A Cardhu with the warmth and spice to conquer the Seven Kingdoms, and the delicacy to rule them: this Speyside single malt is a cornucopia of orchard fruit, freshly-baked crumble, a touch of caramel on the side and a drying finish.

This  limited edition, peated single malt Scotch whisky was initially aged in American oak and finished in dark rum barrels. This lends flavours of demerara sugar, caramel, banana and dried fruits. This matches perfectly with the balanced smoky peat backdrop. 

One of the biggest selling whiskies in the world - 13.6 bottles were sold per minute in 2013. It's taste profile is based on 50 single malts – mostly from Miltonduff and Glenburgie – and four grain whiskies, The blend delivers sweet vanilla and cocoa notes in its youth and among its no-age-statement expressions, building layers of honey, toffee and spice as the age develops.

Batch #1 of a non-chill filtered single malt at a bold 50% ABV for intensity. Composed from Australian barley and craft brewers’ yeast for extra flavour.

Starward age Fortis in 100% American Oak barrels to give a full, rich taste that enhances the toasty oak and vanilla characters of the whisky. Fortis also boasts juicy red wine characteristics thanks to barrels from mostly Barossa Valley wineries, which once held powerful shiraz and cabernets. Some barrels are charred for complexity, most are fresh, lending Fortis the intense red wine flavours that soaked into the barrel staves. They don’t chill filter this stronger release to closely represent the whisky that comes from the barrel.

A rich, full-bodied flavour balanced with the approachable velvety smoothness Starward whiskies are known for. Expect upfront notes of Madagascan vanilla pod and toasty oak. The palate is all chocolate ganache, cinnamon, quince and Muscadelle raisin with a lingering baking spiced finish.

Spectacular sipped straight and savoured. Or stir it down with vermouth, Campari and orange bitters, or in another classic cocktail.

A 21 year old single malt, triple distilled and aged in second fill sherry casks, though nothing is lost to the power of the sherry. This bottling stands as the flagship for the core Auchentoshan range.

Nose: Soft and supple. Dry grass. Fruity notes, a citrus edge and very floral honey.

Palate: Oily, nuttiness. Dry and rounded with sugared peels.

Finish: Apricot conserve on granary toast with dry citrus notes.

Thanks to years of closure over the past century, Glenglassaugh is a distillery with two types of whisky: very young or very old. This is one of the latter drams, bottled as part of the third batch of single casks released by the distillery. Matured in a cask that previously contained Massandra – a Crimean fortified wine, similar to sherry – and bottled in November 2016, it's a rich and dark dram, packed with dried fruit notes.

Laphroaig single malt from Islay aged for three decades! Twice matured in bourbon casks, expect this peated whisky to be complex, rounded and absolutely full of flavour.

Nose: Mandarin and mango rise to the fore tempered by toasted almond and coconut. Aromatic peat oils are interwoven, appearing as cedar, wintergreen and smoked sage.

Palate: A superbly oily mouthfeel with orange peel, vanilla, and coriander leaf, in a cedar cigar box alongside wild root ginseng.

Finish: Long and complex with lingering pulpy stone fruit and chewy green hand-rolled tobacco.

53.5% ABV

Amrut Fusion X (ten), a special, limited-edition single malt whisky was launched on the November 25 in honour of the 10th anniversary of Amrut Distilleries. Amrut whiskies are a connoisseur’s delight. Especially for the discerning patron is the Amrut Fusion X. The Fusion whisky has been matured in sherry casks imported from Spain, for four years. While the base remains the familiar Fusion, its treatment gives whisky lovers a whole new flavour profile to enjoy. On the first sip, the whisky gives you marzipan, vanilla, and citrus on the palate, followed by peat that comes through and lingers on. I sampled it neat and a little later with a cube of ice and enjoyed the lingering peat flavours. 

Amrut Fusion X is a collectable. It is a very limited bottling of 1010 bottles released internationally.

