In the wide range of whisky flavoured products available, orange marmalade and mustard must be two of the best known and most sold. So far as marmalade goes, Mackays appears to be the winning brand in Scotland. If you go in to any whisky shop here in the lovely Capital you’ll find their jams on one of the back shelves. So far as I know, they’ve got at least four varieties; Macallan, Bowmore, Famous Grouse and Glenfarclas.
The rolling hills of the highlands seldom disappoint, whether it be their whisky or natural beauty you are after. Located within them is the distillery of Balblair, which is one of the oldest distilleries in Scotland –having been officially established in 1790 – yet they do not hold the recognition within the whisky world which you would expect from their history. They are by no means unknown to connoisseurs’ and regular drinkers, but they deserve to be known far more widely than they are.
Having mainly covered the classic whisky cocktails thus far – Rusty Nail, Whisky Sour, Rob Roy and the like – I thought it was about time that I threw a curveball (the use of an American saying very much intended). While Eggnog is traditionally had in the winter and around Christmas in particular, you can have it any time you darn well fancy, and as it is a favourite of mine, I certainly do. I love the creaminess, and thanks to all the protein-rich egg you can feel good about yourself for having it after a workout (or long walk.. or just a walk.. or after watching a Zumba fitness advert on TV).
Having reviewed Alba and Fraoch already, I couldn’t resist reviewing their other “Historic Ales” as well. After all, they’ve got that authentically Scottish feel to them and that, in many ways, is what this blog is about. The historic range includes another three ales, but I had my heart set on reviewing them in pairs – and so I ruddy well shall. The solution is simple; I’m going to review one of their non-historic ales as well.
I can’t quite decide whether I like single barrel expressions or not. The arguments pro single barrel are that it offers a bit of variation without, necessarily, being all too different from what you know and love (assuming you’ve had a sip from one bottle, liked it, and gone on to purchase another). It lets you find an expression you like and offers enough variation for you not to get too bored too quickly, meaning you can buy it over and over. As great as that is, it also means that you can buy a bottle and absolutely love it, drink it all, purchase another thinking it will be the same – but more often than not it simply won’t be. The subtle differences, then, can be a source of both joy and tears.
With the amount of reviews I have written on the blog thus far, I had a rather surprising moment of realisation the other day; I still had not reviewed a single Balvenie expression! It is about time, then, that I do so.
I doubt Balvenie will be a new name to any of my readers, and as many of you will be well aware they have picked up quite an impressive range of awards for their various expressions – as I’ve said so many a time before, though, it often does seem that nearly any whisky that hits the market will be awarded with some gold medal or other. Anyhow, Balvenie have released several PortWood expressions including 1989, 1991 and 1993, and they have picked up several prestigious gold medals.
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