Pictured above: Glenfarclas Distillery
Fair fa’ your honest, sonsie face,
Great Chieftain o’ the Puddin-race!
Aboon them a’ ye tak your place,
Painch, tripe, or thairm:
Weel are ye wordy of a grace
As lang ‘s my arm.
Christmas is over and it’s still wild and wet outside, however, take heart my friends for the national poet of Scotland has brought us a fantastic celebration of Scottish produce and literature. In other words: Burns Night!
The 25th of January, in my humble opinion, should be filled with good friends, good food (read: haggis!) and good whisky! Celebrate in style with three of our favourite Scotch Whiskies and two whisky cocktails to warm the cockles. Slainté!
The oldest family-run distillery in Scotland has belonged to the Grants since 1865. Surrounded by 32 large warehouses, Glenfarclas is no boutique distillery. It boasts a modern mill and six stills. The house style is a robust, outdoors take on Speyside, with a greater affiliation to sherry butts and bourbon barrels.
Fresh and beautifully light, sherried fruit combined with a tempting spicy sweetness and a hint of sappy oak. It’s consistent and always beautifully made, with a richness and smooth, fruity sweetness that leaves many of its competitors in its wake. Worth every penny.
Whisky-making began here is 2005, and this is as quintessential a farm distillery as you’ll find. The barley is grown on Rockside Farm, and malting, fermenting, distilling and maturing all take place on-site; including a dam on the farm creating the fresh water supply.
Kilchoman’s Vintage releases are created from specially selected fresh and refill bourbon casks, and are some of Kilchoman’s oldest casks. Released in 2015, the 2008 Vintage offers powerful peat-smoked fruit on the nose and mouth-filling butterscotch and clove sweetness on the palate.
This blended whisky from Adelphi was released to celebrate their long-established partnership with esteemed whisky writer Charles Maclean, and by chance the Ardnamurchan landmark which just so happens to share his name. This is a limited release of 25,000 bottles, presented all-natural colour with no chill filtration.
The aromas when poured will offer a whole host of fascinating finds such as burnt citrus peel, sea salt, and hints of bonfire smoke. On the palate there’s a melange of Ferrero Rocher, hessian, burning heather and smoked praline on the persistent, complex finish.
Whisky Cocktails
Rob Roy
The Rob Roy is a 19th-century cocktail consisting of Scotch whisky, sweet vermouth, and bitters. It's notably like the beloved Manhattan; except the Rob Roy calls for scotch instead of American whiskey. The swap from bourbon (or rye) to scotch may not seem significant but it creates a completely different drink.
Ingredients:
60ml scotch
22ml sweet vermouth
3 dashes Angostura bitters
Garnish: Brandied cherries
Method:
Add the scotch, sweet vermouth and bitters into a mixing glass with ice and stir until well-chilled.
Strain into a chilled Nick & Nora or cocktail glass.
Garnish with speared brandied cherries.
Whisky Sour
The Scotch Sour is a classic cocktail made with a combination of Scotch whisky, lemon juice, sugar, egg white, and sometimes bitters.
Ingredients:
60ml blended Scotch whisky
22ml lemon juice
15ml simple syrup
2 dashes Angostura bitters
1 egg white
Garnish: orange twist
Method:
Add Scotch whisky, lemon juice, simple syrup, Angostura bitters, and egg white (if using) to a shaker, and dry-shake for 30 seconds without ice.
Add ice and shake again for 15–20 seconds, until well-chilled.
Strain into a rocks glass over fresh ice.
Garnish with an orange twist.
