by Mike 7. December 2009 18:49
Islay isn’t a very large island, in fact it only takes up a couple of hundred square miles. But somehow this mysterious, peat-laden isle is home to some of the most popular, colossal distilleries in Scotland.
Now the whisky world is buzzing with excitement, as a new, artisan distillery has begun producing single malt. Peaty, pungent and characterful single malt no less.
The distillery is Kilchoman, sited on a small farmstead to the West of Islay. It’s a small and traditional distillery, sourcing its ingredients from the surrounding countryside. It even boasts its own malting floors.
After being entirely stunned by the exceptional inaugural release, we couldn’t wait for what lay in store.
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Tags: kilchoman distillery, kilchoman distillery, single malt, tasting notes, islay, kilchoman, kilchoman distillery, kilchoman distillery, single malt, new release, islay, tasting notes, peat, tasting notes, single malt, single malt, islay, kilchoman, new release, kilchoman distillery, peat, kilchoman distillery, tasting notes, kilchoman distillery, islay, tasting notes, single malt, tasting notes, kilchoman distillery, kilchoman
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by Ben Ellefsen 4. December 2009 12:04
So then – Jim Murray’s 2010 World Whisky of the Year – the Sazerac Rye (fall 2008 edition) has been replaced by the all-new new fall 2009 edition, and it’s an absolute belter.
As far as we know, at the time of writing this post, we’re the only retailer in the UK to be offering this for sale – and there are only limited quantities available.
The delivery arrived at 09:30, and before the pallet was even off the lorry, a bottle had been snaffled, opened, and was in the process of being tasted. Here are the results:
Sazerac Rye 18 Year Old Fall 2009 Edition 45%
Nose: Huge and powerful sweet rye on the initial nosing gives way to cinnamon toasted brioche, leather, and more than a hint of maraschino cherry. A really huge hit of oak follows, somewhat vinous with it - we were reminded of a barrique aged chardonnay. There’s something slightly medicinal lurking somewhere - a hint of iodine perhaps? It’s definitely not out of place amongst the other huge aromas given off by this whiskey though. A slight suggestion of coconut right at the tail end.
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by Ben Ellefsen 1. December 2009 14:41
It's a bit like Christmas at MoM towers today, albeit with fewer board-games and no crap jokes (well, maybe just a few). A very exciting package has turned up from the smashing folks at the 'Number one drinks company'. It's their newest selection of cask bottlings, and some sneak previews of the very exciting new malts from Chichibu.
All of these bottlings are currently on a cargo ship from Japan, and should be available in the next two months, keep watching - we'll get them up as soon as they're in.
So - enough with the pre-amble and onto the malts. First up, we've got 3 single cask bottlings from (the now closed) Hanyu and the sublime Karuizawa distilleries:
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by Mike 30. November 2009 17:21
At Master of Malt, we’ve loved Amrut’s releases over the years, especially the awesome cask strength bottlings! Now Jim Murray has declared Amrut Fusion to be the Third Finest Whisky in the World with a whopping 97 points, we thought we’d have to offer our thoughts…
A little about the distillery…
The Amrut distillery was founded in Bangalore (or Bengaḷūru as it's known in India), an area known as India’s Silicon Valley. Originally producing dark rums and brandy, it wasn’t until the ‘80s that Amrut began to distil single malt.
Interestingly, Indian whisky is bottled after only a few years of ageing. The reason for this is the intense climate which speeds maturation to the extent that 12% of each barrel is lost every year to the angels’ share (more than 6 times that of Scotland!).
To create something completely original Amrut distilled Fusion from both Indian and Scottish barley and before tasting we’re already expecting Amrut’s trademark fruity, malty house style, so here goes…
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by Ben Ellefsen 27. November 2009 13:51
Movember bottlings on the bar at the Whisky Picnic in Edinburgh.The more observant of you will have noticed that for the past 27 days, a blooming great moustache has adorned the front page of our website, and the Master of Malt logo has also sported a rather dashing pair of lip-weasels. The reason for this isn’t temporary insanity – we’re simply showing our support for the month-long men’s health charity event – Movember.
Every November (November, Moustache, Movember – geddit?) men all across the country grow their ‘taches from scratch, and join in with events to raise funds for The Prostate Cancer Charity. It’s a sobering thought that prostate cancer accounts for a full quarter of all incidences of cancer in men in the UK, and raising awareness of this condition is something that we’re glad to be a part of.
The Master of Malt team has shown its support in 2009 by growing (mainly very inadequate) moustaches, and launching a special edition ‘Whisky 4 Movember’ bottling. All the profits generated by this bottling are being donated directly to Movember.
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by Mike 16. November 2009 16:56
With so many amazing Japanese whiskies on the market we thought we’d review one of our favourites – the Yamazaki 18 Year Old, a whisky from the more thickly sherried, savoury school of Japanese malts.
A little about the distillery…
Yamazaki was Japan’s first whisky distillery and it was built by Suntory’s founder, Shinjiro Torii, in 1923. In Japan there are only two major players in whisky: Suntory and Nikka. Between them they control almost every distillery in the country.
Because of this there is no trading of malt and grain whisky between companies (as is the practice in Scotland’s whisky blending industry). Distilleries must be as self-contained as possible, so Yamazaki houses a whopping 12 stills of different type and configuration, allowing the distillery to produce a range of whiskies.
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