Angels' Nectar Whisky Caching - Grantown spoiler

#Grantown Spoiler: Take the Viewpoint walk from near the caravan park.  Find Carn a Chille Chearr on the viewpoint (more or less due east). The Angels’ Nectar Whisky Cache is hidden behind a rock in that direction, approx 16 paces.

Angels' Nectar Whisky Caching - Dufftown spoiler

Dufftown Spoiler: Take the Speyside way from Dufftown along the old railway line towards Craigellachie. On your right you’ll pass the former Convalmore distillery. A short distance after the last whisky warehouse there is a bench overlooking the River Fiddich. From there continue for approx 100 paces until the old railway line goes over a culvert. On your left there is a distinctive tree with numerous tree trunks, and nestling between them you should find the cache.  

The Ordnance Survey grid reference is 318433 on sheet 28. 

Just landed: Smögen Barrique!

At 7 Years Old, Smögen Barrique is the oldest Smögen Svensk Single Malt Whisky release to date. Distilled from heavily peated Optic barley in 2010 and matured in four 225 litre French Oak barriques, which have given 1685 500ml bottles at 60.3% Vol. 

Described by distiller/proprietor Pär Caldenby as ’This is a Big whisky. From the intensity of our malty and peaty distillate, to a full-on cask influence from four classical barriques that previously held a Bordeaux red wine, with toasted oak, ground coffee, dark cocoa, mulled berries and apricots. Not for the faint hearted - just as should be!’. 

For some reviews please see Samuel Whisky, The Ladies Share and Whisky Saga. 

Initially released in Sweden on the 1st of March it will soon be available from Hedonism Wines, Master of Malt, Nickolls & Perks, Shop4Whisky and The Whisky Exchange.  

Smögen Barrique!

Angels' Nectar Whisky Caching returns

After a successful launch last year, Angels’ Nectar Whisky Caching returns for the 19th Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival.
Similar to geo-caching, but with whisky, we are preparing a trail of three Angels’ Nectar Whisky Caches which will be hidden across Speyside during the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival. Guests will be able to find the whisky filled caches via a series of clues after registering for the event via the Spirit of Speyside website. The first to find each Angels’ Nectar Whisky Cache will be rewarded with one of our 200ml bottles of Angels’ Nectar Blended Malt Scotch Whisky, perfect for sharing.
Whilst there is no charge to take part, we ask that whisky cachers leave a whisky miniature (or better!) in place of the dram they find. Thus everyone who finds an Angels’ Nectar Whisky Cache will be a winner.    
Geo-caching is a worldwide treasure-hunting phenomenon, which started in 2000 and has grown to encompass more than three million caches across 190 countries. Our Angels’ Nectar version does not require GPS, but as the search for the caches will involve some light walking, outdoor clothing and footwear are recommended. The caches will also contain a logbook for participants to record their visit, and guests are asked to share their experience and tasting notes of the dram they find on social media, with #angelsnectarwhiskycache
We hope Angels’ Nectar Whisky Caching will encourage festival goers to explore Speyside’s beautiful countryside and discover new drams. Whilst there is no need to have been geo-caching before, for the whisky loving geo-cacher, what could be better than a trail of Angel inspired whisky filled caches. Angels’ Nectar Whisky Caching is one of more than 500 events due to take place across Speyside as part of the Spirit of Speyside Whisky Festival, which this year runs from the 3^rd to the 7^th of May. We will also be offering a chance to try Angels' Nectar at Elephants in the Pantry, Grantown-on-Spey, on the 4^th of May, Whisky Castle, Tomintoul, on the 5^th of May, and Brodie Countryfare, Forres, on the 6^th of May. 

Strane congratulates Twin Rivers

News has reached us over the weekend of the release Twin Rivers Naked Uncut Gin, bottled at 77%. Whilst I am yet to try this new gin, I congratulate Twin Rivers on the launch, and concede that Strane Uncut London Dry Gin 76% is no longer the strongest gin on the UK market.

