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Summer and Autumn | ISSUE 5 ISSN 3042-40542 The 5 Steps to Appreciate your Whisky TheGlencairnGlass @GlencairnGlass @TheGlencairnGlass3 From The Editors Issue Five We had an amazing start of the year with a very busy drinks competition judging season and the third annual gathering of the Council of Whiskey Masters - and both of us as examination chairmen at this historical event. The first ever Master of Whiskey exams (Level 4) were a success and our visit to the Isle of Raasay and eponymous distillery was just joy. Raasay DIstillery is a must visit if one is visiting Skye it is a must to go over to Raasay. Avoid missing out on something special and take the ferry over to see Alasdair and the team. We also had the Swiss Spirits Review with many amazing entries to talk about and there are some beautiful new releases and discoveries from our work at International Drinks Specialists in our Editor’s Choice. We continue to grow and welcome new contributors including the legendary Joe Micallef as cultural editor. We also feel that we must mention our very talented art director Elani doing a wonderful job with designing our magazine and working with us so nicely. Thank you! Imprint EDITOR IN CHIEF Tobias Gorn tobias.gorn@drinks-specialists.com MANAGING EDITOR Arthur Nägele arthur.naegele@drinks-specialists.com LAYOUT Elani Nell CULTURAL EDITOR Joe Micallef PUBLISHER www.worldwhiskyandmore.com World Whisky & more Gesmbh Langenhagstrasse 40 9424 Rheineck Switzerland AUTHORS & CONTRIBUTORS Joe Micallef Matt Chambers Tobias Gorn Arthur Nägele Sam Wright Pat Braun Justin BoyerTable of Content What is World Whisky? Council of Whisky Masters: Raasay and CoWM intro Our New Members About Raasay Distillery Canadian Whisky: The Essential Portable Expert by Joe Micallef Editor’s Choice by Tobias Gorn The Generation Game – The Story of Wild Turkey’s Whiskey Dynasty by Matt Chambers Old World Techniques, New World Spirits: Inside Leopold Bros. Distillery by Sam Wright Andalusia Whiskey Company visit - Texas Craftmanship by Justin Boyer A visit to Cask Trade by Arthur N ä gele Steinhauser Distillery by Arthur N ä gele Swiss Spirits Review Results by Arthur N ä gele On aromatisation and flavouring of whiskies and other wooden cask aged spirits: by World Whisky & More Toby’s Cigars by Tobias Gorn Peat, Salt & Fire by Pat Braun 6 9 9 14 33 43 52 55 57 62 67 70 73 80 76 7856 Q&A Series Continued What is World Whisky? Margarett Waterbury Margarett Waterbury is an award-winning writer, editor, and author who lives in Portland, Oregon. She is the author of Scotch: A Complete Introduction to Scotland’s Whiskies (Sterling 2020) and is the editor-in- chief of Distiller, a trade publication for the spirits industry. She regularly freelances for local and national media on drinks, food, travel, agriculture, and culture. Her work has appeared in Food & Wine, Epicurious, Whetstone, Whisky Advocate, and many other publications, and she is a longtime contributor and travel editor for Travel Oregon. She also regularly consults on product development for spirits brands and judges wine and spirits competitions.Margarett is the former managing editor of Edible Portland, and the former managing editor of The Whiskey Wash, which was twice named whisky website of the year by the International Whisky Competition. In 2017, Margarett was named the Alan Lodge Young Drinks Writer of the Year. She was a finalist for Bourbon Women Drinks Writer of the Year in 2023, and earned full fellowships to the Napa Valley Wine Writers Symposium in 2017 and 2019. Margarett has a bachelor’s degree in linguistics from Reed College. What is ‘World Whisky’ for you? At its most basic level, I think of world whisky as whiskies made in non-traditional whiskymaking regions — basically, anywhere outside of the US, Canada, UK, Ireland, and Japan. However, I think you could also consider even whiskies made within those regions that deviate meaningfully from their “traditional” styles world whisky — like, for example, American single malts or European rye whiskies. How is it different from the classic directions of whisk(e)y and what makes it special for you? The core promise of world whisky is that it offers something different. That might be something as simple as a unique grain bill or distinctive set of finishing casks — like French malt whiskies from the Jura finished in vin jaune casks, or Slovak whiskies like Nestville finished in fruit brandy casks — or as far-reaching as applying the principles of an entirely different distilling tradition to whiskymaking — like the Taiwanese Grand Talon rice whiskies that are initially matured in clay. That diversity and open-mindedness makes it very exciting to drink, because you’re always discovering something new. And, I love that world whiskies give us a portal through which to experience a new part of the world, expand our understanding, and build connections beyond traditional categories — never a bad thing! What is the difference basically (in your own words) between the Classics and World Whiskies? - we don’t need a long legal explanation, more like a personal impression. Classic