Welcome everyone to the new home for the Abov the Noise newsletter! We’ve moved newsletter servers to provide you with a better, cleaner, and more consistent product. It’ll still have everything you love about Abov the Noise’s whiskey news: bottle releases, award winners, celebrity labels, and more! We’re going to work hard to make it more interactive as well, so if you see a poll or a question in the newsletter, let us know how we’re doing by answering it. Grab a dram, sit down, and get ready to go Abov the Noise!
To celebrate our move to Beehiiv for our newsletter, we found this delightful ad from the 1950s which includes an adorable cartoon bee. Is the whiskey honey-sweet? Let us know if you’ve had this one!
The Abov Top 100
We teased the beginning of this last month, but we’re closing in on the top 50! We’ll give you another chance to follow us on Instagram for a live feed of the whole top 100.
If you’re not into Instagram, we are working to keep the list updated (basically weekly) with links to buy each of the top 100!
How many of the top 100 have you tried??
The Scotch Adventure Shortlist
Carlie MacLean (Credit: The Charlie MacLean Foundation)
Whisky rewards analysis, and I think that's become part of the appeal. It is an acquired taste. It's not a child's drink. If you get the taste of it, it's hugely rewarding.
A trip to the best watering holes in Scotland is on every whisk(e)y drinker’s bucket list. Many of us may only get one shot to make it happen and so we want to make it count! Enter author Charlie MacLean, who has spent his life rating Scotch whisky, and his list of his favorite spots starting in Edinburgh (as most whisky adventures do) and spreading out across Caledonia.
From obvious musts like Johnny Walker to tiny basement bars that you could walk right past to rural hotels that will run up quite the price tag, Charlie’s list provides all whisky people, novice to expert, with something to see and try!
A Corny Topic
Image credit Bourbon Veach
Every serious Bourbon drinker knows the rules, it must be 51% corn in the mashbill or it ain’t Bourbon. The prevalence of yellow corn across the United States made this the logical choice for most distillers looking to get into the Bourbon game. However, with the explosion in popularity of Bourbon across the US, distillers are being forced to differentiate themselves and some have gotten creative. Many distilleries, mainly in non-traditional Bourbon regions like Texas, Alabama, South Carolina and others, have gotten creative and started to play with the type of corn they’re putting in their bourbon. After all, the rules state simply that it must be 51% corn, not what type of corn!
Three new types of, ironically, very historic corn have emerged: red, white, and blue corn. Within each type, there are unique flavors that differ from traditional yellow corn. The talented Bourbon historian Michael Veach will take you through these three varieties and what makes each unique.
A More Royal Dram-a
Long live the King’s whisky!
Our obsession with celebrity whiskies has led us to this, the King has just launched his own whisky brand. Dubbed “Highgrove” after the King’s estate from which a unique variety of barley in the whisky is grown, the whisky brand launch signals a commitment from the royal family to whisky as an industry. Each bottle comes individually numbered and includes a watercolor(u)r painting of the estate by the King himself, in case that’s what you needed to tip you over to buying one!
What We’re Drinking
Eric - TheMagicOtter
Blood Oath Pact 6
We’re still thinking about Halloween around here, but not about candy, we’re thinking about whiskey. Specifically, I’m thinking about the Blood Oath that I pulled out as a seasonally appropriate tipple. An intense name and over-the-top packaging for a surprisingly smooth and balanced whiskey.
Caramel and leather flavors are some of the only dominant notes that I’m picking up and I’m really searching for them. Not much fruit, not much spice, and the lack of distinct or sharp notes actually speaks to its character. The 14 years spent in oak have allowed the flavors to meld and mellow and rid itself of any unpleasant tastes. The cognac finishing doesn’t add as much as you’d expect, but it’s there when you go searching for it. Very easy to drink. Potentially even dangerous.
88/100
What’s in your glass?
Scotch whisky can trace it’s roots back to the 1400’s, so when a new distillery opens up, it’s news. Ardnahoe’s Inaugural Release, released this past summer, is newsworthy. A delightful combination of sweet, peat, and smoke make this a great first entry from the distillers.
User review of the month
napauleon - Bearface Elementally Aged - 86/100
“A really interesting taste with the maize/corn real showing through on the mash bill. The finishing then kicks in, particularly red wine, giving this a very fruity almost spicy finish.”
Most wanted whiskey
Ever a classic, Macallan 12 will always deliver. Their sherry oaked whiskey has all the classic highland fruitiness and sweetness to ensure that this will be popular to nearly any whisk(e)y drinker’s palate!
