Birming-Dram

So for my latest blog entry I fancied something snappy on a topic close to my heart - the wonderful whisky island of Islay! Join me for a quick trip around all 8 Islay distilleries with a handy guide on what to expect from each - particularly useful as a quick intro if you are unfamiliar with Islay. There's notes on the 'house style' of each (although of course each distillery produces a variety of expressions), and I have also added in some recommended drams that shouldn’t break the bank and should be relatively easy to get hold of, intended to give you a great example of what each distillery does really well. So here goes... The Unpeated One - Bunnahabhain House style - Fresh and salty It often surprises people that Islay produces a non-peated malt and whilst Bunnahabhain do produce a smoky dram or two, by far the majority of their output is of the unpeated kind. But overlook these guys at your peril. They produce some great whiskies, especia...

I was fortunate enough to be able to go along to my first tasting through the fabulous Birmingham Whisky Club this week. It was a fantastic evening hosted at The Wellington Pub on Bennetts Hill in central Birmingham. If you haven't visited the pub before I would strongly recommend it - great traditional atmosphere, lots of fab ales and most importantly, a healthy selection of great drams behind the bar! Our host for the evening was Lauren Mustard, Brand Ambassador for Chivas Regal. She did a great job talking us through the whiskies on offer, and we had some good ones! It was also great as a new blogger to meet some like-minded people, in particular fellow Birmingham whisky blogger Rob from the wonderful Dead Bottle Collective. Anyways, onto the whisky and my thoughts / tasting notes... The Glenlivet Nadurra First Fill Selection (RRP £45-£50) This is a no age statement (although I suspect quite young) cask strength offering from The Glenlivet Nadurra range. It's non-chi...