Malt Messenger Bulletin – New Compass Box Whisky & a New Tasting!
The Dog Days of Summer are here, and most of you have likely turned your attention to things other than whisky. And who can blame you? Summer is short in our great nation, but it is glorious nonetheless. I wasn’t expecting to send out a Malt Messenger Bulletin until later in the week – and for a completely different reason, which I will hint at below – but then two whiskies we weren’t expecting to arrive until the Fall showed up unexpectedly.
One of our best selling whiskies in 2018 was the Compass Box No Name, aka “Compass Box Ardbeg”. John Glaser caused quite a stir when he took a parcel of Ardbeg and blended it with Caol Ila and Clynelish. Many people couldn’t believe the sacrilege of taking Ardbeg and polluting it. But having had the privilege to sample the Ardbeg on its own before blending, as well as the final product, I can assure you John took something good, and made it great. At the time we assumed it would be a one off. I was confident it would be a hit just because it contained Ardbeg. Then when I sampled it, I was certain.
The release of a second No Name came as a bit of a surprise. John didn’t have a special parcel of Ardbeg casks to work with this time, but rather sherried Caol Ila. Once again, John and his head blender Jill Boyd went to work making something good, great! That is, after all, the whole point of Blended Scotch whisky in the first place. Making something better than the constituent parts. Compass Box No Name No.2 is built primarily around Caol Ila with the addition of Clynelish, Talisker and a mystery Highland Blend. It is a worthy successor to the first edition, and not the only new Compass Box Whisky we are expecting on Wednesday.
We are also expecting the Compass Box The Circle this week. This is the first edition of a whisky named for Compass Box’s bartender program and contest. The first winner of the contest, a London (UK) bartender names Rosie Mitchell, wanted to create in her words: “an approachable whisky to be shared with friends.” The Circle, a Blended Malt Scotch Whisky, is built around a special parcel of Tamdhu, blended with Clynelish matured in sherry, peated Orkney malt and Highland blended malt matured in French oak. I can’t wait to try it…
The two new Compass Box Whiskies got us thinking… maybe a tasting is in order? So, we are holding a Compass Box No Name No.2 / The Circle Launch tasting on Thursday August 8th. We will be comparing No Name No.1 vs. No.2, as well as sampling The Circle and 5 other Compass Box Whiskies. Only 22 spots, you won’t want to miss this one!
There are a couple of other new whiskies to inform you about, including the Highland Park Twisted Tattoo. It is a 16 Year old, matured predominantly in Rioja seasoned wine barriques, but also ex-Bourbon. We are also expecting a dozen bottles of a heavily sherried Blended Malt from Morrison MacKay, the Old Perth 23 Year. You can probably guess what it is composed of? Likely the same stuff as the other mystery, sherried, lightly peated blended malts we’ve been seeing for a few years.
I’ve also finally written up my own tasting note on the Amrut Madeira Finish. It is lovely, and exceeded my expectations. I am a bit of skeptic when it comes to wine casks, but this did not disappoint.
Last but not least, this is a note to keep your eyes open for another Malt Messenger Bulletin Thursday night or Friday morning. We are having a Surprise Summer Sale this coming weekend… It will not include new products, such as any of the whiskies in this news letter!
I hope this Malt Messenger Bulletin finds you well. Please let me know if you have any comments, questions or requests. As always, in the event of a discrepancy in price, the Point of Sale at KWM will be taken as correct.
Slàinte!
Andrew Ferguson
In This Edition
- New Compass No Name No.2
- Introducing: Compass Box The Circle
- Compass Box No Name No.2 / The Circle Launch Tasting
- New Old Perth 23 Year Blended Malt
- Introducing: Highland Park Twisted Tattoo
- My Tasting Note: Amrut Madeira Finish
- Up-coming Tastings
Andrew Ferguson
Kensington Wine Market
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New: Compass Box No Name No.2
A Worthy Successor!
Bottled at 48.9%, this second edition of No Name, by Compass Box, is composed of predominantly Caol Ila, blended with Clynelish, Talisker and a mystery Highland Blend. Composed of whiskies matured in Sherry seasoned oak, American oak Hogshead and French oak. 88pts Whisky Fun.
