Tag Archives: Blended Whisky

Whisky Ambassador Guide to Frankfurt

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Despite German-made whisky’s late start, Whisky in Germany is still a relatively recent phenomenon. Having only started in the last 30 years, the fan base of the spirit is still fairly large. There are currently 23 distilleries in Germany producing whisky in a wide variety of styles: single malts, blends, and bourbon styles. Apart from national distilleries, there is also great interest in the traditional production regions, especially in Scotland. More recently, Frankfurt has evolved to become a primary German hub for “Uisge Beatha“. Aside from The Whisky Ambassador training courses taking place in Frankfurt, there are plenty more whisky-related things to do in and around town.

InterWhisky Exhibition

InterWhisky is a 3 day event being held from 30th November to 2nd December 2018 in the fabulous Gesellschaftshaus Palmengarten venue in Frankfurt, touted as being a must-see for whisky beginners and pros. Both Whisky giants and ever smaller, independent distilleries from home and abroad come to Frankfurt for the annual family reunion.

In 2016 35 exhibitors presented their companies and products at InterWhisky. 8,000 visitors came to discover the latest trends and innovations of the industry. The main Whiskies exhibited will be from Scotland, Ireland, Canada and USA, as well as some German whisky distilleries, companies, touristic associations, whisky accessories. Welcomed are trade visitors as well as the public.

Whisky Shops

Whisky Spirits – Wallstraße 23, 60594 Frankfurt am Main – http://www.whiskyspirits.de

Whisky for Life – Fahrgasse 6, 60311 Frankfurt am Main – http://www.whiskyforlife.de

Die Whisky Kiste – Berliner Str. 39, 60311 Frankfurt am Main – http://www.diewhiskykiste.de

Looking for some of the finest whiskies available in Germany? Look no further than these Frankfurt stores. They all have an exquisite selection of Scotch Whiskies, Bourbons, as well as other international and local Whiskies. Due to the staff’s combined decades long professional experience and passionate interest in the production and tradition of Scotland’s national drink, you can be sure to get the best consulting whether you are new to the world of whisky or already a seasoned whisky veteran. Both Whisky Spirits and Whisky for life offer tastings and workshops. For more information please visit their respective websites.

Whesskey Distillery

Only an hour’s drive outside of Frankfurt you find the distillery Höhler, produces of exquisite German whisky since 2001. “Whesskey” is a play on the word whisky and Hessen, the state in which it is produced. Whesskey has subsequently gone on to be not only one of the most popular whiskies in Germany but has also built up a reputation internationally. Well known whisky critic Jim Murray named their first whisky “Best Whisky of the European mainland” in 2004. In addition, they also offer regular tastings and guided distillery tours. Within only an hour’s drive of Frankfurt, Höhler distillery  is a perfect stop to complement our upcoming Whisky Ambassador Frankfurt course. You’ll find more information on Whesskey’s history and the process behind production at: https://www.brennerei-hoehler.de.

Photo by Wikipedia user: ‘Hammersbach’ ©
Link in Photo- Unedited

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Nearly the end of November and new things are springing up like mushrooms. Must be getting near Christmas…

Obviously the Beckham/Haig Club tie-up has started something as Speyside Distillers is releasing a couple of expressions in partnership with Michael Owen. Some of you may know he signed up as Global Brand Ambassador for them in June. I wasn’t sure where that would add credibility as I wouldn’t have associated him with the style and panache of Beckham – more the solid and dependable type – but the Spey Whisky Michael Owen 1412 (his birthday is 14th December) is for the Chinese and Taiwanese markets where Owen is a big name. If it encourages new people into the whisky fold, then that’s fine by me. It’s been matured in former bourbon barrels and then finished in sherry and port casks. The other launch is The Golden Choice reflecting Owen’s passion for horse racing.

spey Michael Owen_1114_600_2

On the distillery front, Annandale has opened its doors at last. They filled their first cask mid-November and welcomed hundreds of local visitors on their first day or two. Some piccies included here to let you see a bit of it. I’m hoping to get an interview with Professor David Thomson, one of the owners, in the not-too-distant future. This one has been a long time in the creation as they found they had some archaeological work to do after they started digging out for the new place. Also they wanted to get it exactly right in terms of both buildings and the kind of spirit they want to produce. However, it’s full steam ahead now and I hope they do well.

Over in Fife the Wemyss Malts company are on schedule to open their Kingsbarns Distillery, near St. Andrews to the public on 1st December. Some of the distillery equipment will still be getting installed/commissioned through December so you won’t be able to see the place working for a little while yet. They’re a nice company and I hope for good things for them too. Wemyss have some interestingly named whiskies, created with the help of Charles Maclean, always worth inclusion on the back bar as quirkier points of interest e.g. The Hive, Spice King, Peat Chimney. They do taste good so it’s not just for the names.

It seems to be mainly east coast where it’s all happening at the moment as Eden Mill in Fife, at Guardbridge near St. Andrews is another one which has recently produced its first spirit to mature into whisky. It’s an unusual place in that it’s also a craft brewery and they’ve made gin too. The current operation is built on an old site owned by the Haig distilling family in the 19th century.

Although Daftmill, near Cupar in Fife, has not yet released whisky and doesn’t operate regular tours quite yet, it looks like that corner of Fife will be a nice little whisky trail on its own in future and could create a trail running up the east of Scotland if others beef up their visitor offerings.

I’ll be back to you again before Christmas so hope you have a good festive season as it builds up.

 

© Caroline Dewar 2014

 

Haig Club – A New Direction?

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This summer Diageo has started the launch of its new Haig Club brand though it’s not yet available in all markets. Is it a malt or a blend? Actually it’s a single grain from Cameronbridge.

There are some other recent grain expressions but this isn’t simply a “me too” from Diageo. These things take a long time in the planning, recipe refinement, packaging and communication. They’d been working on it for over two years. At the preview session for writers and other experts in February, we were also treated to a fascinating session about Diageo’s grain distilleries and the distillation.

Haig Club is partnering with David Beckham, who will promote responsible drinking, as an ambassador for the brand. It comes in a very stylish cobalt blue bottle, fitting its target of design-conscious younger drinkers, mainly men 25 -32 and aimed at restaurants and high-end bars with a few top retailers included. A “recruitment” drink. Key countries are UK, France, Germany, USA, Brazil, Greater China and Taiwan.  It’s intended to bring people into the whisky fold without the traditional trappings that often put them off whisky. However, this is not whisky lite in any way.

As someone who thinks / learns about whisky every day, it’s a very tasty drink. The beauty of it is that it’s great as a mixer or cocktail base and still a grown-up drink which would also be good on its own at any time of day or year. Good with ice or from the freezer – that’ll make the old guys in kilts apoplectic! I’m all for myth-busting around whisky. There’s more info on www.haigclub.com .

So what does it taste like? The final product is at 40% vol and there are notes of milk chocolate digestives and pineapple juice on the nose with a hint of citrus zest; some lychee, pepper and allspice, herbs, oak and caramel (my notes). While fresh, light and herbal, it also has a slightly unctuous mouthfeel which adds to the positive experience. It’s been matured in predominantly refill bourbon casks alongside some fresh and rejuvenated ones. Quite simply, it’s smooth yet alive with flavour.

If you serve a lot of customers in that target market, I’d urge you to try it and encourage your customers to experiment. Would be interested to know through this WA website what you bar and restaurant professionals think of it.

Cheers till August.

© Caroline Dewar 2014.