Fawning Over Fettercairn and Unicorns
Fawning Over Fettercairn and Unicorns
Did you know that Scotland's national animal is the Unicorn? Never mind that it is an imaginary creature... it is also the emblem of the Fettercairn Distillery! With three official releases now in the Alberta market (12, 16, and 18-year-olds), we decided it was time to delve into this little-known distillery with a range of 7 Fettercairn expressions. In addition to the 3 OBs, we will also sample Fettercairns from Old Malt Cask (14 Years), Strictly Limited (10 Years), The Scotch Malt Whisky Society (14 Years) and Whisky Sponge (27 Years).
Tasting Order:
Fettercairn 12 Year Old
Carn Mor Strictly Limited Fettercairn 10 Year Old
Fettercairn 16 Year Old
Fettercairn 18 Year Old
Old Malt Cask Fettercairn 14 Year Old
Whisky Sponge Fettercairn 1995 - 27 Year Old
Scotch Malt Whisky Society 94.41 - RICH AS CAKE, A LITTLE SOURDOUGH
Turntable Whiskies with Ally & Gordon Stevenson
Turntable Whiskies with Ally & Gordon Stevenson
If the names Gordon and Alasdair Stevenson sound familiar, that's because they have twenty years of Scotch whisky industry experience between them. Before starting Turntable Spirits the brothers were travelling the world promoting Scotch whisky for brands like Old Pulteney and GlenDronach. The brothers have started a modern blending house to "flip the record on the ordinary" and "strike the right chords, creating harmonized blends." We'll sample 7 Turntable Blended Whiskies while discussing the brand and all things whisky with Ally & Gordon.
Tasting Order:
Track 1 - Joy. Discovery. Invention
Paradise Funk
Bittersweet Symphony
Smokin’ Riff
Track 3 - Purple Haze
Starward Collab
Track 2 - Firestarter
Loch Lomond KWM Cask Launch Virtual
Loch Lomond KWM Cask Launch Virtual
At the start of the 21st-century single malt boom, most whisky aficionados looked down our noses at Loch Lomond. At the time the distillery was primarily focused on entry-level blended whisky. The distillery, founded in 1966, was set up to produce both malt and grain whisky, a self-sufficient blender. Tweaks and changes in the decade that followed meant that Loch Lomond could produce 11 unique distillates on-site. It was only after the focus started to shift toward single malts in the 2010s that whisky experts and enthusiasts truly began to appreciate Loch Lomond's potential. To mark the launch of our 2nd KWM exclusive Loch Lomond Cask, we are putting on a Loch Lomond vertical tasting to explore this fascinating and very unusual distillery!
Tasting Order
Loch Lomond 2013 sinDicate Cask #4701
Loch Lomond 2013 KWM Cask #4705
Roots Old Rhosdhu 1993
Scotch Malt Whisky Society G15.34 - DIET PEAT
Scotch Malt Whisky Society G9.8 - FREE AS A BEE
Loch Lomond 14 Year Old
Whisky Trail Silhouette Croftengea 2006
Dumangin Ratafia & Ratafia Cask Whisky
Our friend Gilles Dumangin is something of a wine and spirits bohemian. In addition to producing some incredible Champagnes at his family's 130+-year-old winery, he also produces Ratafia Champenois, a type of fortified wine, similar to Pineau des Charantes. Made from unfermented grape juice and brandy Dumangin matures some of their Ratafias in oak, for up to 16 years. Thirty years ago while attending a whisky tasting Gilles hit upon the idea of maturing whisky in his Ratafia casks. Could they be a marriage made in heaven?
Gilles will be joining us live from Chapagne tonight for the tasting!
The order for tonight's tasting is as follows:
Ratafia Craft
Ratafia 16 Year
Invergordon 1986
Bushmills 2014
La Piautre 2017
Benrinnes 2008
Craigellachie 2007
Ardmore 2009
SMWS Canada July 2024 Virtual Outturn
Log in, pour your drams and join us from home, the cabin, a cruise ship, another country, or work... for the July 2024 Scotch Malt Whisky Society Canada Virtual Outturn Tasting.
Tasting Order
Yearning for bubbles
Mosey along the pathway
Scarlett Marzipan
Yee-haw
At home on the range
Rocking the gravy boat
Chorizo inferno
Blinded by Bourbon - Summer Holiday Edition
Blinded by Bourbon - Summer Holiday Edition
With Evan Eckersley and Harmony Marie Pollick of Kensington Wine Market
Andrew wanted to call this the "America - F*** Yeah Edition" since the tasting nearly coincides with the country's Independence Day. In a rare fit of maturity, Evan nixed that idea.
This blind tasting features a lineup of 8 different American Whiskies (mostly Bourbon) that Harmony and Evan are excited to taste and discuss with you. Most of these bottlings have only hit the shelves in the past 3 or 4 months, allowing us to find some new favourites!
LINEUP SPOILERS BELOW....
