Question 1

HIGHLANDS

Accepted Answer

Question 2

SPEYSIDE

Accepted Answer

Question 3

ISLAY

Accepted Answer

Question 4

SCOTTISH ISLES

Accepted Answer

Question 5

CAMPBELTOWN

Accepted Answer

Once a whisky boomtown of 34 distilleries famed for their smoky, oily character, Campbeltown is quieter now, with only three producers – Springbank, Glen Scotia and Glengyle. Which was only resurrected in 2004. Nonetheless, there are a number of styles here, including peaty whiskies, which are a reminder of Campbeltown’s illustrious past.   Glen Scotia Cambelltown Malts Festival | 51.3% | Re-fill Bourbon Hogsead, Guyanan Rum cask finish | £10.20 Hazelburn 10 | 46.0% | Ex-bourbon cask | £5.30 Kilkerran 12 | 46.0% | 70% Bourbon & 30% Sherry casks | £4.70 Springbank 18 | 46.0% | Ex-bourbon & sherry casks | £13.40 Springbank 21 | 46.0% | Aged for 21 years each in ex-bourbon, sherry, port & rum casks |£28.00

Question 6

LOWLAND

Accepted Answer

The Lowlands produce light, floral, un-peated whiskies that are often dry. They are often referred to as feminine drams, ‘the Lowland Ladies’. Lowland whiskies are known for being triple distilled, instead of twice distilled. Triple distillation removes some of the heavier components of a whisky, leaving behind the lighter components of flavor and aroma. However, nowadays the only distillery in the Lowlands that still triple distils is Auchentoshan.   Auchentoshan American Oak | 40.0% | First fill American oak | £3.50 Auchentoshan 12 | 40.0% | Sherry cask finish | £4.50 Auchentoshan 18 | 43.0% | American oak casks | £10.20 Auchentoshan Blood oak | 46.0% | Bourbon & Red wine cask | £10.40  Bladnoch 10 | 46.7% | Limited release, Bourbon cask | £7.00 Glenkinchie 2005 Amontillado | Amontillado sherry casks | £8.30

