By Richard Thomas Many an American Whiskey purist scoffs at the notion of an independent bottler. Although the creations of Craft Barrel Spirits, High West and others have gained considerable appreciation, it’s still entirely common for me to run across people in whiskey bars declaring scorn for the idea that if a brand didn’t make the whiskey, it has no ...

New Zealand might not be the first place that comes to mind when sourcing great single malt whisky, but thanks to Scottish settlers in the 1830s a whisky tradition was born in a place you’d least expect. Beginning this month, thanks to importer Anchor Distilling Company, the award-winning New Zealand Whisky Collection, comprised of the oldest and rarest whiskies produced ...

By Emma Briones Rating: B+ A few weeks ago, Suntory took a step forward: The Chita Single Grain officially arrived in Europe. Launched in 2015, it was at first only available in Japan, and then later launched worldwide for Travel Retail. Now you can find this single grain in most specialist shops in Europe and, maybe, get one in the ...

By Emma Briones Rating: B Irish Distillers has unveiled a new range of experimental whiskeys, designed to “push the boundaries of Irish whiskey.” The new range is called Method and Madness, and aims to harness the creativity of Midleton’s whiskey masters through the fresh talent of its apprentices. Thus, the new range of whiskies is designed to reflect the next ...

By Richard Thomas Some may be surprised to learn that although whisky-making has been spreading around the globe in recent years, the industry had already long extended beyond the “Big Five” nations of Scotland, the United States, Ireland, Canada and Japan. Even if you discount the ersatz Indian whisky industry on technical grounds, the French and Germans have had whisky ...