Happy Father’s Day to all the dads who finally got the chance to sit down and watch the football, only to be treated to the borefest that has been Belgium v Iran 😴😴

Enjoying this Glen Ord this weekend. Very fruity apple and peach. Quite sharp and sour but with enough sweetness to balance it out with a mineralic edge on the palate. Hard not to buy Thompson Brothers when they keep bottling such well priced tasty drams.

Welsh Castles Relay weekend! 🏰Starting in Caernarfon and finishing in Cardiff tomorrow afternoon. Twenty stages of running, lots of beers and even more laughs. I’ve been lucky to get a 10 mile mountain stage at 7am tomorrow 😱🏃‍♂️

Loved this Orchard House blended malt. This batch is 41% FF bourbon Clynelish, 34% FF bourbon Linkwood, 10% FF bourbon Glen Moray, 10% oloroso “a distillery near Aberlour”, 2% Heavily toasted French oak Highland blended malt and 2% FF bourbon Caol Ila. Does exactly what the label suggests.

The Brackla is poured. Fruity, oily and a fermented beer-y thing going on. It’s going to take a bit of time to get my head around this completely, but it’s definitely tasty and not like anything else on the shelf.

Decided to treat myself to some great value Thompson brothers goodies. Worked out less than £52 a bottle

Got to be up there with one of the best whisky labels ever 😂

Popped the cork on this 16 year old anCnoc this evening. It’s beautiful, elegant whisky. A real shame they went 43% with the new 16 year old.

Cheers everyone. Cheers Steve @thewhiskywire.bsky.social . I need to dip my toe into Fettercairn a bit more as that tropical profile is up my street. Maybe one of the warehouse series next for me #FettercairnWhisky

Fettercairn 28yo - Palate : That earthiness stands out to me on first sip too, but then the lime juice, pineapple and mango come through in abundance, followed by charred lemon, oak and espresso coffee. Absolutely delicious whisky. Wish I had deeper pockets! #FettercairnWhisky

Fettercairn 28yo - Nose : The first thing that jumps out at me is the earthy notes. Dry slate/dunnage. The more you nose it the more that dissipates and the main aromas are sweet caramel, ripe mango, pineapple and a squeeze of lime. It’s wonderfully fruity and tropical #FettercairnWhisky

Fettercairn Vanguard - Palate : Much more viscous than the 12. Honey with juicy apple and mango, peppery spice, vanilla, aniseed. A nice long finish which continues those fruits along with the addition of coconut and light oak. Definitely a step up from the 12yo #FettercairnWhisky

Fettercairn Vanguard - Nose : A lot of similarities with the 12 with lots of fruit in the form of apple and pineapple, with coconut cream and light oak #FettercairnWhisky

Fettercairn 12yo - Palate : Plenty of fruit again which comes across mostly as sweet and slightly sour apple. A fair amount of peppery spice and an artificial sweetener taste which goes quite bitter into the finish with drying oak. A nice easy sipper, but nose promised more #FettercairnDistillery

Fettercairn 12yo - Nose : Really bright, sweet and confectionery. Apple jolly ranchers and pineapple cubes. A little bit of sandalwood in the background #FettercairnDistillery

Really sorry to be late @thewhiskywire.bsky.social it’s been a hell of a day! 🥵 Will try and catch up now #FettercairnWhisky

This fruity Mannochmore went down rather well

It’s past 12 o’clock and it’s definitely beer weather ☀️☀️☀️ #BSkyBeer

Garden drams with this Glen Garioch 12. It really is one of the best entry level core range bottles out there. Malty, creamy, fruity and just a lick of smoke at the end. The thermometer reached 27 this afternoon and tomorrow it’s predicted to hit above 30 🥵

Really enjoying this. Very fruity and creamy. Negative for me is that although I love spirit forward whiskies, it’s perhaps a touch hot and raw even with dillution. I think it would be belting in another 4-8 years

Moving on to a Beavertown Neck Oil #BSkyBeer

After a very busy 24 hours, time for a beer and some bbq food 🍻🍔 Trying this Hoppy Days hazy IPA from Bullhouse #BSkyBeer

And another delivery! Thanks @thewhiskywire.bsky.social for these drams for the forthcoming #TheFettercairn whisky tasting

Delivery! Hopefully this cold shifts in the next day or two so I can taste this properly

A tasty distillery edition, but not one of the better ones in my opinion. They do set a high bar though!

