hopeless at preparing for or reacting to bad weather situations.

Consider the biggest and most blinding weather cock up in the BBC's living memory.  The great Michael Fish, weatherman and pin-up to millions of beige-clad ladies of a certain age, casually poo-pooed the notion that a concerned caller from Wales might be able to correctly predict a hurricane was about to hit the UK and that we should all prepare for the worst.  The immortal words  'don't worry, there isn't' will probably make their way onto Fish's gravestone, as his flippant remark was of course the start of probably the worst British storm in over 100 years.  On October 15th 1987, millions of pounds worth of damage was caused when the said hurricane tore Britain a new a***hole, killing 18 people in the process.

25 years on and this monumental blooper is still part of the British psyche and even made its way into the opening ceremony of the Olympics, sealing Fish in some sort of crazy, imfamous-yet-guilt-laden time bubble for the rest of his life.

So when two sample bottles arrived on my desk late last week, I was a little perplexed.  Both bottles were labelled 'Storm', but both were apparently completely different whiskies. One of them was a brand new blend from legendary whisky makers Cutty Sark and the other was the brand new, hotly anticipated release from Talisker.

For a second, I saw the words 'lawsuit' flash before my eyes, but then, thinking back about how hard it had been for the Fishmeister to predict the coming of his nemesis storm given all his credentials, I felt slightly more comfortable with the naming issue.  You see, rather like the UK weather, here we have two very unique types of Storm.

Let's consider the new Cutty blend first.  Cutty Sark Storm hasn't stepped a million miles away from the light, refreshing accessibility of the Original blend, but has a proportion of older single malts thrown into the mix to give a darker side to the whisky.  Tropical storm, or full-on shipwreck stuff? Let's find out...

Cutty Sark - Storm -  40%

Nose: Some exceptionally well balanced spiced notes mingle with robust liquorice, a big wad of sherry soaked tweed, plenty of lighter orchard fruit (apples and ripe plums) and a waft of vanilla.  

Palate: Lingering notes of overripe plum, vanilla, some star anise, oloroso sherry, an oaky dryness and creamy vanilla all vie for your attention.

Finish: The oak stays on the palate, but helps to deliver an additional last minute belt of dried spice. 

Overall: This excellent blend has all the hallmarks of Cutty Original but ratchets up the intensity a few notches.  It's bigger and a bit bolder than your average blend, but won't over complicate a classic drink like a whisky sour. In fact, we recently used Storm as part of an Indian food pairing, dashed with some bespoke bitters and the whole thing came together perfectly.  On the Storm'ometer -  this one is right up there.  

Next up and a distinctly chilly breeze has started to blow.

Somewhere in the background, a lone dog begins to howl, foreseeing what is about to hit.  The rusty weather vane on old McNabb's roof suddenly starts to twist around violently, screeching a tortured siren song to the storm gods.  Children playing hopscotch outside on a chalk-etched path look up to the skies as it bruises ove... oh...

Whatever, you get the bloody picture.  Yes.  Kaboom...Talisker Storm has arrived and its fanfare is the cacophonous rattle of thunder emanating from one's Glencairn.  

Talisker Storm doesn't carry an age statement and has been bought together from a variety of aged stock in both refill and rejuvenated casks, aiming to produce an altogether more brooding, powerful and intense whisky.  According to the press release it will sit somewhere between the 10 year old and the Distillers Edition expressions from a price perspective.  

Now seeing as I had a bottle of 10 year old open, I thought it prudent to see just where the new Storm sits. Producing a more powerful and intense Talisker is no easy feat, considering how massive a whisky the marvellous 10 year old is.  The answer is that both whiskies are completely different.  Talisker 10 year old does have a lighter burnt vanilla aroma on the nose and a slightly drier, more smoked bacon led note, with some baked apple and a lot of salty briny character.  Storm on the other hand....

Talisker - Storm -  45.8%

Nose:...Initially, you're in similar waters to the 10 year old.  Peppery, with a hint of smoked dried chipotle chilli, backed with some stewed prune/plum notes and then a big waft of morning-after bonfire embers.  Then it opens up, with a younger, more fiery note, lemon zest, backdropped with some additional spiciness, anise playing the major role. It's deeper, richer and dare I say it, more well-rounded than the 10 year old.  Not necessarily a bonus, considering how arrestingly brutal the 10 year old is but this is a far more interesting, thought provoking and complex a whisky.  

