Master of Malt Blog

Tag: Arran

One of the biggest dates in the year for Scotch whisky fans approaches – Burns Night! Supply your supper with some of the best around with this sublime selection! Commemorating…

One of the biggest dates in the year for Scotch whisky fans approaches – Burns Night! Supply your supper with some of the best around with this sublime selection!

Commemorating the anniversary of Robert Burns on his birthday, 25 January, is a tradition upheld all over the world. Libation, literature and laggis – I mean haggis – will be enjoyed by many as we toast a man who loved a good Scotch himself.

A notable feature of his poems, Burns often spoke of his love of whisky, even scalding the English for raising whisky duty. It would surely please one of Scotland’s favourite sons to know people celebrate his life to this day with plenty of the water of life, or ‘usquabae’, as it was known back then.

Whether you’re a seasoned Burns supper pro or you fancy experiencing one for the first time (you really should do it at least once in your life, it’s great fun), you’ll need to stock up on Scotch to do the night justice.

So, we’ve rounded up a remarkable range to mark the occasion, from sublime single malts to brilliants blends, and a great grain whisky for good measure. Each has an accompanying Burns poem or song and themed cocktail to boot. And for those who simply can’t get enough of all things Robert Burns, be sure to check out our Burns Night poetry competition, where you could win a bottle of Robert Burns Single Malt!

Happy Burns Night all!

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News

The Nightcap: 7 December

Master of Malt

December 7, 2018 4:00 pm

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Another week, another round-up of all the news that’s fit to drink. Yes, it’s the Nightcap! Or c’est le Nightcap as our cousins across la Manche might say. So pour…

Another week, another round-up of all the news that’s fit to drink. Yes, it’s the Nightcap! Or c’est le Nightcap as our cousins across la Manche might say. So pour yourself a snifter and have a nose around.

This week on the blog there can be little doubt that Christmas is coming. To get any more Christmassy, you’d need Noddy Holder to pop up and shout “it’s Christmaaasssss!” We’ve been counting down the days in some style with our office Drinks by the Dram Whisky Advent Calendar. And what treats there have been: Day One was the Lost Distilleries Blend from the Blended Whisky Company, followed by Starward from Australia, something special from Dufftown, a French single malt, a BenRiach, and finally, the mighty Hudson Baby Bourbon. To get you in the mood, we brought you exclusive interviews with the people behind these very special drams!

If that’s not Christmassy enough, Adam came up with some boozy gifts for guaranteed Yuletide satisfaction. Oh, and #WhiskySanta’s Super Wish was something quite spectacular: a bottle of Talisker Bodega Series 40 Year Old, worth £2,750! Blimey.

But it wasn’t all festive fun on the blog. On Monday, we had a closer look at the last Dram Club Tasting Sets of 2018. Annie delved into the mad world of spirits maverick Rebel Rabbet, maker of drinks that defy easy categorisation (and nothing to do with fluffy bunnies.) And Henry met with Cognac sniffer-outer extraordinaire David Baker and tried some brandies distilled during the Second World War.

Some quality booze writing there, and talking of booze and writing, here are the top drinks stories of the week. Bon weekend!

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American Whiskey Beer Cocktails Gin News Rum Scotch Whisky Tequila Whisky Wine World Whisky

The Nightcap: 13 July

Kristiane Sherry

July 13, 2018 5:06 pm

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Friday the 13th might be unlucky for some, but not if you follow the world of booze! It’s been an action-packed week, and we have the glorious highlights right here,…

Friday the 13th might be unlucky for some, but not if you follow the world of booze! It’s been an action-packed week, and we have the glorious highlights right here, right now. It’s The Nightcap!

Happy Friday, folks! The weekend is here and it’s time to celebrate with something tasty. Perhaps a delish and straightforward dram. Or, as Beam Suntory was highlighting when we stopped by this week, a Highball in all its glory. Or a G&T, Daiquiri, Margarita… the possibilities are endless. And now we’re distracted.

So. The tumultuous week that was. England tumbled out of the World Cup (at the semi-final stage so we’re still pretty proud here at MoM Towers), Brexit was back in the headlines (did it ever leave?!), and the astonishing Thai Cave rescue came to a successful close (huge respect to the rescue team, and of course we remember Saman Kunan, the brave diver who tragically died while saving others).

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News Video

The Lagg Distillery on the Isle of Arran Nears Completion!

Henry Jeffreys

June 20, 2018 2:06 pm

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The Lagg Distillery on the Isle of Arran has been in the works since 2016, we’re more than a little excited at the prospect of enjoying whisky from a brand…

The Lagg Distillery on the Isle of Arran has been in the works since 2016, we’re more than a little excited at the prospect of enjoying whisky from a brand new distillery!

For over 150 years there were no distilleries on Arran, once a hotbed of whisky-making – now there are two. Well nearly. The first is run by the aptly-named Isle of Arran Distillers and was opened at Lochranza in 1995. Their second distillery at Lagg in the south of the island started development in 2016 and is now nearing completion. The steelworks have just gone up and as you can see from the photo below it is now starting to look like a distillery, either that or a particularly ambitious house on Grand Designs.

