Those familiar with single malts will recognize the tiny, wild island of Islay as the birthplace of Scotland’s most heavily peated whiskies. Once home to over 20 distilleries, Islay (pronounced “eye-lah”) now hosts just eight, but the few remaining are some of the most recognizable names in Scotch whisky—from Laphroaig and Lagavulin to Bowmore and Ardbeg. With a well-documented love for the more mellow side …
Bowmore is a fantastic scotch, smoky and salty like Islay itself. Their 18-year, peated single malt is a smooth balance of chocolate, coca butter and salted caramel notes, perfect for sipping neat.
At a dinner celebrating the 50-year career of The Balvenie‘s Malt Master David Stewart, highlights of the night included the opportunity to taste the company’s most recent bottling of their extremely rare 50 year old whiskey. Cased in hand-blown glass and housed in an astonishing hand-crafted wood box made by Sam Chinnery, the single malt Scotch whiskey inside was distilled in 1962 and matured in …
