They’re finished and not a day too soon!

Each little pack contains a Glencairn glass, a water pipette, notes and tasting instructions (written by yours truly) and six 25ml samples.

The notes start by explaining whisky basics, blends vs. single malts, how whisky’s produced, the use of peat, the different casks and what happens during maturation. Using whiskies I had on hand, I wanted to try and take each taster on a little journey and really highlight how diverse whisky can be, so I settled on the following:

• The Glenlivet 12 year old
• The Macallan 12 year old sherry oak
• Aberlour 16 year old double cask
• Glendronach 2002 10 year old single cask
• Highland Park 12 year old
• Laphroaig Quarter Cask.

I think there’s enough variation in there for anyone to be able to pick up on some of the differences – from the honeyed vanilla and sometimes floral notes of a bourbon cask, to the rich raisin and spice notes of European sherry oak all the way to the intense smokiness of peat. Hopefully they each find something they like!