Ardbeg Night, Sydney

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The back-story to this year’s Ardbeg Day whisky – the Dark Cove – is one of smuggling, mystery and illicit activities. So it probably shouldn’t come as a surprise that the Ardbeg Day event in Sydney was well and truly shrouded in a big cloak of mystery.

Ardbeg Dark Cove

In the lead up to the event I received a ‘save-the-date’ email simply with a date in it. No further details. Nada, zip. A week later, a credit card-sized golden token arrived featuring a number and an RSVP email address on the reverse side. There aren’t too many things in this world I would blindly RSVP to. But a Charlie and the Chocolate Factory meets James Bond gold card Ardbeg Night invitation? Yeah, that’s certainly one of them!

Boat

At this stage I knew I’d be catching a boat and that I had to be at the wharf for a 4.45pm departure. Beyond that, I had no idea what would be in store.

Zissou

Arriving at the wharf, Steve Zissou and I boarded our Wes Anderson-esque pleasure craft bound for the rocky shores of.. somewhere? We braved the chill on the upper deck, keeping an eye out for our destination. A-ha, thar she is! Good ole Goat Island!

Goat Island

Our Ardbeggian warehouse was decked out with back-to-back bars serving a trio of different cocktails prepared by the crack bartenders from The Whisky Room and Stitch Bar.

Cocktail1

All three offerings showcased the Ardbeg 10 year old, but the coconut fat-washed Ardbeg, Amaro Montenegro, pineapple concoction was a highlight for me.

Oysters

An oyster bar, roving waiters with canapés and a few different game stations were positioned around the space. As with previous years, the latter offered punters the chance to win themselves some pretty awesome loot like this Ardbeg Night t-shirt!

Ardbeg T Shirt

Well into the evening a smugglers soundtrack rang out and the caged Ardbeg stash was busted open, revealing the new Ardbeg Dark Cove. Cellarmaster of the Scotch Malt Whisky Society, Andrew Derbidge, talked us through the dram and with a hearty cheers we got to sample the new general release of the Ardbeg Dark Cove.

DarkCove

I previewed the Committee Release here and now having sampled the general release I’m genuinely surprised at the difference 8.5% in ABV can make. The Committee Release hits you with that smoky cask strength oomph, whereas the standard release has a finessed balance to it that makes it almost too drinkable. Both delicious in my opinion and one of my favourite modern Ardbeg Day releases.

Ardbeg pouring

Returning to shore we shook off those sea legs and made a bee-line for Stitch Bar, one of Sydney’s official Ardbeg Embassies, where the after party was in full force.

Stitch

Another Rehaboam (4.5 litres) of Dark Cove was behind the bar at Stitch, along with more great cocktails and fun times.

Stitch 2

Another truly epic Ardbeg Day (Night) celebration in Sydney. The crew at Moet Hennessey and EVH PR somehow manage to out-do themselves every year (see here and here). I dare say this was the best one yet! A sincere thanks goes to you both for smuggling me in.

Auchentoshan American Oak

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Auchentoshan is a unique distillery in that they practice the process of triple distillation – something that no other Scottish distillery currently does. If you’re thinking that sounds interesting, but have no idea what that means – please read on!

The process of triple distillation

If you’re not familiar with how whisky is made, get ready for a really crude, highly-unscientific crash course that should help put the concept of triple distillation into perspective. To make whisky, you essentially start with a beer-like solution of malted barley, water and yeast which you run through a still. Liquid goes into the still, it simmers away (like a big ‘ole kettle) and the lightest, purest vapours rise to top. These vapours are condensed back into liquid and are kept aside to be run through a still for a second time.

Auchentoshan American Oak

Most Scottish distilleries do this twice, but – you guessed it – Auchentoshan distil their spirit three times, in three different size and shape stills no less. That’s pretty much it in a nut-shell. If you’d like a technically accurate description of triple distillation (unlike mine!) I can highly recommend this great article from Whisky and Wisdom.

The Auchentoshan profile

Each time you distil something you’re essentially purifying it. So generally speaking, something distilled thrice is going to be cleaner and purer than something distilled twice. I’ve tasted a few Auchentoshans before and a couple of descriptors that always come to mind are the words ‘clean’ and ‘light’. Perhaps even delicate.

That’s not to say that everything coming out of Auchentoshan can be (or should be) labelled as ‘light’ in nature. But it’s a characteristic I tend to expect when approaching their whisky, something that I suspect comes from their triple distilled process.

