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S D N A R B R O U Q I WINNING L ies galore for our best
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MULTIPLE TOP S P O O SC T N A R G N LE G HISKY BIBLE HONOURS IN 2018 W The Whisky Bible, Jim Murray’s authoritative guide for whisky connoisseurs everywhere, has rated single malt specialist, Glen Grant, a world best. Again.
and prompting Murray to say: “Once more Scotland owes a debt of honour to the celebrated Glen Grant distillery which again displayed Speyside whisky in its most sparkling light.”
The flagship 18 Year Old Single Malt has been chosen as one of the world’s finest three whiskies for 2018, competing against all styles and ages of whisky, made not only in Scotland but in Ireland, the US, Canada, Japan and Australia. This is the second time the luxury single malt has starred on the coveted list of Murray’s favourites for the year.
But those were not the only Whisky Bible honours accorded Speyside’s famous barley to bottle distillery in Rothes. Remarkably, for the sixth year running, Murray awarded Glen Grant’s 10 Year Old the title of Best Single Malt aged 10 years or less. (The whisky is also an International Wine & Spirit Competition gold medallist.)
It’s also the second time in succession that Glen Grant’s 18 Year Old has been crowned Scotch Whisky of the Year and Single Malt of the Year, as well as best single malt in the 16- to 21-year age category, winning the same titles it did in 2017
Founded in Rothes in 1840, Glen Grant is also renowned for the invention of a tall potstill for a smoother, finer-grained single malt style, flavour and texture. It revolutionised whisky then and still sets Glen Grant apart.
Y AGAIN – H P O R T SC IW S IN W G AUVIGNON 2013 S T NEDERBUR E N R E B A C S IE R U T EN THIS TIME FOR ITS II C The 2013 vintage of Nederburg II Centuries Cabernet Sauvignon has been awarded the coveted Warren Winiarski Trophy for the best Cabernet Sauvignon at the 2017 International Wine & Spirit Competition (IWSC), judged alongside equivalents from various wine-producing countries. “We are thrilled to have won the IWSC trophy for the best Cabernet Sauvignon, twice in a row,” says Andrea Freeborough, Nederburg’s cellarmaster. “Most interestingly, both IWSC trophy-winning wines – the II Centuries Cabernet Sauvignon 2013 and Private Bin R163 Cabernet Sauvignon 2013 – were blended at Nederburg on the same day in October 2015! “Stylistically, the two wines are very distinct, each made from a unique set of individually selected barrels. Both are superbly made by hand, using meticulously selected grapes, with the utmost attention to detail applied during the winemaking process. “Nederburg II Centuries Cabernet Sauvignon 2013 is classically styled – a true expression of two top-performing dry-farmed vineyards in Paarl. Both sites are low-yielding and produce small-berried, loose bunches picked at a suitable level of phenolic ripeness. While Cabernet bunches tend to be fairly compact, the prevailing micro-climatic conditions were conducive to a looser bunch formation, making for more even ripening. The grapes for this specific wine were selected from individual vines, yielding small berries with concentrated dark berry fruit. The chosen fruit was then further sorted at the cellar and after vinification, spent 30 months in new, second- and thirdfill 300-litre French oak barrels. The resultant wine is rich but refreshing, beautifully balanced and with ripe, supple tannins and signature notes of black fruit, plums, cassis and cigar box.” 40
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