March 7^th, 2012

We were very pleased to present the 7th Annual Victoria Whisky Festival which ran through Thursday the 19th, Friday the 20th, Saturday the 21st and Sunday the 22nd of January 2012 at the 5 star Hotel Grand Pacific located on Victoria's beautiful Inner Harbour.

Attendees enjoyed the following events:

Jim Murray, author of the 2012 Whisky Bible (in which over 4,500 whiskies are rated with over 1,200 new entries for 2012) guided the attendees through a selection of the award winning whiskies from the 2012 Whisky Bible. This Grand Tasting was an eye opener for the attendees and featured some of the best whiskies that Jim came across in 2011.

The Victoria Whisky Festival was very pleased to have the Canadian Whisky Awards 2011 dinner take place during the Festival. The Awards were hosted by Davin de Kergommeaux.

Tish Harcus is brand Ambassador for Canadian Club and is also responsible for the Canadian Club Brand Centre, the original home of the brand since 1858. Tish presented the excellent whiskies of Canadian Club along with tidbits of Canadian Club history gleaned from archival materials in conjunction with the wonderful food of the Mark restaurant. Both were further complemented by the impeccable service for which the Mark Restaurant is justifiably renowned. Tish pulled out all the stops for this dinner and the line of Canadian Club whiskies was impressive indeed.

This tasting charted the progress made by Isle of Arran Distillers - from tasting new make spirit... right through to a bottle of single malt distilled in the very first month of production in 1995! Along this journey Faye Black discussed the success of Arran thus far...while illustrating the challenges facing the distillery today. This was a "warts and all" tasting for those who really wished to learn the inside track from Arran Distillery

Simon Brooking, Laphroaig's Master Ambassador, took attendees to "The beautiful hollow by the broad bay" to explore the depths and peaks of the most distinctly flavoured single malt Scotch - Laphroaig. We learned about the history of the water of life on the island of Islay and sampled the range of the # 1 selling Islay single malt, and the influence that sherry from Jerez has on Laphroaig.

Where there's smoke, there's Laphroaig.

The Victoria Whisky Festival was very pleased to welcome Sam Simmons, Dr. Whisky and The Balvenie Global Ambassador, to this year's festival. Sam led lucky attendees through the handcrafted range of single malts from this excellent Speyside distillery via the Balvenie Whisky Academy program which he co-developed.

The Festival was very pleased to welcome back the irrepressible Ashok Chokalingham from Amrut Distillery of Bangalore India. After its debut in the international market in 2004, Amrut Distilleries has grown from strength to strength. The accolades on Amrut Fusion seem to be never ending. Amrut Fusion has won Best Daily Draw Awards by Malt Maniacs in 2009, Third Finest Whisky in the world by Jim Murray's whisky bible 2010, World Whisky of the Year 2011 by Malt Advocate, USA, Master's Award 2011 by International Spirits Magazine. Amrut Distillery won young world distillery of the year by Malt Maniacs in 2010 and ROW distillery of the year by whisky Magazine in 2011. Consumers discovered several new products this year at the Victoria Whisky Festival including Amrut Herald, Two Continents Second Edition and Portonova.

The 2012 Masterclass schedule offered diversity with whiskies from Canada, Scotland, Ireland, India, Japan, England and The United States of America. It has been a Festival tradition to schedule another masterclass every time we discovered yet another available room in the Hotel Grand Pacific; however with the 2012 Festival we reached our maximum. 2012 featured whiskies from around the world, a selection of single malts and blends, and independent bottlers and distillers presenting their own whiskies; the 2012 Victoria Whisky Festival offered a unique range of quality whiskies for the attendee.

Discover how 'Unnecessarily Well Made' Glenmorangie is as Global Brand Ambassador David Blackmore took you through this exciting Master Class. Attendees sampled a new make spirit to illustrate the style of whisky coming from the tallest stills in Scotland, First-fill and Second-fill "designer" American Oak 10 year old to highlight the influence of the best cask management policy in the industry, and various expressions such as Quinta Ruban and Nectar D'Or to showcase Glenmorangie's pioneering as well as recent work with finishing and extra-maturation in non-traditional oak casks. Glenmorangie Signet was also tasted to illustrate experiments and innovation in barley roasting/malting, and the wrap up included the Canadian preview of Artein, the soon-to-be released and latest Private Edition installment from Glenmorangie.