Strane Uncut London Dry Gin was first bottled back in 2014, and came about as a consequence of the unusual way Strane is produced, not a deliberate attempt to try to produce the strongest gin. Looking to preserve the intensity of the flavours in gin distillation, Pär Caldenby, distiller/ proprietor of the Smögen Distillery, developed a methodology in which three base gins; citrus, herbal, and juniper are distilled with the same 12 botanicals but in different ratios. The bases are then blended before the addition of water to create Strane Merchant Strength London Dry Gin 47.4% and Strane Navy Strength London Dry Gin 57.1%. As Pär Caldenby blends the base gins straight from the still, he became accustomed to sampling Strane ‘uncut’, and decided to create an ‘Uncut’ addition to the Strane family. For Pär, ‘Uncut’ refers not just to the consequential high strength, but also to the intensity of flavour.

We first imported Strane Uncut London Dry Gin, at that time 75.3%, to the UK in the spring of 2015. Initially we were careful not to claim that it was the strongest gin, but as we received feedback from gin journalists and gin bars, it became clear that the next strongest gin in the UK market at the time was less than 70% vol.. 

It was always inevitable that at some point Strane Uncut would be knocked off the ‘strongest gin’ podium. We are simultaneously flattered that Strane Uncut has been copied, and surprised that with the current interest in gin, that Strane Uncut was the strongest gin available in the UK for so long, for three years from 2015 to 2018. 

Strongest gin or not, Strane Uncut 76% remains the original Uncut gin, and delivers a wonderfully powerful juniper burst, which we believe gin enthusiasts will continue to enjoy. 
Robert Ransom, UK Importer. 

The Strane Gin family

Just Landed: Smögen 6/6 Svensk Single Malt Whisky

We've just received a small allocation of Smögen 6/6, a 6 Year Old Single Malt of 59.2 %, 50ppm, matured in two large barrels of new Swedish Oak. Named 6/6 as the casks were filled appropriately  on Sweden’s national day, the 6th of June, in 2011. 

It is powerful, heavy and mature with base notes of peated malt and toasted, spicy European oak, which make this a special experience. 

Swedish whisky, filled into Swedish Casks, on Sweden's national day, this, as you can image, has been a popular dram back in Sweden. 660 of the 840 bottles released in the Systembolaget in November sold out in seconds.

For an independent review (Tone is an unbiased Norwegian after all), head over to the Ladies Share. Available now from Master of Malt, amongst others. 

Cheers!

Smögen 6/6 Svensk Single Malt Whisky

Introducing our 2008 Angels' Nectar Single Cask for Germany

So far with Angels' Nectar we have focused on releasing Blended Malts in small batches. Blended Malt is an all too often overlooked and misunderstood category of Scotch whisky. The production process is the same as per Single Malt, until the casks arrive at the bottling hall. However Blended Malt is a young category (its only been legally defined since 2009) so its less traditional. There is more freedom to innovate, be that in the blender’s lab, or in the bar. 

We have however had requests to bottle Angels' Nectar Single Casks, and I am just back from launching our second Angels’ Nectar Single Cask bottling. In partnership with our German importer Haromex we have selected a 2008 cask of Tullibardine as an exclusive release for Germany, which we launched at the recent Inter Whisky festival in Frankfurt. After nine years maturation this bourbon cask has given 228 bottles at cask strength of 56.6%.  Like our other whiskies, this has been bottled at natural colour and without chill-filtration. It’s a lovely sweet intensely fruity no nonsense dram.

Tullibardine is one of the more southerly Highland distilleries, located on the A9 between Stirling and Perth near Gleneagles. When they opened a new visitor centre about fifteen years ago, a couple of colleagues from Glenfarclas and I thought we would go and do their new distillery tour.  On arriving the guide, recognising me, announced loudly  ‘I’m teaching your parents to ballroom dance.’ I was taken aback, until then I was not aware that my folks had taken up ballroom dancing! But sure enough the guide was right. Scotland is a small country.

Finally, I must confess that not all 228 bottles have gone to Germany. We were married in 2008, so we’ve had to keep some back for an annual toast!


PS -  Amongst others the Angels’ Nectar 2008 Single Cask is available from Whisky World and Drinkology. 

Angels' Nectar 2008 Single Cask for Germany

Angels' Nectar at Inter Whisky with Haromex