May 01
Staff Picks: eye catching new spirit releases
Posted on 1st May 2024 by Pierre
This month, our staff has handpicked exceptional whiskies for your enjoyment. From Glenmorangie's rich 14-year-aged expression, featuring a spectrum of flavors from fruitiness to dark chocolate, to Bruichladdich's farm-to-glass single malt with its juicy fruit and honey notes, each bottle promises a memorable tasting experience.
For a taste of American single malt excellence, try Westland's homage to Pilot barley, offering a blend of apple cider, chamomile tea, and almond flavors. And don't miss Nikka The Grain's creamy texture and complex aromas, blending Coffey grains and malts for a truly unique whisky journey. Enjoy our staff's curated selections and elevate your whisky experience this month!
Jul 01
Staff Picks - July 2016: Bitters for Whisky Cocktails
Posted on 1st July 2016 by Pierre
It would be fair to say that over the years we’ve changed our position on the adulteration of whisky. Simply put, we used to be strict whisky purists who considered putting anything other than a drop of water in whisky to be a crime. And as for cooling whisky in any way, we wouldn’t even speak to you if you mentioned it. Well things change, people move on and, frankly, we’ve become quite partial to the occasional whisky cocktail.
Feb 05
Staff Picks - February 2016: Valentines whisky and chocolate pairings
Posted on 5th February 2016 by Pierre
Chocolate makes an obvious Valentine’s present. So does whisky. So how about whisky and chocolate?! We picked out some readily available whiskies and paired them with some interesting chocolates. And some Maltesers! We had one chocolate pick left over - Super Dark Truffles by Vosges - these go with just about any whisky you can think of so we didn’t bother narrowing it down to just one!!!!
Nov 13
Staff Picks - November 2015: First loves and Old Flames.
Posted on 13th November 2015 by Pierre
This month’s staff picks collection is inspired by a conversation we were having here at Whisky Marketplace HQ about how we fell in love with whisky and, more importantly, which whiskies made that happen. Our 'first loves' if you will. Not the rarest or most expensive whiskies we’ve ever tasted but the whiskies which really started our journey. Expressions that keep us coming back for more.
Oct 23
Staff Picks - October 2015: Diageo Special Releases
Posted on 23rd October 2015 by Jean-Luc
Every year since 2001, Diageo, owners and custodians of some of Scotland's most treasured whisky distilleries, have released a limited selection of single cask whiskies. Earlier this week we were lucky enough to attend the launch of 2015's "Special Releases" and, having sampled the full range of these sublime liquids, our recommendations for this month almost pick themselves.
The whiskies are always special, always rare, and always selected with the utmost care from the best stocks available to Diageo. Prices range from £80 to £2,400 so there really is something to suit most people's budget.
Sep 30
Staff Picks - September 2015: Premium Blended Whiskies
Posted on 30th September 2015 by Jean-Luc
It is a common misconception that blended whiskies are inferior to single malts and I was reminded of this recently when I overheard a conversation in the pub. "Single malts are far better than the blended whiskies" boomed a voice at the bar "go for the Macallan 10".
It goes to show that a little information can be a dangerous thing, I have nothing against Macallan's entry level malts, but the pair had overlooked some really nice blends behind the bar including Ballantine's 17 Year Old and a very tempting Black Bull by Duncan Taylor.
Aug 29
Staff Picks - August 2015
Posted on 29th August 2015 by Jean-Luc
Okay! A short but sweet post coming up, this one is packed with exotic goodness as we explore the rums of South and Central America.
For August we thought we'd steer away from whisk(e)y for our staff picks so here is something a bit different – a lovely selection of rums (or maybe rons or perhaps even rhums?). Anyway these are four absolute crackers.
Jul 31
Staff Picks - July 2015
Posted on 31st July 2015 by Pierre
Notice anything unusual about these staff picks? That’s right, there’s only two whiskeys. The remaining two items are bottles of bitters. Confused? If you read this article with our take on the classic Old Fashioned whiskey cocktail you won’t be.
Like most serious whisky commentators we’ve always told you not to put ice in your whiskey. Cocktails are of course an exception to that. But as any of you who have ever tried it will know, ice does strange things to whisky. As it cools certain flavours are suppressed and others seem to come to the fore. Not all whiskeys remain pleasant and some are distinctly uncooperative in cocktails.
Apr 20
Staff Picks - April 2015
Posted on 20th April 2015 by Pierre
We haven’t posted any staff picks for a few months - ahem, five to be exact. We have no excuse. So this is something of a new start and for that reason we have chosen to look at some new products. We haven’t tried them so they're here because they’re new and because they caught our eye.
Nov 28
Staff Picks - November 2014
Posted on 28th November 2014 by Pierre
A quartet of fabulous Scotches this month with two old favourites, a superb indie and a new release from old distillery that doesn’t usually bottle its own whisky. For a detailed look at the Bunnahabhain watch the video tasting notes here