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[Spoiler]
1 - Redemption Wheated Bourbon
2 - EH Taylor Small Batch
3 - Yellowstone Toasted Staves
4 - Old Forester 1910
5 - Knob Creek 12 Year Old
6 - Still Austin The Artist Rye
7 - Jack Daniel's Single Barrel Rye 64.95%
8 - Starlight Carl T Bourbon PX Cask Finish
[/Spoiler]
Adelphi 30th Anniversary Tasting with Carl Crafts
Adelphi 30th Anniversary Tasting with Carl Crafts
Carl Crafts of Adelphi and Ardnamurchan joins with Andrew Ferguson of Kensington Wine Market to run through one heck of virtual tasting with little to no help from Evan Eckersley. The stellar tasting lineup which includes a 36 year old grain, a 40 year old Miltonduff, a 26 year old Bowmore, and more.
Good times are had by all. Parma Violets and Parma Violence are discussed for their relative merit as tasting notes and KWM branded T-shirts, while the tasting itself struggles to stay on track.
Lineup Order:
Adelphi 30th Annv. North British 1987 - 36 Year Old - 47.5%
Adelphi Miltonduff 1982 - 40 Year Old - 50.4%
Ardnamurchan AD 2023 Paul Launois Cask 57.1%
Ardnamurchan AD Cask Strength 2023 58.1%
Adelphi 30th Annv. Akkeshi 2018 Peated
Adelphi The Sandebud Fusion 58.9%
Adelphi Caol Ila 2016 Cask 26580 - 58.5%
Adelphi 30th Annv. Bowmore 1997 - 26 Year Old - 55.5%
Glenfarclas Summer 2023 Family Casks Virtual Tasting
The Summer 2023 (S23) Glenfarclas Family Casks have arrived, and we have selected 8 of them for a vertical tasting. Our range includes the following S23 releases:
TASTING ORDER
Glenfarclas Family Cask 1985 S23 - 42.5%
Glenfarclas Family Cask 1994 S23 - 53.6%
Glenfarclas Family Cask 2000 S23 - 52.2%
Glenfarclas Family Cask 2004 S23 - 54.2%
Glenfarclas Family Cask 2005 S23 - 59.6%
Glenfarclas Family Cask 2006 S23 - 58%
Glenfarclas Family Cask 2007 S23 - 60.1%
Glenfarclas Family Cask 2008 S23 - 59.1%
Benromach Single Casks, a New Contrast, & Two 40 Year Olds!
Fancy a lineup of 8 Benromachs, never before featured in a KWM tasting... we thought you might. For this one we will be sampling 5 single casks, from 2002, 2003, 2011, and 2013 (two), as well as the n
SMWS Canada June 2024 Virtual Outturn
SMWS Canada June 2024 Outturn Virtual
With Evan, Harmony, Rob and Kelly
Tasting ORDER:
REDS, GREENS, AND YELLOWS
LIME AND THYME
RICH AS CAKE, A LITTLE SOURDOUGH
PANEL PIGGIES' PARADISE
TRULY A FLAVOUR BOMB
SIPPING SHERRY FROM POLISHED WOODEN CUPS
SOUND OF SINGING SAND
More Cooper's Choice Curiosities
More Cooper's Choice Curiosities
You asked for it, you got it... we do listen! We have a range of 8 whiskies from the Cooper's Choice range selected for this one, Aberfeldy 7 Year, Ardmore 2003, Bunnahabhain Smoking Sherry Beast, Campbeltown Blended Malt, Caol Ila 14 Year, Caol Ila Smoking Blackberries, Highland Park Heather Smoke, and Strathclyde 1993.
TASTING ORDER
Cooper's Choice Strathclyde 1993 - 28 Year Old
Cooper's Choice Campbeltown Blended Malt 2014 - 9 Year Old
Cooper's Choice Aberfeldy 2015 - 7 Year Old
Cooper's Choice Highland Park Heather Smoke & Strawberries
Cooper's Choice Ardmore 2003 - 17 Year Old
Cooper's Choice Bunnahabhain Smoke Sherry Beast
Cooper's Choice Caol Ila 2008 - 14 Year Old
Cooper's Choice Caol Ila Smoking Blackberries
Glen Garioch Glen Rothes... Whisky is for Closers!
When you die, you are going to regret the things you don't do'... don't let one of those things be this tasting! We have assembled an assortment of 7 Glen Garioch expressions, 4 of them official bottl
Lochlea Distillery - 5 Years & Counting with Darren McCormick
Almost no one knew about Lochlea Distillery until they were nearly ready to release their first whisky. That they were able to build and operate a distillery for nearly 3 years, almost completely under the radar, was quite a feat. Two years on from their first release, the distillery has a new 5-year-old single malt, and we'll be sampling it along with 6 other Lochlea expressions. Barely more than 50 bottles of the Lochlea 5 Year are coming to Alberta, and our allocation is only a small fraction of that. We will be giving participants in this tasting a first crack at the bottles!
