Amy Westlake just emailed to let me know that the tix for the event are gone.
I'm really stoked about spending the entire week in Chicago...hopefully you already have your tixkets and will be there on Friday Night to see what all the fuss is about.
The events surrounding the Chicago Whisky Fest are starting to roll in - below you'll find some of the things Binny's, Diageo and Sam's have already told me about. I'll have more events for you as I learn about them.
I'll be in Chicago the whole week and hope to see you at some of these.
Monday, April 9th
Classic Malt Seminar
Master Distiller Emeritus, Evan Cattanach
Where: Delilah’s - 2771 N. Lincoln Ave. Chicago
Time: 7:00 pm –
Cost: Complimentary
Tuesday, April 10th
Spirits Night at Sam's
Over 150
Spirits in all. Plus, meet some of the industry's finest: Tom Bulleit
of Bulleit Bourbon, George Grant of Glenfarclas, Ian Millar of
Glenfiddich, Simon Brooking of Dalmore, Martin Duffy - Master of
Whiskey Knowledge, Fred Noe/Jim Beam and others!
Where: Sam's Lincoln Park Location - 1720 N Marcey St Chicago, IL 60614 (312) 664-4394
Time:
5:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Cost: $40 in advance $50 at the door
Duke of Perth Fish & Chips & Singletons
With Evan Cattanach & Marty Duffy
Where: Duke of Perth
Time: 8:30 pm - 10:00 pm
Cost: Complimentary
Wednesday, April 11th
Bulleit Bottle Signing with Tom Bulleit
Where: West Lakeview Liquors - 2156 W Addison St Chicago, IL 60618 (773) 525-1916
Time: 5:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Cost: Complimentary
Classic Malt Dinner
Evan Cattanach conducts a six course dinner paired with the six Classic Malt whiskies.
Where: The Palm Restaurant - 323 E Wacker Dr, Chicago, 60601 - (312) 616-1000
Time: 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Cost: $85
Delilah’s Bourbon Forum
Tom Bulleit w/Fred Noe, Bill Samuels, Jimmy Russell & others
Where: Delilah's - 2771 N. Lincoln Ave. Chicago, IL. 60614
Time: 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Cost: Complimentary
North American Whiskey Tasting
Where: Rocks Tavern - 1301 W Schubert Ave, Chicago, 60614 - (773) 472-7738
Time: 7:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Classic Malts Tasting
Where: Red Lion Pub - 2446 N Lincoln Ave Chicago, IL 60614 (773) 348-2695
Time: 7:00 pm - 10:00 pm
Gordon & Macphail Seminar
With Export Director Derek Hancock and Brett Pontoni, covering handpicked casks and new G&M offerings.
Where:
Clark Street Ale House - 742 N. Clark St.
Time: 8:00 pm -
Cost: $20
Thursday, April 12th
Binny’s Whiskies of the World
Where: Binny's - 3000 N. Clark Street, Chicago, IL. 60657
Time: 5:30 pm - 8:00 pm
Cost: $30
Chief O’Neill’s Bulleit Pig Roast & Whisky Festival
Various Whiskies, live music & complimentary buiffett. Whisk(e)y
Debate between Tom Bulleit & Evan Cattanach. $10, with
proceeds going to the Chicago Police Memorial Foundation
Where: 3471 N Elston Ave. Chicago, IL 60618 (773) 583-3066
Time: 7:30 pm - 11:00 pm
Cost: $10
Friday, April 13th
Whisky Fest
The main event
Where: Hyatt Hotel
Time: 5:00 pm -10:00 pm
Cost: $105, $145 for VIP ticket
Delilah’s Bushmills After Party
Upstairs with food & live music
Where: Delilah's - 2771 N. Lincoln Ave. Chicago, IL. 60614
Time: 10:00 pm - 1:30 am
Cost: Complimentary
I've been lucky enough to have met Michael Jackson on a few occasions...meeting him for the first time some 14 years ago at a beer tasting he conducted at the BrickSkeller in Washington DC.
