New Series Drop: The Whisky Cellar ‘Private Cellars Selection’ Series 9 + Robusto
Another exciting release from Keeper of the Quaich, Keith Bonnington
In 2022, Dhall & Nash brought on its first premium whisky – The Whisky Cellar’s Private Cellars Selection Series 3 from Keith Bonnington, and here we are three years later introducing its latest finest drops to our loyal whisky fans. It’s proven to be a rather special collection that punctuates our events nicely and we couldn’t be more thrilled to introduce the new line up.
“At its heart, Scotch Whisky is for enjoying – whether that’s drinking it or collecting it.”
Keith Bonnington, The Whisky Cellar Founder
In the halcyon days not so long ago, a single bottle of scotch whisky shattered the record for most expensive wine or spirit ever sold at auction. The Macallan Fine and Rare 60-Year-Old fetched a staggering $1.9 million USD.
Why so much you ask? Well, the 1926 vintage malt was drawn from a legendary barrel, prized by collectors for its near-mystical characteristics. To some, this may seem astonishing, but for true connoisseurs of fine scotch whisky, nothing will do but the absolute best. Single, specially selected casks from legendary distillers is what Keith Bonnington of ‘The Whisky Cellar’ does best.
The Whisky Cellar is a high-quality independent bottler. Keith has lived and breathed scotch whisky for over two decades. He works with a panel of tasting experts to ensure only the very best whiskies are bottled for The Whisky Cellar’s Private Cellars Selection. Between them, the panel has over 200 years’ experience.
Keith has been fortunate to have made a career from something he loves and his contribution to the industry was recognised in 2013 when he was bestowed the honour of ‘Keeper of the Quaich’.
After decades of relationship building in the industry and with a comprehensive network of sources plus an expert panel of testers, including master whisky maker Max Macfarlane, The Whisky Cellar selects exclusive and exquisite single casks of Scotch whisky.
Keith explains this independent bottling approach, “We are a flavour diversity driven bottler, and our core message is that, if we love the spirit enough, we will bottle it, irrespective of age, region, cask type or style. We want to bring to market extremely high-quality one-off whiskies which represent good value to the consumer.”
The term ‘whisky’ comes from the Gaelic ‘uisge beatha’ or ‘usquebaugh’, meaning water of life.
For us at Dhall & Nash, we were impressed with the fantastic quality of The Whisky Cellar releases and count ourselves fortunate to be working with Keith to bring these releases to the NZ market. Each bottling is a fantastic representation of what the distilleries do, showcased with no-chill filtration or colour additions and at cask strength, making these releases as close to drinking from the cask as possible. An exceptional taste experience!
We’ve detailed the real nitty gritty whisky lowdown on our initial S3 launch here, but for those that are ready for the drams, read on…
The Whisky Cellar ‘Private Cellars Selection’ Series #08
Robusto Cigar Malt
- Blended Malt Scotch Whisky
- 8 Years Old
- Oloroso Sherry Cask
- 1 of 2000 bottles
- 52.5%
‘Robusto’ is a commonly used term in the world of fine cigars, referring to a full flavoured, short but substantial smoke. This whisky has been crafted to be full-flavoured with lots of rich Oloroso sherry cask influenced character and subtle background smoke from hand selected peated Islay malts, balancing wonderfully with the intense toasty-sweet notes of an aged cigar.
Deep mahogany with a rich Oloroso Sherry seasoned oak nose. Hints of cigar box, dried raisins, dark plums and festive spice. Palate shows charred Christmas cake ends, cigar box, gingerbread, burnt orange peel, smoked bacon. The finish is long, warming and lingering, balancing barbeque smoked meats with brown sugar, ginger and cinnamon.
Keith: “Here’s my own personal suggested cigar pairing for ‘Robusto’: ‘Maduro’ (meaning ‘mature’ in Spanish) cigars are made from extra fermented and slow aged tobacco leaves and tend to be sweeter and
darker than others. That’s why I have selected (in order of preference) the following for those of us that enjoy fine cigars on occasion:
- Padron 1926 Series No. 35 Maduro (notes of coffee, pepper, cedar wood, leather and caramel)
- Cohiba Black Robusto Crystal (notes of cocoa and coffee)
- Camacho Triple Maduro (notes of earth and spice).
Whether or not you appreciate the fine complex flavours of a Maduro-style cigar, this is a whisky that lovers of rich characterful malts will appreciate. Equally good with a cup of freshly brewed Arabica coffee, a densely sweet after-dinner dessert or a piece of dark chocolate (the minimum 70% cocoa fat version), this is an affordable and deeply enjoyable dram.”
The Whisky Cellar ‘Private Cellars Selection’ Series #09
Craigellachie Single Malt Scotch
- Speyside
- 12 Years Old
- Oloroso Sherry Octave Cask Finish
- 55.1%
- 1 of 206 bottles
- Cask Numbers: 40 / 41
Weighty and bold and with hints of beef bouillon from distillate, Craigellachie is another Speysider that can handle generous ex-Sherry cask ageing.
The latest example is a marriage of two fresh Oloroso Sherry octave casks (No. 40 & 41), maximising the spirit to oak contact and influence. The result is a chestnut coloured whisky with a dark honey nose with butterscotch and christmas cake. The long, sweet and lingering palate gives hints of damson jam, dark chocolate and the typical roasted meat juices backbone all contribute to a cornucopia of complex character.
The Whisky Cellar ‘Private Cellars Selection’ Series #09
Glenrothes Single Malt Scotch
- Speyside
- 11 Years Old
- Oloroso Sherry Cask Finish
- 57.5%
- 1 of 326 bottles
- Cask Number: 6364
The Glenrothes distillate and sherry cask maturation is the perfect marriage in our opinion, it seems to work every time.
An 11 year old, fully matured in a refill European oak ex-Oloroso sherry cask, forms part of this latest series. It achieves perfect harmony between weighty distillery style and sherry cask richness, nothing too dominant, everything rounded and well balanced.
Deep amber colour with dark caramelised sugar and baking spices on the nose (classic Glenrothes Sherry Cask.) The palate gives baked red orchard fruits, red apple peel, chocolate praline, sultanas and marmalade, while the finish is long and warming with crystalized ginger and dark chocolate.
The Whisky Cellar ‘Private Cellars Selection’ Series #09
Strathmill Single Malt Scotch
- Speyside
- 15 Years Old
- Refilled Oloroso Sherry Cask Finish
- 56.9%
- 1 of 283 bottles
- Cask Number: 3076
This Strathmill is a triumph in the gentler side of sherry maturation. Deep, bright gold. Light, fruity and fresh with a delicate oily texture, we wanted to elevate the signature Strathmill character, not mask it and took the view that a fresh ex-sherry Hogshead might do the latter. Consider refill cask finishes if you prefer a whisky that offers complexity but hasn’t surrendered all of its distillate style to the barrel. This has bags of refreshing stone fruit notes, spiced toasted nut mix, fresh herbs, an underlying toffee sweetness and that delicious olive oil mouthfeel.