Watching a tense conclusion to the snooker with the last dram of a lovely peated Glenturret from Thompson Brothers

Polishing off this first release from The Cairn. Not spectacular, but for three year old whisky it’s good stuff and shows great signs for the future

Fresh bottle Friday to celebrate the start of a bank holiday weekend, brought to you by an absolutely beautiful 2023 bottling of Springbank 10

They could be here all night 😂

This week’s auction purchase delivered for a good amount less than the new 43% version. Sadly owners Inver House/ThaiBev seem determined to send anCnoc and Speyburn in the wrong direction.

Despite drinking whisky for many years, this is my first ever bottle of Classic Laddie. Bravo on the return of the age statement!

Time to chill out and watch the final round of The Masters 🏌️‍♂️ Sad to see the end of one of my favourite bottles. For £40 I wish I had bought a case or two.

Line-up for a blind tasting I did last week with an Englishman, Irishman, Scotsman and Frenchman. The Kilkerran won by 1 point, with Glenturret 2nd, Glen Elgin 3rd, Aber Falls 4th and The Cairn 5th. The Scotsman actually picked the Welsh whisky as his favourite 😃

Bit of a bargain here. Reduced to £39, but goes to £29 when you add to basket and it’s free delivery in UK 😳 www.lochlomondwhiskies.com/products/aig...

Earnt a dram or two this evening 🙂

I have tried this before, but it’s my first bottle. Delicious whisky.

Bruichladdich old and old skool. Not expecting the 1980’s 10yo at 40% to stand up to the latest bottling at 50%, but I will do a side by side soon.

Treated myself to a couple of new bottles. Deciding which one to open this evening, but I suspect the answer will be both 😂

Not my favourite Glencadam and has taken me more than 2 years to get through. It’s a bit winey for me.

My ex-bourbon cask whisky shelf is getting incredibly sparse now and I’m reaching for little else these days. Cask heavy sherry bombs and the like are a nice change from time to time, but they aren’t my preference now. This Hazelburn is just lovely whisky.

Thanks to @maltmusings.bsky.social for this sample of Bains 10yo Shiraz cask. Nose is a bit too acetone and magic markers for me, but the palate is bursting with red fruits followed by chocolate and coffee notes that I am enjoying.

Thanks very much Steve. Enjoyed the drams, but would love to try them at 46% non-chill filtered. Hope The Cairn releases are at that higher strength when the core range is ready. The 3yo First Peek at 57% is rather good and bodes well for the future #TheCairnDistillery @thewhiskywire.bsky.social

30yo - Palate : It tastes old. Old cupboards and library books, with coconut, toffee pennies, oak, peppery spice, apple and milk chocolate. Very enjoyable, but not as good as the nose was. #TheCairnDistillery

30yo - Nose : The curry spices I got on the nose of the 18 are back! Earthy dunnage notes, sour plums, apple strudel and custard, polished oak. Very refined. Just need a leather wingback chair and a log fire! #TheCairnDistillery

25yo - Palate : Another spicy one, but less so than the 18. Lots of toffee and vanilla notes, with darker chocolate, dark fruits, coconut and apple. A little of the acetone from the nose. Drying oak, chocolate and cream in the finish #TheCairnDistillery

25yo - Nose : Although I know this is 100% malt whisky, I would have guessed blind this was a grain whisky. Very sweet vanilla, acetone, black marker pen, bounty bars and dried fruits from the sherry casks #TheCairnDistillery

18yo - Palate : Rather spicy and oaky. The spice never leaves, but does reduce after a few seconds. Dried fruits, dark chocolate, old cupboards, ginger. Very drying. #TheCairnDistillery

18yo - Nose : This is interesting, Im getting a lot of curry type spices on the nose - garam masala. Also polished mahogany, apple skins, strawberry toffo, black tea. #TheCairnDistillery

12yo - Palate : A little thin on the mouthfeel. More of the same with the oak and dried fruits. The oak is rather drying. Apples, liquorice, ginger spice and dark chocolate. Becomes creamier as it develops, but the drying, bitter oak remains #TheCairnDistillery

12yo - Nose : A little musty, with lots of oak, leather and rich dark dried fruits. Apple peel and juice, dark chocolate, chocolate limes, prunes and vanilla #TheCairnDistillery