Dae ye ken?
Lord of the Isles is a vatting of Ardbeg casks distilled in 1974, 1975 and 1976. It contains 15% sherry matured spirit and 85% ex-bourbon

Cask
American oak ex-bourbon, and European oak ex-sherry

Nose
Some dark chocolate, dried leather, apple skin, a hint of smokey rosemary

Taste
Caramel and toffee, more leather, a momentary suggestion of cherries and then the flavours become almondy and walnut-like

Finish
Dry and spicy with a tit bit of salty almonds

Distillery Info
The Ardbeg distillery hugs the coastline of Islay with its white-washed walls occasionally splashed by the waves that surge onto the rocks below it. Founded in 1815 evidence suggests distilling at Ardbeg occured as far back as 1798. We love it here!

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This whisky is a limited edition distillery expression from a tragically 'lost' distillery. Don't delay...this should have sold out ages ago given around only 2100 bottles were produced.

Cask
American oak ex-bourbon

Nose
Perfume and fruit welcome you in, led by vanilla and parma violets, black cherries and cooked apricots. Behind them waits a leathery, masculine note becoming burnt sugar, chocolate and mint

Taste
Smoky to start, then a scented and deliciously layered fruitiness that reminds you of a sandalwood box containing sweet treats - turkish delight, dried fruits, black plum

Finish
Polished leather and boat varnish, then more delicious caramelised fruit

Distillery Info
The Glenury Royal Distillery opened in 1825, gaining its Royal title when King William IV tried, liked and re- ordered the Malt. It closed in 1983 with the last casks departing in 1987. These days most of the old distillery buildings have been demolished and what is left has been converted to flats

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Suntory, one of Japan's biggest drinks companies, became much better known to the rest of the World when Bill Murray’s character visited Japan to film a Suntory advert in the Oscar-winning film 'Lost in Translation'

Cask
Ex-Umeshu Mizunara Japanese oak with filtering through bamboo charcoal for sweetness and mellowness

Nose
A stunner! Complex with aromas such as marzipan, orange marmalade, nutmeg and apricot jam before the spice, ginger and saffron appears

Taste
Oak up front and a spicy cortege down back..white pepper, sweet curry, and perhaps satay?

Finish
Long, oaky and still spicy with a tad of wasabi

Distillery Info
Hibiki is made with aged malt and grain whiskies from Suntory's Yamazaki and Hakushu distilleries. How we would love to visit!

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Named after the ‘High Park estate’ the distillery sits on. Being on a hill means its water needs to be pumped up to it

Cask
European oak ex-sherry

Nose
Very rich, mature oak with smidgens of chocolate and fudge

Taste
Full, rich burst of flavour and then some soft honey andnutty toffee

Finish
Rich, long and surprisingly sweet for its age... much like Franchi

Distillery Info
Magnus Eunson founded the distillery in the 1790’s a religious man by day, and an illicit distiller and smuggler by night. The distillery still cuts its own peat, which it uses in its traditional floor malting of the barley on its premises

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The Malt Master noses and tastes each cask before deciding which are suitable for the make-up of this lovely dram

Cask
American oak ex-bourbon and Spanish ex-oloroso sherry

Nose
Balanced nose with mature oak matched by a fruit, fig and luscious sherry note

Taste
Rich, full flavour of wood with a floral sweetness and then some rich dark chocolate

Finish
Very long, honeyed and warm

Distillery Info
Glenfiddich was the first distillery built by William Grant, and the first spirit ran from the still on Christmas day 1887. Today the distillery is still independent and family owned

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The place Invergordon takes its name from an eighteenth-century laird, Sir William Gordon

Cask
American oak ex-bourbon

Nose
Fresh and fruity, reminiscent of Autumnal apples. Vanilla, oak and heavily spiced

Taste
Almost Bourbon in style with a mouthcoating of big sweet spice, more of the oak, and then some vanilla

Finish
Short but still sweetly spiced and warming

Distillery Info
Invergordon Distillery occupies eighty acres on the northern shore of the Cromarty Firth in the northeast Highlands, surrounded by some of the best arable land in Scotland. The distillery was commissioned in 1959 to create employment in the area, following the departure of the Royal Navy

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This single blend is a combination of both grain and malt whisky from the same distillery (which in itself is unusual), married immediately after distillation before being left to mature, a practice unique to distillery founder Joseph W Hobbs. Only 139 bottles!

Cask
First fill american oak ex-bourbon

Nose
Coconut, vanilla, a little rosewater, white chocolate, and then a touch of mango and passion fruit

Taste
Fruitiness abounds with mango, apples and papaya, then the milk chocolate arrives

Finish
Quite short, but clean and fresh for its age

Distillery Info
The former Lochside Distillery in Montrose just north of Dundee started life as a brewery way back in 1781. Fortunately for us they went on to produce whisky (much of which was destined for Spain), and this lovely single blend before being finally demolished during 2004-2005. The site has since been turned into housing

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Brora Distillery was closed in 1983 due to a recession and today its buildings are used as warehouses and as a visitor centre for its still active sister the Clynelish Distillery

Cask
Vatted from a mixture of American and European oak refill casks

Nose
Less emphasis on smoke & peat this time than with previous releases. Seaweed, almonds and butter with light vanilla and a hint of patchouli

Taste
Citrus, a bit of marine salt, and wood smoked salmon with a kind of waxiness coming through

Finish
Long with the salt and smoke making a re-appearance

Distillery Info
The distillery, which later would be renamed Brora, was initially called Clynelish and was founded in 1819 by the Marquis of Stafford, later the first Duke of Sunderland. The Marquis was one of the architects behind the 'clearances' during which tens of thousands of tenants were evicted from their highland farms

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Port Ellen’s history is chequered; its founder went bankrupt within 3 months of starting the business in 1825. Under new shrewd and energetic ownership by John Ramsay, Port Ellen became the first distillery to trade with North America in 1848

Cask
Refill American and European oakl

Nose
Elegant and quite mellow for this strength. Syrupy-sweet notes of baked apples with cinnamon and raisins. Sea-air coastal aromas emerge with time before the comforting coal-tar smoke returns

Taste
Hot, sweet and powerfully tar-smoky, at natural strength. Rich fruit sugars. Water smooths, sweetens and cools this dram to reveal some salt, and more smoke

Finish
Very long, with a coal-tar aftertaste. Sweet at first, gaining a salty tang before lasting hot aniseed

Distillery Info
Established in 1825 by A K Mackay and Co., Port Ellen was the distillery used by Customs & Excise to test a new innovation – Septimus Fox's spirit safe. Port Ellen was finally closed in the slump of 1983, but the whisky made between 1967 and 1983 has acquired a reputation as some of the finest to have been made on Islay in that time.

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Those lucky enough to have tried it will tell you that this whisky deserves to be described as 'legendary.' Why don't you join the elite and buy one of only 1812 bottles?

Cask
Als

Nose
Big sherry, freshly sawed wood, old leather, shoe polish and big fingerfulls of Havana tobacco

Taste
Big spice with pepper, clove, cinnamon and nutmeg. Next up bitter chocolate, cocoa, orange marmalade

Finish
Long. Bitter oranges

Distillery Info
Founded over two centuries ago in 1779, Bowmore is the first recorded distillery on Islay and one of the oldest in the whole of Scotland

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