Palate: Given a few minutes to settle down this is stupendous stuff.  Fiery, hot, then rich and sweet, it has a surprisingly refreshing sweetness on the first sip with candied apple slices, vanilla custard and liquorice, before the palate gets bombarded with classic Talisker salty, hot chilli peat.  There's more of the burnt bonfire stuff the further you get in, but it's all contained with a richer fruitiness.  It has a greater viscosity in the mouth to the 10yo too, despite their identical strengths. 

Finish:  As the more ashy bonfire notes die away, you're left with lingering fruit, some drying oak and masses of woody spice, anise and liquorice.  

Overall:  Look.  Talisker 10 year old is one of THE all time, undisputed classic whiskies, so this new expression has heaps of pressure on its shoulders to perform at the same level, let alone pip it to the post.  But after two glasses of this (unusual for me in a tasting note situation) I have to say that this is an absolutely triumphant expression.  No, it isn't more 'intense', 'visceral', 'powerful', 'assertive' (or any other unnecessary adjective) than the 10 year old. It's DIFFERENT. If you will, the tropical storm to the 10 year old's desert storm.  Either way, on sheer whisky making skills, this will undoubtedly blow hurricane-sized holes in its other peaty opponents.  

Now... if only Mr Fish had been able to try a glass before his ill-fated prediction.  No way he'd have missed this storm coming.    

A Right Ol' Witch Of A Whisky

As drinking stories go, they seldom come more shrouded in folklore than the wonderfully eerie tale of Tam o' Shanter - a classic Burns poem dating back to the late 18th Century. It paints a torrid picture of the drinking classes in Ayr around the time and showcases Burns' incredible sense of imagination as the hero of the piece, Tam, witnesses a vision of hellish proportions on his way home from the pub. One of the classic scenes in the poem is of Tam and his horse Meg narrowly escaping the terrifying clutches of the witch Nannie Dee wearing her 'Cutty Sark' or short shirt. Tam fortunately escaped, with Meg losing part of her modesty...

The fearsome Nannie Dee, holding the majority of Meg's tail.

It was of course this image of the witch in her Cutty Sark, which became the figurehead of the famous Tea Clipper ship, which was adopted by Berry Bros when creating the Cutty Sark blended whisky back in the early 1920s. Like the ship, the whisky conquered the globe becoming one of the most popular blends ever produced.

Today, the blend is in the hands of the Edrington Group and there are big plans afoot to once again relaunch the iconic yellow label on the whisky loving public across the world.

The first release in this 'new era' harks right back to the original story of Tam o' Shanter. A brand new 25 year old blend, put together by master blender, Kirsteen Campbell comes in a beautifully packaged bottle and wooden box, featuring images from the tale. But it's not only the whisky, which looks to excite there senses here. It is the inclusion of book containing some truly stunning illustrations of the whole Tam o' Shanter poem, created by Alexander Goudie, considered by many to be one of Scotland's finest artists. The original book, long since out of print is a real rarity to find and the reprint has been lovingly reprinted.

Limited to 5000 bottles, Cutty Sark Tam o' Shanter has no doubt captured our attention and has got the whisky community talking about the potential of blends again, which we wholeheartedly salute.

So what of the liquid itself? Does it match up to the beauty of its enclosure?? Let's find out...

Cutty Sark - Tam o' Shanter blend -25 Year Old - 46.5% - Limited to 5,000 bottles

Nose: Sweet lord. This is rich. Notes of sponge cake, vanilla, ripe plums, aged leather sofas, some very aromatic spices (think cedar wood and star anise), ginger biscuits and hazel nuts. Superbly balanced and fully demanding of your attention.

Palate: An explosion of aged oak, vanilla, liquorice, wafts of light smoke, more hazel nut notes, some rich Oloroso sherry and some aromatic vermouth flavours. Bold, but extremely easily drinking. Some super casks must have gone into this.

Finish: Lingering fruity notes and oaky vanilla dominate, with tingling spice right on the death.

Overall: A masterpiece of blending, which highlights just how much this iconic blend has been missed, despite never really going away. With whiskies like this, watch Cutty Sark sail away with your palate.

The Orcadian Fire hits Hyde Park!

As we move into the summer months, the festival season arrives with a fanfare of colour, hazy campfire smoke and, if you're going to Glastonbury, a wasteland of mud and sodden copies of the Observer Music Monthly.

As part of our previous lives, Joel and myself used to visit music festivals all over the UK and Europe and it was often the case that the smaller, more boutique events remained the most memorable; partly for their well-programmed bills of artists, but also for the people that attended. Latitude Festival over in Norfolk always had a real sense of calm about it. There were comedy acts in attendance, art installations and probably best of all, the food served was fresh, rather than the over-priced greasy crap, which is slung around at the more mainstream events.