Question 7

BLENDED

Accepted Answer

Question 8

JAPANESE

Accepted Answer

In it’s most basic form, Japanese whisky is Scotch whisky that is made in Japan. It is made in exactly the same way, is inspired by Scotch, many distilleries use exact copies of Scotch stills, nearly all the malted barley used is imported from Scotland, one of the fathers of Japanese whisky, Masataka Taketsuru, even went to Glasgow to study whisky and then went to Speyside and Campbeltown to get some hands on experience.  What makes them different? It’s an injustice to say Japanese whisky is smooth. Japanese whiskies tend to have very light, fruity and floral notes with a honeyed sweetness, tend not be peated, have little to no burn that other whiskies are known for and tend to be blends, there are however some exceptions to this.  The richness and variety of Scotch is obtained through the exchange of productions among the many distilleries, each of which often only produce a one main single malt. In Japan it’s the opposite, there are very few distilleries who often don’t sell to each other (Suntory and Nikka) but produce a wide variety of single malts. The Yamazaki distillery can produce over 60 distinct single malts, which can then be used in blended whiskies to create even more variety. Japanese distillers use many different barrels of various sizes and backgrounds; including European oak sherry casks, American oak casks, rare Mizunara (Japanese oak) casks and even casks that have previously held fruit liquors.    Akashi White Oak Blended | 40.0% | Blended Bourbon cask | £5.00 Akashi White Oak Single Malt | 46.0% | Sherry, Bourbon & Hogshead casks | £14.50 Akashi White Oak Tokinoka | 40.0% | Blended ex-bourbon & virgin oak casks | £7.00 Chita | 43.0% | Wine, sherry & bourbon cask matured | £6.10 Hakushu Distillers Reserve | 43.0% | Released in 2014, a blend of light & heavily peated malts | £7.80 Hakushu 12 | 43.0% | Single Malt Bourbon & Olorosso sherry casks | £13.30 Hakushu 18 | 43.0% | Single Malt Bourbon, hogshead, Puncheon & sherry casks | £28.60 Hatozaki Single Malt | 46.0% | Sherry , Bourbon & Mizunara casks | £5.90 Hibiki Harmony | 43.0% | Blended Blend of Yamazaki, Hakushu and Chita - aged in bourbon, Mizunara, sherry & plum liqueur casks | £8.60 Hibiki 17 | 43.0% | Malt & Grain matured in Mizunara Oak casks | £42.00 Ichiro Wine Wood Reserve | 46.0% | Hanyu malt vatted at Chichibu and finished in french wine casks | £11.60 Ichiro Mizunara Wood Reeserve | 46.0% | Bottled in 2010 after aging in Japanese oak | £13.20 Mars Cosmo | 43.0% | Blended malts from undisclosed scottish distilleries | £7.40 Mars Kasei | 40.0% | Blended malt & grain whiskies | £6.00 Nikka Days | 40.0% | Blended spirits from Yoichi & Miyagiko | £4.90 Nikka Coffey Grain | 45.0% | Grain Whisky Primarily corn with some barley | £7.00 Nikka Coffey Malt | 45.0% | Malt Bourbon cask | £7.00 Nikka From The Barrel | 51.4% | Blended Blend of grain & malt | £6.50 Nikka 12 | 43.0% | Blended A base of Nikka Coffey Grain and malts from Miyagikyo & Yoichi distilleries. | £12.20 Nikka Taketsuru - Disc | 43.0% | Blended Single malts from Yoichi & Miyagikyo - aged in sherry butts, bourbon barrels & new American oak | £10.00 Nikka Taketsuru 17 - Disc | 43.0% | Blended Sherry butts, bourbon barrels & new American oak | £25.00 Suntory Year of the Monkey | 43.0% | Blended spirit from suntory | £8.50 Togouchi Blended | 40.0% | Blended Single malt from Scotland & grain whisky from Canada, aged in an old railway tunnel in Japan | £5.40 Togouchi 9 | 40.0% | Blended scottish and canadian new make | £10.50 Togouchi 12 | Blended peated scotch and japanese new make | £9.00 Toki | 43.0% | Blended Hakushu & Chita malts | £6.20 Yamazaki Distillers | 43.0% | Single MaltBordeaux Wine, sherry & Mizunara Casks | £8.30 Yamazaki 12yr | 43.0% | Single MaltBourbon, Spanish Olorosso & Mizunara casks | £15.90 Yoichi | 45.0% | Blended peated scotch & japanese | £10.30

