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OK, you got me! Fingers crossed for the ballot...

You're right, Ben. When ex-Bourbon oak hits that six-row barley Indian malt spirit then much tropicality ensues. I've loved it in Amruts, Paul Johns, and in the Indri Trini. I'm yet to try the Dru. The only one I had trouble with was the Rampur ‘Select’. Just a bit too much mango skin and this really sets in as an aftertaste.

any one tried it? is it better than grey goose Vodka?

Thank you for this!!! Uncle neared is a legend!!!

Sounds like Lochlea has an amazing distillery culture!

I must try this one

Can you review the kraken?

Great information and review my friend.

Excellent whisky 🥃… well done Spirit of Yorkshire…👍 Filey Bay! 👍

Peanut butter whiskey mixed with pineapple juice has a butterfinger candy bar flavor 😋

A great video Ben.I agree, another great finish from Filey Bay

Damn I would have loved a bottle, my grandad flew from airfields in Lincolnshire Inc this one

Not sure how sweet that is but Skrewball is pretty sweet. I also like it better chilled but have to cut it with a half shot of regular whiskey. Never heard of Sheep Dog but we found have a line of flavored whiskeys called Bird Dog. Crown Royal Blackberry with lemonade is all the rage right now. Very refreshingly dangerous summer drink. Can hardly taste the alcohol.

My mother loved DiSaronno and I enjoyed it with her. She passed in 2018 and I hadn't had any since. Recently, I bought a half pint because I'm not really a drinker. I was so looking forward to a shot. I was very disappointed! It was NOT the same. It had gotten cheaper over the years and I'll never buy it again. I am going to try the Tosolini Solitza if I can find it here in the states.

Good review! I like this whiskey a lot!

Hello my friends.

Please do not forget Lynchburg is less than an hour’s drive from the birthplace of the Klan. Just a couple counties over in Pulaski, TN. Yes, Nathan Green and Jack developed a relationship that endures today AT THE SAME EXACT TIME and PLACE in our Nation’s history that birthed some of the finest whiskey in the world and one of the most evil organizations ever. There is picture at the distillery of George Green, one of Nearest’s sons, seated to Jack’s right. That would been unheard of in that era. There has not been a time that Green’s descendants have not worked at the distillery to this day. We all have choices. Choose wisely. Just a thought from the old, white southern guy from Tennessee. Treat your fellow members of the human race right. They might be compelled to reciprocate.

i can see paul john

Took a chance on this brand and on this bottle and I'm quite pleased.

The bottle is beautiful. The whisky is awful. Too sweet and lacks character. The oak is there but overpowered by everything else going on. Great marketing though, I’ll give them that!

Sounds intriguing… I shall look out for it. Thanks Ben and Happy New Year. Ciao 👋 S.

Received a bottle of the inagural release for Xmas. Wow -What a dram!....If only I could pronounce it correctly, I am getting worse as the morning goes on!

He's drunk he said kyiv it's Kiev

Here because of Nas and AZ 😂

Racism is always the Black innovators are left out of profit and history. They deliberately do it 😢

Hi Ben, Thanks for the review. Need to check my sample of the 1 edition tonight. Maybe I will put the 2 edition on my christmas list. Cheers from Germany

3:21 you sure you haven't had a few?😂

I have recently had the Ten, UIG and Coreyvreckan and I think this is very much superb, outstanding single malt scotch. I don't bother with the special releases as they are ridiculously expensive and hit and miss for quality but the core lineup is delicious. The new bottle of UIG that I recently bought along with new bottles of the Ardbeg TEN and Coreyvreckan cost a lot but each expression is spectacular and the UIG is a symphony on my palette!! Seriously! It's the best batch I have ever had. I wish you could carry some in your store. It's so popular I would think even with a bigger order it would sell. There is such a huge Ardbeg following and I would think you'd have people asking for it? Maybe not! Lagavulin, Laphroaig, Kilchomen, Ardbeg - huge favourites. The core lineup has a lot of information out there to be able to give to customers. You are a little manicky here! Hey I go there sometimes too - it's too many espresso in the morning before work! It gets be jolted and AWAKE!!! Love your reviews! Do you carry Lagavulin and Laphroaig? In Canada we pay about $100 for the TEN, 135 for the UIG and $205, all before our high taxes, for these amazing Ardbegs - for me? It's 100% worth every penny. In Vancouver where I live we have an alcohol tax provincially - 15% in addition to a provincial and federal sales tax. Annoying!! Cheers!! 🙂

I like the box with environment friendly card box only. Not magnet. I am not a collector of boxes at all. I opened by boxes without knowing about the problems others experienced and had not problems.

We've just had this enter the Australian market and I've been enjoying it too. Like you, I'm keen to try it in a few different Whisky cocktails.

