The Spirit World

Spend any time touring bourbon country, or reading its history, and you’ll quickly learn that distilleries and brands, long-lived though they may be, do not operate under constant ownership. A brand with a historic tie to a distillery might move to another company, or a conglomerate might acquire or sell a famous brand. And all […]

According to the World Whiskies Awards, Highland Park 21 year old is the World’s Best Single Malt.
“An irresistible mix of dark grungey smoke and light sweet fruit. If you could barbeque a tin of Del Monte exotic fruits this is what it would taste like. Stunning.” Dominic Roskrow
“Big, fruity nose, dried fruits, dried herbs; waxy […]

A new premium 18 Years Old Islay Single Malt Whisky, SMOKEHEAD EXTRA BLACK is launching in the UK.
Building on the success of the multi award-winning Smokehead Single Malt which launched in 2006, Extra Black takes the DNA of the core brand to the next level, reflecting the luxury and limited edition status of this 18 […]

For the first time in its 175 year history, award-winning Glengoyne Distillery is to release its oldest, most valuable, and very best, Highland Single Malt: the Glengoyne 40 Years Old. 
The embodiment of Glengoyne’s famed unpeated and authentic ‘Real Taste of Malt’, the natural strength 40 Years Old Highland Single Malt is regarded by the distillery […]

Jim Beam is giving away $25,000 and a trip to Las Vegas for the person who submits the best remake of the bourbon’s current TV ads.
The contest web page is here. Call it Jim Beam’s way of keeping cocktail drinkers’ spirits high in the midst of the recession.
It’s a simple way for you chaps (and chapesses) reading […]

Nicknamed ‘The Gorilla’, Monkey Shoulder Triple Malt Scotch Whisky has just released a limited edition 4.5 litre bottle in time for Christmas. With only 85 bottles available in the UK and each individually numbered this an exclusive gift recipients will go ape for!
Each handsome bottle comes individually numbered and boxed with its very own bespoke […]

This Repeal Day is a special one. It has been 75 years since Prohibition ended an on this December 5th there are plenty of celebrations planned throughout the United States. I have a feeling we’ll be seeing plenty of flapper dresses and fedoras as well as a plethora of classic cocktail drink specials this Friday […]

Invented by the inimitable Gary Regan, this cocktail’s combination of ginger and smoke always feels very festive to me, like pies and roaring fires and flushed cheeks and getting way smashed at your parents’ house. Be warned: this baby’s pretty potent, so be careful not to end up face-down in the Yorkshire pudding. Maybe best […]

The Macallan Masters of Photography is a new website and concept that links the whisky world of Macallan with fine photography.
 ”a new concept that will see the Macallan Siongle Malt Scotch Whisky collaborate with some of the world’s most remarkable photographers”
 The Rankin Edition consists of an original Rankin polaroid photograph paired with a bottle of […]

The first thing most viewers notice about AMC’s Mad Men TV series is the faithful recreation of an early 1960s “white shoe” ad agency. The costumes, the hairstyles, and the furnishings all seek to immerse the audience in a far-off, but still modern time. For those of us who pay attention to such things, the […]