Whisky drinkers could be forgiven for thinking they can do without scotch these days. The razzle-dazzle surrounding exotic, distant or just plain surprising sources of whisky – whether that’s Japan, Australia or Sweden – can make it seem staid.
If scotch regularly loses out to bourbons and Japanese malts in such annual gongs as Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible whisky of the year (this year’s winner was a remarkable rare bourbon, William Larue Weller 128.2 Proof, from the 2017 Buffalo Trace Antique Collection), things are, in fact, pretty healthy in the spirit’s spiritual home.
One sign of the scotch renaissance is the number of independent distillers that have set up in the past couple of years. These are small or, in many cases, tiny but distinctive producers of a similar crafty outlook to those that have revolutionised beer and gin in the past decade. That many of them are still too young to have produced any whisky ready for sale (in fact, most are selling quicker-to-produce gin or beer to provide the cash flow while they wait for their first whiskies to mature) in no way takes the edge off the optimism caused by newbies such as the Holyrood Park in Edinburgh and Abhainn Dearg on the Isle of Lewis.
Not that the drinks giants that still dominate scotch whisky have been quiet. Diageo delighted whisky geeks late last year by announcing it would be bringing two of scotch’s best-loved “ghost” distilleries back from the dead – the only question being whether the prices commanded by rare old stocks of Port Ellen on Islay and Brora on the east coast of Sutherland, both of which were mothballed in the 1980s, will hold once the pair are up and running again in 2020.
It’s not all about the future: much of the excitement around scotch has to do with the work of its independent bottlers, whose stock in trade is very much about working their contacts to source rare or forgotten casks from the dusty distillery corners and bottling them anew. Whether it’s the invigorating, glossily packaged range of relative newcomers such as Rest & Be Thankful (look out for its bottlings of Islay’s Bruichladdich), North Star Spirits or the exceptional monthly variety conferred by membership of the Scotch Whisky Society, independent bottlers are just one of the reasons why scotch remains the whisky world leader, no matter what the hype machine may say.
Six great-value New Year’s Eve whiskies
Kilchoman Machir Bay Islay Single Malt Whisky
(from £44, kilchomandistillery.co.uk; masterofmalt.com, thewinesociety.com; leaandsandeman.co.uk; bbr.com)
From an independent distillery founded in 2005, Machir Bay just gets better and deeper with every year since its first release in 2012, with the trademark Islay smoky-peaty hit contrasted with lingering sweetly exotic citrus and stone fruit.
Jura 12 Year Old Single Malt Whisky
(£45, Waitrose)
From the eponymous Inner Hebridean island, Jura’s whiskies have been spruced up this year, with new packaging and expressions. I like the easy-drinking 10 Year Old (down £10 to £28, Waitrose), but the richly honeyed, subtly smoky 12 Year Old is best for Christmas.
Co-op Irresistible Single Highland Malt Scotch Whisky
(£23.49, The Co-op)
It’s hard to find decent single malt for less than £30, but the Co-op’s Highland Malt has been the most reliable of the supermarket own-labels for a while now, offering a spicy and warming dram with a sheen of dark-sherry complexity. Good value.
Aldi Highland Black 8 Year Old Blended Scotch Whisky
(£12.99, Aldi)
Speyside malt and Lowland grain combine in Aldi’s excellent value blend, which has sufficient age (spending a minimum of 8 years in cask) to give it real depth of fruit, wisps of smoke and a smoothness not always apparent at this sort of price.
Glenkinchie 12 Year Old Single Lowland Malt
(from £38.75, thewhiskyexchange.com; oddbins.com)
Whisky doesn’t have to be about peaty power and force, at the Glenkinchie distillery in the farmlands south of Edinburgh, the house style is all about drinkable elegance, nicely captured in a gentle dram of flowers, citrus and subtle patisserie notes.
Powers John’s Lane 12 Year Old Irish Whiskey
(from £47.35, thewhiskyexchange.com; masterofmalt.com)
The other original whisk(e)y, Irish is enjoying a similar renaissance to Scotch, with smaller names arriving and old names reviving. Powers is one of the latter, its distillery now closed but the name living on in this deep, super-suave, sweetly spiced blend.
