Online Editor, Simon Wittenberg, attends the launch of the new Secret Speyside Collection at the Painting Rooms, an intimate venue tucked away from the hustle and bustle of London’s Tottenham Court Road.
Sampling a new range of whiskies is always an interesting journey of discovery, and when, not one, but 15 rare Single Malts are unveiled all at the same time, it’s a truly special event.
Hosted by the charismatic Alan Winchester (a Chivas Brothers Scotch whisky icon with over 30 years of Speyside distilling experience) and Alex Robertson (Head of Heritage and Education at Chivas Brothers) in a historic Grade I listed building in the heart of Theatreland which dates back to 1904, the event kicked off with a series of canapés and a classic Old Fashioned cocktail made with the yet-to-be-revealed Longmorn 18 Year Old.
Climbing the narrow winding staircase to the top of the gallery, the new Secret Speyside Collection, Chivas Brothers’ most extensive range of aged Single Malt Scotch whiskies, was slowly unveiled through the reciting of poetry and cleverly choreographed dance routines.
The talented dancing duo proceeded to place each of the new bottles on tall illuminated plinths to gradually reveal all the additions (with the exception of the Caperdonich 25 and 30 Year Olds which are still maturing at a Speyside warehouse until the on sale date of October).
The Collection, which counts Single Malts aged from 18 to 30 years, from four separate distilleries, is inspired by Speyside (Scotland’s predominant whisky-making region), where 12 of the 13 Single Malt distilleries belonging to Chivas Brothers are based. At the launch, Alan Winchester said: “This collection is a fascinating thing for us.
It’s been in the pipeline for a wee while, and we spoke about it a long time ago. We have got the broad range of the secrets, and there’s some fascinating insights into what we’ve done and what we continue to do.”