Tag: Douglas Laing

Whisky of the Week review and tasting notes for whisky from the Douglas Laing whisky brand. Established in 1948, Douglas Laing & Co is an independent bottler of Scotch whisky that is based in Glasgow, Scotland. Their brands include: Remarkable Regional Malts, with Scallywag, Big Peat and Rock Island as well as Old Particular and Provenance brands.

Timorous Beastie Whisky

By Jeannette Wentzel

On 10/21/2019

In Blended Malt Whisky

Today I try a whisky named after a well known Scottish poem from the Scottish National Bard, Robert Burns. A part of the poem “To a Mouse” goes “Wee, sleekit, cowran, tim’rous beastie, O, what a panic’s in thy breastie! ” This release is part of the Remarkable Malt range and can stand tall next to Big Peat, Scallywag and Rock Oyster is Douglas Laing’s Timorous Beastie blended malt Scotch whisky.

Timorous Beastie is a blended malt made of Highland whiskies from distilleries such as Blair Athol, Dalmore, Glen Garioch, Glengoyne and more. A release from Douglas Laing to celebrate all that is the Scottish Highlands and part of their Remarkable Malts series.

The name is a nod to Scotland’s National bard Robert Burns and his poem. Scotland’s famous poet wrote this after disrupting a timid field mouse nest on his farm. The packaging has the sweetest little mouse drawing on.

The Beastie whisky range also includes a 12 year old as well as an 18 year old Beastie. There is even a limited edition 25 year old Beastie that was just released by Douglas Laing.

The non-age statement Timorous Beastie blended malt is bottled without colouring or chill-filtration. It is readily available and retail in South Africa for R 850. It is also available in the US for $ 56.

Timorous Beastie Whisky Review

ABV: 46.8%

COLOUR: Light golden yellow

NOSE: Notes of meadow honey, barley, fresh-cut green grass and flowers, grapes, apples, hints of oak, sherry and liquorice. Somewhere in the background, there is lemon and cinnamon with hints of ginger.

PALATE: Malt and oak, honey sweetness with crisp Granny Smith apples, fennel and freshly cut grass. Bits of malt, black pepper, cinnamon and smoke. Rich and creamy. It has a crisp green note. I was expecting a bit more of the sherry notes that the nose promised. Water softens and releases more sweetness. Medium body with some drying oak notes.

FINISH: Sweet and creamy with notes of oak, honey and malt with hints of lemon and chocolate.

RATING: VERY GOOD

This blended malt whisky is not a timid little mouse at all. The Timorous Beastie is drinkable and bold. It has a green freshness that makes it perfect for summer. Timorous Beastie is not the most complex whisky, but at the price point, it is value for money. A wonderful mix of the best that the Scottish Highlands have to offer.

Have you tried this release yet?

Also Read: Big Peat Cape Town Edition whisky

Big Peat 26 year old Platinum Edition Whisky

By Jeannette Wentzel

On 08/19/2019

In Blended Malt Whisky

Today I look at the second of the Big Peat samples that I got from Remarkable Malts to celebrate the 10^th-anniversary release of the smoky fisherman. But I decided to jump right to the end and try the Big Peat 26 year old Platinum Edition blended malt Scotch whisky.

I know, logically I should have gone for the Big Peat Original first and then the special Feis Ile release before opening the old man, but patience has never been my biggest virtue.

After tasting the Big Peat 10 yo blended malt whisky, I was curious to see what an additional 16 years would do to the peaty and smoky gentleman. Big Peat 26 year old is a blended malt comprising whisky from Islay’s most sought after malt whiskies.

Also Read: Johnnie Walker Green Label Whisky

It is the oldest Remarkable Malts Big Peat ever released. It is the second release in a three-part Vintage series. The first was the Big Peat 25 year old Gold Edition released in 2018. The goal of the Vintage series is to show the salty sailors’ more mature side.

The Big Peat 26 year old Scotch whisky is bottled at cask strength and was not chill-filtered and has a natural colour. Distillation Date: 1992.

Big Peat 26 yo Whisky Review

REGION: Islay

ABV: 51.5%

COLOUR: Golden

NOSE: Very unique. It has notes of peat, smoky BBQ, burnt wood, salt and seaweed with a fruity sweetness. Big and bold.

PALATE: Peat, ash and smoke balanced with honey sweetness and salted caramel. Hints of coastal notes, lemon meringue tart and salty wind. When you add a bit of water, the more medicinal and earthy notes come forward. It reminded me of a fish braai (BBQ) on the beach. It is big and bold but wonderfully satisfying.

FINISH: Long and lingering. Hints of sea air and peat just warming you up from the inside.