All this brings us on to an event last Thursday, which I suppose was technically a sort of festival.

One of our favourite bands, Arcade Fire had decided to avoid the traditional UK summer festival and had plumped for doing their own huge gig at Hyde Park. Along with Mumford & Sons as the main support, hot new bands such as The Vaccines and Beirut were also on the bill, making this a really special affair. The band had really thought about making this a special event and the 65,000 fans were not only treated to some great sets, but also stunt cheerleaders, pitch n' putt golf, chess and a number of other attractions that you just wouldn't ordinarily expect at an event of this magnitude.

Now, it just so happens that pretty much all the bands on the bill were seriously into their whiskies and as a result, Caskstrength were invited by Arcade Fire to put together a boutique whisky bar for the backstage area. To put it another way, a little light libation for the artists before and after their performances, as well as an almighty party once the event had concluded.

So we set about thinking exactly what would work best and sometimes, the best ideas are just staring you in the face, begging to be used.

A little while ago, we reviewed the Highland Park 50 year-old, which we playfully dubbed the 'Orcade Fire' and at that moment, had a similar Eureka Moment. "Hang on... Arcade Fire/Orcade Fire - Hyde Park /Highland Park!" It all seemed to be slotting into place and after a quick telephone call to the jovial Mr Gerry Tosh, our plan was complete.

Why not get Arcade Fire to re-design the label of Highland Park 18yo, especially for the event?!

If your name's not down, you ain't coming in!

And that is what they duly did. Just 75 bottles of 'The Orcadian Fire' Highland Park have been made for the bands, to commemorate this huge gig. Further more, it gave us a chance to get our cocktail aprons on and come up with a tasty refreshing drink to serve throughout the day to the guests backstage.

The highly refreshing (and potent) Orcadian Fire cocktail

The Orcadian Fire cocktail, is a simple affair, mixing 50ml of Cutty Sark Original, Whisky barrel aged bitters (courtesy of Master Of Malt) some expressed orange zest, slightly 'bruised' mint (sorry joel!) and topped off with fresh ice and the tangy bite of Fever Tree's fabulous Ginger Ale.

What more could the bands ask for?

Cocktail no. 483 and the pickled eggs begin to take their toll.

Well, not a lot as it turns out. In addition to pouring generous measures of Highland Park 18yo all day, we calculated we made around 500 Orcadian Fire cocktails between 2pm and 12.30pm. Thirsty lot, these bands. Special thanks must go to Mr Darren Rook (aka The Whisky Guy) for his unflappable cool in helping us out behind our little 1950's bar.

We also thought that to be mildly responsible, we should at least offer a light snack to anyone who was a bit peckish - so a little update on the classic English pub fare was devised. Ladies and gentleman, I give you a return of the humble pickled egg! Our patented recipe features a slight update on the usual clear pickling vinegar, also employing a generous half pint of Fino Sherry, bay leaves, lovage and peppercorns. Surprisingly, most people seemed to be quite full when it came to offering the eggs out, although one young gentleman from a band who shall remain nameless decided to polish off at least half a dozen. Fortunately for the audience, this was after their set had finished...

"Good evening Hyde Park!"

We also got to learn a life lesson from one of our all time heroes, Robert Plant, who didn't fancy a whisky during the day (who'd have thought it?) and plumped for a beer - which we didn't have. How the hell do you tell one of the undisputed kings of rock that you don't have any beers??

As Robert Baden-Powell once said, 'be prepared'. Especially when a member of Led Zeppelin happens to be around...

Arcade Fire's lead singer, Win Butler

with the Orcadian Fire bottling

Many thanks to all the people, who made this little escapade happen, especially the brands involved plus Jade and Scott at Quest Management. And of course to the bands themselves for proving that whisky and music are, as we always suspected, the most perfect of bedfellows.

The Crying Game

What happens when something isn't as it appears? Many times we've joked in bars about trying Glen Hoddle Whisky or Glen Miller Blended, but what if these were to actually exist...?

Then today I came across this site:

http://www.theearlhayspress.com/id10.html

When you're making a film, if you haven't been sponsored by some major drinks giant to place their bottles in full view of the audience, then which brands should you choose? Well, you give the chaps at The Early Hays Press a call, of course! Based in Sun Valley, California, they supply props to the film, TV and theatre business, meaning you can finally order that illusive bottle of Jim Daniels, Black Rush, Cutters Ark or Malt Mill* which you've been seeking out for an age.

