It's the halfway point, the summer solstice is past, we're headed into the second half of the year already. But not so fast (not least because some of us still need a summer to happen!) as we need to take a little whisky stock and see how the year has been treating us.
Last year, I remember it was difficult to find the inspiration for this mid-way point summary, but this year feels a lot more positive.
I think there's enough cracking whisky out there at the moment and there's also a sense that some producers are working really hard to grab our attention. There have also been one or two really quite exciting developments and, especially from a liquid perspective, they arguably need to be mentioned and remarked upon.
Remember, this is never a solo session - it's critical that you also bring your stand out bottles; those that should be celebrated as memorable highlights in your whisky exploration of the year so far. Everyone benefits from that.
So, we'll settle in for the second to last vPub before the summer break and share subjective, personal stories and glasses of what's deserving.
I hope to welcome you there!
0:00 - Opening
2:58 - Brief intro to topic
7:00 - Welcoming in the lounge
19:08 - Those worthy of multi-buys
21:22 - Multi-buy Loch Lomond DE
28:38 - Multi-buy Thompson Bros Circumstance 3yo
43:23 - A launch to celebrate - Ardnahoe 5yo
53:10 - New Release - Clydeside Napier Sherry Cask
1:14:40 - Playing with barley
1:17:22 - Barley - Benriach Malting Season 2
1:24:18 - Barley - Ardnamurchan's Golden Promise
1:42:08 - "Premium" in 2024
1:56:12 - Great limited eds 2024 - Glasgow 1770
1:58:39 - Great limited eds 2024 - Glen Scotia Fino
1:59:56 - Great limited eds 2024 - Ballindalloch SC
2:06:24 - Challenging price - TB 8yo North Highland
2:23:03 - Quiz at the End