THE SCOTCH MALT WHISKY SOCIETY TO OPEN A NEW MEMBERS ROOM IN GLASGOW

The Scotch Malt Whisky Society, has today announced plans for a new Members Room in Glasgow.

The new venue on Bath Street, which will offer over 300 Society bottlings, is set to open at the end of January 2020.

The Scotch Malt Whisky Society to open a new Members Room in Glasgow

The new venue which is the society’s first in Glasgow, now joins its other Scottish locations in Edinburgh, including their home at The Vaults in Leith.

The new Members Room, which will be open every week from Tuesday until Sunday, will be set up for a range of occasions, with relaxed lounge seating, including a ‘Vaults Snug’, as well as more formal areas. The dedicated whisky tasting room can accommodate up to 10 people, and will be available for private tastings.

Commenting on the news, Jan Damen, Operations Director at The Scotch Malt Whisky Society, said: “We know there has always been a demand from our members for an SMWS venue in Glasgow, so we’re delighted to be opening in such a great city with a lively whisky scene. We have a high number of existing members in the city and the surrounding area, so we hope to provide them with their own venue to meet up and also welcome new whisky-loving members to join us there.”

Prior to the January opening of the new Glasgow Members Room, The Scotch Malt Whisky Society will be hosting an exclusive tasting event at the new location. Full details coming soon on their website and social media channels.

Posted by Steve Rush

FEW SPIRITS LAUNCHES NEW BOURBON IN COLLABORATION WITH ALICE IN CHAINS

The Chicago based FEW Spirits, has announced the launch of a new limited-edition bourbon expression, in collaboration with rock group Alice In Chains.

All Secrets Known (50.5% ABV) is a FEW Bourbon, which has been finished for 6 months in tequila barrels.

All Secrets Known

This latest limited-edition release, which takes its name from the opening track of Alice In Chains’ 2009 album Black Gives Way to Blue, is said to be bold, sweet, and spicy, delivering the top notes that have become the hallmark of FEW, but accentuated by grassy agave undertones.

Commenting on the news, Paul Hletko, FEW Spirits Master Distiller, said: “There are no two spirits that have a closer association with rock and roll than whiskey and tequila. Bringing together elements of both, but in an unconventional, innovative way, is an illustration of what we try to do every time we distil a new product.”

He went onto say: “Alice In Chains is part of one of very few movements that can be legitimately credited with shapeshifting an entire culture, beginning with their first album, Facelift. For us distilling, like making music, is about having the courage to ASK, ‘What if we…’ and being excited to find the answers – unlocking those secrets. Nobody sounds like Alice In Chains. We were inspired by their courage to create a sound that flouted convention and thought, ‘There are lots of tequilas finished in bourbon barrels, but it’s rare to find a widely-available bourbon finished in tequila barrels. Let’s do that instead’.”

All Secrets Known, is yet another foray for FEW Spirits into partnerships with internationally-renowned music acts. In 2006, Paul Hletko partnered with The Flaming Lips to create Brainville Rye Whiskey.

All Secrets Known, will be available later this month in selected US states, for a RRP of $75.00 – 750ml.

Posted by Steve Rush

HEAVEN HILL ANNOUNCES THE LAUNCH OF NEW LARCENY BOTTLING

Heaven Hill Distillery, has announced the launch of a new expression from its Larceny Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey range.

Larceny Barrel Proof (64% ABV) is a wheated bourbon, which will be released three times a year; January, May and September. Each bottling will vary in ABV and consist of barrels aged from between six to eight years old.

Larceny Barrel Proof

Larceny is the heir to the wheated bourbons that make up the historic Old Fitzgerald franchise acquired by Heaven Hill Distillery in 1999. Continuing the tradition of Old Fitzgerald using wheat in place of rye as the secondary grain in the mashbill, Larceny uses more wheat than any of its competitors for a softer, rounder character.

The brand is inspired by the history of John E. Fitzgerald, who as a treasury agent in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s was one of the only people legally allowed to carry the keys to the barrel storage rickhouses. With a discerning palate for fine bourbon, John E. Fitzgerald often used his rickhouse keys to gain access to some of the finest bourbon barrels for himself. Those barrels from which he chose to help himself were often referred to as “Fitzgerald barrels” around the distillery.

First launched in 2012, Larceny is one of the most successful new-to-the-world bourbons in the past decade, enjoying both critical and consumer acclaim.

Commenting on the launch, Susan Wahl, Heaven Hill Distillery Group Product Director, said: “Larceny’s wheated Bourbon mashbill delivers a taste profile that is very approachable and smooth, a true crowd-pleaser. The addition of this non chill filtered, barrel proof offering to the Larceny family allows us to showcase a deeper character, richness and depth of flavor from our wheated Bourbon mashbill. Drawing from its lineage within the Old Fitzgerald family, Larceny Barrel Proof is an opportunity for Bourbon fans to taste a historical ‘wheater’ in its purest form."

Larceny Barrel Proof, will be available from January, from specialist retailers in the US, for a RRP of $49.99 -750ml.

Posted By Steve Rush