This heavily peated single malt Scotch whisky is jam packed with coastal air and bonfire ember notes with plenty of power behind it. Not for the faint of heart, this one.

Colour - Glows like a barley field of shimmering gold

Nose - Elegant and refined. Soft delicate honey notes are entwined with vanilla spice, creamy caramel and cinnamon. Then suddenly… the growl of bonfire smoke, sea spray, cardamom and tar rope hits you. The beast is awake!

Taste - You can feel its immense power as it pours onto your palate like a violent thunderstorm. You need to brace yourself. Its “natural strength” is untamed and ferocious. Yet, seconds later - this beastly peaty, fiery spirit is soon soothed by the warmth of your tongue. Almost immediately a calmness, a stillness pervades as seductive notes of moist banana cake, thick treacle, mocha with whispers of sweet pineapple , ginger and cumin finally come into play to give you an unforgettable aftertaste. Everyone has a little beast in them - this one more than most.

From the distillery.

This exquisite single malt has been crafted from a combination of unpeated and peated spirit and four cask matured for at least twenty one years in bourbon barrels, sherry casks, virgin oak casks and Bordeaux red wine casks. During long maturation Benriach’s sweet Speyside smoke mellows and integrates with the fruit, malt and oak. After twenty one years, rich layering develops into an elegant honey smoke, enriched through multi-layered cask maturation. The whisky from each cask type, imbued with particular flavour characteristics, is then expertly married together to create a rich and elegant single malt, layered with lush orchard fruit and toasted pine wood with a honey smoke finish. All in perfect balance.

NATURAL CASK-IMPARTED COLOUR     ABV 46%

A single cask whisky from the White Oak distillery based in Hyogo Japan. Uncoloured and non-chill filtered, the warm colour belies real sherry sweetness with beautiful complexing earthy notes and hints of black tea. The finish is long with further spice, chocolate and a hint of marmalade.

Ballantine’s Master Blender Sandy Hyslop, hand-selected each and every whisky for this aromatic blend, favouring high proportions of whiskies aged exclusively in first-fill American oak casks.

COLOUR
Deep old gold

NOSE
Deep, soft, fruity aromas, elegant sweetness and vanilla oakiness

TASTE
A complex balance of honey, floral and fruity flavours with notes of vanilla

FINISH
Long-lasting and elegant

Kaiyo is a negotiant bottler started by a drinks group led by former Asahi employee Mr. Watanabe who was able to purchase "teaspooned" malt whisky barrels from an unnamed Japanese whisky supplier via his connections in the industry ("teaspooning" is when a distiller adds a teaspoon of another whisky into the barrel before selling it, thus preventing the purchaser from claiming it as a single malt from that distillery). The whiskies are purchased as teaspooned new make (unaged distillates) and then put into Japanese Mizunara oak barrels from Ariake, considered one of the best manufacturers in the world.

A fruity, zesty and softly-smoky Japanese whisky, matured in mizunara oak casks. Aromas of orange peel, jasmine, soft cedar and coastal air fill the nose. The palate offers notes of earthy coffee, green apples, black tea and fresh herbs, with hints of cinnamon pastries and mango that linger in the finish.

A unique whisky made from imported Scottish peated malt which spends 2 years in madeira casks, then 6 years in mizunara casks. 

This is light, clean and fruity with aromas of apple, white grape, lingering cigar smoke, coconut macaroons, and ample Japanese oak influence. Apple and watermelon flavors appear on the palate, developing a more sugary fruitiness of candy, all brushed with gentle spice and a swish of smoke.

At the top of the House of Hazelwood range sits the 25 Year Old expression, presented beautifully in a bottle and box inspired by 1920s Art Deco design.

Nose: Pancakes and golden syrup, lime, oak furniture and oodles of vanilla.

Palate: Burnt sugar, cut grass, honey'd cereals. A few pinches of exotic spice.

Finish: Drying and quite oak-y.