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Crabbies Yardhead: Cheap and Cheerful or One for the Bin?

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Last week I was idly browsing the spirits section of my local Morrisons (as I do on a semi-regular basis) when I spotted this little fella. I must confess to having never noticed it before. It was on offer at £16! I looked closer and saw that this was allegedly a single malt. Yes, that's right...a single malt for £16!!! I just had to take a closer look. What's the worst that could happen?!?! So first thought. Crabbies, don't they do the ginger beers and the likes? What do they know about whisky? Well, quite a lot as it turns out! Back in the day they were well known for their blended whiskies and were once part of the Glenmorangie Group! Nowadays they are owned by Halewood International who own brands such as Whitley Neil, Red Square vodka and of course, Lambrini! Halewood International are going for whisky in a big way. They have a range of aged single malts under the Crabbies brand from various unnamed distilleries from around Scotland, they recently completed the
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Speyside At Last!!!

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First off...I really must apologise! It's been aaaages since I last posted on here. I'll use the excuse that I have moved house and jobs but really it's just been procrastination! However, I'm back now and ready to fill you in on my latest whisky exploits! Earlier this month my partner Dawn and I embarked on a road trip up to the highlands and as part of this trip we of course found the time to take in some malt whisky. This blog entry is likely to be one part whisky review and one part travelogue! Our first stop off was to The Singleton of Glen Ord. This was entirely unplanned as we were on our way from Drumnadrochit to Torridon on the west coast. As we hadn't booked on a tour and there was quite a wait we unfortunately never got to see inside. However the visitor centre was really quite impressive and the distillery building was quite a sight to see. It's no wonder they produce so much spirit here! After a great stay in Torridon (if you haven't
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Location: Dufftown, Keith AB55, UK
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Whisky Review: Spey Tenné

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Greetings one and all! It's been a while, but I'm back with my latest whisky review! This time it's the wonderful Spey Tenné from the Speyside Distillery. I have been meaning to try Spey for some time. The tall elegant bottle has caught my eye on more than one occasion but I'd never quite got round to it. As luck may have it, I was given a bottle for Christmas and was not disappointed. For those of you who have read my blog before you will know that I am a little obsessed with port and wine finishes and this dram whilst it spends the bulk of its time in ex-bourbon casks, it is finished in Tawny Port. It is a limited release and is bottled at the slightly higher 46% ABV. You can pick up a bottle of this for less than £37, which is a big plus as finding unusual finishes at the sub-£40 price point is usually nigh on impossible. So, let's get straight to it... Colour - This has to be one of the pinkest whiskies I have ever seen. The spirit that goes into the p
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My Top Budget Whisky Picks for Christmas

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Know someone who loves their whisky? Not sure what to buy them for Christmas and have a limited budget to spend? Here are my top budget whisky picks for the festive season! Around £30 Aberlour 10 You can pick this little gem up for £25 without too much trouble. If you want a good all-rounder that everyone can enjoy, you can't go too wrong with this dram. It's a classic Speysider! Lot's of sweet ripe fruit and toffee notes in here with a healthy dab of woodiness thrown in for good measure. Well balanced with the mix of finishes (ex-bourbon and sherry) creating a very mature and fulfilling dram for the price point. Should be on every whisky-lover's shelf! Laphroaig 10 Do you know someone who loves peated whisky and you don't know where to start? Take it from me that every peat lover would be delighted to receive a bottle of Laphroaig 10. For most people this is their entry into the world of peat and it still stands up well against the rest. Again, the
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Location: Alcester B49, UK
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Ncn'ean - New Organic Kids on the Block

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Hello Folks! So for my third and final installment from the TWE Whisky Show it's time for something completely different...a brand new distillery! What was great about the show this year was the large area dedicated to newer distilleries. There is so much exciting innovation in whisky at the moment and it was great to go and find all of this in one place. One exhibitor in particular caught our eye. The wonderful Ncn'ean! Pronounced "Nc-knee-anne", which according to their Facebook page is "an abbreviation of Neachneohain who was the “Queen of Spirits” in Gaelic legend. Neachneohain was a huntress, strong, independent and never afraid to walk her own path. She was also a fierce protector of nature". So, who are they? The brainchild of Annabel Thomas, they are the first certified fully organic Scottish Whisky Distillery. Situated on the Morvern Peninsula of Western Scotland. Whilst they are on the mainland, they sure are out of the way! They are c
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Location: Drimnin, Oban PA80 5XY, UK
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Jura - Tasting The Range

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Hello Again Folks! As promised, I am back with one of my two special blogs, diving deeper into a few of the drams I tried at the TWE Whisky Show. This week it's Jura! So, let's start with some context. Jura completely overhauled its range in April of this year on what the company described as "The biggest launch in its history!" The new range brings with it a completely new flavour profile for the brand. Out goes the much loved Origin, Superstition, Diurach’s Own 16 Year Old and Prophecy and in comes Journey, 10 Year Old, 12 Year Old, Seven Wood and 18 Year Old. This is a clear move by Jura away from no age statement whiskies and back towards the years on the bottle being the benchmark for quality. But has it worked? The Whisky Show seemed like the perfect opportunity to find out! We worked our way up the range, starting with Journey and finishing with the 18 Year Old. Here are my tasting notes... Journey (40% ABV / RRP: £33.00) NAS, matured in American oak ex
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The TWE Whisky Show 2018

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So, as promised I said it wouldn't be as long until my next entry and I have lots to tell you about over the next few blogs! A few weeks ago I was fortunate enough to be able to attend the TWE Whisky Show in London and I thought I'd take a bit of time today to tell you about it. For those of you who are unacquainted with the show, it's the largest whisky show in the UK. This year there were somewhere in the region of 150 exhibitors there from the world of whisky plus a few extras from complementary industries such as salmon and cheese! Basically anyone who is anyone to do with making whisky is in attendance from distilleries to independent bottlers. It's a great opportunity for anyone to come along and try something they haven't tried before either because they haven't had the chance or moreover because it's new. There are over 600 whiskies to choose from. Pretty good, right? The show has been greatly expanded this year and there is now a whole
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