whiskies are comforting. When you buy a bourbon or a Scottish single malt, you usually know what to expect. World whiskies are an entirely different story. Expect to be surprised!7 Q&A Series Continued What is World Whisky? Kristiane Sherry Kristiane Sherry is a freelance whisky communicator. She has written about spirits since 2012, and her work has appeared in Whisky Magazine, The Malt Whisky Yearbook, Club Oenologique, The Cocktail Lovers, and many more. She is the former editor at The Spirits Business and led the content team at Master of Malt, where she also trained as a WSET Spirits Educator. As a judge in the UK and US, she has tasted and assessed thousands of samples from whisky distilleries around the world. She was one of the first people in the UK to achieve the WSET Level 3 Award in Spirits. An accomplished presenter, Kristiane has hosted numerous tastings, chaired panel discussions, co-hosted live broadcasts, and appeared as a guest on drink podcasts. She has provided expert commentary to Radio 5 Live, The Spectator, Red, Forbes and more. A passionate advocate for equity in whisky, her work on social media drives both education and inclusivity with the vision that whisky is for everyone. What is ‘World Whisky’ for you? To understand ‘world whisky’, I think it’s useful to consider what it isn’t. World whisky for me encompasses whiskies made in countries outside of the ‘big four’ - Scotland, Ireland, the USA and Japan. These four producing countries are long established whisky markets. It isn’t just longevity though, their whiskies are often considered collectable or investable. World whisky is the opposite of this. It doesn’t have the heritage, and can inaccurately be perceived as ‘lesser’ in comparison. But the absence of tradition, the lack of ‘it’s always been done this way’ attitudes, along with freer or indeed no GI rules, allows creativity to run free. How is it different from the classic directions of whisk(e)y and what makes it special for you? It’s that sense of freedom for me that sets world whisky apart. Not only is there greater space to experiment in terms of cask policy, grain choice, and even elements like being able to add in bacteria during fermentation, there’s greater diversity of thought, too. This tracks all the way through production and marketing to bottle design. World whisky labels often look more modern, more accessible, more inclusive than their counterparts made in traditional markets. There’s also less ‘preciousness’ around how whisky should be enjoyed. Anecdotally, I think world whisky distilleries have embraced cocktail culture more than their Scotch equivalents. Ultimately it just feels all a bit more democratic, as a whole. And in a time of suppressed sales, why wouldn’t we want to invite more people into the whisky category? This isn’t to say that freer, more inclusive (in the broadest sense of the world) approaches can’t be found in the so-called Big Four markets. It clearly can. But it seems more widespread in world whisky. What is the difference basically between the Classics and World Whiskies? As I’ve answered above, I think a big difference is freedom. Not that GI regulations are bad - far from it, they have a vital role in protecting inherent characteristics and for things like IP protection - but they can, in some cases, hinder innovation. World whisky makers are producing whisky on their own terms. Often this is informed by geographic location too - for example, using casks from local wineries or local grain. Plus there’s difference in climate too, with whiskies in warmer climates experiencing accelerated maturation processes in many ways. World whiskies can often produce new, different and fascinating flavours, and it’s this, as well as fresh philosophies coupled with the freedoms described above, that makes the difference. I love world whiskies! It’s so refreshing to see, when the broad theory of whisky making is applied in new locations, the rich spectrum of difference and flavour diversity. Some personal favourites include Finland’s Kyrö, Denmark’s Stauning, France’s Haute Glaces, South Africa’s Bain’s, Australia’s Starward and India’s Rampur. There’s so much going on, and it’s really exciting. Now it’s about spreading the word and making sure whisky drinkers are aware of the dynamic, thrilling world whisky category. 8 8 Become a MASTER OF WHISKY Join our four-level certification program, offering tracks for Scotch and Bourbon, plus comprehensive knowledge of world whisk(e)y. Click here now to request info for your specific situation. with the The Council of Whiskey Masters BOURBON TRACKSCOTCH TRACK Level 1 Certified Bourbon Professional (CBP) 1-hour online exam, 100 questions Master of Bourbon (BM) 2-day in-person exam in Kentucky Master of Scotch (SM) 2-day in-person exam in Scotland Certified Whiskey Specialist (CWS) 1-hour online exam, 100 questions covering all global expressions of whiskey Master of Whiskey (WM) 2-day in-person exam offered both in Kentucky and Scotland Certified Scotch Professional (CSP) 1-hour online exam, 100 questions Level 2 Level 3 Level 4 www.WhiskeyMasters.org9 Council of Whiskey Masters Exam ‘24Next >