Question 9

IRISH

Accepted Answer

Question 10

AMERICAN

Accepted Answer

As a general rule, American whiskies tend to be sweater & younger than Scotch,with a bit more punch. The main two types of whiskey to come out of the US are Bourbon and Rye. Both use a variety of grain, known as a mashbill, which is the grain recipe. Bourbon will usually be sweater with more caramel and vanilla notes where as rye will be bold and with rich spice. Bourbons are known to be a sweeter style of whiskey. Legally bourbon needs to be made in the US with a mashbill containing at least 51% corn, has no  minimum age requirement and has to be aged in new & newly charred American oak barrels. The 51% corn requirement means that the majority grain is always corn with the rest usually being rye and barley, or sometimes wheat instead of rye, which results in a wheated bourbon. This allows producers to be able to use varying amounts of each grain they use. Some bourbons contain high amounts of corn, others rye and some wheat. Varying grain percentages is one of many ways bourbon producers are able to produce their own unique whiskey. Traditional bourbons use around 70% corn, 15% rye & 15% barley. Some examples are Wild Turkey, Jim Beam & Knob Creek. High Rye (20%+) bourbons include Four Roses Small Batch, Bulleit & Woodford Reserve. High Wheat (little or no rye) bourbons include Maker’s Mark, Larceny, Bernheim & Pappy Van Winkle. Tennessee Whiskey is straight bourbon that is filtered through charcoal before being aged. Tennessee Whiskies aren’t usually called bourbons, they are Tennessee Whiskies. The main Tennessee whiskey being Jack Daniel’s. Rye whiskies are all about bold spice, richness and depth with a bitter finish. They use a minimum if 51% rye grain which means they cannot be called bourbon. Rittenhouse and Sazerac are two great rye whiskies.   1776 Straight Rye | 46.0% | Named after James.E.Pepper who had claim to the first distillery in Kentucky | KY | £5.50 Angels Envy Port Cask | 43.3 | Finished for 3 to 6 months in Port casks | KY | £7.90 Baker's 7 year old Bourbon | 53.5% | A powerful bourbon made from a special strain of jug yeast used by the Beam family. Named after Jim Beam's grand nephew. | KY | £6.70 Balcones Texas Single Malt | 53.0% | "Yard aged" in ex-bourbon American oak | TX | £8.80 Balcones Baby Blue - 92 proof | 46.0% | Made from 100% True Blue corn, which is highly flammable and somewhat dangerous to distill… | TX | £9.30 Basil Hayden's Bourbon | 40.0% | Plenty spicy, well balanced with herbal notes of peppermint nad a touch of fruit | KY | £5.20 Bartons 1792 Full Proof | 62.5% | Jim Murrays' best whiskey of 2019 | £11.00 Bernheim Original Wheat Whiskey | 45.0% | First straight wheat whiskey to be launched on the US market, sweet & smooth. | KY | £8.00 Blantons Gold | 51.5% | Arguably one of the best single barrel bourbons at the moment | KY | £14.00 Booker's 7 year old True Barrel | 63.7% | A fantastic whiskey from the Jim Beam range, named after the one and only Booker Noe | KY | £7.70 Buffalo Trace Bourbon | 40.0% | A staple bourbon all over, a great go to that we get through plenty of. | KY | £3.50 Buffalo Trace White Dog Mash 1 | 62.5% | Un-aged whiskey. Very punchy at first, followed by a creamy sweetness from corn. | KY | £6.70 Bulleit Bourbon | 45.0% | Previously bottled at 40% for the UK market but you can now enjoy it like the Americans do. | KY | £3.80 Bulleit Rye | 45.0% | Made with a rye heavy mashbill consisting of 95% rye. | KY | £4.40 Copper Fox Rye | 45.0% | New and used apple wood and oak chips in bourbon barrels | VA | £4.80 Eagle Rare 10 | 45.0% | Low Rye mashbill, but still outstanding | KY | £4.60 Elijah Craig Small Batch | 47.0% | The replacement to the 12, it maintains the core flavour but is it as good? | KY | £5.00 Elijah Craig Barrel Proof | Ask% | A very highly regarded Barrel Proof, always around 70% abv. |KY | £12.80 Elijah Craig 18 |45.0% | It's a rarity for bourbon to be this old, and this good. A highly saught after bourbon that sets the bar high. | KY | £21.90 Elmer T. Lee Single Barrel | 45.0% | Named after one of Bufflo Trace's previous master distillersand creater of Blanton's. A high righ content that's very drinkable neat.