Tasting Order:
1. Our Barley
2. Sowing Edition
3. Harvest Edition
4. Fallow Edition
5. Ploughing Edition
6. Cask Strength
7. 5 year old
Singling Out Signatory Sherry Casks
Yes, this tasting is a bit pricey... but not when you consider it includes two 1st Fill Sherry Cask, cask-strength Macallans: an 18, and a 25-year-old... and that is just for starters. There is also a
G&M KWM Casks Launch with Richard Urquhart
In addition to being an all-around great guy, Richard Urquhart is also a trooper... he's going to get up at 2 AM UK time to help us mark the launch of our latest KWM exclusive casks from Gordon & MacP
High West Virtual Tasting
Straight outta Utah. It might surprise you that this state is the location of one of the best whiskey makers and blenders in the USA, but it is! High West Distillery has been operating in Park City, Utah since 2007 and has been responsible for many fantastic bottlings of Bourbon, Rye, and more ever since. Join us and High West virtually as we tour through their whisky lineup (including the Midwinter Night's Dram).
TASTING ORDER:
1 - High Country
2 - Bourbon
3 - Bourbon Rum Cask
4 - Double Rye
5 - Rendezvous Rye
6 - A Midwinter Nights Dram
7 - Campfire
High West's main bottles can be ordered here:
https://www.kensingtonwinemarket.com/products?gsearch=C050724
SMWS May 2024 Virtual Outturn
Scotch Malt Whisky Society May 2024 Virtual Outturn
TASTING ORDER
1 - FIRM AND FRUITY
2 - FREE AS A BEE
3 - DO YOU FEEL LUCKY, PUNK?
4 - TRULY A BRAW DRAM
5 - LOCK, STOCK, AND TWO SMOKING FUNNELS
6 - SALTED MARZIPAN SANDWICH
7 - RETRO WALNUT ASHTRAY
New GlenAllachie Pt.2 - Classic Speyside
New GlenAllachie Part 2 - Classic Speyside
For the second of our New GlenAllachie tastings, James and Andrew will be showcasing two new single casks, both from 2011 and bottled for Canada, and a trio of 10 Year Cask Strength bottlings (batches 8, 9, and 10). To round out the range we will also be sampling the 15 Year, and 21 Year Cask Strength Batch 4.
TASTING ORDER
1 - GlenAllachie 15 Year Old
2 - GlenAllachie 21 Year Batch 4
3 - GlenAllachie 2011 PX Sherry Cask #4493
4 - GlenAllachie 2011 Ruby Port Cask #7444
5 - GlenAllachie 10 Yr Cask Strength Batch 8
6 - GlenAllachie 10 Yr Cask Strength Batch 9
7 - GlenAllachie 10 Yr Cask Strength Batch 10
https://www.kensingtonwinemarket.com/products?gsearch=C043024
Crazy About Craigellachie
Crazy About Craigellachie
We love ourselves some Craigellachie at KWM, and there is a decent selection of it in the market right now. So it seemed like an appropriate time to sample a wee selection of them... the only thing is, it isn't so wee a selection... sometimes less is not always more... but we had to draw a line somewhere, so we capped the range at 8! We'll sample the distillery-bottled 13 and 17 year olds, a trio of Craigellachie independent bottlings from the early 2000s, and three others aged 10-15 years. We think you'll leave this tasting feeling crazy for Craigellachie too!
TASTING ORDER
1 - Craigellachie 13 Year
2 - Craigellachie 17 Year
3 - Whisky Sponge Craigellachie 2003 KWM Cask
4 - G&M Connoisseurs Choice Craigellachie 2002
5 - Dumangin Whisky Craigellachie 2007
6 - Cadenhead Original Craigellachie 15 Year Port Cask Matured
7 - Great Drams Craigellachie 10 Yr PX Cask
8 - SMWS 44.180 - A FORAGE INTO ORANGE
Compass Box Curiosities & a New KWM Cask
Compass Box Curiosities & a New KWM Cask
KWM's 5th Compass Box Marrying Cask is landing soon, so we have convinced Scott Eliis to join us remotely for another virtual session. The range will include three versions of the Glasgow Blend, two of which were bottle for KWM. We will also be featuring a couple of very limited new releases, Metropolis from the Extinct Blends Quarter, as well as Art & Decadence. How limited are these two, well they are so limited that we have decided to hold 4 bottles of each back, to offer them for sale to tasting participants! Because we always do at least 7 whiskies, we are rounding out the lineup with the superb new Flaming Heart, and a blast from the past, Juveniles!
TASTING ORDER
1 - Juveniles
2 - Art & Decadence
3 - Metropolis
4 - Glasgow Blend 43%
5 - Glasgow Blend 2021 KWM Cask 2 49%
6 - Glasgow Blend 2024 KWM Cask 3 49%
7 - Flaming Heart 2023
