Longrow Red 11 Year Shiraz Cask
Longrow is one of the three main divisions of Springbank and features their peated whiskies (the others are Springbank and Hazelburn). Furthermore, this is one of three Longrow offerings, always released at cask strength. The Red comes from the fact that a new red wine cask is used to finish the whisky every year. This particular release was aged in Australian Shiraz casks. We wanted to try the base model Longrow Red, as we did at a Merlin’s Rest Tasting last year, but it has sadly been discontinued. How will this one be different from the regular Longrow Red, and how will it compare to the other Campbeltown we’ve tried?
Lagavulin 16 Year
The Lagavulin 16 is a winner. We’re not saying that just from our own experience. Rather, this standard edition of the Lagavulin distillery has consistently been ranked highly in whisky competitions, winning gold awards and earning other top marks in competitions and ratings around the world over the past fifteen years. To be sure, this is not a scotch meant for those who prefer gentler tastes and refrained flavors. Having their workhorse be aged 16 years means this distillery is willing to be patient so they can craft something worth the wait. Not a bad work ethic to have in regards to scotch. All right, enough teasing. Let’s dive in.
World Whisky Day 2015
World Whisky Day is celebrated on the third Saturday in May, or May 16 this year. It was founded in 2012 by Blair Bowman, a Scottish graduate student at the University of Aberdeen and whisky enthusiast. It initially started out as a Facebook page encouraging others to enjoy a wonderful drink. It soon struck a nerve (or taste bud) and by 2014 an estimated 250,000 people participated in hundreds of events in over 40 countries including China, New Zealand and Azerbaijan.