Chieftain's News Plus Tastings!
Tuesday, September 27, 2011 at 05:20PM 
I had some time to taste with Val from JVS today, who you all know is my absolute favorite person to meet with, and we had a great time tasting some of the new selections that Chieftain’s will be making available this year. We’re so excited about what they’re offering that we decided to plan another whiskey tasting event for the end of October in Burlingame. It should be the standard $25 tasting plus snacks and it will be one hell of a line up. Already confirmed are the following: 1995 Allt-A-Bhainne, 1996 Braeval, 1997 Caol Ila finished in rum cask, 1998 Strathisla finished in Barolo, and an amazing 1990 Rosebank sherry cask!
I had a chance to taste the Rosebank and it is absolutely stunning. At cask strength, it blows anything else away that I have tasted from G&M or Signatory. The Caol Ila is also quite nice – the same lovely cinnamon-style peat with a supple, yet restrained dose of sugar cane rum roundness on the finish. Lovely stuff. Here’s the real good news: our Bladnoch and Dailuaine casks are sitting in Oakland right now and they should be in shortly. I have talked to Val about JVS holding back one bottle of each so that we can pour them at the tasting! That means you’ll be able to try two of the amazing selections from our trip if you attend. The Bladnoch is probably my favorite whisky from the trip, so I’m very excited about that. Remember that once these arrive into stock, the pre-arrival price ends and the new price begins!
Redwood City – 5PM to 6:30 PM – Sept 28th
Diageo’s Master of Whisky Steve Beal will be back in the house for another awesome vertical – this time with the Highland region’s illustrious Cragganmore distillery. We’ll taste the Cragganmore 12 year old, the 1992 Double Matured Distiller’s Edition which was finished in Port wood, and the very limited release of the special 2011 edition 21 year old. This is going to be another wonderful chance to taste some of the classic malts of Scotland – free of charge of course. Walk in only, no need for reservations!
San Francisco – 5 PM to 6:30 PM – Sept 28th
St. George distiller Dave Smith will be on hand to pour out a dose of the Alameda institution’s new batch of craft gins. The Terroir – made from botanicals sourced from Mt. Tam. The Botanivore – a seriously botanical flavored elixir. The Dry Rye – a white rye spirit flavored with heavy amounts of juniper. These have already been a huge success despite their very limited release. If you’re unsure about which to buy, this is a great way to figure out which one you like the best!
-David Driscoll