January 2016 – The Whisky Guy

Welcome to Episode #10 of The Whisky Guy Podcast, featuring Phil, Chad and Eric of Chicago’s Longman & Eagle!

The Whisky Guy Podcast Episode #10 featuring Phil, Chad and Eric from Longman & Eagle in Chicago

It’s Whisky Wednesday – Time for a dram!
Published January 6, 2016

In this episode of The Whisky Guy Podcast:

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Celebrate Burns Night on January 25

Next Monday, January 25, will mark the 257th birthday of Robert Burns – Scotland’s greatest poet and the country’s greatest export. Find a Burns Night celebration in your area or simply head to the local for a dram and to read some poetry. Some of Burns’ more famous poems include “Tam O’Shanter,” “Tae A Mouse,” “Auld Lang Syne,” “John Barleycorn” and “Address tae the Haggis.”

Robert Burns – Celebrate Burns Night on January 25

Featured Interview: Phil, Chad and Eric from Chicago’s Longman & Eagle

Phil Olson – Bar Manager at Longman & Eagle in Chicago

Welcome to Phil, Eric and Chad at Longman & Eagle in Chicago!
- Phil Olson – Bar Manager
- Chad Hauge – Lead Bartender
- Eric Abert – Asst. Bar Manager
Opened in January 2009
Opened as a ‘take on an old Chicago inn’ with a bar, restaurant and hotel rooms
Longman’s motto: “Eat Sleep Whiskey”
Hotel has a ~85% occupancy
Rooms are usually booked a few months ahead of time
Inn guests are a mix of business travelers, travelers wanting to stay close to local family and ‘staycationers’; occasionally wedding parties
Whisky at Longman started as a passion; the bar was built as a place for the owners to hang out, then couldn’t get a seat at their own bar
Original bar manager learned from Mike Miller at Delilah’s, another Chicago bar and name on the global whisky map
Longman is the self-proclaimed “second best whisky bar in Chicago” behind Delilah’s
Chicago has lots of similar selection – what makes Longman different?
- A feel when you walk in, from whisky selection to food to cocktails to straight ambiance
- Passion and focus
- Maintaining their dedication to acknowledging outside trends and making conscious decisions on whether to participate in them or not
- Some trends are just ‘trendy’
- Longman works toward innovation while still trying to perfect execution
‘New’ doesn’t mean it should be in every drink
Longman pours a mix of cocktails and neat or rocks pours

Cocktail fixins on the bar at Longman & Eagle in Chicago

The team also struggles with the balance between hand-crafted perfect execution and high volume, with an eye to the future
All drinks are valid – from the most complex to the most basic and ancient. Longman is willing to push their guests when they want to be pushed
Putting Eric on the spot – if a mass-produced brand like Crown Royal gets ordered, Eric might suggest Old Overholt as an option to change it up
Longman offers 40 whiskies at $3/shot
#1 whisky varies by type – Dickel Rye, Cabin Still, Old Fitzgerald and Ancient Age lead the charge
- Longman bought as much stock of Ancient Age as they could when they found out it would no longer be available in Chicago
- $3 shots are a ‘gateway drug’ to bigger and better
The team at Longman are whiskey nerds and surround themselves with complementing skills and passions
When not drinking at Longman, Phil also likes Delilah’s, Billy Sunday, Analogue (especially the Cajun food), Small Bar (for beer), and Yusho (for Japanese whisky and food).
Japanese whisky is on fire in Chicago
Japanese whisky selection at Longman has tripled in the last year, including Ichiro’s Malt
Look for Japanese whisky to continue to gain popularity

Just a portion of the massive whiskey selection at Chicago’s Longman & Eagle

Part II of the Longman & Eagle interview will be in Episode 15 of The Whisky Guy Podcast. We’ll cover a lot more, including learning about their podcast – Shots Fired! – which you can listen to today. Find Longman & Eagle at 2657 N. Kedzie Ave in Chicago, across the street from the Logan Square L stop. Stop in and tell ’em The Whisky Guy sent you!

How to Shop for Whisky When Traveling

Look for reviews for 2 different whiskies during episode #11 of The Whisky Guy Podcast! Whether you’re shopping for yourself or someone else, my #1 tip: When traveling, buy what you can’t get at home. Some cities get whiskeys that others don’t, some countries get whiskies that will never be distributed to other countries, some local distilleries don’t produce enough to distribute far from their distillery, and some whiskeys are sold exclusively at Duty Free shops around the world. These are the whiskies to get – not the GlenWhatever at a ‘special’ price. Not only will they stand out in your personal collection, but they also make great ice breakers for your stories.

