This dark 5yo Caol Ila is inspired by the maker’s passion: Jazz. Jazz is like whisky, it’s about experimentation, passion and interpretation. It’s the first release of the new Dutch independent bottler Rick van Diepen, the brand has been given the name Single Note. How high or low the...
Read moreA combination of first fill Bourbon barrels and Pedro Ximenez sherry casks. Music to our ears, if done correctly, for that matter. We didn’t know what to expect when this classic Campbelltown malt knocked on our door. Just like every artist, there are songs and albums which you don’t...
Read moreHow often do you buy, or even taste a 30 years old whisky? We certainly do very rarely. When we came across this bottle by one of our favourite bottlers and whisky shops, we didn’t hesitate for too long. This 30yo Glen Spey by Malts of Scotland was bottled...
Read moreWhat a crazy year it has been. Sadly no big family reunion this Christmas due to obvious reasons, but now me and my wife were gently forced into spending some well deserved quality time together and with our daughter. We cooked, we ate together and went through the year....
Read moreJazz music is not exactly our cup of tea, we tell you that, but this Lagavulin Jazz Festival 2017 release is just what we need. We picked this bottle up at the distillery with the characteristic red chimney back in 2018, when we visited all of the Islay distilleries....
Read moreArdbeg’s latest core range addition sure shook some things up. In one corner we have the influencers, praising the bottle no matter what. In the other corner we have the sceptics, grumpy and disappointed and wanting everybody to know. We don’t really care what label is slapped onto us,...
Read moreFinlaggan is no stranger to the liquor stores here in Holland, but somehow we always managed to ignore the expressions of this Islay Single Malt. Until we bought our very first Finlaggan, since then, you can always find several bottles in our collection. If you are in love with...
Read moreWe have a license to kill, to kill this wonderful bottling by Arran. Maybe the best Arran I’ve recently purchased, a true diamond. Luckily diamonds, just like the memories of it, last forever…
Read moreIt’s an open secret that we’re a huge fan of Tomatin whisky, but we know that not all that glitters is gold at the same time. We think that it just depends on the right approach when it comes to Tomatin.
Read moreNever have I experienced something like a ‘port bomb’, until this release by Spey. We aren’t the biggest fans of port matured whiskies, but this one made us realize once more: you can’t apply one single measure to everything. We were introduced to Spey with the regular Tenné expression....
Read moreA while ago, The Teeling Distillery, Chris and Niamh gave us the chance to taste a little bit more of what Teeling has to offer. Including their first ever Peated Irish Single Malt Whiskey: Blackpitts, named after the area just behind the distillery. Matured in Bourbon and Sauternes casks...
Read moreLight up the fireplace, get a glass and put your feet up. On moments like this I pour myself a dram that doesn’t require much thought. And while Lagavulin 16yo has no permanent spot in my cabinet anymore, I can’t help myself but feel this is one of the...
Read moreBenromach 10 definitely exists on our short list of whiskies that everyone should have in their cabinet. If it isn’t for the taste, then it’s for the value for money. You don’t see this bottle highlighted very often, in fact, we’ve only discovered how good Benromach actually was last...
Read moreMy holidays mostly take place in our own country, even before the pandemic. There’s so much to discover in this small piece on earth (the Netherlands, that is). There’s one tradition I try to maintain, and that is the tradition of finding a good liquor store to buy me...
Read moreIf there’s one distillery that really bonds with its ‘fans’ or friends, if you like, It is Laphroaig. We’ve been ‘friends of Laphroaig’ ever since our first bottle but it took us years to finally ‘seal’ our friendship. Back in April 2018 we visited Islay and of course we...
Read moreOur good friend Torsten Zimmerman introduced us to The Single Cask a while ago. You see, that’s where friends are for. They even arranged two wonderful bottles for us to do a giveaway with. We almost took part in the giveaway ourselves, but we managed to stay sincere. In...
Read moreLet’s revisit a bottle that we haven’t had in a while: Craigellachie 13.