| KY | £10.70 Evan Williams 1783 | 43.0% | An easy drinking high corn bourbon. | KY | £3.60 FEW Bourbon | 46.5% | A high rye bourbon using locally sourced ingredients. Sweet followed with rye spice. | IL | £7.30 FEW Rye | 46.5% | Complex and buttery. Makes for a great Manhattan. | IL | £7.60 Four Roses Small Batch | 45.0% | Four Roses use 2 different mashbills & 5 different yeast strains creating 10 recipes, this contains blend of 4. | KY | £3.60 Four Roses Single Barrel | 50.0% | This single barrel uses one of Four Roses recipes. Delicate on the nose but a burst of flavour. | KY | £5.50 Heaven Hill 9yr TBWC | 48.4% | 5 years older than the normal bottling of Heaven Hill bourbon this expression adds a lot more character | KY | 5.80 Hudson Baby Bourbon | 46.0% | The first bourbon to be distilled in NY and is 100% corn. | NY | £5.80 Hudson Single Malt | 46.0% | A single malt whiskey from Hudson but don't think of it as Scotch (because it's not). | NY | £16.00 Jack Daniel's Tennessee Whiskey | 40.0% | A sour mash, high corn bourbon filtered through 10ft of sugar maple charcoal. | TN | £3.50 Jack Daniel's Gentleman Jack | 45.0% | Filtered through sugar maple charcoal both before and after aging. | TN | £4.60 Jack Daniel's Single Barrel 100 proof | 50.0% | A higher proof single barrel that is much richer than the standard single barrel. | TN | £6.70 Jefferson's | 41.2% | A very small batch bourbon, each batch is comprised of 8-12 barrels. | KY | £4.50 Jeffersons Ocean | 45.0% | Matured at sea | KY | £14.40 John E. Fitzgerald Larceny | 46.0% | 68% Corn, 28% Wheat & 12% Malt | KY | £6.20 Jim Beam White | 40.0% | An entry level bourbon that is good for mixing. | KY | £3.50 Jim Beam Devil's Cut | 45.0% | 6 year old blended with their Devil's Cut | KY | £4.50 Knob Creek Kentucky Straight | 50.0% | 9 years in new charred American oak | KY | £4.60 Maker's Mark | 45.0% | Wheated bourbon, rye in the mash bill has been replaced with red winter wheat | KY | £3.80 Maker's Mark 46 | 47.0% | Bourbon with seared French oak used in the aging process | KY | £3.60 Makers Mark Cask Strength | 54.45% | Cask strength bottling of makers mark | KY | £9.20 Mellow Corn - Corn Whiskey | 50.0% | Corn whiskey - made with a minimum of 81% corn | KY | £5.40 Michter's US*1 Small Batch Bourbon | 45.7% | Never drawn from more than 24 barrels per bottling run | KY | £7.40 Michter's US*1 Unblended American Whiskey | 41.7% | Aged in ex-bourbon casks, so not legally a bourbon! | KY | £5.70 Mitcher's US*1 Straight Rye | 42.4% | Single barrel, straight rye | KY | £5.70 Mitchers Small Batch 10 | 47.2% | Single barrel, american white oak | KY | £18.00 Old Forester | 43.0% | Rye forward bourbon | KY | £5.70 Old Forester Statesman | 47.5% | Well balanced and surprisingly good for a movie tie in | KY | £9.10 Pikesville 6yr 110 proof | 55.0% | One of the world's highest awarded rye whiskies, the Second Finest Whisky in the World 2016 | KY | £9.70 Ragtime Rye | 45.2% | 72% Rye, 16% Corn & 12% malted barley | NY | 5.10 Ragtime Rye BBS | 50.0% | 75% rye, 13% corn & 12% malted barley | NY | £9.90 Rittenhouse Rye BIB 100 proof | 50.0% | Fruity & spicy, a go to for all rye drinkers | PA | £4.70 Rowan's Creek | 50.05% | A high rye small batch bourbon. | KY | £7.80 Sazerac Straight Rye | 45.0% | Mashed at 51% Rye, 39% Corn & 10% Malt | KY | £5.30 Smooth Ambler Old Scout 7yr - Disc. | 49.5% | Old Scout is sourced by Smooth Ambler for it's quality, creamy texture & flavour. | VA | £6.60 Stagg Jr | 63.2% | 85%(ish) Corn, 10%(ish) Rye & 5% Malted Barley, An excellent young expression of the GTS | KY |£9.70 Stetson | 42.0% | Originally produced for the German market, they decided it was good enough for the rest of the world too | KY | £4.30 Tincup American Whiskey | 42.0% | Technically a bourbon, with a high rye content but a bourbon style | CA | £4.40 Uncle Nearest | 50.0% | Named after the man credited with being the first African-American distiller on record | TN | £7.70 Virginia Black | 40.0% | A very easy going sweet whiskey. A blend of 2, 3 and 4 year old bourbons | IN | £4.40 Westland Single Malt | 46.0% | Made with barley from Washington | WA | £7.50 Westland American Oak | 46.0% | American Oak Casks | WA | £8.00 Westland Sherry Wood | 46.0% | Matured in Ex-Olorosso & PX casks | WA | £8.00 Westland Peated | 46.0 | Peated single malt from the distillery | WA | £8.00 Westland Garryana '19 | 50.0% | Aged in 1st fill & Refill Garry oak, rye, PX Hogshead & Bourbon casks with a focus on the 'Garry' oak from the pacific NW | WA | £18.00 Wild Turkey 101 Proof | 50.5% | Like the 81 but close to barrel proof, it leaves the barrel at 109 proof | KY | £4.60 Wild Turkey Rare Breed | 56.4% | Wild Turkey's barrel proof whiskey sitting at 56.4% | KY | £6.70 Wild Turkey Rye | 40.5% | An easy going whiskey that is made with the minimum rye content (51%). | KY | £4.90 Willet's 3 Year Family Estate Rye | 53.7% | A single barrel low rye whisky (using the minimum allowed). Bottled at cask strength. Level 4 char. | KY | £6.50 Willet Pot Still | 47.0% | Single barrel bourbon with great depth of flavour | KY | £7.90 WhistlePig Rye 10 | 43.0% | 100% straight rye goodness | CA | £9.90 WhistlePig Farmstock 003 | 43.0% | Using 52% 3yr WhistlePig, 31% Canadian 6yr rye & 17% 10yr Canadian rye | CA | £11.60 Woodford Reserve | 43.2% | A classic bourbon - triple distilled, high corn content, aged for at least 6 years | KY | £4.00 Woodford Reserve Double Oak | 43.2% | Woodford Reserve that has been further aged in heavily toasted & lightly charred barrels | KY | £6.00 Woodford Double Oak BBS |45.2% | BBS Barrel Pick | KY | £8.50 Woodford Batch Proof | 62.9% | Same mashbill as normal Woodofrd | £17.20

