Our annual take on the range each year, this is our piece on the Diageo Special Releases 2017 whiskies…
Tag: Brora
Diageo Special Releases 2016
Does the Diageo Special Releases 2016 range need an introduction? For anyone who’s entered the single malt whisky scene in recent years, the choice and array of bottlings, brands and releases can be overwhelming. Almost 30 years ago now, the situation was very different when Diageo launched “The Classic Malts” – first into travel retail in 1988, and then into the domestic market in 1989. Those six whiskies (Glenkinchie, Cragganmore, Oban, Dalwhinnie, Talisker, and Lagavulin) became the vehicle through which hundreds of thousands of people were introduced to malt whisky. For close to a decade they were almost the definitive collection and – notwithstanding the omnipresence of the likes of Glenfiddich and Glenlivet – it was only by the late 1990’s that other brands and recognisable labels started to consistently appear in regular retail outlets.
The 1980’s heavy metal music guide to whisky
Whisky and heavy metal? The late whisky writer, Michael Jackson, once compared a particular single malt to a car (e.g. “the Rolls-Royce of whisky”). Others have since compared certain single malts to particular Grand Cru wines. More recently, people have started writing tasting notes for whiskies and suggested various songs or bands to match and pair with the whisky. So, whisky and music is now a thing, right? Okay then, let’s take it one step further…
No one likes to admit it, but there was once a time when heavy metal music was actually commercially successful, and major record labels were falling over themselves trying to sign up hard rock acts. The genre is lampooned today, and often labelled dismissively as hair metal or glam metal. But, like me, you might be from that era when heavy metal artists were actually on top of all the charts and hair metal bands ruled the airwaves. But has anyone ever compared whisky and heavy metal artists? Or matched the two together? Perhaps now is the time. Get out the hair gel, put on your spandex, and take yourself back to the 1980’s… Continue reading “The 1980’s heavy metal music guide to whisky”