My girlfriend and I bought this Balmenach 9yo at The Vaults, the spiritual home of The Scotch Malt Whisky Society, on the first day of our latest trip to Scotland. To be honest, we predominantly picked it because it was one of the cheapest whiskies they had on sale. (more…)
Born in Glasgow but at home in cities big and small around the globe, The Epicurean is the Lowlands expression of Douglas Laing’s popular Remarkable Regional Malts range. It is the second-to-last member of the pack (only to be succeeded by the annual limited edition bottling (more…)
Having started as an independent bottler of high-quality single malt whiskies (plus the occasional grain or bourbon thrown in between), North Star has recently also made a name for itself as a blender. Their first such bottling, Vega 23yo, took the whisky community by storm (more…)
“When you are in Elgin, make sure to stop by at The Drouthy Cobbler for a dram and a nibble!” – While planning my first-ever visit to Speyside, I did not hear this advice once or twice, but at least a dozen times. As this left me with no other option than checking the much-praised venue out (more…)
Usually, I either buy the whiskies I introduce on BarleyMania myself or borrow them from friends. But every now and then, I also receive a sample from a distillery or from an independent bottler. Although I understand that some of you might question the impartiality (more…)
It’s funny how amazing things can be the result of pure happenstance. When I first tried The Exceptional Grain by Sutcliffe & Son at a local whisky bar, I only did so because it was accidentally listed as a Compass Box release in the menu. (more…)
For almost a year, Aaron and I protocolled our whisky experiences together on BarleyMania before he went on to form his own blog, Drams United, in late 2017. Although we are no longer sharing our content in the same place, we keep meeting regularly to attend tastings (more…)
Prior to this particular drop, German whisky mailorder and indie bottler Whic did already launch two other expressions in their “Nymphs of Whisky” series, namely a Glenturret 22yo and a Cambus 25yo. Since I missed out on both of them, however, the release of Whic’s (more…)
When visiting a distillery, one of the best souvenirs you can take home is a bottle that is exclusively available on site. While some production units offer these special releases as prefabricated bottlings that can be grabbed directly from the shelf, others not only sell you the whisky itself (more…)
When you operate a well-sorted whisk(e)y shop, host regular tasting events and attend a lot of fairs as an exhibitor, you will naturally end up with quite a few open bottles in your assortment. To solve this luxury problem, Pinkernells Whisky Market in Berlin (more…)