Question 11

WORLD

Accepted Answer

Question 12

INDEPENDENT

Accepted Answer

It’s becoming normal practis for distilleries in Scotland to sell barrels of wisky to not only blenders but independant bottlers as well. Some distillers solely exist to serve independtant bottlers and blenders. Whiskies that are released by independant bottlers may not always be allowed to name the distillery of origin, these are known as “secret bottlings”, not all secrets are absolute though. Clues are sometimes given as to where they are from, Elements of Islay use codes for each of their independant bottlings, such as “CI8”. Could that possibly a release from Caol Ila, specifically their 8th realease? Indie bottlings are often bottled at cask strength which results in a more full-flavoured whisky, they are also rarely chill filtered. Indie brands will also very rarely add caramel colouring to their bottlings, which a lot of brands do, a surprise to most.  TBWC Aberlour 23 | 49.2% | Batch 3 - Disc.Well sherried, but creamy and vanilla-rich, hogshead cask | £7.90 TBWC Auchentoshan | 46.6% | Batch 2 - Disc.Creamy with some lavender, toasted oak with citrus peels | £10.40 TBWC BenRiach | 48.9% | Batch 3 - Disc.Big vamilla, sherry and almond flavours | £10.50 TBWC Glenburgie 18 | 49.0% | Batch 1 - Disc.Clove-studded citrus and well-rounded tropical fruity notes | £8.80 TBWC Tobermory 21 | 53.9% | Batch 2 - Disc.Nice biscuits, mixed peels, allspice and milk chocolate | £9.00

Question 13

BTAC 17'

Accepted Answer

Originally introduced in 1975 as a 101 proof 10 year expression by Charles L. Beam, to compete with Wild turkey 101, one of the last produced before the small batch era of bourbon. The 17 year expression was only introduced in the last 10 years and bottled at 90 proof if you are a fan of the 10 this is one not to be missed.   Eagle Rare 17 | 45.0% | The 2017 release of the Eagle Rare from the Buffallo trace antique collection | £14.00   After working as a travelling whiskey salesman George desired a change of pace, with the help of E.H. Taylor he purchased a distillery from Harrison Blanton in 1870, renaming it the 'George T. Stagg Distillery' in 1904 it became one the leading bourbon producers. It retained its name for almost a century, but it is known today as the Buffalo Trace.   George T. Stagg | 64.6% | Rich oak hue, aged in barrels with a #4 char, big punchy abv | £14.50   Thomas H. Handy arrived in new orleans in 1847, opening a business importing 'Sazerac Brandy' in 1871, in 1873 he perfected the 'Sazerac' cocktail replacing brandy with american rye whiskey before going on to acquire the formula for Peychauds Bitters.   Thomas Handy Sazerac | 63.6% | Named after the legendary bartender who started using rye in the 'Sazerac' cocktail | £13.00 Sazerac 18 | 45.0% | Drawn direct from the barrels, as opposed to previously being taken from steel tanks | £13.50

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