Craigellachie 17 Year
Craigellachie was founded in 1891 at the confluence of the rivers Spey and Fiddich. Despite being owned by international spirits conglomerate Bacardi, it is operated by scotch giant Dewar & Sons, along with Royal Brackla, Aberfeldy, Aultmore, and Macduff. Craigellachie has predominantly used for blends throughout its life, but the distillery began offering a line of age statements in 2014, albeit not what might be considered industry norm for years. That diverting from the norms is something Craigellachie does not shy away from. The Craighellachie 17 Year offers no flashy story or gimmicks, it is simply a whisky aged a minimum of 17 years from a proudly unapologetic distillery, unafraid to embrace who they are.
Colkegan Single Malt
Santa Fe Spirits was founded in 2010 by Englishman Colin Keegan. An architect by trade, Colin and his family built their home on an old apple orchard in the American Southwest in the early 90s. Colin decided to look at the Recession of 2008/09 as an opportunity and founded Santa Fe Spirits. After a decade and more in production, Santa Fe Spirits offer vodka, gin, apple brandy (from the orchards) and liqueurs. Their flagship product, however, is the Colkegan Single Malt. A portmanteau of the distillery’s founder, the Colkegan line uses local mesquite wood to dry a portion of the barley used in the whiskey, with other versions using various proofage and cask finishes.
Glenmorangie The Tale of Cake
Glenmorangie has undergone a quiet expansion in branding over recent years. Eschewing the dark wood tones and lofty Highland landscape photos plastered over the marketing boxes, websites and social media of other distilleries, Glenmorangie infused newer releases with bold color palates and creative stories. This is an unashamed move to appeal to segments of the population who might not have considered single malt scotch beforehand or who considered the drink too stuffy, infusing it with a sense of fun and whimsy. The Tale of Cake is the brainchild of Dr. Bill Lumsden, Director of Distilling for Glenmorangie and Ardbeg, and is meant to evoke a “cake moment”, or rather the sense of joy and savoriness he associated with cake at various point in his life. The ex-Tokaji casks this limited edition is finished in are a Hungarian dessert wine.