Established in 1895, Gordon & MacPhail is one of Scotland's leading independent whisky specialists and is world renowned as a bottler of whiskies from throughout Scotland. Joint Managing Director Michael Urquhart showcased the company’s Speyside greats; a treat for those lucky enough to secure tickets!

Established in 1895, Gordon & MacPhail is one of Scotland's leading independent whisky specialists and is world renowned as a bottler of whiskies from throughout Scotland. Joint Managing Director Michael Urquhart will show case the companies Speyside greats; a treat for those lucky enough to secure tickets!

Joanne Brown of Bruichladdich Distillery presented some of Bruichladdich's innovative single malts from this famed and maverick Islay distillery. Joanne was born and brought up in Port Charlotte on the Island of Islay and left school to attend University in Glasgow aged 17. On her return to the Island she took up a post in the Bruichladdich Distillery shop and office before moving to Glasgow in April 2007 to join the expanding Bruichladdich Sales team. Joanne's passion and knowledge of Bruichladdich has grown significantly over the past four years and she can offer an interesting insight into the industry from a woman's perspective. Joanne's family currently grow Barley for the distillery on their farm on Islay and supply the legendary spring water to the only bottling hall on the Island at Bruichladdich.

Andrew Ferguson (The Scotch Guy), representing the famed Scottish based Morrison-Bowmore Distillers, led you through the single malts from the Lowland distillery of Auchentoshan that triple distills their whisky, the newly launched Glen Garioch (pronounced 'Geery') and the famed Islay distillery Bowmore.

Jonathan Bray of A. Dewar Rattray Independent Bottlers led attendees through the company's excellent line of single cask bottlings. The Dewar Rattray line features a variety of ages from active and silent distilleries, examining single cask bottlings first hand.

The Festival was very pleased to have Davin de Kergommeaux once again conduct a masterclass that was designed to explain the basics of whisky to the attendees, assisting in their journey through the Festival's masterclass line up. Davin is a founding member of the highly respected Malt Maniacs (one of only 3 in Canada and 34 world wide) who live and breathe whisky. Davin has scored more than 2600 different whiskies from around the world and is also a judge in the Malt Maniacs Annual Awards where over 200 whiskies are rated and scored blind. Davin also judges at the World Whisky Awards in London.

The Festival is very pleased to hold the first masterclass featuring Japanese whiskies. Japanese whisky is renowned for quality, quality, quality and this class is not an exception to the rule. This masterclass featured the single malts of Yoichi distillery and two excellent samples from the 'Pure Malt' range (red, black & white,) in addition to a highly regarded surprise whisky. Lawrence is a member of the highly respected Malt Maniacs (one of only 3 in Canada and 34 world wide) and is also the editor of Whisky Intelligence.

Glenfarclas Distillery is renowned for producing Single Highland Malt Scotch Whisky in the traditional Speyside style, with a heavy Sherry influence. They produce a wide range of expressions from the 10 Year Old to much older expressions. George Grant is the 6th generation of the family and the Ambassador for the Glenfarclas. (The Glenfarclas Distillery Masterclasses 1 & 2 were identical in format)

The Birth of a Whisky - A rare enough event in it's own right, but on Vancouver Island? Master Distiller Mike Nicolson brought news of a welcome new addition to Canada's distilling tradition. Attendees heared of the first runs of Shelter Point Distillery's gleaming copper Pot Stills and the production of the New Make Malt Whisky, a proud new Canadian Spirit.

The Festival was very pleased to welcome Ranald Watson, who represents Springbank Distillery which is located in Campbeltown, to the Victoria Whisky Festival. Attendees had the opportunity to examine the unique Campbeltown style evident in Springbank whiskies and the effects of aging on the Springbank single malts was a key component of the masterclass.

Simon Brooking, Laphroaig's Master Ambassador, took attendees to "The beautiful hollow by the broad bay" to explore the depths and peaks of the most distinctly flavoured single malt Scotch - Laphroaig. We learned about the history of the water of life on the island of Islay and sampled the range of the # 1 selling Islay single malt, and the influence that sherry from Jerez has on Laphroaig.

Where there's smoke, there's Laphroaig.

For those in the know, this is a Hall of Fame scotch whisky. For those just joined us, you were welcomed. Highland Park whiskies are widely known for being one of the most distinct Island whiskies in the world. Orcadian peat smoke and Spanish sherry oak casks are just a few of the key elements that give this historical elixir its incredible personality. Dan Volway told us the tale of this Orkney gem.

