Lowland

SnapShot: Whiskyfabric Whirlwind 1

SnapShot: Whiskyfabric Whirlwind 1

This series of SnapShot posts derives from whisky exchanges people known as the Whiskyfabric, a term created by Canadian whisky writer Johanne McInnis, otherwise known as the Whisky Lassie, to encompass the online community of whisky writers, creators, reviewers and enthusiasts that exist on social media. And sometimes the connections made online can spill offline. Over the past couple of years, we here at Scotchology have exchanged whiskies via mail with a number of folks across the United States and Canada, and finally decided to sit down to taste the bounty in one fell swoop. Or several swoops, because there was really a lot of whisky! We’ve done a rough grouping and this post contains various non-Islay scotches: Speyside, Highland, Lowland and Campbeltown malts. Islay scotches and other world whiskies get their own posts.

Bladnoch 12 Year

Bladnoch 12 Year

2017 marked the 200th anniversary of Bladnoch. The southernmost distillery in Scotland, it was once known as “Queen of the Lowlands.” Living in the shadow of regional brethren Auchentoshan and Glenkinchie, it has closed several times due to a variety of circumstances. The current owner, David Prior, is the first Australian to own a Scottish whisky distillery. The latest relaunch in 2016 was aided by legendary Master Blender Ian MacMillan, which means this bottle of Bladnoch 12 contains product from an earlier period in the distillery’s storied history. This whisky comes with either the distillery on the label or a sheep (like ours).

Port Dundas 12 Year Single Grain

Port Dundas 12 Year Single Grain

Situated just north of Glasgow, Port Dundas distillery was closed in 2010 after distilling grain whisky for almost two hundred years. By the end of the 19th century, it was one of the largest whisky makers in Scotland by volume, at over two million gallons a year. The grains used were barley, rye, and most curious of all, American corn. Unlike many distilleries that fell into closure due to poor sales or temperance movements, the decision to close Port Dundas was made due to another distillery in Diageo’s portfolio, Cameronbridge, having a higher production capacity. Even though the distillery was demolished in 2011, enough product remains for Diageo to have two offerings at least in the American, this Port Dundas 12 Year and an 18 Year grain scotch.