Monthly Archives: October 2024

2024 London Whisky Show – Balblair 21 year

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London’s Whisky Show has so many amazing drams for sampling. After whetting our palates with the delightful Old Pulteney Coastal Series Port, we shifted gears to embrace the full fabulousness with the Balblair 21 year!

Currently retailing for approx GBP 300, what do the folks at Balblair have to say?

This 21 Year Old Whisky started its journey maturing in American Oak Ex-bourbon barrels for fifteen years; however, its distinctive character was created by an extended further maturation period. We meticulously hand-selected the finest Spanish Oak casks seasoned with Oloroso wine for the final six years of the ageing process, imparting spiced, fruity flavours and a deep, rich colour.

For this dram, we couldn’t just sniff and swish… we lingered… savouring the experience. On the nose, we found it soft and nuanced. A mix of tropical and orchard fruits, sweet spices, enticing. On the palate, it continued with ripe fruits, even fresh dates, well-rounded and complex with a lovely softness. The close was toasted nuts and dried fruits enveloped in rich chocolate.

What a treat!

Curious about other Balblair‘s we’ve enjoyed over the years?

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2024 London Whisky Show – Old Pulteney Port and 25 year

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The doors to the 2024 Whisky Show opened and the throngs poured in. Our plan was to find the right calibration dram or two, and then beeline for our Dream Dram picks!

And then we spotted the Inver House stand – with two favourites Balblair and Old Pulteney. How could we resist?

We began with the Old Pulteney Coastal Series Port 46% The 1st in this series was the Pineau des Charentes 46% with the Port the 2nd.

Old Pulteney Port is the second expression in The Coastal Series. Matured in both Ruby Port Pipes and Ruby Port Barriques, which once held an iconic sweet, red, fortified wine native to the Douro Valley of northern Portugal. The sweet flavours of the wine pair perfectly with the briny notes The Maritime Malt is known for.

What did we think in our sniff & swish?

It began with a light teasingly sweet aroma – fruity with loads of apples! Nice and crisp! Followed on the palate with honey – dry yet joyful with a dash of cinnamon. And closed on a nice spice finish with a hint of salty minerals. Delicious!

And what would it set you back? Approx GBP 76.

We returned later in the day to indulge in the Old Pulteney 25 year 46%. This experience clearly fell into the category of “I can’t afford but DANG that’s good!” It was launched at GBP 500 and may be tricky to find at that price already!

Here’s what the folks at Old Pulteney have to say about it…

For a quarter of a century, casks of this rare expression of Old Pulteney Single Malt Scotch Whisky breathed the invigorating sea air of the Caithness coast. Sheltered from a fast-changing world by the darkened calm of a distillery warehouse, the spirit mellowed at its own steady pace, echoing the reassuring rhythm of its hometown port. Aged firstly in American oak, its spicy sweetness was later granted depth and colour by casks of Spanish oak. Elegant and charismatic, this wonderful whisky embodies both Wick’s spirit of endurance and Pulteney Distillery’s devotion to its craft.

What did we think?

On the nose, it started off a bit dusty yet wonderfully delicious – loads of creamy, toffee, warm tropical fruits, rich and revealing. Proudly offering a range of aromas from fruit to dark woods and much more! The palate was mouth-watering – the kind of supremely good cask management that leads to a well-rounded rewarding dram even at 25 years! It was rich, and full-bodied without being overwhelming. We were literally salivating as we rolled around the dark chocolate yuminess in our mouths. And the finish? Simply fabulous! Dry, rich, sweet.

PS… you see that sneaky hand reaching out for the pastel da nata? They were sinfully delicious! And a real draw to the booth.

Curious about other experiences with Old Pulteney?

