It’s high time for our next competition. As you may know, 2010 marks our 25^th year in business and we really are terribly excited about it. Wouldn’t you be? Think about it, 25 years… that’s older than some adults! We thought it might be older than the world’s oldest cat, but it’s not. The world’s oldest cat was Creme Puff, who sadly passed away shortly after her 38^th birthday. More...

For a huge number of us peat-freaks (yes, we here at Master of Malt include ourselves firmly in this category), Ardbeg whisky is the absolute pinnacle of Islay distilling, and often seen as in a league of its own when it comes to awards and ratings.

Since its acquisition by Glenmorangie PLC in 1997, the Ardbeg Brand has gone from strength to strength, winning awards and plaudits the world over, and garnering a fan-base unlike anything else in the world of whisky. Master of Malt have even heard tell of several devotees with enormous Ardbeg Tattoos covering their backs – what other whisky can lay claim to such unbridled fanaticism?

If anything, the huge uplift experienced by Ardbeg since its acquisition has somewhat overshadowed the ‘main event’ of Glenmorangie itself. More...

The headlines have become rather depressing these days, filled with unscrupulous rogue traders and Brits abroad attempting to stem catastrophic oil spills with sporting goods and general bric-a-brac grade detritus. It’s all a tad bleak, so it’s a good thing you can always count on us to brighten your day with some whisky-related jollity. 

That’s right, more drams! 

Today we are excited to announce we now sell whisky samples from Compass Box and Ian Macleod (including a phenomenal selection from the Glengoyne distillery).More...

We made a pact… To boldly offer samples of what no online retailer has ever offered samples of before. We started with some old favourites, and had some pretty exciting stuff on offer (including some show-stopping Glenfarclas Family Casks), but we never had anything quite like this…

We’re proud to announce a fantastic foray into the world of ultra premium spirits. Now you can try 3cl samples of mindboggling whisky that, until now, very few people have had the great privilege to try.More...

12 New Samples!

Just a quick post to let you know which samples we’ll be adding to the site today. We’ve been adding loads and loads and the range is starting to get pretty big! Click here to see all the drams.

Today we’ve got a very interesting selection for you; in fact we’ve only just got most of these in a week ago!

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The Next Batch of Whisky Samples

The sun is shining, the sky is blue and the birds are just about to start getting on our nerves. But times are good, and after launching Drinks by the Dram – our whisky sample service – the Master of Malt offices have become organized chaos.

The samples are flying off the shelves and we’ve been flooded with emails and phone calls from you all, telling us how much you like them.

We’ve made a solemn pledge to keep adding loads and loads of new samples to the site every day, so this morning we gathered around the board table (sat in a huddle on the lawn) and came up with the day’s batch of whiskies to “dram” (turn into samples). More...

Imagine a world where you could try a glass of a whisky, or rum, tequila, even vodka for that matter, without having to buy the bottle first. A world with 100% customer satisfaction, and an end to buyer’s remorse! To literally try before you buy…

If you’ve got a little stash of whisky, you’ve also almost certainly got “that one bottle” (maybe even more than one) that just wasn’t quite what you expected, or wanted. Maybe it was too peaty, too sweet, or light, or rich, or maybe it just wasn't that good. More...

Bruichladdich’s New Releases for 2010

The Bruichladdich distillery is one of Scotland’s most innovative. Their back catalogue is massive, and they are constantly finding new ways of breathing new life into a centuries old industry. 

Peating levels, barley strains and distillation methods are all fair game for their whisky alchemy and Jim McEwan, the Master Distiller at ‘Laddie, is an ardent fanatic when it comes to sourcing casks – they’ve used casks from first growth Bordeaux wineries – a 16 year old Château Lafite Finish for example - we’ve sampled a wonderful Guyanan rum finish and have even witnessed them delve into the occult with the 1989 vintage Black Art, finished in bourbon barrels and a medley of wine casks in the “stygian darkness of Warehouse No.12” (the tin and bottle are even emblazoned with a rather sinister looking pentagram!). More...

The third batch of Diageo’s Managers’ Choice whiskies is looming (which you can preorder from us now), following the first two batches in September 2009 and January 2010 (with the fourth and final batch set for May of this year). Ultimately the complete selection will feature a single cask bottling from every one of the 27 working distilleries owned by Diageo, which is a noteworthy feat, and quite a talking point amongst whisky drinkers. More...

All you avid whisky enthusiasts will know of our little (not so little) prize giveaway of last month. We’ve reached our 25th anniversary and we’re full of collective beans so we picked a 40 year old Glenfarclas off the shelf (worth £1,500!) and offered up 250 chances to win it – all entrants had to do was buy any full-size Glenfarclas from the site…

Now, the purpose of this post is twofold. Firstly, we wanted, very much, to revel in our own beneficence, as we join the list of history’s greatest philanthropists (Paul Newman, Bono, Matt Damon…) that’s right…

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