Here are our guesstimate tasting notes for the Cutters Ark:

Cutters Ark - Blended Scots Whisky - ABV unknown

Nose: very little going on except for hints of weak tea

Palate: again, not a great deal to tell, this must be a least a third or fourth refill bournbon cask. Hints of tea / PG Tips.

Finish: Gone in an instant, this blend is probably very young but the wood maturation seems to have subdued the spirit right down. Hints of tea.

Overall: A good malt to start the day with, as the overall blend of tea and, er, tea make this one to look out for the in the future... the addition of a drop or two of milk (in Europe they like to use lemon slices apparently, but each to their own. Someone once told me that they added ICE in States. Amazing!) really brings the flavours out, especially when heated through in a microwave. Serving suggestion: this is best consumed from a small china cup served with a biscuit chaser. May we suggest shortbread.

If you really want some fun, check out the other items including Playpen Magazine and The New York World newspaper... enjoy!

*Malt Mill is totally fictitious and made up, apologise for that. Unless anyone wants to prove us wrong and send us a sample.... ;-)

Lights....Camera....but no action.

One of the most precious things in life is clearly time.

For the most part, it's wonderful to have too much- and lazily drift away with a wonderful whisky in hand, contemplating all those years it's taken to quietly mature. It's also a nightmare when you don't have enough, a frequent complaint in anyone's daily routine.

Yesterday, I was in a bit of a strange position- Having too much time and not particularly enjoying it. Finding myself on the set of a new British film starring Ray Winstone, I was eagerly looking forward to my brief cameo as an undertaker, a scene in which I bury the unfortunately deceased character Mr Winstone was playing.



Starting at a 7am call time, I patiently waited for my chance to deliver the line... and waited....and... waited some more. Being dressed as a 1950's Undertaker is fun, for about half an hour or so. Not the best part of 11 hours though. Finally my scene arrived and... well. They seemed to just abandon it, due to the lateness in the day. (my moustache drooped in disappointment)
On this occasion- bad things come to those who wait.

But let's not forget that most of the time, extremely good things come to those who wait and this time, I refer wholeheartedly to whisky! in particular, the range of blends offered by Cutty Sark.
The night before the filming, Caskstrength tasted the complete range of these excellent blends- the Original, through to the stupendous 25 year old, which certainly gave one's palate a taste that can only be developed over lots of time....here's a quick review of the highlights...

Cutty Sark Original - Blended whisky- 40% abv - 70cl

Nose: Light floral notes initially, followed by much more sugary rich buttery notes- reminiscent of homemade butterscotch sauce. Masses of vanilla and oak.

Palate: Again, light fruity elements coming thru, with green apple and lots of vanilla flavours. A very refreshing whisky.

Finish: not particularly long, but in keeping with the style. Very clean.

Overall: A superb pre-dinner whisky, try it with a hint of soda water if you dare and unlick some more freshness!!

Next up, the 15 year old, which contains a much higher proportion of malt-grain than the original.

Cutty Sark 15 Year Old Blended whisky- 40% abv - 70cl

Nose: A much richer and spicier nose lingers beautifully in the glass. Prunes, oven baked oranges covered in brown sugar and that classic oaky note from a good sherried cask.

Palate: The spices continue with sweet sultanas, marzipan, chopped nuts and more of the sherry. Very well balanced.

Finish: A surprisingly sweet finish, with a hint of lingering oak and sherry, returning to the baked oranges again.

Overall: A contrasting whisky to the original, but nonetheless exciting.

Finally, the daddy of the Cutty family- the 25 year old. This dram is based on an 80/20 split of very old malts and grain whisky.

Cutty Sark 25 Year Old Blended whisky - 40% - 70cl

Nose: Wow, huge wood in here!! polished Mahogany furniture, mixed with a really earthy 'forest freshness' - similar to the old Karuizawa's we keep banging on about on here. Over time, a similar freshness and zestiness to the original also comes through, bizarrely.

Palate: Hugely rich mouth-feel, with lots of dried fruits, oranges, cloves and marzipan. A superb collection of refined flavours.

Finish: Long.. and then some. the oak comes through, but does nothing to over power the still-tingling spices and sweet nuts that last up to the death.

Overall: A mighty dram, which is a real end-of-the-night soother. Certainly the star of our last few blended whisky related posts....

Off now to brush up on my next role... ! think i'll bring a hip flask next time!!