That Boutique-y Whisky Company Archives

Irish Single Malt Whiskey #1 15yo batch 6 TBWC

Irish #1 15yo Batch 6 That Boutique-y Whisky Company

29th August 202528th August 2025Coldorak

For several years now—though the exact starting point is unclear to me—the English retailer Master of Malt has organised its Whisky Santa event. Participants send their whisky wishes through social media for a chance to win, with some exceptional bottles chosen by the team at MoM as special prizes. Occasionally, this humble author took a chance, fully aware that winning seemed unlikely due to residing in France and the shipping restrictions caused by Brexit. Despite this, I continued to participate, and Whisky Santa eventually granted my wish at the end of last year by sending the Boutique-y Whisky Company 2024 Advent Calendar.

Since Whisky Santa could not ship directly to France—something about elves with outdated passports and a sled under repair—the calendar arrived at a trusted friend’s address. Coincidentally, that friend happens to be Dave Worthington, Boutique-y Whisky’s own brand ambassador. When we met again in London at the end of May, during a short trip with my children, the opportunity arose to collect all the whisky previously sent to Dave due to similar shipping challenges.

As this calendar now belongs to last year, and with plans to explore a Cognac advent calendar this year, I’ve decided to open it outside the traditional season. The tasting will not follow the original order; instead, some drams will be grouped together for review. For now, I’ll skip door number one and instead reveal door number two, which contained an Irish Single Malt Whiskey #1, 15-year-old Batch 6 from That Boutique-y Whisky Company.

Three Indy Invergordon Aged Over 40

12th May 202511th May 2025Coldorak

Invergordon Distillery, established in 1959 and producing whisky since 1961, stands as a key Highland single grain whisky producer in the northernmost part of Scotland’s grain whisky region. It ranks among only six dedicated single grain distilleries in Scotland and supplies spirit crucial for blended whiskies, especially for Whyte & Mackay’s portfolio. The distillery crafts its whisky using a unique mash bill of maize, malted and unmalted barley, and Scottish wheat, combining this with pure water from Loch Glass and massive column stills that create a smooth, refined spirit. Because Invergordon primarily contributes to blends, official single grain bottlings remain rare and mostly appear through independent bottlers. Here, we review three indy Invergordon aged over 40 years: one from That Boutique-y Whisky Company and two from Scott’s Selection.

Port Ellen 33yo Boutique-y & 1983 Duncan Taylor

22nd March 202422nd March 2024Coldorak

In recent weeks, I found myself on the cusp of reaching my 2000th unique whisky tasting. As with any significant milestone, I craved a special celebratory dram. Fortunately, I had received a couple of Port Ellen samples from friends, making them the perfect candidates for my 1999th and 2000th whiskies.

But as Port Ellen distillery was to reopen its doors after a 40 years hiatus, my 2000th tasting was at risk of occurring amidst the bustling chaos of the Lyon Whisky Festival, where precise timing is nearly impossible due to a whisky festival’s frenetic pace. So, I decided to take an ultra-small sip of one of the Port Ellen whiskies right at the 2000th milestone. But fear not – I later savoured both whiskies properly on a serene Sunday morning. By that point, I had already surpassed 2050 drams tasted.

Picture this: the Palais de la Bourse in Lyon, bathed in morning light, almost empty except for myself and a dear friend, Aurélien, as the opening of the second day of the show was not yet to happen for the next 80 minutes. Together, we shared the experience of tasting these two remarkable whiskies: the 33-year-old Port Ellen Boutique-y and the 1983 Duncan Taylor. Our tasting notes were penned collaboratively, as we tried those whiskies together. Whisky is for sharing and drinking, after all.

Official Glenlivet 12 and Speyside #4 Batch 13 Boutique-y

7th March 20247th March 2024Coldorak

Glenlivet is a distillery that left an indelible mark on Scotch whisky, particularly in the Speyside region. Many distilleries appended ‘Glenlivet’ to their name for years to align themselves with its esteemed reputation and the distinctive style of whisky crafted in Speyside. For further insight into this historical context, I recommend reading an article by the Professor on the now defunct scotchwhisky.com. Originally, this review was intended to feature a Glenlivet 12-year-old bottled in the 1970s or 1980s. Unfortunately, half of my miniature bottle evaporated, rendering the whisky flat and lifeless. Instead, we’ll explore an official Glenlivet 12-year-old from 2018, alongside a mysterious Speyside #4 Batch 13 from That Boutique-y Whisky Company. Yes, we may have tried a few other whiskies from Boutique-y recently! The identity of the secret Speyside #4 distillery remains a mystery, of course!