RATING: DIVINE

Oh my word. I have fallen head of over heels in love with the salty gentleman this year. I have tasted quite a few of his releases during this year, and it is delicious. This is not the most complex release. However, it is perfectly balanced, there is no alcohol heat, and it just warms your soul up.

The BBQ notes make it unique and delicious. Even without water, it is easy drinking and just totally rewarding. I can easily sit next to the braai and slowly finish a bottle. That is for me always the best way to properly rate a whisky. Do I want another glass of this or not?

The Big Peat 26 year old Platinum edition is a limited release of only 3 000 bottles. A minimal number of this edition will be making their way to SA. So if you see it, grab it! It is worth it.

Sample disclosure: I received this sample from Douglas Laing. Though received as part of a promotional event, the review and tasting notes are my honest, fair and independent thoughts on the whisky.

Also Read: Amrut Kadhambam Whisky

Big Peat 10 year old Whisky

By Jeannette Wentzel

On 06/10/2019

In Blended Malt Whisky

I love what comes out of Douglas Laing. Not only is the packaging for their Remarkable Regional Malts original and fun, but the contents are delicious and exciting. So you can imagine how great my excitement was when I was asked to help Douglas Laing celebrate Big Peat’s 10^th anniversary, by raising a glass of the very special Big Peat 10 year old blended malt Scotch whisky.

Unfortunately, the Sough African Custom Service also had to have their say. My special package only arrived a week after Big Peats’ Anniversary. However, it did arrive, and I am so happy to celebrate 10 wonderful Islay years, even if it is a week or two later.

Douglas Laing is an independent bottler of whisky. They are responsible for some unique blended malts, including Timorous Beastie, Scallywag, and Rock Oyster.

Big Peat was released in 2009 as the first whisky in the Remarkable Regional Malts collection. It is a blended malt that celebrates everything Islay and is peated to about 40 ppm. Big Peat is an energetic Ileach fisherman with a soft side.

He wears a yellow jersey and has regular Christmas releases. There is a Big Peat Cape Town Edition that features a proper South African braai (South African BBQ) as well as a Big Peat 26 yo whisky, the oldest of the lot.

Big Peat 10 yo blended malt whisky contains Islay malt whiskies, including Ardbeg, Caol Ila, Bowmore and even a bit of Port Ellen. It is not chill-filtered and no added colour. This is a limited release edition.

Big Peat 10 year old Whisky Review

REGION: Islay

ABV: 46%

COLOUR: Lightest wheat

NOSE: Peat, smoke and classic Islay flavours of seaweed, salty air, and iodine. In the background, there are strong hints of soft sweet Dutch liquorice (zacht zoet drop) that take me back to my childhood. Bits of vanilla, green notes, and fruity sweetness.

PALATE: The Islay nose makes way for softer notes of fruity sweetness, hints of cinnamon with gentle peat and smoke. Very unexpectedly, the palate is delicate and soft and wonderfully balanced. Again there is the strong Dutch liquorice notes but with more licorice root (zoet hout). Bits of toasted nuts, sea salt, and tropical fruit. Freshness and green hints.

FINISH: Beautiful and warming, but not overwhelming. Soft peat and fruity sweetness.

RATING: EXCELLENT

One of my favourite treats as a child was when the family from the Netherlands came to visit and brought us some pieces of liquorice root. I have not tasted it for years, but the liquorice notes in the Big Peat 10 year old has brought back such good memories of us chewing on pieces of sweet wood.

This is an excellent whisky for someone new to Islay whiskies. It has the classic Islay notes, but it is at a softer intensity than an Ardbeg or a Lagavulin.

I don’t even know what water does to the dram. I finished it all without even thinking of adding water. You don’t need any water as it is smooth and easy drinking. John described it as a summer Islay, the perfect peaty whisky to drink in summer. Happy 10th anniversary to the big man in the yellow jersey. I am looking forward to 10 more years of smashing Islay drams.

Also Read: Big Peat Christmas Edition whisky

Sample disclosure: I received this sample as part of the 10 year celebration of Big Peat’s release, directly from Douglas Laing. Though received as part of a promotional event, the review and tasting notes are my honest, fair and independent thoughts about the whisky.

Rock Oyster Whisky

By Jeannette Wentzel

On 05/27/2019

In Blended Malt Whisky

A whisky I have written about before in a twitter tasting, but I think it deserves its own blog post. The Douglas Laing’s Rock Oyster blended malt Scotch whisky is a firm favourite. Rock Oyster was released in 2015 as a blend of single malts from Scottish islands, including Orkney, Arran, Jura and Islay.

And like all the Douglas Laing releases, it has a lovely nautical themed label. The idea behind Rock Oyster was to create a maritime personality that reminds you of sea-salt, sweet peat, smoke, honey and pepper.