Our friends at Purple Valley Imports represent a veritable cornucopia of whiskies, independent bottlers and distilleries for all parts of the world and in this class they pulled out all the stops to pour the best and newest of the stable.

The famed Classic Malts come from some of the most distinguished distilleries in Scotland including Lagavulin, Talisker, Oban, Cragganmore, Dalwhinnie and Glenkinchie. The Classic Malts tour has opened the eyes of many, from the newest whisky adventurist to the well versed aficionado, to the joys of whisky and ably demonstrated the differences between Scotland's whisky regions. 36 year veteran of scotch whisky distillation, Michael Nicolson took us through a fantastic journey of the Classic Malts, some of which he worked at.

Jim Murray author of the 2012 Whisky Bible (in which over 4,500 whiskies are rated) guided attendees through a selection of the award winning whiskies. As usual, Jim kept the details of this masterclass under wraps however it was highly entertaining.

Glenfarclas Distillery is renowned for producing Single Highland Malt Scotch Whisky in the traditional Speyside style, with a heavy Sherry influence. They produce a wide range of expressions from the 10 Years Old to much older expressions. George Grant is the 6th generation of the family and the Ambassador for the Glenfarclas. (The Glenfarclas Distillery Masterclasses 1 & 2 were identical in format)

The Festival was very pleased to offer a masterclass dedicated to the whiskies of Ireland featuring Cooley Distillers, the only independent Irish whiskey distillery in Ireland. Irish whiskey is gaining stature around the world; the whiskies in this class were no exception and Cooley Distillers were pleased to present their Award winning range of single malts (Tyrconnell and Connemara).

The festival was pleased to host the recording of WhiskyCast Virtual Tastings, featuring a tasting panel of VWF attendees tasting whiskies from around the world. Each month, WhiskyCast's Mark Gillespie assembles a panel of whisky lovers to taste and score a flight of whiskies. It's designed to help the average whisky lover learn more about nosing, tasting and rating whiskies, as well as give connoisseurs a voice in the global whisky discussion.

Ross Hendry, Ambassador for The Glenrothes distillery returned to the Festival and presented the vintage line up from the Speyside distillery. Ross added a twist, However, in which the class examined some vintages of Glenrothes that are no longer available in stores and their replacements. The Glenrothes believes that it is maturity, not age, that matters in whisky making and thus they bottle by vintage. Ross is the man to explain their philosophy to you, dram by dram.

Tish Harcus, brand Ambassador for Canadian Club led attendees through the Canadian Club line up (including the sumptuous 30yo) as well as discussing the brand’s 154 year old history. She included some Canadian Club Prohibition items, grain samples, and discussed key production methods.

Andrew Symington of Edradour distillery located in Pitlochry, Perthshire took attendees through the whiskies of one of the smallest distilleries in Scotland that produce a mere 12 casks a week. Edradour is prized by whisky enthusiasts and this was an opportunity to find out why.

James Robertson of Tullibardine Distillery in Blackford, Perthshire, Scotland led the attendees through a line of single malts from this excellent distillery, focusing on both the Vintage editions and those that have been 'enhanced' in variety of specially selected casks.

The famed Classic Malts tour has opened the eyes of many, from the newest whisky adventurist to the well versed aficionado. The Classic Malts Distiller's Editions are a variation of the originals. They are a limited release range of malts in which the whisky is transferred from its original cask to another for a further period of maturation. In this class guided by 36 year veteran of scotch whisky distillation Michael Nicolson, we ventured into the world of finishes and explored this marriage between whisky and barrel. We then determined if this marriage is meant to be or should consider an annulment. As David Broom of Whisky Magazine puts it, "whether these alter egos float your boat or not, they are an essential part of understanding the flavours given by maturation and how, when successful, using finishes can put a spin on a whisky you already know and appreciate."

Canada's Best Whiskies of 2011-Sample and learn about the winners of the 2011 Canadian Whisky Awards. A panel of experts spent the fall in blind tastings to determine the very best Canadian whiskies of 2011. The winners were presented to help us get to know Canada's top whiskies - the new connoisseur whisky category.

Jim Murray, author of the 2012 Whisky Bible led this masterclass featuring the single malts of Old Pulteney distillery (located in Wick, north eastern Scotland). Traditional craftsmanship and the distillery's windswept location contribute to the award-winning whisky that is Old Pulteney Single Malt Scotch.

Sam continued The Balvenie Whisky Academy with a focus on "Maturation & Oak Influence" by sharing new spirit and samples from the contributing casks that David Stewart uses to create The Balvenie Signature.