Like many of you, his writing was my first "formal" introduction to the world of whisky - and all of his books grace my cabinet (some of them actually signed :))
While my own writing on the subject will never match up to his - his work did motivate me to put pen to paper (er, finger to keyboard) and start this little site about whisky.
As some of you know Michael recently announced his long-term battle with Parkinson's - Johanna Ngoh would like to let everyone know about a fund-raiser she's organizing in conjunction with the upcoming Spirit of Toronto. She is soliciting donations for a silent auction to benefit Parkinson's research and wants all potential donors to know that their generosity is appreciated and will be acknowledged in the auction catalog both online and in print.
As most of you are aware, whisky writer Michael Jackson announced before Christmas that he has been dealing with Parkinson’s Disease for the better part of a decade. While this is challenging enough in and of itself, it is distressing that the symptoms of his condition were mistaken by the gossip mill to be the effects of intoxication. It takes years of hard work to build a professional reputation of Michael Jackson’s stature and such misinformation can only serve to damage a livelihood in this industry.
Michael Jackson openly displayed visible symptoms of Parkinson’s during a recent interview with Singlemalt.tv, an act that takes courage and character in my personal opinion. Watching him speak I became emotional but was also in admiration of the dignified manner in which he carried himself in spite of this obvious challenge.
He spoke about his first experience with whisky which in turn brought me back to my first visit to a whisky shop in Montreal. It was an aimless, bewildered wandering until I came across a copy of the ‘Malt Whisky Companion’ that provided me with written guidance, in plain language, to the Babel of bottles displayed before me. Looking back I realize that this book was actually my portal into the unique and idiosyncratic world of whisky, and its assorted cast of characters among the trade and enthusiasts who populate this decent and personable community. Like the author himself, the ‘Malt Whisky Companion’ is unassuming, unpretentious and a reflection of what makes the Scotch whisky trade special, and I am grateful to have had this book and its author as my original mentor on the subject.
With all the above in mind, I was not content to simply feel pity and pour a dram so I made contact with both Michael Jackson and the Parkinson Society Canada. The result of these communications is that Charles and I are organizing Canada’s first whisky auction to be held by silent bidding at this year’s Spirit of Toronto Whisky Gala on Saturday, May 12. Our goal is to gather a collection of 24 bottles of whisky with all proceeds being donated to the Parkinson Society Canada on behalf of Michael Jackson.
The intention here is not to find a cure with one fund raising event but rather to collectively show appreciation and support of an individual whose work has cultivated a worldwide renaissance of whisky enthusiasm and self-styled connoisseurship. I appeal to you as a member of the whisky community to please contact me if you have a bottle of whisky that you don’t mind putting to a different sort of “good use”, but rest assured that I will be brazen enough to be contacting many of you personally!
Best regards,
Johanna Ngoh
singleminded@magma.caSingle Minded, A Single Malt Whisky Journal
Spirit of Toronto 2007
Toronto’s Annual Whisky Gala
This in from The Party Source in Bellevue Kentucky.
The Irish do not need their famous luck when it comes to making whiskey. Their native spirit—probably the earliest distillation in Europe, and pre-dating whisky in Scotland—rates as perhaps the juiciest, most mouthwatering whiskey in the world. Tonight we’ll romp through some of our best Irish whiskies, including some new bottlings and different styles including blend, single malts, and the classic Irish pure pot still. Whether you’re Irish or not, your eyes will be smiling after a sip o’ the dew!
What: St. Patrick's Dram: An Irish Whiskey Tasting
When: Saturday, March 17th, 2007, 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm
Where: The Party Source, Bellevue, KY
Cost: $20
Hey, Washington DC residents! Need a break from Hillary, Barack and Scooter?
Then join TasteDC for their first Single Malt Scotch festival.
Over 70 different expressions to taste - from rare, hard to find Scotch to uniquely artisan-crafted. All Scotches tasted at this event will be available for order and purchase at special prices at Potomac Wines in Georgetown.
A complete dinner buffet is included in the price as well as the wonderful desserts of Patisserie Poupon.
