The Mortlach distillery is one of only three distilleries using partial triple distillation as also practised at Benrinnes and Springbank.  The house style is often described as full, rich and robust, with the spirit showing a great affinity for sherrywood, resulting in some magnificent older botllings.  Independent bottlings from the likes of Gordon & MacPhail are fairly [...]

One of the oldest distilleries that no-one’s ever heard of, Miltonduff was originally an illegal farm distillery called Milton, adding the ‘Duff’ when it obtained its license in 1824.  Yet it is second only to Glenlivet in Pernod Ricard’s Chivas group of distilleries, with a massive potential capacity of over 5 million litres/year.  Many describe the style [...]

Closed in 1985, Millburn distillery was the first to be established in Inverness.  Little or no single malt from Millburn was released during its lifetime, but there were some interesting Rare Malt versions in the mid-’90s and several independent bottlings have also appeared.  The house style was full and occasionally smoky. Independent bottlings aren’t that [...]

Mannochmore is notable as being the source distillery for the infamous Loch Dhu, a ‘black’ single malt marketed in the 1990s.  Despite its short lifespan, Loch Dhu is now a cult product with bottles changing hands for hundreds of pounds.  This is in stark contrast to the more modestly-priced standard Flora & Fauna 12yo expression, which remains [...]

Macduff, having been founded in 1962 is a relatively new distillery.  The spirit from Macduff distillery has been subject to a number of experiments over the years, being the first distillery to use a metal mash-tun or steam heating.  Official bottlings have been released under the name of Glen Deveron, while independent bottlings use the [...]

The new millennium has witnessed great success for The Macallan. In 2002, The Macallan Fine & Rare collection was launched, winning accolades and praise from experts and connoisseurs alike. In 2004, The Macallan received its sixth Queen’s Award for Enterprise and launched The Macallan Fine Oak to worldwide critical acclaim. In 2005, a single bottle [...]

The Blended Scotch Whisky with arguably  the world’s best known whisky trademark – the black Scottish Terrier and white West Highland White Terrier is very popular in France and South America. It is a blend well known for containing a relatively high percentage of  ‘grain whisky’ – between 60 and 65% which is higher than [...]

Longrow is the peated, double-distilled single malt produced at the Springbank distillery in Campbeltown.  The attention to detail used and refusal to meddle with the old way of doing things must be a major reason for the quality of whisky produced at Springbank, which is frequently feted as amongst the very best in Scotland. The reputation of [...]

Until recently Longmorn Single Malt Scotch Whisky was a very well-kept secret.  Long classed as a blender’s favourite, Longmorn was little-seen as a single malt in the days of the brands creation, but nowadays it has made a significant impact on the marketplace.  This was down to increased marketing, and a more varied selection of [...]

Also known as St Magdalene, this lost Lowlands distillery was built in the mid-18th century by Sebastian Henderson and operated for well over 200 years before being closed in the great cull of 1983.  As you can imagine, the marketplace is hardly overflowing with supply Linlithgow Single Malt Scotch Whisky so if you plan on [...]

First produced in 1825  Bell’s Blended Scotch Whisky has for many years been the biggest selling whisky blend in the UK. The traditional home of the blend is Blair Athol distillery, Pitlochry, Perthshire whose malt is at its heart and gives the blend its distinctive rich, nutty and spiced flavour. Enjoyed by many and should [...]

Ballantine’s is the best-selling Scotch whisky in Europe and the number three Scotch whisky in the world. The Ballantine’s line up of blends is one of the most comprehensive consisting of Finest, 12, 17, 21 and 30-year-old expressions. Each one follows on from the one before being instantly recognisable as ballantine’s. The key characteristics are [...]

Antiquary is an extremely mellow blended scotch whisky and is one of the deluxe blends where both the malt and grain whiskies in the blend are a minimum of twelve years old. Named after one of Sir Walter Scott’s novels it is a scotch classic through and through. There are some excellent prices available so [...]

Although there has been some controversy lately regarding Johnnie Walker’s link with its long term home of Kilmarnock, Scotland, the blended whisky brand is still going strong.  Now owned by drinks giant Diageo,  Johnny Walker whisky is still spread across niche labels which represent different blends and uses.  No matter how you like to enjoy your [...]

The Auchentoshan 12 Year Old Single Malt Whisky is one of our personal favourites and its now available to buy with a saving of £2.  We know its hardly a huge discount but its still a positive reduction on a fantastic, and inexpensive whisky.

There is no doubt that Ardbeg Blasda was one of the most talked about releases of 2008 and that process is about to start again thanks to its current sale price.  For a limited time only you can buy your very own bottle at a saving of almost £4. Many tasters think that the Blasda [...]

It is thought that distillation technology reached medieval Europe around the 12th century, with Ireland & Germany being the first countries where distilled spirits became widely available to the populace.  However, some sources claim that Irish monks were distilling spirits in the 6th century. This heritage has helped Irish Whiskey become some of the most [...]

For some time many people believed that Japanese Whisky couldn’t quite measure up to the traditional Scotch style and until very recently most of Jaapan’s whisky was consumed domestically with very little travelling abroad. Thankfully people’s opinion of Japanese whisky changed which is possibly down to the many excellent reviews received on blind tastings and [...]