Compass Box No Name No.2 - 48.9% – Composed of Caol Ila, Clynelish and Talisker – Andrew’s Tasting Note: “Nose: round, creamy, doughy, floral and fruity with a summer-y maritime effervescence; juicy, malty and honeyed with a velvety nose feel; oodles of citrus: juicy orange, lemon oil and dried apricots; a firm hint of clean smoke emerges later, with soft muddy oily peat and a touch of potpourri. Palate: starts bold and creamy, going through waves of flavour and intensity; buttery-creamy vanilla, tarry peat and cigar ash; chocolaty with hot spices: is that Talisker chili oil poking through?; seafood-y Caol Ila notes are there too; juicy citrus, chewy malt, melons, apricot and even a touch of tropical fruits; salted caramel, fennel seeds and Dutch licorice. Finish: long, coating and creamy with soft vanilla, bright fruits and hot spices; cigar smoke and tarry peat; like the palate, lots of layers. Comment: anyone hoping for a repeat of No Name No.1 will be disappointed; those in search of a complex, layered and elegant pleated malt will find themselves full satisfied; a worthy successor to the first release!” – $172
Producer Description: “For this, the second Limited Edition of the No Name series, we’re again allowing the whisky to speak for itself. Still very smoky indeed, there is a new depth and delicacy. To borrow a musical analogy, No Name was peat as power chord; No Name, No. 2 has brought some harmonics to the party. Built around an elegantly smoky Islay malt matured in refill Sherry butts, the second peated whisky we have used comes from the Isle of Skye. To these we added some old and ethereal single malt whisky from the Northern Highland village of Brora and just a dash of malt whisky finished in new French oak to add an underlying richness.”
Introducing: Compass Box The Circle
An approachable whisky for sharing with friends!
A lightly peated limited edition Blended Malt built around a special parcel of Tamdhu, the circle was also created with Clynelish matured in sherry, peated Orkney malt and Highland blended malt matured in French oak. The blend was created with Rosey Mitchell, the winning bartender from Compass Box’s global, The Circle Competition. Bottled at 46%.
Producer Description: “Rosey Mitchell is the 2018 winner of The Circle, our programme designed to inspire bartenders around the world. Rosey’s prize? To create a blend with Compass Box founder John Glaser and whiskymaker Jill Boyd. Rosey wanted to make an approachable whisky to be shared with friends, something for the daytime, a whisky with brightness. She called it “sunshine in a glass. The Circle is based around a parcel of fruity and creamy single malt from the Tamdhu Distillery in Speyside. This is supported by malt whisky from the Clynelish Distillery. A touch of peated malt whisky from an Orkney distillery and a small proportion of a French oak-finished blended malt whisky complete the recipe. We think we’ve achieved exactly what Rosey envisaged. The whisky is bright and warm with a creamy softness. It practically radiates sunlight!”
Compass Box The Circle – 46% – Distilleries: A single malt whisky from the Tamdhu Distillery, supported by malt whisky from the Clynelish Distillery, a lightly-peated single malt from Orkney, and a small proportion of a Highland malt blend. – Wood: First Fill Bourbon barrels, refill Sherry butts, recharred American oak hogsheads, and a small proportion of whisky finished in French oak casks with a light toast. – Producer Tasting Note: “Bursting with apple, vanilla and malty notes. A very delicate hint of smokiness is noticeable on the finish.” – $165
Compass No Name No.2 / The Circle Launch Tasting
Yeah, We Are Going to Have Tasting…
Two new Compass Box Whisky Co. limited editions is as good a reason as any we can think of to put on a tasting, so that’s exactly what we’ve done. We will be tasting the new releases: The Circle and No Name No.2. And just for fun we have tracked down a bottle of No Name No.1 for comparison. 5 other Compass Box Whiskies will round out our range!
Compass Box No Name No.2/The Circle Launch – Thursday August 8, 7PM – $35
New Old Perth 23 Year Blended Malt Whisky
Another Mystery Sherried Bomb Blended Malt
We had the 22 year old sister bottling last fall. Once people tried it, it flew off the shelves. This 23 year old is getting some good early reviews, and our expectations are high. Unfortunately we are only getting a dozen bottles, so it won’t last long. Just 515 bottles available globally, from a sherry cask, bottled at 44.9%.
Like a lot of the other sherried, mystery blended malts out there, this whisky is believed to be ex-Edrington stock, vatted together for botting as a Famous Grouse Blended Malt. The whisky was never used, and has been sitting in casks ever since. It likely contains malt whisky from Macallan, Highland Park, Tamdhu, Glenrothes, Glenturret and others.
Older Perth 23 Year – 44.9% – 1994 Sherry Butt – No producer tasting notes or reviews yet! It has a good average score of 88pts on Whisky Base. – $235 – Limit 1 Per Customer
Introducing: Highland Park Twisted Tattoo
A Very Unusual Highland Park, Predominantly Wine Cask Matured!
This limited edition Highland Park was created by marrying 153 casks of the whisky matured in casks seasoned with Spanish Rioja, with 70 more first fill ex-Bourbon casks. 46.7%.