I live about 4 miles from the Wire Works. I'd considered their gins before, but thought their gin to be too pricey. Having seen this video I popped by their place and bought a bottle of their Alter Ego. It was a pleasant surprise and worth the price. I'm more of a Talisker person, but I can see Alter Ego being a good alternative. Their shop was not open when I arrived, and you have to press a door bell button to have somone come from the distillery part of the site. It was a very friendly and informative encounter. Thankfully they'd not been hit with floods from the adjacent River Derwent.

You talk rubbish man I don’t like peanut butter but love this

Just got my hands on this bottle I'm looking forward to trying it.

You've got a bit of a sound problem with the video on Lochlea distillery

Whine, whine, whine.

I get your point but you are lucky. I’m in America and can’t get it. I have a cask at the distillery and this early bottle is different…so enjoy.

Another great video, the explanation of the cut points was great and now makes a lot of sense to me, thank you! Love WPD, it’s around the corner from me and lucky enough to have one of each release so far, I agree with your comments. Loved the Caduro when I had a bottle but now I’m half way through the Alter ego and enjoying that even more, the extra fruit and smoke really make it special 😁

It was very interesting and a very detailed review and of course, just your opinion. Everyone smells and tastes differently this is why someone may like one whisky over another. I am certainly not a whisky expert, however anyone can say something smells like that or tastes like that it would be impossible to say they are talking rubbish. In the past I used to put coca cola into whisky until my wife's uncle John said, that is terrible to do that to whisky, a little water is better. So I set about learning how to drink whisky without putting coca cola into the whisky. This all changed when I actually visited my wife's family in Harris and I visited the Harris Distillery in 2015, I was actually able to taste the Hearach before it went into the barrel and it nearly took my throat lining away until Shona Macleod said put a little water in the whisky and wow what a difference. My wife's uncle John was so right as he said to me originally, just put a little water in the whisky and you will release all the flavours and remove the after burn. Uncle John Macleod was from the Isle of Harris and the father of Shona MacLeod who is shown in your video and is one of the original 10 employees. The old man you see on the front cover is the grandfather of my wife Kirsteen and Shona. I have tried a huge amount of blended whisky's and single malts and the Hearach is up there with my all time favourites like Balvenie 12. I was lucky enough to secure a bottle 2 days ago which I think is utterly amazing without water, no burn, just a very soothing smooth drink. I have no fancy words to describe the Hearach other than I love how it tastes as long as you use the correct glass to drink it out of and hold it in your mouth for a few seconds before swallowing. As far as packaging is concerned it is simply the best and very complex instead of the usual crappy box that most malts come in. The first thing I do when I buy a malt like Glen Morange is toss the box in the bin there is no way I will do this with the Hearach box is is a work of art. The only box I have ever kept is the Belvenie case, which is round and very bonnie to look at. The Hearach box is just amazing like the whisky itself. All I have to say now is well done to all the people of the Harris distillery and the the people of Harris and taste is always subjective. I do agree with you as this whisky gets older it will be even better. Eddie of the Highlands of Scotland, Inverness.

Great whisky - box rubbish. First time I opened it I did exactly what you showed except in addition to the little card disc coming away from the box it dragged with it several cms of the paper wrapping. As I said great whisky - box in the recycling. Great review.

What batch were you tasting / allocated?

Thanks so much for the review, Ben, and for the rant. In Australia, I have relied on your counterparts, the independent retailers here, to help me on my whisky hobby journey. Most of the bottles in my collection have a connection to a real person who sold them to me. I even have personal relationships with some of these folk. I know they taste what they sell and that they know their topic. Best of luck with the shop, sir.

I think I narrowly avoided a disaster, as I had already seen someone struggle with that box - I hope nobody has actually lost a bottle on the floor due to the poor design (I've had a couple of boxes/tubes that could have benefitted from a warning of having tops you shouldn't lift by, but only Annandale and Teerenpeli from Finland spring to mind as having worse boxes). The bottle itself looks nice, but I'd prefer a better pourer. Still, at least they are making decent whisky... 😉

What whiskey is there that 1. Is sweet but not as sweet as a liqueur 2. Sweeter than basic usual malt whiskeys. Closest I have fastest is glenfidditch malt whiskey liqueur but that is now £500 a bottle.

Thanks Ben - a master class tasting event. “That’s why the world keeps spinning” is my takeaway from the event. I was impressed with the Air Dried Oak and, of course, the Single Cask. A great way to spend an evening.

Hi Ben, finally got round to doing this tasting. Loving the crack from Keith. What a character. The 2 oak finishes show differences, but both nice. Must be me but i don't get big smoke on the nose of either of the peat smokes, but find it on the palate more so after a drop of water. The Single Cask is sublime. Have you any in stock?

I've had a taste during the Midlands Whisky Festival and ended up buying a bottle. Great whisky and an excellent review.

Thanks for putting this together. Ardnamurchan are doing very tasty and interesting bottles, and it was great getting my hands on so many I hadn't tried yet.

It's really wonderful....very much liked it

Excellent and illuminating discussion, thank you!!