James Hope

12 posts
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  • 5 minute read

Talisker Tasting

Talisker is a Diageo staple. You will find the classic 10 year old in many many bars around the world, providing a consistent and reliable experience for the thirsty scotch drinker. It was one of the 6 original ‘Classic Malts of Scotland’, a range brought in by United Distillers in the late 80’s to showcase regional differences in Scotch Whisky production. It does a little bit of everything…
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  • 4 minute read

Laphroaig Tasting

With many hours of darkness and a definite chill in the air, November was calling for something to warm the cockles. There are lots of options when it comes to heavily peat influenced scotch, and all have their own characteristics and idiosyncrasies. Islay is the classic place to start with the big Kildalton bruisers on the south coast…
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Worm tubs whisky mat
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Worm Tubs

July has started very well indeed. Not only are days warm and nights long but events at the club have been going from strength to strength. On Wednesday 10th July the club met once again at The Bottlescrue in St Pauls for a geeky night of whisky fun. The theme for the night was distilleries that use worm tub condensers…
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Cotswolds - Bottle range
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  • 3 minute read

Cotswolds Tasting

June is a time when the countryside starts to show off its beauty with lush green fields, colourful flowers and bright sunny days. It only seemed fitting therefore to host a tasting by a distillery that prides itself on creating a spirit that mirrors its magnificent country setting. The Cotswolds have to be one of the most beautiful areas in England…
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  • 3 minute read

Young Whisky

In the past a Whisky’s reputation was built upon successful marketing and word of mouth. Age was but a number and many whiskies succeeded because companies were happy to push out solid whiskies where their age statement was a minimum assurance as opposed to a number to aim at. In the boom times after WW2 capacity increased dramatically…
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  • 4 minute read

Mackmyra Tasting

The first event in April saw the second distillery tasting for the club. Back in March we welcomed Ibon from the Loch Lomond Group and this time around we were able to host Shane from the up and coming Swedish distillery Mackmyra. Up and coming might be the wrong term as Mackmyra has been around for a good few years now…
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Loch Lomond Tasting

March saw another first for The London Whisky Club, a hosted tasting by the good people at Loch Lomond Group. To be more specific by Ibon, the brand ambassador for the Loch Lomond Group. As a young club it is really exciting to see these events come together and provide even more opportunities to enjoy and share whisky…
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Blind Tasting

February at the club saw a slightly different format to usual. We held the first blind tasting we’ve ever done. Blind tasting whisky is one of the best ways to learn about your palate, your likes/dislikes and the whisky itself. When all preconceived notions about brand, reputation, cask type, colour, marketing etc are stripped away and…
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Value Whisky

On Wednesday 23rd January the club came together for the first congregation of 2019. With Christmas and New Year behind us, and people watching the pennies after the holiday period, it seemed fitting to theme the evening around value in whiskies. As usual, within that theme we kept things quite open so the only rule was that each bottle must cost…
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  • 3 minute read

Ralfy Tasting 2018

It was a weekend in the middle of November, nothing special you might say and nothing to get excited about. However this wasn’t any old weekend, it was a weekend where myself and Jez would get to meet a whole host of really wonderful people from in and around the whisky fabric. It all came about after Jez won a ticket to go to Ralfy’s annual charity tasting…
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