Whiskeys That Will Make Great Gifts

anCnoc whiskies (pronounced "a-nock") are produced at the Knockdhu Distillery, founded by John Morrison in 1892, at the Knock estate in Aberdeenshire. This 18 year old whisky is aged in a combination of ex-sherry and ex-bourbon oak casks. It is un-chill filtered with no additional coloring, so may get cloudy with water or if kept in cold temperatures.

The QuintEssential Signature Blend is an American single malt whiskey from Iowa's Cedar Ridge Distillery. The whiskey is named for founder and master distiller Jeff Quint, who showcases a blend of 100% peated malt aged for four to five years in bourbon barrels, as well as unpeated malt initially aged for between two and three years in bourbon barrels. Then the whiskey is finished for an extra one to two years in an assortment of barrels including rum, brandy, port, sherry, and wine. The marrying process is then conducted via a solera system. Batch No. 001 was released in June 2020.

The Whistler Calvados Cask Finish is a triple-distilled blended whiskey which features 35% single malt and 65% grain whiskeys. Each style is individually matured in ex-bourbon barrels for 4 years. Then the whiskeys are married and finished for 15 months in French oak casks which held 10 year-old Calvados from Chateau du Breuil. Bottled without chill-filtration or added caramel at 43% ABV.

Master blender Dr. Don Livermore has a doctorate in distilling. To simplify his dissertation, he studied how wood interacted with different spirits to draw out flavors. His hard work produced a surplus of barrels that have been aging whisky for the past 12 years. Dissertation is a blend of 87% rye whisky and 13% corn whisky bottled at 46.1% alcohol, the molecular weight of ethanol. Note: Not available in the US.

Oileanach Furachail is the 8th release in Bruichladdich's Port Charlotte PC series, an annual release of cask strength bottlings that began with the five-year-old PC5 Evolution. Each expression in the series is given a name in the old language, and "oileanach furachail" is in reference to a teacher grooming his apprentice to take on the craft - in this case, Master Distiller Jim McEwen and Adam Hannett, who worked together from 2006 until McEwan's retirement in 2015. This heavily-peated Islay single malt is only available through select Global Travel Retail outlets. It's bottled at a hefty 58.7% ABV.

To make this whiskey, Taconic first empties barrels that previously held bourbon distilled at their facility. Those barrels are then sent to Catskill Mountain Sugarhouse, where they are filled with maple syrup and aged for several months before the syrup is bottled. The maple-soaked casks are returned to the distillery and refilled with bourbon for an additional period of aging.

Catskill Provisions New York Honey Whiskey is an 80-proof rye infused with local honey from the Catskill Mountains. The rye whiskey is distilled from a mash bill of 80% rye and 20% barley at Finger Lakes Distilling (contract distilled) in upstate New York.

Campbeltown was once considered the "whisky making capitol" of Scotland with 28 distilleries. Of those 28, only 3, including Glen Scotia remain. Though they no longer malt their own barley, they source it to very specific details, using longer fermentation and vatting methods than in the old days. Released in 2015 as part of the brand's relaunch, this Scotch was matured for 15 years in ex-bourbon barrels before bottling.

Douglas Laing and Co. are an independent bottler of Scotch whiskies. Double Barrel is their brand extension using a cask each of well known single malts, vatted together. In this case, they did it with Highland Park from Orkney and Bowmore from Islay.

This whisky is a tribute to J.P. Wiser and a testament to the quality of Canadian whisky that Wiser established as a style many years ago. Former Master Blender David Doyle blended this Canadian gem with then Wiser apprentice Don Livermore. A rye-grain heavy mash is distilled in traditional copper pot-stills then aged in toasted new white oak barrels. A toasted oak, rather than charred oak, helps mellow the distillate through the aging cycle.