Some whiskies I found at the Duty Free store in London that I haven’t seen in the US:

Glen Deveron 16, distilled at the Macduff Distillery, available at London Heathrow Airport’s Duty Free

Craigellachie 13, available at London Heathrow Airport’s Duty Free

Auchentoshan Blood Oak, available at London Heathrow Airport’s Duty Free

Johnnie Walker Explorer’s Club 200mL Collection, available at London Heathrow Airport’s Duty Free

** Important Note – Be sure to not get hit with fees at the border by paying attention to your home country’s limits for how much alcohol you can bring in with you. (US Customs Limits / Canadian Customs Limits)

Have you found a great bottle of whiskey on your travels that isn’t available at home? Tweet about it tagging @WhiskyGuy to tall me about the good stuff!

Connect with The Whisky Guy Socially

Next time on The Whisky Guy Podcast…

Check out the Whisky Guy YouTube channel for a tour of the Catoctin Creek distillery; in Episode 11 of the Whisky Guy Podcast look for the interview with Scott Harris – co-founder of Catoctin Creek.

A Toast to Robert Burns

From John Barleycorn

Then let us toast John Barleycorn,
Each man a glass in hand;
And may his great posterity
Ne’er fail in old Scotland!

Sláinte!

Welcome to Episode #9 of The Whisky Guy Podcast, featuring George Grant of the Glenfarclas Distillery!

The Whisky Guy Podcast Episode #9 featuring Glen Grant from the Glenfarclas Distillery – Part II

It’s Whisky Wednesday – Time for a dram!

Published January 6, 2016

In this episode of The Whisky Guy Podcast:

Happy New Year!

Welcome to the first episode of The Whisky Guy Podcast of 2016! Just as 2015 wrapped up we crossed a major landmark together – 10,000 downloads of The Whisky Guy podcast! A huge Thank You to all of the guests for taking time out of their schedules to be on the show, and most of all to you – the listeners – for being part of this community. To subscribe to The Whisky Guy podcast click here!

Thank You Listeners for helping me reach the 10,000 listener milestone!

Thank You Patrons!

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Part II of a tasting with George Grant from the Glenfarclas Distillery

If you haven’t listened to episode 7 of The Whisky Guy Podcast, that’s a great place to start before getting in to this episode. It features a quick interview with George, and Part I of the tasting. With both episodes, I’d recommend listening with headphones as some of the questions from the audience were a little quiet. If you’re on Twitter, first follow @WhiskyGuy and @Glenfarclas, then do a search for #GlenfarclasWA – I live tweeted during the entire tasting and you can follow along.

The Whisky Guy Podcast Episode #9 featuring Glen Grant from the Glenfarclas Distillery – Part II

On to the tasting!

Glenfarclas has been doing well, even through the financial crisis that started in 2008.
Tho the distillery was poised for their first layoffs in history, the opposite happened and the distillery saw their best year ever.
2009 doubled 2008 sales.
By 2013, sales in just the first month were higher than the whole of 2009.
Growth is not sustainable, tho, for several reasons.
The whisky industry as a whole is running out of 3 resources that are essential to whisky-making:
- Water
- Wood (aka casks to mature the whisky)
- Warehouse Space. Glenfarclas has increased capacity from 55,000-65,000 casks/year partly due to building 4 new warehouses, but that’s still not enough.
Glenfarclas uses exclusively Dunnage warehouses – an earthen-floor warehouse where casks are stored no more than 3 high.
These low warehouses makes sure all the whisky inside matures at the same rate, which helps with consistency.
Glenfarclas suffers from Angels Share just like other distilleries – evaporation of liquid from the casks. While the code allows for up to 2% loss per year, because of the altitude and humidity around the distillery Glenfarclas only looses 0.3% annually. Compared to maturation on Islay, where evaporation can be near 5% annually.
Question: How close is Glenfarclas to capacity?
- Glenfarclas is at capacity for production now. Last year, the distillery produced 3.42M liters of alcohol, of a 3.5M liter capacity. This year because of slight modifications, capacity is 4M liters. A single 750mL bottle of Glenfarclas 10 year in the US contains .3 liters of alcohol.

The Whisky Guy Podcast Episode #9 featuring Glen Grant from the Glenfarclas Distillery – Part II