With this in mind (or not), let’s take a look at their newest release in Australia – the Auchentoshan American Oak – a no age statement whisky matured solely in first fill ex-bourbon barrels and bottled at 40% abv.

AM copy

Nose

The nose is thin, but also quite fresh and bright; far more so than I expected (in a really good way). I got some lovely bright jammy notes up front, apricots, stone fruit, orange and lemon citrus and some light vanilla crème anglaise. There’s a light dose of malt in the background and some faint toasty coconut and oak.

Palate

The palate is rather thin and silky on entry, but still delivers plenty of soft flavour. There’s a fair amount of vanilla and toasty coconut and oak from the first fill casks, but those notes are nicely matched with a wave of gentle spice and soft, creamy, sweet custard flavours. Orange peel, apricots, white peach and vanilla join midway through before the palate fades to a fairly short sugary finish.

Are you distilled different?

Beam Suntory have partnered with their Australian bartender society – The Blend – to showcase three things I genuinely love; whisky, cocktails and photography. Running until 30 June 2016, the #DistilledDifferentAU campaign aims to track down Australia’s best bartenders who are up for the challenge of mixing up something special featuring the Auchentoshan American Oak, whilst pairing it with some inspirational photography. The winning bartender team and photographer score a killer prize including a trip to Scotland and gallery event showcasing their work.

Whisky Sour

I don’t meet the entry criteria, but that wasn’t going to stop me mixing up a few classic libations of my own. I’m happy to report that the Auchentoshan American Oak works an absolute treat in a whisky sour or a bastardised Rob Roy (I subbed in a touch of Grand Marnier and orange bitters to boost the citrus notes).

Rob Roy

If I can crank these out I’ve got no doubt our local talent can easily put me to shame. Australian bartenders; head on over to the-blend.com.au, sign up, check out this competition and show-off your skills. You’ll be in the running for something pretty awesome!

A big thanks goes out to Beam Suntory for kindly supplying the bottle featured here.

World Whisky Day

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This Saturday, May 21st is World Whisky Day. I tried to write my own description of what World Whisky Day means to me, but the people behind the official site have said it so eloquently that I’ll let them do the explaining.

Green Label

“World Whisky Day is all about making whisky fun and enjoyable. It’s not about being exclusive or prescriptive. You can drink it however you enjoy it (ice, water, mixer – whatever works for you). We want to be all inclusive and that means any kind of whisky/whiskey from anywhere in the world.”

Talisker

Ain’t that the truth! So this Saturday, do yourself, your friends and your family a favour, pour a dram of the water of life and share in the fun of whisky!

The good people at Diageo are big supporters of World Whisky Day and kindly sorted me out with a few goodies to help me and my closest celebrate in style! So if you – like me – are on social media and find yourself enjoying a dram on Saturday the 21st, tag your photos with #WorldWhiskyDay and #LoveScotch and share in the fun.

Slainte!

Bar White Oak

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by Whisky + Alement

If you happen to follow me on Instagram (@whiskyledger), you may have noticed that I recently visited Japan. My trip was an incredible experience for a number of reasons, but right up there at the top of that list would have to be the incredible whisky bars. We simply don’t anything quite like them in Australia.

Bar White Oak 1

Well, if there is one bar here that comes terribly close, without a shadow of a doubt, it would have to be Melbourne’s Whisky + Alement. These guys just do everything right in my opinion. From the bar you can comfortably perch yourself at, to the knowledgeable and friendly bartenders to the ever-changing back bar of over 600 bottles. For a genuine whisky-lover, this place just nails it. As if there weren’t enough reasons to love them already, they’ve just gone ahead and given us another one. Bar White Oak.

Bar White Oak 5

Bar White Oak

Owners Brooke and Jules and one of their bartenders, Kelvin, were avid Japanese whisky fans well before Japanese whisky became the cool kid on the block. Between them, this love of Japanese whisky has led them to curate one of the most impressive collections you’re ever likely to see. Given the craziness over all things Japanese whisky at the moment they could no doubt flip these bottles at auction for an eye-watering price, but that’s what separates whisky collectors or speculators from people like Brooke, Jules and Kelvin.

Bar White Oak 2

They bought these bottles with the sole intention of drinking them and have decided that now’s the right time to pop the corks. On top of that, they want whisky fans to join in on the experience as well. Enter; Bar White Oak – a consumable exhibition – inside Whisky + Alement.

