Mackmyra 1st Edition Swedish single malt was a bit of an epiphany purchase for me at the LCBO. Having recently returned from the whisky trail in Scotland I was on the hunt for an inexpensive yet interesting bottle (the gold standard for the frugal whisky enthusiast). Mackmyra's bright contemporary packaging suggests a young whisky and its Swedish origin held the promise of something a little bit different. This expression is aged in 100 litre casks, which accelerates the aging process, and weighs in at 46.1% unchillfiltered. There is no age statement.

For some time now the choice glass of whisky festivals the world over has been the Glencairn glass, and most often these are also the first places people have a chance to try a glass made for whisky. Typically emblazoned with the festival logo, or that of the distillery being visited, it has become a de facto festival requirement, and a staple of the whisky world. 

Peated expressions are far from anything new in the world of Scotch whisky. Yet there is something distinctly different about this offering from one of the smallest distilleries in Speyside. 

Founded in 1881 by the Harvey family and brought back to life by Mark Reynier, Jim McEwan, and company in 2001, Bruichladdich's first spirit to flow forth from the stills after the rebirth is designed to reach back to the distillery's past. Lightly peated at 10ppm and served up at a hearty 46% ABV, it is hard to believe that this whisky spent just 7 years in the cask. 

Gordon & MacPhail's bottling of Mortlach new make aged 15 years in refill sherry casks shows that sometimes, you can have too much of a good cask...   

On Thursday March 22, 2012 ScotchBlog.ca hosted a whisky tasting featuring Tullibardine Distillery at Quinn's Steakhouse & Irish Bar.

Guests were treated to six expressions of Tullibardine, including a 1964 cask strength, along with food pairings and a fascinating miscellany of anecdotes, digressions, and factual tidbits about the distillery from Tullibardine's International Sales Manager, James Robertson.

On Thursday, March 22nd (yes, that is next Thursday) at 7pm we are inviting people to join us somewhere in Toronto as we welcome James Robertson from Tullibardine to guide 40 of us through a tasting of 6 whiskies from a distillery that is a personal favourite of mine. 

While we haven't had much of a winter here in Toronto this year, Sunday gave us a cold, brisk wind and proper wintery temperatures. What better day to drink a warming dram that was built on Glenmorangie's recreation of its turn-of-century base whisky?

Finealta translates from Gaelic to mean elegant and this Private Edition rises to that challenge. There is no question that this is a Glenmorangie dram and it proves to meet, if not exceed, The Original.

Nose: Floral, honeyed clover with peach and citrus give way to a strong orange creamsicle with hints of almond and a wisp of smoke giving a warm welcome.

This bottle was hand-delivered from England into our eager hands, long before the product was available at the LCBO.  Luckily stocks are still quite good on this relative rarity, currently at well over 100 bottles in Toronto area stores.  As the title infers, this edition of the 21 year old commemorates the 200th anniversary of the Jura distillery.  The spirit is a deep amber colour that may be drawn from its vintage 1963 Oloroso sherry cask finish.  The bottle is elegantly packaged and comes with an invitation to a special tasting at the Isle of Jura Distillery from Distillery Manager, Willie Cochrane.

The Springbank distillery actually produces three different brands of single malt at the one location -  Springbank, Longrow and Hazelburn. In addition to being one of the few operating distilleries located in Campbeltown, they also are one of the only distilleries that performs all malting, distilling, aging, and bottling on-site. Given this, it's no surprise that Springbank was shortlisted in Whisky Magazine's distillers of the year back in 2010. The Springbank CV expression combines various aged Springbank malts aged in a mixture of casks including ones that formerly held bourbon, sherry and port.

Nose: Cedar/piney with menthol giving way to a mild sweetness. There are bready undertones complimented by sour fruit.