Glenfarclas sells whisky to other bottlers for blended whiskies. In 2007-2008, Glenfarclas sold 95% of their volume to blenders. Today that’s closer to 40% with goals of reducing further, but there’s value in selling to blenders as well.
Question: What blends are taking in Glenfarclas?
- Distilleries rarely sell to other distilleries – they swap casks.
- Some blends that contain Glenfarclas include Chivas, William Grant portfolio, Inver House, Whyte and Mackay and Beam Suntory.
Tasting Glenfarclas 21
- George’s favorite until recently (replaced by 15)
- Like a balloon – well rounded and balanced
- Ian, distillery manager at Laphroaig, kept a bottle of Glenfarclas 21 to share with people that had never had whisky before so they weren’t too offended by Laphroaig and scared away from whisky.
- Most expensive to produce
- Flavors change as the liquid sits in the glass
- Finish – Chocolate, caramel, vanilla
- Question: Where does the chocolate come from? From George, who thought it was the sherry casks, tasted a cognac cask exclusive matured whisky and found the same character and now attributes it to age.
- Glenfarclas newmake is sweet and floral.
What’s the right way to drink whisky? “So long as you’re paying for it, I don’t much care how you drink it.”
Experiment: Instead of adding water to whisky to dilute it, hold a sip in your mouth and add water directly, but be careful not to spray on those around you.
Question: What ABV does Glenfarclas come off the stills
- New make runs off at a 68% ABV average, and is diluted to 63.5% to go into cask
Tasting Glenfarclas 25
- Different in that it tastes ‘old’
- Big wood/tannin flavors
- Pairs well with chocolate dessert or a cigar
- Glenfarclas 25 sells better in the US than the 21
- George’s least favorite of the line for personal choice
- A ‘Christmas’ whisky
Many of the employees have significant tenure with some families having passed jobs down the family for 125+ years
Members of the Glenfarclas production team, along with other benefits and salary, receive a house and free whisky
- “We find it very difficult to actually get rid of any members of staff”
Tasting Glenfarclas 105
- 105 British Proof – which equates to 120 proof (60% ABV) in the US
- Proof derived from ‘proving’ that gunpowder soaked in whisky would explode.
- This proof happens at 57.9% ABV, or 100 proof
- Original bottles of Glenfarclas 105 would say 5 O.P., or ‘5 Over Proof’
- Original bottles of Glenfarclas 10 would say 30 U.P., or ’30 Under Proof’; 70 proof, or 40% ABV
- Glenfarclas 105 is the most difficult to make, as much of the whisky matured isn’t strong enough to create this expression
- Glenfarclas 105 is bottle at cask strength
- Glenfarclas 105 was George’s grandfather’s favorite

The Whisky Guy Podcast Episode #9 featuring Glen Grant from the Glenfarclas Distillery – Part II

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Upcoming Spring Whisky Events

The spring whisky event season is just around the corner! Here’s a quick run down on some of the larger ones:

January 14-17 – Victoria Whisky Festival in Victoria, BC (http://www.victoriawhiskyfestival.com/)
February 24 – WhiskyLive NYC (http://www.whiskylive.com/shows)
March 2 – WhiskyFest DC (http://whiskyadvocate.com/events/)
March 8 – Whisky Jubilee Seattle (https://www.facebook.com/events/1661866610753729/)
March 16 – WhiskyLive DC (http://www.whiskylive.com/shows)
March 18 – WhiskyFest Chicago (http://whiskyadvocate.com/events/)
March 18-19 – WhiskyLive London (http://www.whiskylive.com/shows)
March 23 – Whisky Extravaganza New York (http://www.thewhiskyextravaganza.com/schedule/)
March 26 – Whiskies of the World San Francisco (https://whiskiesoftheworld.com/events/)
March 31 – Whisky Guild New Jersey Whisky Classic (http://www.whiskyguild.com/)
April 28 – Whisky Extravaganza Denver (http://www.thewhiskyextravaganza.com/schedule/)
May 5 – Whisky Extravaganza Houston (http://www.thewhiskyextravaganza.com/schedule/)
May 6 – Whisky Extravaganza Dallas (http://www.thewhiskyextravaganza.com/schedule/)
May 21 – World Whisky Day (http://www.worldwhiskyday.com/)

Tasting Notes: Talisker Storm

It’s unfortunate that a number on a bottle has become one of the defining characteristics that some assume equates to the quality of a whisky. Really, the number alone tells you very little about a whiskey. Non-age statement whisky is nothing new to the industry. It was less than 100 years ago that age statements even started appearing on whisky bottles, and to this day whiskies from Canada and the US, along with the biggest brands from Ireland don’t carry age statements. When a distillery releases a new bottling, no matter the label, I’m excited to see what the distillers, blenders and bottlers have come up with – and I was excited to taste Talisker Storm. Disclosure, again, that Talisker is one of the distilleries owned by Diageo, who I’ve worked for as a paid ambassador, tho Storm was released in 2013 after I finished my time with them.

Package/Appearance: The box and label on the bottle are a bit silly to me – it’s whisky, not the backdrop to a Broadway play. The picture does nothing for me in ‘setting the mood.’ I do really enjoy the color of the liquid, a very rich gold tone.
Nose: Similar DNA but sweeter than Talisker 10 – Reduced vanilla oil, damp forest, honey, with some peat
Taste: Flavor builds if you let it rest on your palate. Finding unique flavors is difficult because of the heat, salt and smoke. Texture is oily
Finish: Long, spicy and bitter
Diluted: Nice visual of the oil and water mixing. Nose tends closer to Talisker 10, but flavors are all enhanced all the way through the finish.
$60, 45.8% ABV
Overall rating: Fourth Shelf

Talisker Storm – A Single Malt Scotch Whisky, reviewed by The Whisky Guy