This is just the malt to make you miss the Scottish Islands. Rocky Oyster blended malt Scotch whisky is part of the Remarkable Malts range, together with the Scallywag and the Timorous Beastie and Big Peat.

Also Read: Big Peat 26 yo whisky

During 2018, Douglas Laing changed the name from Rock Oyster to Rock Island, which might be a bit more appropriate. However, this is still capturing my tasting notes for the Rock Oyster whisky release. I would love to try the Rock Oyster and Rock Island next to each other, but that will be a blog for another day.

Rock Oyster is a blended malt and is not chill-filtered, naturally coloured with no age statement, and bottled at 46.8%.

Rock Oyster Blended Malt Whisky Review

REGION: Islay

ABV: 46.8%

COLOUR: Golden

NOSE: Peat, medicinal notes and iodine. Hints of smoke with newly cut green grass, hints of fruity sweetness, stormy ocean air.

PALATE: Peat, smoke with bits of summer fruit like peaches and apricots drizzled with caramel sauce. Hints of pepper, vanilla and heather. Delicious ocean character with bits of salt, seaweed and green notes. Big and bold and just delicious. Despite the bold palate, it is easy drinking, and I want a second glass.

FINISH: Wonderfully balanced between the peat and the fresh fruit with pepper. Big and bold, and it goes on forever. Warming you from the inside while you are standing on the windswept cliff.

RATING: EXCELLENT

I love this. It is like comfort food. Not fancy and spectacular, warming, comforting and it hits just the right notes. And at the price point, it is perfect. It has beautiful Islay notes, but they are perfectly balanced with the softer Highland heather and green notes and sweetness from Arran.

I can’t wait to see what the Remarkable Malts Rock Island will be priced at and how it compares to this release. I will do a side by side comparison between the two when the time comes.

Also Read: Bennachie Whisky

Clan Denny Islay Edition Whisky

By Jeannette Wentzel

On 11/20/2017

In Blended Malt Whisky

In my ongoing search for affordable and delicious bends, I have tasted some rather “interesting” drams, I have tried some excellent blends. And I had tried a few where I look at the bottle and wonder if the person who bottled this, tasted it before it was bottled. This year have been slower than usual in my search for affordable blends.

I have found some stunning blends in the mid-range pricing level. Blends like the Rock Oyster whisky and the Timorous Beastie that retail for around R 750 – R1000 range. But very few in the affordable range around R500.

Looking at Douglas Laing who is responsible for Rock Oyster, Big Peat and Timorous Beastie, I noticed their Clan Denny range. I have also seen it regularly popping up on the Whisky Brother shop top seller report as well as in Norman Goodfellows. There is a Clan Denny Speyside and an Islay Edition. They retail for around R400, and I got myself a bottle of the Clan Denny Islay blended malt Scotch whisky.

Douglas Laing is an independent bottler and blender. Established in 1948 by Fred Douglas Laing, they specialize in creating the finest blended Scotches and vatted malts as well as releasing special bottling of Single Cask Single malts and Single Grain Scotch Whiskies.

Clan Denny Islay is a vatted malt blend of 7 Islay malts. According to the bottlers, the distilleries include Ardbeg, Bowmore, Bruichladdich, Bunnahabhain and Caol Ila plus a further two that can’t be named. But it should not be too difficult to figure out who the two might be. Clan Denny whisky is matured in ex-bourbon casks and non-chill-filtered.

Clan Denny Islay Whisky Review

REGION: Islay

ABV: 46%

COLOUR: Pale gold with hints of green

NOSE: Peat, iodine, ash, salt and medicinal notes. Hints of vanilla and green grass drifting past with oaky spiciness. Faint hints of apricot sweetness.

PALATE: Initially, it’s quite spicy with sharp traces of iodine, salt and peat. It then changes beautifully with some hints of smoke, black pepper, vanilla and honey sweetness. Faint hints of dark chocolate and oak.

The flavour development is quite remarkable. It’s a got character and grace in spades. The addition of water adds smoothness and creates a creamy consistency. It’s a great blend!

FINISH: The finish builds beautifully and richly. It’s a fantastic finish and leaves a long lingering warmth in your stomach. Some citrus peel and marzipan and lemon pepper at the end but it lingers and lingers.

RATING: EXCELLENT

A remarkable achievement for the price point. Rich and creamy and simply delicious. It has a great balance between peat and sweet. At this price point; it is just perfect. This bottle of whisky, you can easily give as a gift. There is a Clan Denny Speyside release too. I will add it to my collection soon.

Also Read: Belgian Owl Passion Whisky