The story of St Isidore and the bloggers blend all started one day when we were thinking about how to create our next whisky, when it suddenly hit us: ask the bloggers! These guys and gals are amongst the most knowledgeable, expert and, let's face it, geekiest whisky lovers in the world! We called upon this incredible resource, and here's how we did it...
First off, we sent blending kits to 10 prominent whisky bloggers, and gave them a simple remit: create the best blended whisky possible with the ingredients provided, whilst maximising its value for money. The bloggers worked away, tasting, nosing and perfecting their concoctions, before sending us their recipes. Once we had the recipes we sold them as sample sets, and we asked you, the public, to vote for your favourite, using the wonderfully democratic AV system.
The votes were counted, and the winning blend is here before you, but we had more work to do before release! The next stage was naming and labelling, and so we asked the bloggers themselves to decide just what this marvellous creation should called. After much deliberation and scholarly debate, they settled on St Isidore, naming it for the patron saint of the internet, which seems rather apt dontcha think? Once we had the name, the last step was the label, and being the
lazy buggers ingenious chaps that we are, we ran a competition on our blog calling on graphic designers to submit label designs which summed up St Isidore, the competition and the whisky blogosphere in general. The winning design is what you see here: this psychedelic, larger-than-life and utterly brilliant illustration, drawn by English artist Ben Sowter which, if you look closely, contains numerous computer and internet-y in-jokes, for example a monitor lizard represents a computer monitor, and there is a bag of coins, representing a "cache". In total, there are around 20 different hidden internet-related jokes and Easter Eggs!
Our heartfelt thanks and appreciation go to the whisky bloggers for making this a reality:
- CaskStrength.net
- Dr. Whisky
- Edinburgh Whisky Blog
- Guid Scotch Drink
- The Jewish Single Malt Whisky Society
- WhiskyCast
- Whisky Connosr
- Whisky Magazine
- WhiskyWhiskyWhisky Forum
- Whisky for Everyone
Nose: Sweet creamy aromas that meld well with a cool, oily, almost coastal wood smoke. It instantly transports you to Islay, whilst offering just a hint of plum wine, wood shavings and lapsang souchong tea. Time in the glass brings out notes of guava, warm custard and rhubarb crumble.
Palate: Thick, warming and balanced as it hits the tongue, it offers notes of really good vanilla ice cream, black pepper, and rum spices, whilst retaining a solid backbone of sweet woodsmoke and freshly-sawn timber. Hold it on the tongue for just a touch of salty popcorn and crème caramel.
Finish: Beautifully warming and spiced. It fades away on freshly grated cinnamon and sugared peels. A faint flutter of pear juice on the very tail.
Overall: A perfect smoky blend. This is a very old school whisky, combining the smoke of Islay, and the rich, honeyed tones of the Highlands. A superb winter fireside dram if ever there was one.