It’s very unusual for us to feature only one distillery in one of our monthly tasting boxes, because one of our core missions is to help people explore whisky. So you know that when we do, it’s for a very good reason. If you’re not already familiar with Loch Lomond Distillery, they have one of … Continue reading “Distillery Spotlight: Loch Lomond”
At The Dram Team we love a good old fashioned whisky “battle royale”. In past tasting boxes we have pitted sibling whiskies from the same distillery against each other, and put single malts from different countries up against some of Scotland’s finest to see who comes out on top. This month in our whisky tasting … Continue reading “The Lowland Showdown: Malt vs. Grain Whisky”
Ahh, sherry cask whisky. For many whisky snobs, a term that conjures nostalgic memories of our first gateway whisky sips. A type of cask that is deeply associated with many famous whisky houses – Macallan, Aberlour, Glenfarclas (well a lot of the Glen-somethings, actually) – and indeed with Scotch single malt whisky in general. If … Continue reading “Sherry Cask Whisky: A Guide”
What is whisky made from? It’s an important question because it’s more than an issue of taste alone; it can also be a legal issue (boo lawyers!). The core ingredients of whisky are water, yeast and a cereal grain. Water often comes from a natural spring, but it doesn’t have to. The yeast can be … Continue reading “What is whisky made from?”
Have you ever worried that your scotch whisky might go off? Imagine you’ve finally bought your dream bottle of whisky. Not a whisky to collect. The whisky you’ve always wanted to crack open and enjoy. You’ve saved it for a special occasion, poured yourself a good measure and taken a sip.
It’s everything you dreamed it would be. So, you put the top back on and wait for another special occasion. But have you made a horrible mistake? What if you wait years before you try it again? Can whisky go off? Can your whisky go out of date?
The reason for so many glen-something whiskies is because ‘glen’ means ‘valley’ in Gaelic.
There are a lot of hills in Scotland, so there are lots of glens. Distilleries are built in glens because:
1. You need a lot of water to make whisky, so the bottle of a valley is an excellent place to be.
2. It’s easier to build a distillery at the bottle of a hill than on top of one.
A lot of distilleries take their name from their location. It isn’t a surprise there are so many scotch whiskies that have glen in their name.