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…)
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…)
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…)
Although I got these samples directly from Yorkshire-based whisky company Claxton’s, I have not indicated them as promotional items (as I usually do in such cases). That’s because I did not receive them in my function as editor for BarleyMania, but as a whisky fan “in private”: (more…)
I must confess that this single cask bottling from the Spirit & Cask Range did not sound too tempting to me at first. In this age span, you find quite a lot of bourbon-matured whiskies from Southern Islay; and usually they are a bit more friendly to your wallet. (more…)
When I saw on a flyer that Osaka Whisky Festival 2018 took place last Sunday (June 3), I thought to myself: “Well, this looks like a much better way to end the week than sitting at home and watching Netflix!”. So I ordered myself a ticket. (more…)
Every year, the Islay Festival of Whisky & Music finds its big finale in rollicking festivities on the premises of the easternmost of the so-called Kildalton distilleries on the island’s south shore. But it’s not only there that Ardbeggians go crazy on that day. (more…)