Tickets are available at the door for $110; however if you buy online, tickets are $90.
What: Single Malt Scotch Festival
When: Thursday, March 22nd, 2007, 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm
Where: The Whittemore House
1526 New Hampshire Ave., NW
just off Dupont Circle near Q St., Metro Red Line within 2 blocks
And it's time to give away the first batch of Connemara keychain mini-flasks.
Not really the first batch...members of the mailing list got dibs
on the first 20.
What do you have to do? Simple.
Johanna Ngoh writes to let me know that her web site Singleminded.ca has been resurrected from the Whisky Blog Graveyard.
She also announces the 2007 Spirit of Toronto May 12, 6:30-9:30 at Roy Thomson Hall.
Good news.
My annual Scotch Tasting - an invite only event for between 8 and 12 of my personal friends - took place a few weeks ago. The long term attendees have developed a taste for Scotch over the years, but are by no means regular Scotch drinkers - so I try to mix it up each year with new and interesting things - some things they've likely never been exposed to before.
The Whiskies
This year I presented seven whiskies in the following order. (Remember, when hosting your own tasting, it is a good idea to present the whisky by flavor, from lightest to strongest):
Famous Grouse - I wanted to show these guys that there is nothing wrong with a blend - as long as it's a good blend. And Famous Grouse IS a good blend. I wanted to show how a quality blend can have complexity and still be under $20 a bottle. We tried the Famous Grouse neat and then as a mixed drink, with a lightly flavored Ginger Ale (Canada Dry). Great both ways.
For the third year in a row The Scotch Malt Whisky Society of America would like to extend a discounted admission to the 2007 U.S. Single Malt & Scotch Whisky Extravaganza Tour for readers of The Scotch Blog.
That's right, Once again readers of The Scotch Blog pay the same admission price that members of the SMWS pay.
Read on for the schedule and how to get the discount:
At Whisky Live Paris I also had the opportunity to meet and talk with Euan Mitchell (Director of Sales) and Douglas Davidson (Managing Director) of Isle of Arran.
Euan Mitchell: The distillery opened in 1995 - the first middle cut of spirit was taken at 2:29pm on the 29th of June 1995, if you want to get specific. We celebrated the 10th anniversary last summer, but we delayed the launch of our 10 year old until spring of this year to ensure a good volume of stocks.
Trout Unlimited Canada is pleased to announce their 3rd annual Single Malt Tasting Fundraiser.
Join Trout Unlimited Canada in preserving coldwater habitats within local watersheds with an enjoyable and informative evening, including:
Trout Unlimited Canada is a not-for-profit conservation and education organization. Founded in 1972, TUC’s focus is on volunteer-driven, member-based resource conservation. TUC Chapter members volunteer their time and effort to preserve cold-water habitats within local watersheds. Tax receipt issued for a portion of ticket.
When: Thursday, March 1st, 2007
Reception and Silent Auction begin at 6:00 p.m.; formal guided Tasting begins at 7:00 p.m.
Cost: Tickets are $150 each, or $1,200 for a table of 8
Where: The National Club, 303 Bay Street, Toronto.
Buy Tix: Call or e-mail Kim Blain at (905) 333-3264/toll-free 1-877-733-1994 or Fax (905) 333-1964. Visa, Mastercard, Amex or cheque accepted.
Tonight, all over the world people of Scottish heritage will celebrate Burns Night.
Below are some resources for you to learn more about Robert Burns, why he is celebrated and some about of the traditions associated with his night...
BBC Scotland
BBC - Food Section
Rabbie Burns.com
My Supper with Rabbie
Robert Burn.org - Burns Supper Guide
The Great British Kitchen
How to organise a Burns Supper
Scotland is the Place
Some of the worst haggis I've ever had has been at a Burns supper, but it's more about the opportunity to get together with others and celebrate your heritage.
Even if you are not of Scottish lineage - it's a great time. If you are looking for a Burns Supper in your part of the world, try Google. you might be surprised what shows up.