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Scotch Whisky Tasting Notes Whisky

Whisky Advent Day 11: Arran – Batch 4 (That Boutique-y Whisky Company)

Master of Malt

December 11, 2015 10:00 am

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So, what do we have behind window number 11 of The Whisky Advent Calendar from Drinks by the Dram? Why it’s the fourth batch of That Boutique-y Whisky Company‘s Arran…

Whisky Advent Calendar

So, what do we have behind window number 11 of The Whisky Advent Calendar from Drinks by the Dram? Why it’s the fourth batch of That Boutique-y Whisky Company‘s Arran single malt whisky!*

Each of the Arrans in this series features illustrator Emily Chappell and a friend stranded on a desert island after an ill-fated kayaking trip. As you may know, there are often subtle differences between the labels of Boutique-y batches, however, and if you look carefully on the right hand side of Batch 4… you’ll see that she’s actually put up her Christmas tree!

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Absinthe Cognac Competitions Gin Liqueurs News Rum Tequila Vodka Whisky Wine

The Return of Ask #WhiskySanta… He’ll grant one wish per day!

Whisky Santa

November 12, 2015 4:00 pm

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[Update: He’s now giving gifts away at the checkout too!] Guess who is back… Back once again… #WhiskySanta is back! Tell all your friends and loved ones. Ho ho ho!…

Whisky Santa

[Update: He’s now giving gifts away at the checkout too!]

Guess who is back… Back once again… #WhiskySanta is back! Tell all your friends and loved ones. Ho ho ho! A bit of the M&M-style wrap for you there. I like to stay current.

That’s right, your favourite festive, omniscient, supernatural, heavily-bearded being is back from his holibobs. I may have only had ten months off after last year’s festivities (during which I even received a shiny ISC award) but a tinsel-covered alarm clock has gone off somewhere and I’m feeling extremely generous once again! Time to make some lists and check them twice – lists of people using #WhiskySanta, that is – before granting one wish per day for you lucky people for a second year running!

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News Whisky

New Innovative Glass Closures Now Available Separately For Just £1

Master of Malt

April 30, 2015 4:00 pm

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You may have seen that we recently launched a couple of single casks that featured our shiny new innovative glass closures, which you can read all about here. We also…

Master Of Malt Single Casks Glass Closures

You may have seen that we recently launched a couple of single casks that featured our shiny new innovative glass closures, which you can read all about here. We also invited you to give your feedback and one query that arose was whether we were going to sell the closures separately, after all, they’ll fit any of the bottles in our Single Cask Series! We thought this was such a good idea that we should do it immediately. So we did.

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Gin News Tasting Notes Vodka Whisky

The Lakes Distillery – A Delightful Weekend In The Country

Jake Mountain

March 9, 2015 12:00 pm

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“Are you a sponge or a stone? Do you like to experience all facets of life, or do you shut yourself off from new experience?” With whisky distilleries opening right…

The Lakes Distillery

“Are you a sponge or a stone? Do you like to experience all facets of life, or do you shut yourself off from new experience?”

With whisky distilleries opening right around the world, you must quite reasonably ask yourself questions such as this. We live in an age where a wide variety of excellent whiskies are being made outside of the traditional and well-established whisky producing counties, and if you’re not open to them, you’re missing out. In England, for example, the latest English whisky distillery to come on stream is The Lakes Distillery near Cockermouth.

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Scotch Whisky Whisky

Coastal Whisky: The Curious Relationship Between Whisky and the Seas

Jake Mountain

February 18, 2015 12:30 pm

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Some whiskies can be said to have a ‘coastal’ or ‘maritime’ character, and invariably these are also whiskies that I absolutely love. In fact, these seaside malts are the reason…

Coastal Whisky Bowmore

Some whiskies can be said to have a ‘coastal’ or ‘maritime’ character, and invariably these are also whiskies that I absolutely love. In fact, these seaside malts are the reason I became interested in whisky in the first place, and the very best examples are still probably my favourite spirits in the world. This is personal taste, of course, and whilst I love most of the gods’ rich tapestry of whisky flavour profiles, I just happen to be a sucker for the Neptunian ones. So, consider me your Neil Oliver as we embark on a journey of discovery and also consider exactly how is it that some malts seemingly take on the very taste of the coast. This, is whisky on the edge… *Cue music*

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Competitions Scotch Whisky Tasting Notes Whisky

Whisky Santa’s Whisky Advent Day 18: Arran – Batch 4 (That Boutique-y Whisky Company)

Whisky Santa

December 18, 2014 12:00 am

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Arran Batch 4 That Boutique-y Whisky Company

Followers of That Boutique-y Whisky Company’s batches of Arran single malt Scotch whisky will know that the label features Boutique-y illustrator Emily Chappell stranded on a desert island. Not the most festive of scenes, perhaps, except if you look carefully at Batch 4 you’ll see that she’s actually put up her Christmas tree!

An appropriate choice for day 18 of the Whisky Advent Calendar then! There’s even some festive spice and warming rye-style notes in this batch, although it’s very much still a charming Arran, and I’m rather partial to a charming Arran…

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Master of Malt Blog

Tag: Arran