And best of all? A chance to catch up with the amusing and knowledgable Stuart Baxter…

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The Whisky Warehouse No. 8 – Allt á Bhainne, Benrinnes, Craigellachie, Dundalk Dew

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For a whisky explorer, small 20 ml bottles are a perfect way to try! Enter the Whisky Warehouse No 8 quartet – a mix of different drams that made its way from Nuremberg to Winnipeg… and then waited for more than a year for just the right evening in October 2024!

We decided to try the drams in the following order…. Some were “Yes please”, some were “Not for me”. Overall it was good fun to split between the three of us!

  • Ireland – Dundalk Dew 9 year (2009) Single Grain  58,7 %
  • Speyside –  Craigellachie 12 year (2007) 50 %
  • Speyside – Allt á Bhainne 11 year (2008) 61,5%
  • Speyside – Benrinnes 23 year (1997) 1st Fill Barrique Chateau Lafite 55.9%

We naturally started with the Irish grain, anticipating it would be a nice way to ease into our tasting set.

Dundalk Dew 9 year (June 2009 – Sep 2018) Single Grain, Bourbon Barrel Cask No W8118  58,7 %. 126 Bottles

  • Nose – Curious… it began a bit musty, then florals, some cereals, honey, opening further into cream and vanilla
  • Palate – Had a strength of character with no harshness, surprisingly balanced, uncomplicated yet imminently sippable, some bitter tart crisp apples
  • Finish – Not much but then not much was expected either

For a young grain, it was quite remarkable. There was a fresh summery quality – a nice warm weather dram where the appealing aromas follow through with a pleasant palate.

Rather a nice way to begin our evening!

We carried on with the Craigellachie – opting for a touch of sherry at a lower ABV over the Allt á Bhainne at 61.5%!

Craigellachie 12 year (Oct 2007 – Dec 2019) Olorosso Sherry Hogshead Cask No W8 900680 50,5%. 279 Bottles

  • Nose – Sour mash, apple sauce, toffee, over-ripe peaches, eases into red striped caramel hard candy
  • Palate – Bland… a bit blah actually with just generic fruit
  • Finish – Limited

Without water, it wasn’t much. The sour mash and over-ripe fruit aromas were almost overwhelming. However with water? It was a different dram entirely!

  • Nose – Is that toast and butter? Slathered in marmalade
  • Palate – Smooth honeyed sweetness
  • Finish – Lingers

As we contemplated our glasses, it was hard to think this was the same whisky! The more time in the glass, the warmer and more enjoyable it became.

Next up was another Speyside – this time from Allt á Bhainne – I believe the first I’ve tried from their distillery. Interestingly, it has a Canadian connect –  founded in 1975 by Seagrams, passing to Pernard Ricard, assigned to its Chivas Regal division, largely used in blends with a period of even mothballed for a couple of years before being re-activated in 2005.

Allt á Bhainne 11 year (Aug 2008 – Jan 2020) Garrison Bourbon Cask No W8 120815 61,5%. 72 bottles

  • Nose – Ah! Now we are talking! We were greeted by orchard fruits – crisp green apples and pears, then it shifted into chocolate and fruit – think a high-end orange peel and dark chocolate. Yum! The more it opened, the more enticing it became – strawberry and cream
  • Palate – Quite a bit of spice – not so surprising at 61.5%! Warm
  • Finish – Sweet spices of cloves and cinnamon
  • Water – Do try. Whilst it dampens the nose, it does wonders for the palate. Whilst it still has a prickle of spice, it is now more like Christmas pudding with a warm whisky sauce than hot spice!

This one really grew on us… I wasn’t sure what to expect but this dram had promise.

Last up we went to an older Benrinnes. Now I must admit, I’ve had some mixed experiences with this distillery.

Benrinnes 23 year (Oct 1997 – July 2021) 1st Fill Barrique Chateau Lafite Cask No W8 5721 55.9%. 84 Bottles.