Six Australian Whiskies and a Brandy from Boutique-y

5th March 20245th March 2024Coldorak

Australian whisky is experiencing significant growth, prompting questions about its identity on the global stage. Single malt dominates the scene, offering diverse options from tropical and fruity expressions to wine cask-forward whiskies. Heavy peat varieties are crafted by some Ozie distilleries whilst some others specialise in extensively aged malts. And moreover, Australian whiskies curated by renowned independent bottlers such as Adelphi, That Boutique-y Whisky Company, and others are now accessible, expanding the global reach of Australian whisky. Today we turn our glass to Boutique-y, as we try six Australian whiskies from That Boutique-y Whisky Company as well as an Australian Brandy, that were part of their Return to Oz collection.

Four Indy Balblair

27th February 202427th February 2024Coldorak

Following the exploration of three independent bottlings from Bowmore, let’s now venture into the realm of another venerable distillery: Balblair. As I’ve previously expressed, Balblair holds a special place in my heart, and because of that, it was the very first distillery I had the pleasure of visiting in Scotland. Similar to our journey with Bowmore, we’ll delve into independent bottlings, this time featuring four indy Balblair expressions from That Boutique-y Whisky Company, Kintra, Cadenhead’s and the Scotch Malt Whisky Society.

Japanese Blended Whisky #1 21yo Batch 2 That Boutique-y Whisky Company

Japanese Blended Whisky 21yo Boutique-y

15th February 202415th February 2024Coldorak

In the backdrop of Japan’s whisky shortage crisis in 2015, renowned brands such as Nikka and Suntory found themselves grappling with depleted stockpiles of aged whisky. In response, they made the strategic decision to either discontinue age statements for their flagship expressions or significantly curtail production, opting instead for controlled allocations to their distributors. This scarcity, coupled with a fervent fear of missing out and an element of greed, precipitated an unprecedented surge in prices for the remaining inventory, a trend that has persisted unabated till present day. Amidst this tumultuous landscape, however, That Boutique-y Whisky Company defied the odds by unearthing a cache of 21-year-old Japanese blended whisky, releasing six batches over a few years.

Three Rye Whiskies From Overseas

6th February 20247th February 2024Coldorak

Rye whisky traces its origin to North America, with a history deeply rooted in the early days of European colonisation. Settlers, particularly those of Dutch and German descent, brought with them the tradition of distilling spirits from rye grain, a hardy cereal grain well suited to the continent’s climate. The popularity of rye whisky grew in the northeastern regions of the United States and parts of Canada, where the cool climate proved conducive to cultivating rye. Over time, this distilled beverage became an integral part of the North American whisky heritage. The production process typically involves fermenting and distilling a mash bill that contains a significant proportion of rye grain, usually at least 51%, but that can go up to 100%. Let’s review three rye whiskies from overseas, two from Canada and one from the USA.

That Boutique-y Whisky Company's core range

That Boutique-y Whisky Core Range

6th November 20236th November 2023Coldorak

That Boutique-y Whisky Company has gained fame for its extensive collection of independent bottlings released since 2013, and at this date a total of 883 of them have been documented on WhiskyBase. Recently, the company expanded its repertoire by introducing its first five core range expressions, effectively extending this impressive list. Additionally, there is a sixth core release in the form of their World Whisky Blend, which we have previously reviewed and will omit from this discussion. Instead, let’s focus on examining the remaining five releases from That Boutique-y Whisky’s core range.

Nantou Batch 2 TBWC

29th January 202328th January 2023Coldorak

Back in September, my friend Dave Worthington, That Boutique-y Whisky Company’s brand ambassador, gave me a mountain of samples, and I’m still working my way through them. Hard work, I know. This time I’m trying something from a Taiwanese distillery I have never tried anything before: Nantou. Nantou Distillery was founded in 2008, becoming Taiwan’s second whisky distillery. In 2015, Puli Pan, the distillery manager since 2012, releases a first whisky called Omar. This core range will become known as Yushan Signature and will be joined by Yushan Blended Malt. Since then, they also released whisky under the Nantou name. For now, only two independent bottlers released whisky from Nantou apart from the official bottlings, and we try Nantou batch 2 from That Boutique-y Whisky Company (TBWC).