Teeling & Glenrothes- Tastings and a look at their distribution!
I went to Flight West again this past week and did another tasting flight. Although, I am just getting over a sinus infection, so I was nervous about the “sniffing” part. All is okay though!
I will share my tasting notes for the three whiskey’s I tried, but I also wanted to talk a bit about the business/distribution side of these whiskeys. As I read their bottles I found Teeling and Glenrothes are distributed by companies in California. Right near where I used to live in Oakland! I did some research and want to share a bit about these two companies. So let’s go onto the business side...
Teeling Single Malt- Imported by Wilson Daniels- Aiso Viejo, CA
Holly's Note..
Nose: Fruity on the nose immediately. Lemon pound cake, lemon zest, some nuts, mango, pear.
Palate: Lemon meringue pie, aged apple, plum. The plum lingers.
Expert's Master of Malt Note..
Nose: Intense white grape juiciness on the nose, joined by fresh malt and Rolos, developing into white chocolate the longer it's in the glass.
Palate: An elegant expression, this. Well placed fruit, backed up with cinnamon and white pepper. A touch of dried flower petals along the way. Strawberries? A finish with strawberries and cream.
Glenrothes- Distilled 2001/Bottled 2013-Imported by Anchor Distilling Co. - San Francisco, CA
Holly's Note..
Nose: Vanilla, something sweet, cherry pie, smooth, old charred oak.
Palate: Apples, some smoke (not peat), almonds, kind of satin finish.
Expert Stephanie Moreno on the “Distiller” App Note..
Nose: Sugar and spice. Brown sugar, cinnamon, vanilla and caramel. Not that plush.
Palate: Fruits with pear, dried red fruit and very lean/spicy.
*This is one of those one’s I have to come back to. A little difficult to place at first.
Four Roses Single Barrel Bourbon
Holly's Note..
Nose: Strawberries, maraschino cherries, wood, oak, spice, cinnamon.
Palate: Oak lingers, some sort of flower, pepper lingers, cedar oak chest.
Expert Rob Morton on the “Distiller” App Note..
Nose: Full of cherries, pear and chocolate along with some oak and toffee.
Palate: More oak, darker fruits and hints of chocolate. Long easy finish of cherries, sugar and oak.
At the end of the day I have to say I really enjoyed the Teeling and the Four Roses, but Teeling may have won. Between Red Breast a few weeks ago and now Teeling, I am really excited to get to Ireland for some tours and drams now too!
Wilson Daniels - https://www.wilsondaniels.com/our-portfolio/
http://www.infiniumspirits.com/brands/index.html
Wilson Daniels is the parent company, but their spirits division which started in 2005, is called Infinium Spirits. Templeton Rye and Teeling are the two main whiskey brands they run along with rums, tequilas and liquors. When you go to their website you can find their marketing materials, sell sheets etc. for retailers to utilize. It is interesting that they chose to call their spirits division a different name. I guess this is because they are clearly well established in the wine market. Specifically California.
Anchor Distilling Co. - http://www.anchordistilling.com/
This place is very interesting to me and very close to my heart. This is right in my backyard of Northern, California. They not only make their own product, but also import. They have quite the interesting portfolio from the Glenrothes I mentioned, to Marilyn Manson Absinthe and the most exciting one being the Nikka Whisky. I didn’t realize they were the one’s bringing this into the USA from Japan. Nikka is an awesome Japanese whisky that not many American’s have gotten the chance to try yet. They also have Kavalan, which is out of Taiwan and has been winning many awards. This might very well be a stop for me before I head to Japan.
Anchor Distilling imports these brands and then has distributors to handle certain territories for sales. For example you may have heard of Southern Wine & Spirits or Allied Beverage Group. Very interesting process in how they get product to the market and get it to retailers!