Bar White Oak 4

Filling the tiny space in the front window of the bar, the Bar White Oak pop-up is a dark corner of awesomeness. The timber archway draws you into the large phone-booth sized nook, lined on both sides with around 150 different Japanese whiskies – the vast majority of which you won’t be able to find anywhere else in the country. There’s everything from old blends to entry level drams and a considerable range of true hero bottles like single cask Yamazakis, Karuizawas. You’ll also find award winners like the Yamazaki Sherry Cask. Pretty much every Japanese distillery is represented, including ones you’ve probably never heard of. Everything’s available by the full or half pour and everything is there to be opened, and more importantly, enjoyed.

Bar White Oak 7

SMWS member’s preview

Whisky + Alement also happens to be an official partner bar of the Scotch Malt Whisky Society (SMWS) and through this partnership, SMWS members were offered and exclusive preview of Bar White Oak the other night. Two exclusive Japanese drams were poured on arrival; a rare cask strength Ichiro’s blend and an SMWS single sherry cask Miyagikyo. They were matched with some excellent sushi, great conversation and the chance to be the first soul to crack open any of the Japanese whiskies on the back bar. Yes, this was a Japanese whisky fan’s dream come true!

Bar White Oak 6

What you need to know

Bar White Oak is now officially open and will run for six months. The bar will feature a rotation of Japanese whisky, with approximately 150 different Japanese bottles on the bar at all times. That’s more than any other bar in the country. Heck, even the best-stocked whisky bars in Japan don’t have that much Japanese whisky on offer. Seriously!

Bar White Oak
270 Russell Street, Melbourne VIC

Sunday & Monday – 4.30pm to 11pm
Tuesday to Friday – 4.30pm to 12.30am
Saturday – 7.00pm to 12.30am

Bar White Oak 3

A special thanks goes to the Scotch Malt Whisky Society and Whisky + Alement for the invitation to the preview night. I guarantee you’ll be seeing me again at Bar White Oak.

Teeling 15 year old Revival

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Just over a year ago now I had my first encounter with Teeling Whiskey in the form of the Small Batch and Single Grain expressions. I was genuinely surprised by both of them; I was amazed that entry-level, highly affordable expressions could taste that great. A combination that I think I’m still yet to come across with Scotch whisky. This time though I’m taking a look at something from Teeling that’s a little higher up in their range, the new 15 year old Teeling Revival.

Teeling 15 year old Revival

Having recently opened their new distillery and once again brought the art of distilling back to Dublin, the Teeling Whiskey Company decided to mark the occasion by releasing something a little bit special. To quote Jack Teeling, founder of the Teeling Whiskey Company “The opening of our new distillery was a major milestone in the history of Teeling Whiskey. It took three years of planning, hard work and significant capital investment, but now Teeling Whiskey is finally home”.

Enter the Teeling 15 year old Revival. Distilled in 1999, The 15 year old Teeling Revival has been exclusively matured in ex-Rum casks and bottled at 46% ABV, with no chill filtering.

Teeling

Tasting notes

On the nose I immediately got notes of fresh cut grass and cereal grains, layered with a slightly drying, astringent note – plastic or acetone perhaps? Thankfully those notes settle and dissipate after a short while in the glass revealing a pleasant honeyed sweetness with plenty of under-ripe fruit salad notes (rockmelon, honeydew, green banana, peach lollies and tropical fruit juice). More air reveals a nicely integrated earthy note, something I’d liken to damp moss. It’s quite a complex nose, one that benefits greatly from air in my opinion.

The palate has a really nice delivery of fruity sweetness and spice, wrapped up in a medium oily mouth feel. I feel like the word ‘juicy’ is a good descriptor here. The honeyed sweetness presents upfront along with grapefruit, mango, pawpaw, fading to reveal a tempered spice on the edges of your tongue. Its nicely balanced and integrated though helping to add character, rather than detract from it. The finish is reasonably lengthy, keeping the tropical and sour fruit notes for a good amount of time, before turning slightly vanillic and tannic toward the end. Over-steeped jasmine tea comes to mind.

Teeling Whiskey Revival

The presentation of this is whiskey is pretty special. The packaging features an incredibly solid decanter-style bottle, phat brass-colour stopper and heavy card presentation box bearing plenty of gold embossing and even a wax seal on the inner lid. Whilst none of that has any bearing on the taste, I can’t recall any other Irish Whiskeys on the market at the moment –  especially in this price bracket – that are presented anywhere near as smart as this.

The Teeling 15 year old Revival is available in Australia now at a recommended retail price of AU $159.99. Thanks goes to Martin and the good folks at Teeling for the sample reviewed here.