Producer Description: “For the first time, we’ve married whisky matured in oak casks seasoned with Spanish Rioja wine – 153 casks in total – with whisky matured in 70 first-fill bourbon casks. The result is TWISTED TATTOO 16 Year Old, a rich and full-bodied single malt whisky with a distinctively different character.”
Highland Park Twisted Tattoo – 46.7% – Matured in ex-Spanish Rioja & ex-Bourbon – Producer Tasting Note: “Sweet vanilla | Sun-ripened peaches | Summer berries | Full-bodied red wine | Light peat smoke” – $120
The Story Behind the Brand: “Tattoos are a vital part of our cultural heritage today. They tell the world who we are, without saying a word. In collaboration with Danish tattoo artist and modern day Viking Soul, Colin Dale, we created the bold design for this whisky, which celebrates the tattoo as a mark of both standing apart and being part of a tribe – just like Highland Park. Colin’s intricate design is inspired by the free-flowing Nordic knotwork found on Viking wood carvings and reflects the Norse legend of the Midgard serpent, which grew so large it twisted round the Earth to grasp its tail in its mouth.”
My Tasting Note: The Amrut Madeira Finish
I Love it When Something Exceeds My Expectations!
Sometimes you just need to try something for yourself to be sure. The Amrut Madeira Finish exceeded my expectations! The Amrut Madeira Finish is the first whisky from India finished in Madeira casks. Only 4,800 bottles of the whisky were bottled at 50%. It is limited at KWM to 2 per customer. 92pts Whisky Advocate.
Amrut Madeira Finish - 50% – Matured in Bourbon finished in Madeira Hogsheads - My Tasting Note: “Nose: honeycomb, sour dough and fresh glazed fruit flan; soft, floral and dusty; cooked raisins and madeirized fruit; French soap and Indian curry spices; loads of firm but gentle oak. Palate: soft on the approach it quickly builds in to a warm, rich, fruity and spicy whisky; hot but far from sharp; more honeycomb, fruit flan and toasty oak; more cooked raisins, orange marzipan and English marmalade; soft leather and loads of decadent sugars and spice. Finish: long, warming and rich; it cascades through waves of spice, decadent sugars, fruit and creamy oak. Comment: this exceeded my expectations; it is complex, elegant and beautiful; a very good malt!” - $155
New Summer Tasting Schedule
We Have a Wide Range of Tastings to Keep You Refreshed During the Dog Days of Summer!
Whisky & Spirits Tastings, all start at 7PM, unless indicated:
- Scotch Malt Whisky Society August Outturn Tastings - Thursday August 1 8PM or Friday August 2 8PM – Want a peek into the world’s largest whisky club? We have opened up the August tastings to non members. You will taste the Society’s latest, exclusive offerings. We host SMWS tastings the first week of each month. Become a Member and you save $10 on class registration. This month’s tastings are especially cool, they involve beer pairings. Want to know more? – $50 ($40 for Members)
- The Price is Right: Scotch Edition – Tuesday August 6th – The wine staff had so much fun with the concept that the whisky staff went ahead and stole it! Can you taste the difference between a top shelf dram and a bargain bottling? Find out whether you’re the frugal sort or if you truly have expensive taste in this blind Scotch tasting. – $40 – SOLD OUT
- Compass Box No Name No.2 / The Circle Launch – Thursday August 8 – Two new Compass Box Whisky Co. limited editions is as good a reason as any we can think of to put on a tasting, so that’s exactly what we’ve done. We will be tasting the new releases: The Circle and No Name No.2. Just for fun we have tracked down a bottle of No Name No.1 for comparison. 5 other Compass Box Whiskies will round out our range! – $35
- Blinded by Bourbon – Thursday August 15 – Brown paper bags are covering all the bottles for this blind Bourbon tasting. We are hiding your biases from you and giving you the chance to discover – or rediscover – a new favourite! – $35
- Indie Cred: Unofficial and Exciting Whisky – Tuesday August 20th – Official bottlings are usually good and often great, but everybody loves an indie darling. We’ll indulge in some of Scotland’s best-kept secrets, which typically come in small batches or single casks, and on occasion…a dose of mystery! – $50
Register in-store, by phone 403-283-8000 and online!
Thank You for Reading the Malt Messenger!
Contact & Disclaimers
If you have any whisky questions or comments concerning The Malt Messenger please contact me by e-mail, phone, or drop by the store.
All of the products mentioned in THE MALT MESSENGER can be purchased in store, over the phone or from our website at www.kensingtonwinemarket.com. All prices quoted in the Malt Messenger are subject to change and don’t include GST. In the case of discrepancies in pricing, the price in our in store point of sale will be taken as correct.
Thanks for reading the Malt Messenger.
Slainte!
Andrew Ferguson
Owner & Scotchguy
Kensington Wine Market
403-283-8000
Calgary, Alberta, Canada