Recognized as one of the world's most prestigious spirit brands, The Macallan is the heartbeat of luxury, complexity and finesse. The two primary offerings from this world-class Speyside distillery strike a harmonious balance between old world and new world craft and skill. Dan Volway took us on a sensory journey that was like no other.

This class explored the more esoteric side of Arran Distillery and featured some of their more limited edition products. Faye Black discussed in detail the influence of different cask maturation and showed how different casks of Arran Single Malt can develop unique flavour profiles.

The irrepressible Ashok Chokalingam led the lucky participants through the excellent whiskies of Amrut Distillery of Bangalore, India. Amrut single malt is made from Indian barley which is mashed and distilled in small batches and matured in oak barrels in a unique tropical environment at an altitude of 3,000 feet above sea level. Jim Murray and many others rate the Amrut single malts very highly; discover Amrut single malt for yourself!

From a small grocery store in the town of Kilmarnock, Scotland came a 15 year old boy with a gift of blending tea. John Walker's passion spread to blending whiskies for the townsfolk of Kilmarnock and he soon became known for his expert whisky blending skills in all of West Scotland. Since then, the Johnnie Walker name has been celebrated globally for quality and consistency while the iconic square bottle with the slanted label is seen on shelves everywhere. A 36 year veteran of distilling, Michael Nicolson took us through the Johnnie Walker Labels, including Red, Black, Green, Gold and Blue as he combines his experiences with Johnnie Walker and explains the nuances that make each Johnnie Walker label so unique and special.

This was a course detailing the History of Maker's Mark, and a walk through of their product from the White Dog (original spirit) to the ready set Maker's Mark Bourbon Whisky. Jeff detailed the marketing of the product, and the process by which the recipe or mash bill came about. Some Samuels family history was discussed, along with a chat about thecurrent in market bourbons and how they differentiate themselves.

In this very special Master Class, guests had the opportunity to Indulge in two of life's greatest pleasures: scotch and chocolate! This guided tasting paired 4 rare single malt scotches with 4 handcrafted single origin chocolates (from Xoxolat). Each chocolate brought out the unique profiles of its paired scotch. Two examples of this pairing included a 10yr old Speyside malt, full of spice and vanilla, paired with a cardamom crème brulèe truffle as well as a deep, powerful, salty, smoky Islay scotch matched with a triple smoked, maple caramelized bacon milk chocolate. Yum Yum. Attendees were invited to sit back & enjoy the wonderful balance of smoky sweetness and salty goodness!

The VIP Tasting was open to special guests of the 2012 Victoria Whisky Festival and VIP Ticket holders. It was held in the Vancouver & Pender Island Ballrooms prior to the Consumer Tasting and featured the full line of whiskies as with the Consumer Tasting. VIP Ticket holders were able to explore the range of whiskies being presented for a full hour prior to the Consumer Tasting (Ticket price included VIP Tasting & Consumer Tasting).

The heart of the Festival is the Consumer Tasting being held in the Hotel Grand Pacific's Pender Island and Vancouver Island Ballrooms featuring a myriad of distilleries and whiskies including Canadian whisky, Scottish single malts and blended whiskies, Irish whiskey and a variety of whisky & whiskey styles from the United States of America.

Attendees had their choice of over 150 whiskies for their enjoyment. Each attendee was provided with an engraved Glencairn whisky nosing & tasting glass and a Whisky Advocate magazine as well as assorted product information from the presenters.

The Hotel Grand Pacific provided the best Hors d'Oeuvres from their award winning kitchen and Chefs using local ingredients including the very popular & elusive haggis tarts created especially for the Victoria Whisky Festival! Here attendees were able to satisfy their whisky curiosity by sampling their choice of over 150 whiskies, the largest selection available for such an event in British Columbia.

Andrew Symington of Edradour distillery located in Pitlochry, Perthshire took attendees through the whiskies of one of the smallest distilleries in Scotland that produce a mere 12 casks a week. The culinary team of the Hotel Grand Pacific crafted a meal to remember for those lucky few who were in attendance.

The Hotel Grand Pacific's Executive Chef Rick Choy paired exceptional local ingredients with The Balvenie single malts, presented by The Balvenie Global Ambassador, Dr. Sam Simmons. This exceptional evening, in the highly acclaimed The Mark restaurant, celebrated handcrafted food with handcrafted whisky.

Please email info@victoriawhiskyfestival.com