Read moreI’ve been a big fan of Kilchoman since the beginning. They offer a great core range with diverse types of sherry and bourbon maturations, and the best thing is that they’re very open about which casks are used and in what ratio. It gives the buyers a good understanding...
Read moreSadly, due to the pandemic, it’s a year without whisky festivals. Among many others, “Whisky in Leiden” had to be postponed till 2021. Especially for this festival, Elixir Distillers bottled this beautiful fifteen years old Ledaig under the Single Malts of Scotland Range. The organizer of the festival made...
Read moreIt’s an open secret that I (Dion) am really digging into the wine-casks lately, I personally think that a Cabernet Sauvignon, or a nice Malbec is the next best thing. But don’t worry, whisky was my first love, and it will be my last. I promise you that. That...
Read moreLately, Dion is aiming for whiskies with a wine finish or maturing, so when we stumbled upon this beautiful looking Benriach bottle, finished in a Viña Ventisquero Grey Carmenere Barrel, we couldn’t resist.
Read moreWhen you run out of money and whisky, what do you do? Finlaggan comes to the rescue!
Read moreHeave Ho, hoist the colours high for this Elements of Islay Bunnahabhain 16yo. Bottled at a 55.7% cask strength. We always feel a strong connection between Bunnahabhain and the pirate’s life. Maybe it’s the location of the distillery, overlooking the Sound of Jura. Possibly it’s the prison-like look of...
Read moreWell what do we have here? It’s the James Eadie 9 yo Caol Ila. Finished first fill, refill Palo Cortado sherry hogsheads oak European finished for 6 months. Quite a mouthful. Yet again, a relatively young Caol Ila, what’s new? (Indie) young Caol Ila is highly available in The...
Read moreWe planned on visiting Glen Garioch next month, Destination Management Scotland did a great job on mapping out an awesome trip through the Highlands, but we had to cancel a while ago. Not because of Covid-19 tough…
Read moreI love experimental distilleries. How small the Dutch Zuidam Distillery might be, they sure keep us entertained with special releases of Millstone whisky. And so does this one!
Read moreThis ‘shampoo bottle’ may look weird, depending on who you ask, but who cares? It’s one of our go-to peated malts. It’s everything but the casual peated Islay-whisky and beautifully complex. As lovers of the Octomore range, we often speak of this as ‘Octomore Light’. It doesn’t provide that...
Read moreSauternes matured whiskies are my new addiction. It just works very well with scotch. Let’s see how it plays out with this recent bottling of Edradour Straight From the Cask.
Read moreWe have a thing for independently bottled Glenrothes. It’s just very hard to find one that isn’t tasty. We have a huge indie ‘rothes line-up waiting to get reviewed, but this is the one we’d like to start with. It perfectly suits the drizzly weather that we’re facing at...
Read moreLondon’s brand new Bimber Distillery was so kind to send us a couple of beautiful samples last summer. We were quite impressed and let Matt know our thoughts. Let us share our findings with you too. Here are our unaltered notes, as sent to the distillery…
Read moreA nice find at the liqour store this weekend: a 9yo single cask Glen Garioch bottled by Douglas Laing, specially bottled for Gall & Gall. A distillery we quite adore, because of the ‘old style’ earthy and fruity taste. The colour is stunningly pale, which is something I quite...
Read moreAs a Dutchman I’m very pleased to have such great neighbors. Among many other independent bottlers, Germany brings Jack Wieber to the table. This cask strength bottle, named Classic of Islay is a solid staple in our collection. It has no age statement and it’s probably a young sherried...
Read moreNever been much of a Springbank fan, but this bottle might tempt me to change that fact!
Read moreIt may not be entirely our taste, but we can’t deny the fact that many starting whisky lovers find in Jura a good starting point. We often referenced a certain hint to ‘an almond urinal block’, which is definitely not something you’d say is mouthwatering. But as with many...
Read moreHighland Park 18yo is a classic, a soft and gentle classic. It offers many facets, but there isn’t one that overpowers.
Read moreLet’s throw in a statement: Tomatin 18yo is near perfect and the price for this Highlander even more so.
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