  • Nose – Woah? Is that peat? Yup! A clean dry wood smoke – unmistakable and completely unexpected. Think apple wood chips smoldering. Also hay bales, roasted hazelnut.
  • Palate – Start well then changes, catching one at the back of the throat, unbalanced
  • Finish – More smoke
  • Water – Like the others – water is recommended. It makes it a bit more approachable

I was prepared for a great or disappointing experience. However, I was not prepared for peat. Which is a good reminder to keep an open mind and be ready to be surprised!

What about prior explorations from Whisky Warehouse No. 8? Over the last couple of years, we’ve sampled a few – with the Glencadam 8 being exceptional! Here is a short summary:

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London’s Whisky Show 2024

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It has become an annual pilgrimage. Fall is time for me to fly to London and join my friend for the Whisky Show weekend. This year we splurged and bought passes for both Saturday and Sunday. As we had manic work and travel leading up to the weekend, it was a bit last minute when we sat down with the whisky list to plan our priorities. We were clear this year would be fewer stalls, with more time spent in conversation wherever possible.  



Day 1 – September 7, 2024


From past experience, we knew after a wee warm-up, we should make a bee-line for our preferred Dream Dram before it was too late! Here is how our 1st day unfolded:




Day 2 – September 8, 2024

Back for another day, we knew we wanted to have a mix of old and new plus I’d booked us a “Mainstage” session too – a real highlight. Here are a few stalls we visited on the last day:


  • Glenfarclas 15 year – a perfect calibration dram!

  • Whisky Auction – for our Dream Drams of Brora 1981 and Glen Grant 12 year from the 1970s

  • Decadent Drinks – Farewell to Whisky Sponge, Solstice & Equinox, Notable Age Statements and more!

  • Ichiro’s Malt blends – a nice wander through their collection

  • Ardnahoe – Welcome to Hunter Laing’s Islay Distillery

  • Hunter Laing – First Editions and Old Malt Casks from Auchroisk, Ardmore, Craigellachie to a Glen Grant 25!

  • Mainstage with festival picks

  • Introducing a new English distillery with Wire Works 

  • Woven Blends – What a fabulous experience with a special blend made just for my tasting companion and me!

  • Cardrona – A couple whiskies and the most wonderful Vodka – The Reid!

And KI-One from South Korea

Don’t laugh, but one of the “hits” of the Whisky Show was the Cardrona vodka! A fest tasting tip I’m glad we received!


In the coming months, I will take my time to slowly share a few impressions of specific experiences. As always, it is worth the trip – both for the company and the curation of a wide array of whiskies!



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Ireland’s Dingle Single Malt 2021 46.3%

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Sometimes when you order whiskies online in Germany, a little “extra” is thrown in. Such was the case with this wee Dingle mini.

Now it isn’t my first brush with Dingle, back in 2019 it featured in an evening of Irish whiskies – where we sampled Dingle Triple Distilled Batch 3 46.5%. As for this sample, I’m not sure which batch it is, however I understand it was matured in PX-Sherry and ex-Bourbon casks.

Dingle Single Malt (2021) 46.3%

  • Nose – Much like my earlier experience, I found it quite vegetal, an odd approach like compost and old leaves. It became sweeter, with cereals, minerals, and fresh seawater. A hint of cinnamon… over time it also revealed some herbs and perhaps even a touch of lime? Also a bit “dusty” for lack of a better way to describe
  • Taste – A prickly spice to start (it was the 1st dram after all!), after the harshness settled down a bit, revealed some raisins, mixed with bitter nuts
  • Finish – Peculiar… closest I could think of was rancid walnuts.. bitter and not very pleasant

It did not excite or delight. I set it aside to see if and how it changes with more time. Nope. Not for me.

What do the folks at Dingle have to say? Well… without knowing exactly which batch, can’t say for certain. As for what would it set you back? If you picked it up at Whic.de, you would be looking at Eur 45.

I must admit that though it was nice to get a sample, this would not have been my pick! However, that’s the whole point of a “bonus” – an opportunity to tease you into trying something you may not have selected off the shelf!

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